Recently, I've been dipping into a book called 'Landscape into Literature'. It's an anthology, edited by KayDunbar, of short essays by writers on the subject of landscape and how it fits into the things they read and write. It's a lovely little book - a celebration of (mostly) British literature and countryside. The thing that struck me most though, was the description of one of the contributors, Ronald Blythe.
These are his own words and they are very simple, and yet there is something beautiful about them. It's perhaps my favourite single line of characterisation ever - perhaps because I feel as if it describes me better than I could ever describe myself.
"He longed to be lost but he couldn't bear not to be found."
I really enjoy your quotable Fridays and the way that a sentence or two can capture an emotion or sum up an aspiration or character. It's a little like the flipside of a comedy catchphrase. In this instance it encapsulates something profound and revealing. I once picked up a newspaper on the train and the 'Thought for the Week' was: I will seek the lost, and I will bring back the strayed. It's from Ezekiel 34:16. I still have the (somewhat yellowed now!) clipping. In some small way it describes how I think I'd like to be.
ReplyDeleteThank-you. I'm always open to contributions from other people too :)
DeleteThat's a nice line from Ezekiel - I don't often get on well with Ezekiel, I've read it a few times and find it a bit of a trudge. It reminds me a bit of a line from Isaiah - something like: I searched for people who were not looking for me, I called "Here I am!" to people who were not listening.
Incidentally, the interview I did with you has shot up the popularity stakes on my blog. Last week it was the most-read post!