Mai

“Marco Polo describes a bridge, stone by stone.
'But which is the stone that supports the bridge?' Kublai Khan asks.
'The bridge is not supported by one stone or another,' Marco answers, 'but by the line of the arch that they form.'
Kublai Khan remains silent, reflecting. Then he adds: 'Why do you speak to me of the stones? It is only the arch that matters to me.'
Polo answers: 'Without stones there is no arch.”
― Italo Calvino, Invisible Cities

“Joy through suffering: this phrase (extracted from one of Beethoven's letters, where it actually referred to an uncomfortable coach journey) became the central motto of the Beethoven cult [..].”
― Nicholas Cook, Music: A Very Short Introduction

“What, you egg?”
― William Shakespeare, Macbeth

“The beauty of life is that it ends. If I were mortal and could be granted anything, I assure you, my request would not be for something as dull as longetivity.”
― Vivek Shraya, She of the Mountains