15 Quotes by Sy Safransky

In that dark chamber of my heart, where I confuse being right with being loved...

Each piece was a struggle between the editor – who insisted on the polished phrase, the line that would live forever – and the writer, an ordinary man with something ordinary to say, something sentimental and unremarkable, not quite good enough.

We are always mistaking the suffering of others; it’s either much worse than we think or not nearly so bad.

It’s like resenting a mountain. From the very beginning they were closer. It was part of the unquestioned landscape of my childhood.

I’ve cried out, and my cry has been answered – but life, with all its contradictions and ambiguities, hasn’t ended there. The thirsty man drinks and gets thirsty again.

To respect people is one thing; to raise them up on a pedestal merely shows how deep a hole I’ve dug for myself... True humility lies in forgiving myself for being so perplexingly human, and forgiving others for pretending they’re any less human than I.