ich bein der steppenwolf

reflecting thus, i walked on and on. yes, even without the chamber music and the friend. how foolish to wear oneself out in vain longing for warmth! solitude is independence. it had been my wish and with the years i had attained it. it was cold. oh, cold enough! but it was also still, wonderfully still and vast like the cold stillness of space in which the stars revolve.
~hermann hesse