if at first

i'm almost finished with a book that i borrowed from muslim back in january. it's been a touch-and-go book with me since then. i've been into it, then i'll draw back again, then get into it. the language is genius, and the way mark helprin uses words is absolutely phenomenal.

a paragraph i just read stuck out to me and wouldn't stop reverberating off the sides of my brain.

"All right, Virginia," Mrs. Gamely said. "You've failed a bit. But you're still alive. You may not find a way to save your child. But you have to try. You owe it to her, and you owe it in general."

that kills me. in all the good ways.
for whatever reason, this cannot be preached to me enough.

"you've failed a bit. but you're still alive....you have to try."