"He seemed gnawed by remorse for his offense:
O noble conscience without stain! how sharp
the sting of a small fault is to your sense!"
Our conscience can be unduly harsh. Do not hold a grudge against it, however; it's there to guide us.
"No man may be so cursed by priest or Pope
but what the Eternal Love may still return
while any thread of green lives on in hope."
For as long as even a sliver of hope exists, you must press on.
"Such is this Mount that when a soul
begins the lower slopes it most must labor;
then less and less the more it nears its goal.
Thus when we reach the point where the slopes seem
so smooth and gentle that the climb becomes
as easy as to float a skiff downstream,
then will this road be run, and not before
that journey's end will your repose be found."
To reach heaven, we all must traverse our own personal hell.
"There is a place below where sorrow lies
in untormented gloom. Its lamentations
are not the shrieks of pain, but hopeless sighs."
The absence of hope burns harsher than any fire and brimstone.
"'Don't be afraid,' he said. 'From here our course
leads us to joy, you may be sure. Now, therefore,
hold nothing back, but strive with all your force."
However harsh your journey may be at the moment, never lose sight of the destination: the joy that awaits you.
"Remember, this day will not dawn again."
So seize it.
"Thus you may understand that love alone
is the true seed of every merit in you,
and of all acts for which you must atone."
Cultivate your love. It is within you--and more boundless than you can imagine.
"When Love inspires me with delight,
or pain, or longing, I take careful note,
and as he dictates in my soul, I write."
Whatever Love prompts you to do artistically, follow its injunctions with zeal.
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