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APHORISMS Polish bread tastes bitter. No one can destroy a nation without the co-operation of that nation's citizens. Is there any other nation which has undertaken so many untimely sacrifices of its blood, property and intellect? A nation consists not just of what distinguishes it from other nations, but also of what binds it to other nations. Truth is not just knowledge, it is life itself. You can drink from a carafe if you grip its neck and press it to your lips, but if you wish to drink from a spring, you must go on your knees and bow your head. Imitation of those who have introduced something concerning the overall development of man is not imitation but humanity. Although there is nothing absolutely new, yet everything which is shown at the proper time is absolutely new. It is better that you should lose your life beneath a shattered tree which you had once planted - than that you should wander in the desert, regarding mirages as your own orchards. To have a heart one must use it. A spirit is like water - you sweep it from the hills into a valley and it will erupt into the sky by the measure of its debasement. It's thus with Poland's spirit today. Not everything super-logical is anti-logical. To love - without covering up your eyes - that really is an art. I have seen carrots and turnips in beautifully cooked broth, the carrots and turnips cut into the most elegant patterns: stars and numbers, burning hearts, crosses even... ! All the same, carrots and turnips remained carrots and turnips. If human speech consisted merely of a certain number of words and certain combinations of expressions, there would be no difference between literature and mathematics: literature would simply be faulty mathematics! If, then, today's wise men and philosophers teach us that words express us, I must warn that this is unintended betrayal, because our expressions and words are meant to judge us and not just to express us. Everyone accepts a theoretical truth, but many will spurn it, should it appear that it is not only logical but also demands co-operation - and so, when we call for clarity, don't we at times call for our peace, our powerless freedom for inertia ? |