This quote is from the book, What is the What, by Dave Eggers. The book is a slightly fictionalized account of Valentino Achak Deng, a Sudanese refugee who is a member of the Lost Boys of Sudan program. I went to see Valentino at Kepler's when the book was out - he had been doing quite a lot of speaking engagements. I was shy to meet him because after reading his life story, it seemed so improbable that he was just standing there with us, telling us his story, being so personable and sincere in wanting to know us.
And here's my favorite quote from the book:
I speak to these people, and I speak to you because I cannot help it. It gives me strength, almost unbelievable strength, to know that you are there. I covet your eyes, your ears, the collapsible space between us. How blessed are we to have each other? I am alive and you are alive so we must fill the air with our words. I will fill today, tomorrow, every day until I am taken back to God. I will tell stories to people who will listen and to people who don’t want to listen, to people who seek me out and to those who run. All the while I will know that you are there. How can I pretend that you do not exist? It would be almost as impossible as you pretending that I do not exist.
This passage is from the end of the book on why Valentino has decided to go public with his story. I printed this passage out on a note and tacked it to my desk because it reminds me of the kind of courage it takes to tell a story, and how we must keep writing if you believe you have a story to tell.
Eugenia,
ReplyDeleteI LOVE this. I've never read anything by Dave Eggers and feel like I should. Perhaps this book is the place to start. The quote you chose is inspirational. It reminds me of that harrowing scene in Hotel Rwanda where Don Cheadle's character calls his employers in Europe and tells them the hotel and people he has been protecting inside it are about to be ambushed and massacred. He does it with this heartbreaking professionalism and resignation. It humanized the whole history. How can we let things like this happen? How can we not look out for each other like human beings?
Oh man I had not realized that you haven't read the book, Casey! I hope I didn't ruin it for everybody. This should come with a "spoiler alert" or some sort. This quote helps me in times when I want to get lazy about writing. I read it and say to myself, you have the rare opportunity to tell this story, how could you not?
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