8/28 Heavy, melancholy men turn lighter, and come temporarily to their surface, precisely by that which makes others heavy--by hatred and love. So cold, so icy, that one burns one's finger at the touch of him! Every hand that lays hold of him shrinks back!--And for that very reason many think him red-hot. Who has not, at one time or another--sacrificed himself for the sake of his good name? In affability there is no hatred of men, but precisely on that account a great deal too much contempt of men. The maturity of man--that means, to have reacquired the seriousness that one had as a child at play. |