"The closing years of life are like the end of a masquerade party, when the masks are dropped. " This is a quote by Cesare Pavese. Cesare was an Italian poet who committed suicide at the ripe old age of 41.
Although I have seen in print that many people believe that Pavese was just trying to say that with age comes wisdom, I am not so certain that this is what he actually meant. Remember Pavese killed himself when he was 41, much too young for him to be quoting about the wisdom found with age. Instead, I think that Pavese wrote those words while he was severely depressed. Just prior to his death he had had an affair with U.S.-born actress Constance Dowling, who, in the end, rejected him. This added to his depression and just before he died he dedicated a poem to her. "Death Will Come And She'll Have Your Eyes". For me, the title of the poem alone is enough to link it with the quote above! Knowing that he committed suicide at such a young age, and that he was grieving over the loss of a woman, I believe that what he was trying to convey in the quote was that at some point, everyone reaches that point of clarity where they can see things for what they really are, and for him, I guess, he found that life just wasn't worth living any longer. How sad. I think each of us reach multiple points of clarity throughout our lives. These points of clarity usually only involve a single person or a group of people at each occurrence. Pavese's mistake, I believe, is that he painted everyone and everything with the same broad brush. This could have been caused by his depression. And after reaching a false conclusion, he decided life wasn't worth living. In contrast, I try to find many reasons to live each day. The smiles and hugs I receive from my daughters when they wake up each day is a huge reason for me. It doesn't stop there though, conversations with my Mom and sister, my first cup of coffee, the cool breeze when I open my door. Petting my dog and eating breakfast are all little points of pleasure for me each day. Although the masks of the people around me do not drop every day, most times when they do I am happy with what I see. Surround yourself with people that make you happy. By doing that, I find that most times when the masks come off, I am happy with what I see. On the flip side, limit your time with those people that make you unhappy. Life is too short to be unhappy. Talk through your differences. It is worth the effort! Finally, cut off ties with people who are untrustworthy. If you can't trust someone to do what's right towards you, then you have no reason to have that person in your life. Finally... and here's the hard part. Try to have the wisdom to know the difference!
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