“She seemed fragile like a moonflower – destined to bloom for a single lovely night, and then to fade and fall.”

“Divinity must live within herself:Passions of rain, or moods in the falling snow;Grievings in loneliness, or unsubduedElations when the forest blooms; gustyEmotions on wet roads on autumn nights;All pleasures and all pains, rememberingThe boughs of summer and the winter branch.These are the measures destined for her soul.”

“Life is brief, young maiden, fall in love; before the crimson bloom fades from your lips, before the tides of passion cool within your hips, for those of you who know no tomorrow. (Gondola no Uta)”

“For a child, parents’ warning is like a rose blooming in the brain; it opens with difficulty and fades quickly.”

“Young people think they are invincible, that nothing bad will ever happen to them, and then something changes: they fall in love. And the world begins to seem a lot more fragile.”

“... For such as truly love the world, a thousand years would fade like the dream of one night.”