“...the reason for living was to get ready to stay dead a long time.”

“I could just remember how my father used to say that the reason for living was to get ready to stay dead a long time.”

“Clocks slay time... time is dead as long as it is being clicked off by little wheels; only when the clock stops does time come to life.”

“Because Father said clocks slay time. He said time is dead as long as it is being clicked off by little wheels; only when the clock stops does time come to life.”

“any live man is better than any dead man but no live or dead man is very much better than any other live or dead man”

“And so I told myself to take that one. Because Father said clocks slay time. He said time is dead as long as it is being clicked off by little wheels; only when the clock stops does time come to life. The hands were extended, slightly off the horizontal at a faint angle, like a gull tilting into the wind.”

“Marriage is long enough to have plenty of room for time behind it.”