Everything was too sharp and clear, so that I could never te... - Haruki Murakami, Norwegian Wood

"Those were strange days, now that I look back at them. In the midst of life, everything revolved around death."

"This is one more piece of advice I have for you: don't get impatient. Even if things are so tangled up you can't do anything, don't get desperate or blow a fuse and start yanking on one particular thread before it's ready to come undone. You have to realize it's going to be along process and that you'll work on things slowly, one at a time."

"With my eyes closed, I would touch a familiar book and draw its fragrance deep inside me. This was enough to make me happy."

"I was always hungry for love. Just once, I wanted to know what it was like to get my fill of it -- to be fed so much love I couldn't take any more. Just once."

"People leave strange little memories of themselves behind when they die."