Life and death

“When I look back at my life, I feel pain not because of suffering, but because of wasted time. I see how carelessly I lived, how often I ignored the quiet voice of my soul, how rarely I understood the value of a single moment. Only when death stood before me did I realize that life is not merely existence—it is a miracle. Every minute is a treasure, and in every breath, there is the possibility of happiness.” Dostoevsky wrote this after being sentenced to death by firing squad for participating in the Petrashevsky Circle and then seconds before execution receiving a reprieve from Tsar Nicholas I commuted his sentence to four years hard labour in Siberia.

"There's night and day, brother, both sweet things; sun, moon, and stars, brother, all sweet things; there's likewise a wind on the heath. Life is very sweet, brother; who would wish to die?" A gypsy talking to George Borrow