Death On The Stairs

[…] There is one transcending level [in the pursuit of study], and this is the most excellent of all. This person is aware of the endlessness of entering deeply into a certain Way and never thinks of himself as having finished. He truly knows his own insufficiencies and never in his whole life thinks that he has succeeded. He has no thoughts of pride but with self-abasement knows the Way to the end. It is said that Master Yagyu once remarked, “I do not know the way to defeat others, but the way to defeat myself.” Throughout your life advance daily, becoming more skillful than yesterday, more skillful than today. This is never-ending.

“I belong to quick, futile moments of intense feeling. Yes, I belong to moments. Not to people.”

“Sometimes, relationships don’t work out no matter how many papier mache creatures you throw at them.”