CarrollBlog

JH wrote in and asked that this passage from WHITE APPLES be noted.

Right away she smelled more than thirty-five years of her fears, lies and deceptions. Those things do have an odor. It is common, metallic, and not unlike the smell of fresh blood. It is fresh but it is also old, ancient even. Everyone knows the aroma but does not admit it because we have smelled it on ourselves too many times. It is ugly and deeply embarrassing. Good intentions, good love, good hope. We were so sure it would work this time. So sure this was the right person, or the ideal situation, the thing we had been waiting for our whole lives. But we were wrong. And as our fear, lies and other deceptions moved in to infect those new situations, the odor began again.
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Life is the only way
to get covered in leaves,
catch your breath on the sand,
rise on wings.

Wislawa Szymborska