“Now was the present, now was the time containing that sweet union of carbon, oxygen, hydrogen, spirit, will and imagination named Nancy.”

— Jack Vance , book Big Planet

Source: Big Planet (1957), Chapter 8 “A Matter of Vitamins” (p. 80)

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Jack Vance 213

American mystery and speculative fiction writer 1916–2013

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“Now present here, the future takes its time.
The brittle insect scrapes at the dry loam;
All is burnt up, used up, drawn up in air
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And bitterness is sweet, and the spirit clear.”

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Ici venu, l'avenir est paresse.
L'insecte net gratte la sécheresse;
Tout est brûlé, défait, reçu dans l'air
A je ne sais quelle sévère essence . . .
La vie est vaste, étant ivre d'absence,
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As translated by by C. Day Lewis
Charmes ou poèmes (1922)