letter of the word


i said to a friend, famous for his composure -

rilke once wrote:
death is the saddest thing, beauty the most inspiring 
so the death of beauty is the most tragic event.

my friend wrote:
assuming the same definition of beauty (not physical attractiveness)
i agree with your conclusion that "the most inspiring thing is beauty".

not all beauty is inspiring, but all inspiring things are beautiful.
i do not agree with the first given about death.  you knew that already ...

i wrote:
i love the beauty of my friend and to think of that
absent from this world 
is very sad.

he wrote:
but do you grieve for the loss to the world or
to yourself?