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61 " My life has been defined by the things I didn’t do. The things I didn’t say. I think it’s the same for a lot of people. What shapes us is not always our achievements but our omissions. Not lies; simply the truths we don’t tell. "
― C.J. Tudor , The Chalk Man
62 " Só uma pessoa o visitava com regularidade, todas as semanas, sem falhar, e não era nenhum dos membros da congregação, nem nenhum dos seus «anjos» devotos. Era a minha mãe.Nunca percebi porquê. No passado, tinham-se odiado. O reverendo Martin tinha dito e feito coisas horríveis à minha mãe. Mais tarde, ela havia de me dizer:- Exactamente por isso, Eddie. Tens de compreender que ser uma pessoa boa nada tem a ver com entoar hinos nem rezar a um qualquer deus mítico. Não é usar um crucifixo nem ir todos os domingos à igreja. Uma pessoa boa não precisa de religião porque está em paz consigo mesma ao fazer o que deve ser feito. "
63 " I open my mouth, my tongue flounders around and, eventually, my brain shoves it in the direction of the most obvious words: ‘He’s dead.’ ‘Dead?’ Funny how people always repeat that word, even though they know they’ve heard it correctly. A kind of denial by delay. "
64 " For who are we if not the sum of all our experiences, the things that we gather and collect in life? Once you strip those away we become just a mass of flesh, bones, and blood vessels. "
65 " No. None of us is ever really prepared for death. For something so finite. As human beings, we’re used to being able to control our lives. To extend them to an extent. But death brooks no argument. No final plea. No appeal. Death is death and he holds all the cards. Even if you can cheat him once, he won’t let you call his bluff a second time. "
66 " load of lines and triangles meant the woods. "
67 " I suppose he was right. Love isn’t a choice. It’s a compulsion. I know that now. But perhaps, sometimes, you should choose. Or, at least, choose not to fall in love. "
68 " but rumours are like germs. They spread and multiply almost in a breath and, before you know it, everyone is contaminated. "
69 " For who are we if not the sum of our experiences, the things that we gather and collect in life? Once you strip those away we become just a mass of flesh, bone and blood vessels. "
70 " The fact is, we all have a price, we all have buttons that can be pressed to make us do things that are not entirely honourable. "
71 " an old joke my dad used to tell about outrunning a lion. Didn’t matter if you outran the lion. You just needed to outrun the slowest person. "
72 " you can’t fight crazy. Crazy always wins. "
73 " muitas vezes, o que a idade traz não é sabedoria, mas sim intolerância "
74 " She regards me with raised eyebrows. At least I think they're raised. They could just be painted on. "
75 " The service is short. Which is both a mercy and a timely reminder of how seventy years on this planet can be condensed into ten minutes of summary and a few unnecessary wafflings about God. "
76 " Were you looking at her face before, Eddie?’ I opened my mouth, but I didn’t know what to say, or understand why his voice didn’t sound so friendly any more. "
77 " ...for who are we if not the sum of our experiences (the things that we collect in life)? Once you strip those away we become just a mass of flesh, bone, and blood vessels. "
78 " I wait for the significance of this to dawn. Moss grows around my feet. Glaciers form and melt. "
79 " There are some things in life you can alter—your weight, your appearance, even your name—but there are others that wishing and trying and working hard can never make any difference to. Those things are the ones that shape us. Not the things we can change, but the ones we can’t. "
80 " For who are we if not the sum of our experiences, the things that we gather and collect in life? "