" I was trying to discover examples of a living restoration, trying to go beyond discussions about correct historic colors, materials, and techniques.
I looked to the past for guidance, to find the graces we need to save. I want to be an importer. This is not nostalgia; I am not nostalgic. I am not looking for a way back. "From where will a renewal come to us, to us who have devastated the whole earthly globe?" asked Simone Weil. "Only from the past if we love it."
What I am looking for is the trick of having the same ax twice, for a restoration that renews the spirit, for work that transforms the worker. We may talk of saving antique linens, species, or languages; but whatever we are intent on saving, when a restoration succeeds, we rescue ourselves.
-- Howard Mansfield, The Same Ax Twice: Restoration and Renewal in a Throwaway Age "
― Howard Mansfield
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![Howard Mansfield quote : I was trying to discover examples of a living restoration, trying to go beyond discussions about correct historic colors, materials, and techniques. <br /><br />I looked to the past for guidance, to find the graces we need to save. I want to be an importer. This is not nostalgia; I am not nostalgic. I am not looking for a way back.](/image/856723.jpg)
What I am looking for is the trick of having the same ax twice, for a restoration that renews the spirit, for work that transforms the worker. We may talk of saving antique linens, species, or languages; but whatever we are intent on saving, when a restoration succeeds, we rescue ourselves.
-- Howard Mansfield, The Same Ax Twice: Restoration and Renewal in a Throwaway Age" style="width:100%;margin:20px 0;"/>