Life is a series of diminishments. Each cessation of an activity either from choice or some other variety of infirmity is a death, a putting to final rest. Each loss, of friend or precious enemy, can be equated with the closing off of a room containing blocks of nerves and soon after the closing off the nerves atrophy and that part of oneself, in essence, drops away. The self is lightened, is held on earth by a gram less of mass and will.

Summary

This quote suggests that life is ultimately a process of decline and loss. It asserts that as we cease certain activities or experience the departure of people from our lives, a part of ourselves dies or diminishes. It likens these endings to the closing off of rooms in one's being, with the associated nerves eventually atrophying. Consequently, the self becomes lighter and weaker, as less mass and will anchor it to the world. This quote emphasizes the inevitability of change and the transient nature of existence.

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