Hermann Hesse

I now viewed the bright days,
The sunshine and the woods,
The brown rocks and the distant snow-covered mountains
With heightened feelings of happiness and joy,
And with a new conception.

During the dark hours I felt my sick heart expand and beat more furiously,
And I no longer made any distinction between pleasure and pain,
But one was similar to another;
Both hurt and both were precious.
Whether I felt pain or joy,
My discovered strength stood peacefully outside looking on
And knew that light and dark were closely related
And that sorrow and peace were rhythm,
Part and spirit of the same great music.

-Hermann Hesse