Nietzsche about life

1.

It’s nice, in silence together,
Even nicer, laughing together—
Underneath the silken skies
Amidst moss and books, here lie
Friends, our joyous laughter growing
With our white teeth showing.

Am I right? silent let us remain;
Am I wrong? laughter be our refrain—
Make it worse and worse, a louder wave,
Until together we reach the grave.

Yes, friends, shall we do it again?—
Amen! and auf Wiedersehn!

2.

No excuses! No forgiving!
Openhearted and cheerful living
Grant this foolish book your
Ear and heart and shelter!
Believe me, friends, my foolish strain
Has never been in vain!

What I seek, what I discover—
Has a book contained it ever?
Honor in me the guild of fools!
From this fools-book learn
How reason to its senses turned!

Yes, friends, shall we do it again?—
Amen! and auf Wiedersehn!

The slow arrow of beauty

.— The noblest kind of beauty is that which does not transport us suddenly, which does not make stormy and intoxicating impressions (such a kind easily arouses disgust), but that which slowly filters into our minds, which we take away with us almost unnoticed, and which we encounter again in our dreams; but which, however, after having long lain modestly on our hearts, takes entire possession of us, fills our eyes with tears and our hearts with longing. What is it that we long for at the sight of beauty? We long to be beautiful, we fancy it must bring much happiness with it. But that is a mistake

The hour-hand of life.— Life consists of rare, isolated moments of the greatest significance, and of innumerably many intervals, during which at best the silhouettes of those moments hover about us. Love, springtime, every beautiful melody, mountains, the moon, the sea—all these speak completely to the heart but once, if in fact they ever do get a chance to speak completely. For many men do not have those moments at all, and are themselves intervals and intermissions in the symphony of real life

Learning to love.— We must learn to love, learn to be kind, and this from earliest youth; if education or chance give us no opportunity to practice these feelings, our soul becomes dry and unsuited even to understanding the tender inventions of loving people. Likewise, hatred must be learned and nurtured, if one wishes to become a proficient hater: otherwise the germ for that, too, will gradually wither

Desire for deep pain.— When it has gone, passion leaves behind a dark longing for itself, and in disappearing throws us one last seductive glance. There must have been a kind of pleasure in having been beaten with her whip. In contrast, the more moderate feelings appear flat; apparently we still prefer a more violent displeasure to a weak pleasure

Alienated from the present.— There are great advantages in for once removing ourselves distinctly from our time and letting ourselves be driven from its shore back into the ocean of former world views. Looking at the coast from that perspective, we survey for the first time its entire shape, and when we near it again, we have the advantage of understanding it better on the whole than do those who have never left it

In the fire of contempt.— It is a new step towards independence, once a man dares to express opinions that bring disgrace on him if he entertains them; then even his friends and acquaintances begin to grow anxious. The man of talent must pass through this fire, too; afterwards he is much more his own person.