Sunsets are loved because they vanish. Flowers are loved because they go. The dogs of the field and the cats of the kitchen are loved because soon they must depart. These are not the sole reasons, but at the heart of morning welcomes and afternoon laughters is the promise of farewell. In the gray muzzle of an old dog we see goodbye. In the tired face of an old friend we read long journeys beyond returns.
Interpretation
The beauty of life is enhanced by its transience and the inevitability of goodbyes.
In this quote, Ray Bradbury reflects on the idea that the things we cherish, like sunsets, flowers, and beloved animals, are appreciated not only for their beauty but also because they are temporary. This transience gives our experiences depth and meaning, underscoring the importance of cherishing each moment while it lasts, as it is the awareness of eventual farewells that enriches our connections and experiences.
In practice
During a memorial speech, this quote can be used to highlight the importance of appreciating loved ones.
I've written about 2,000 short stories; I've only published 300 and I feel I'm still learning. Any man who keeps working is not a failure. He may not be a great writer, but if he applies the old fashioned virtues of hard, constant labor, he'll eventually make some kind of career for himself as a writer. Ray Bradbury, 1967 interview (Doing the Math - that means for every story he sold, he wrote six "un-publishable" ones. Keep typing!)
I never went to college, so I went to the library.
There must be something in books, something we can’t imagine, to make a woman stay in a burning house; there must be something there. You don’t stay for nothing.
I think the sun is a flower, That blooms for just one hour.
The first thing a writer should be is - excited. He should be a thing of fevers and enthusiasms. Without such vigor, he might as well be out picking peaches or digging ditches; God knows it'd be better for his health.
You can't try to do things; you simply must do them.
Life is a journey, not a destination; there are no mistakes, just chances we've taken.
Oh, how I regret not having worn a bikini for the entire year I was 26. If anyone young is reading this, go, right this minute, put on a bikini, and don't take it off until you're 34.
Being someone who had had a very difficult childhood, a very difficult adolescence - it had to do with not quite poverty, but close. It had to do with being brought up in a family where no one spoke English, no one could read or write English. It had to do with death and disease and lots of other things. I was a little prone to depression.
It’s just that I feel so sad these wonderful nights. I sort of feel they’re never coming again, and I’m not really getting all I could out of them.
When a woman conceives her true self, a miracle occurs and life around her begins again.
A long life may not be good enough, but a good life is long enough.
Subscribe for the occasional hand-picked quote. No noise.