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An Interrupted Life: The Diaries of Etty Hillesum, 1941-1943

Book by Etty Hillesum · 3 quotes · Stills, Study, Achieving Peace

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An Interrupted Life: The Diaries of Etty Hillesum, 1941-1943 Quotes

“Slowly but surely I have been soaking Rilke up these last few months: the man, his work and his life. And that is probably the only right way with literature, with study, with people or with anything else: to let it all soak in, to let it all mature slowly inside you until it has become a part of yourself. That, too, is a growing process. Everything is a growing process. And in between, emotions and sensations that strike you like lightning. But still the most important thing is the organic process of growing.”

“Thinking gets you nowhere. It may be a fine and noble aid in academic studies, but you can't think your way out of emotional difficulties. That takes something altogether different. You have to make yourself passive then, and just listen. Re-establish contact with a slice of eternity.”