“ …for he must confess to two of the oddest infirmities in the world: one was, that he had no idea of time; the other, that he had no idea of money. In consequence of which, he never kept an appointment, never could transact any business, and never knew the value of anything! Well! So he had got on in life, and here he was! He was very fond of reading the papers, very fond of making fancy-sketches with a pencil, very fond of nature, very fond of art. All he asked of society was, to let him live. That wasn’t much. His wants were few. Give him the papers, conversation, music, mutton, coffee, landscape, fruit in the season, a few sheets of Bristol-board, and a little claret, and he asked no more. He was a mere child in the world, but he didn’t cry for the moon. He said to the world, ‘Go your several ways in peace! Wear read coats, blue coats, lawn-sleeves, put pens behind your ears, wear aprons, go after glory, holiness, commerce, trade, any object you prefer; only—let Harold Skimpole live!’
Charles Dickens, Bleak House
Otherwise known as: my favorite passage from my favorite Charles Dickens novel. I swear that though I may be an adult, sometimes I still feel like Harold Skimpole: “Go your several ways in peace!…only—let [me] live!” Let me do what I want in peace.
(via mllehazelwood)
Happy birthday Mr. Dickens!
3 months ago • 4 notes
