Page 147 - The Legacy of Abraham Rothstein - text
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Courtship
Why? Why? No explanation. To be disappointed in love is not
new in courtship, among birds and mammals as well as humans, and
I, so shy and silly, fell victim to it. I was dejected and mystified. I had
never been impolite or, as they say, fresh. Had we quarreled for any
reason whatsoever, then we would have parted either as enemies or
friends, but here was no accusation or blame for any wrongdoing. It
gave me more sorrow than those usual quarrels in the love stories.
One day, when I happened to find her alone in the house, I went
down on one knee and implored her to tell me why she hurt me so
much. And while my throat was choking, and I was confused and
ashamed of myself, she told me to forget everything. I suffered for
months, and read Werther’s Sorrows by Goethe.
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