Lord, may the pain be ours, And the weakness that it brings, But at least give us the strength, Of not showing it to anyone!
Interpretation
The quote expresses a desire for inner strength to endure pain without showing vulnerability to others.
In this quote, Fernando Pessoa reflects on the human experience of suffering and the inherent weakness that accompanies it. He invokes a plea for strength not only to bear the pain but to hide it from the external world, suggesting that there is value in maintaining a facade of resilience even in moments of deep personal struggle. This highlights the complexity of human emotions and the often-unseen battles that individuals face.
In practice
In a speech about mental health, this quote could illustrate the hidden struggles many face.
I have at this moment so many fundamental thoughts, so many truly metaphysical things to say, that I suddenly get tired and decide not to write any more, not to think any more, but to allow the fever of speaking to make me sleepy, and with my eyes closed, like a cat, I play with everything I could have said.
It's been months since I last wrote. I've lived in a state of mental slumber, leading the life of someone else. I've felt, very often, a vicarious happiness. I haven't existed. I've been someone else. I've lived without thinking.
We all have two lives: The true, the one we dreamed of in childhood And go on dreaming of as adults in a substratum of mist; the false, the one we love when we live with others, the practical, the useful, the one we end up by being put in a coffin.
I'm a man for whom the outside world is an inner Reality.
My dreams are a stupid refuge, like an umbrella against a thunderbolt.
The chill of what I won't feel gnaws at my present heart.
To be the equal of one's opponent-this is the first condition of an honourable duel.
If somebody's trying to shut you up, sing louder, and if possible, better.
When our burdens are grievous to be borne, when we face a world in which it seems that there is only struggle and no rest, I hope we can remember the immense strength of our sisterhood, the reservoirs that we have within us, and the unfailing wellspring of the Saviorβs love for us, even in the midst of adversity.
Do you see over yonder, friend Sancho, thirty or forty hulking giants? I intend to do battle with them and slay them.
I have never had a vote, and I have raised hell all over this country. You don't need a vote to raise hell! You need convictions and a voice!
We were marooned in a frozen desert. There was not a sign of life on the horizon and a thousand signs of death... The marvel is we did not all die of cold.
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