I do not intend to spare myself, not to avoid emotions or difficulties. I don't care much whether I live a longer or shorter time: the world concerns me only in so far as I feel a certain debt toward it, because I have walked on this earth for thirty years, and out of gratitude I want to leave some souvenir.
About this quote
- What does it mean?
- The speaker accepts hardship and emotion as part of life, valuing their brief existence as an opportunity to give something back to the world.
- In plain terms
- I will face life hard things because I want to leave something good behind during my time here.
- What can you take from it?
- Live with gratitude and aim to leave a positive mark regardless of how long you live.
Where it applies
Putting it to work
Questions to consider
- What do you owe the world?
- How do you measure a life well spent?
Another view
It assumes one has the capacity or resources to leave a meaningful souvenir.
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