Modesty Kager

“The healthy man does not torture others—generally, it is the tortured who turn into torturers.”
― C.G. Jung, Psychology of the Unconscious

“The boy took his seat at one side of the fire, his men arrayed about him like the spikes on a porcupine's back, all bristling with spears.”
― Tony Debajo, In the Shadow of Ruin

“His gaze, which had been following the circling fruit, flickered to mine. I did not have time to look away before he said, softly but distinctly, “Catch.” A fig leapt from the pattern in a graceful arc towards me. It fell into the cup of my palms, soft and slightly warm. I was aware of the boys cheering.

One by one, Achilles caught the remaining fruits, returned them to the table with a performer’s flourish. Except for the last, which he ate, the dark flesh parting to pink seeds under his teeth. The fruit was perfectly ripe, the juice brimming. Without thinking, I brought the one he had thrown me to my lips. Its burst of grainy sweetness filled my mouth; the skin was downy on my tongue. I had loved figs, once.”
― Madeline Miller, The Song of Achilles

“I breathe deeply and say over to myself: - 'You are at home. You are at home.' But a sense of strangeness will not leave me, I cannot feel at home amongst these things . . . I am not myself there. There is a distance, a veil between us.”
― Erich Maria Remarque, All Quiet on the Western Front