“You said you're going far away," Tamaru said. "How far away are we talking about?""It's a distance that can't be measured.""Like the distance that separates one person's heart from another's.”

“But what seems like a reasonable distance to one person might feel too far to somebody else.”

“Distance might not solve anything, no matter how far you run.”

“No matter how far you travel, you can never get away from yourself.”

“When you see runners in town is easy to distinguish beginners from veterans. The ones panting are beginners; the ones with quiet, measured breathing are the veterans. Their hearts, lost in thought, slowly tick away time. When we pass each other on the road, we listen to the rhythm of each other's breathing, and sense the way the other person is ticking away the moments.”

“The best way to think about reality, I had decided, was to get as far away from it as possible.”

“Tell me how you could say such a thing, she said, staring down at the ground beneath her feet. You're not telling me anything I don't know already. 'Relax your body, and the rest of you will lighten up.' What's the point of saying that to me? If I relaxed my body now, I'd fall apart. I've always lived like this, and it's the only way I know how to go on living. If I relaxed for a second, I'd never find my way back. I'd go to pieces, and the pieces would be blown away. Why can't you see that? How can you talk about watching over me if you can't see that?”