A short story is the ultimate close-up magic trick -- a couple of thousand words to take you around the universe or break your heart.
Neil GaimanRead
Are you scared?’ asked Mr. Ibis. ‘Not really.’ ‘Well, try to cultivate the emotions of true awe and spiritual terror, as we walk. They are the appropriate feelings for the situation at hand.
Interpretation
What this quote means
The quote encourages the embrace of awe and fear in the face of life's mysteries and challenges.
In this quote, Mr. Ibis suggests that in certain situations, especially those that touch upon the profound and unknown, it is appropriate to feel a mix of awe and spiritual terror. This duality highlights the beauty and complexity of life, reminding us that fear can coexist with wonder as we navigate through experiences that challenge our understanding and evoke deep emotions.
Themes
AweFearSpiritualEmotionsLife
In practice
Example use cases
During a discussion on existentialism, this quote can emphasize the importance of confronting our fears.
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As a teenager I wrote to R.A. Lafferty. And he responded, too, with letters that were like R.A. Lafferty short stories, filled with elliptical answers to straight questions and simple answers to complicated ones.
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The important thing to understand about American history, wrote Mr. Ibis, in his leather-bound journal, is that it is fictional, a charcoal-sketched simplicity for the children, or the easily bored.
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Nothing’s changed. You’ll go home. You’ll be bored. You’ll be ignored. No one will listen to you, really listen to you. You’re too clever and too quiet for them to understand. They don’t even get your name right.
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I like the stars. It's the illusion of permanence, I think. I mean, they're always flaring up and caving in and going out. But from here, I can pretend...I can pretend that things last. I can pretend that lives last longer than moments. Gods come, and gods go. Mortals flicker and flash and fade. Worlds don't last; and stars and galaxies are transient, fleeting things that twinkle like fireflies and vanish into cold and dust. But I can pretend.
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