‘No, Hamilcar! No,’ I said to him; ‘there is no rest in this world, and the quietude you long for is incompatible with the duties of life. And you say that we are old, indeed!  Listen to what I read in this catalogue, and then tell me whether this is a time to be reposing…’

-A. France

‘Already there are fine days and dust,

Already a blazing, azure sky,

The walls are on fire, the evenings lengthening,

And the green going; little by little

A reddish reflection decorates

The towering trees with their black branches.

This fine weather weighs me down and wearies me.

It is only after rainy days

That spring should surge up,

A picture going green and rose-colored,

Brought out like a new nymph

Who steps from the water, smiling.’

G. de Nerval