No iron can pierce the human heart as chillingly as a full stop placed at the right time.
Interpretation
A well-timed pause can have a profound emotional impact on people.
This quote underscores the significance of timing in communication, particularly how a moment of silence or a definitive end can affect the dynamics of human emotions. It suggests that just as a full stop in a sentence can change its meaning entirely, the pauses in our interactions can convey deep feelings that words alone may not express.
In practice
During a public speech, this quote could be used to emphasize the power of silence after delivering an impactful statement.
The orange sky is rolling across the sky like a severed head, gentle light glimmers in the ravines among the clouds, the banners of the sunset are fluttering above our heads. The stench of yesterday’s blood and slaughtered horses drips into the evening chill.
There is no iron that can enter the human heart with such stupefying effect, as a period placed at just the right moment.
Celebrity is never more admired than by the negligent.
Believe nothing,_x000D_ _x000D_ No matter where you read it,_x000D_ _x000D_ Or who has said it,_x000D_ _x000D_ Not even if I have said it,_x000D_ _x000D_ Unless it agrees with your own reason_x000D_ _x000D_ And your own common sense.
Given the complexity of interpersonal relationships and institutions and the complexity of co-ordination of the actions of many people, it is enormously unlikely that, even if there were one ideal pattern for society, it could be arrived at in an a priori fashion. And even supposing that some great genius did come along with a blueprint, who could have the confidence that it could work
It is the task of youth not to reshape the church, but rather to listen to the word of God.
May we agree that private life is irrelevant? Multiple, mixed, ambiguous at best - out of it we try to fashion the crystal clear, the singular, the absolute, and that is what is relevant; that is what matters.
Unable to make what is just strong, we have made what is strong just.
Subscribe for the occasional hand-picked quote. No noise.