“Every day is a new day. It is better to be lucky. But I would rather be exact. Then when luck comes you are ready..“
“But man is not made for defeat,” he said. “A man can be destroyed but not defeated..“
“Let him think that I am more man than I am and I will be so..“
“Now is no time
to think of what you do not have.
Think of what you can do
with that there is.“
“Why do old men wake so early? Is it to have one longer day?.“
“I may not be as stong as I think, but I know many tricks and I have resolution..“
“Most people were heartless about turtles because a turtle’s heart will beat for hours after it has been cut up and butchered. But the old man thought, I have such a heart too..“
“It’s silly not to hope. It’s a sin he thought..“
“He always thought of the sea as ‘la mar’ which is what people call her in Spanish when they love her. Sometimes those who love her say bad things of her but they are always said as though she were a woman. Some of the younger fishermen, those who used buoys as floats for their lines and had motorboats, bought when the shark livers had brought much money, spoke of her as ‘el mar’ which is masculine.They spoke of her as a contestant or a place or even an enemy. But the old man always thought of her as feminine and as something that gave or withheld great favours, and if she did wild or wicked things it was because she could not help them. The moon affects her as it does a woman, he thought..“
“If the others heard me talking out loud they would think that I am crazy. But since I am not, I do not care..“
“It is good that we do not have to try to kill the sun or the moon or the stars. It is enough to live on the sea and kill our true brothers..“
“Fish,” he said softly, aloud, “I’ll stay with you until I am dead..“
“Luck is a thing that comes in many forms and who can recognize her?.“
“You did not kill the fish only to keep alive and to sell for food, he thought. You killed him for pride and because you are a fisherman. You loved him when he was alive and you loved him after. If you love him, it is not a sin to kill him. Or is it more?.“
“No one should be alone in their old age, he thought..“
“Fish,” he said, “I love you and respect you very much. But I will kill you dead before this day ends.“
“He no longer dreamed of storms, nor of women, nor of great occurrences, nor of great fish, nor fights, nor contests of strength, nor of his wife. He only dreamed of places now and the lions on the beach. They played like young cats in the dusk and he loved them as he loved the boy. He never dreamed about the boy. He simply woke, looked out the open door at the moon and unrolled his trousers and put them on..“
“And bed, he thought. Bed is my friend. Just bed, he thought. Bed will be a great thing. It is easy when you are beaten, he thought. I never knew how easy it was. And what beat you, the thought..“
“Why did they make birds so delicate and fine as those sea swallows when the ocean can be so cruel?.“
“My big fish must be somewhere..“
“Perhaps I should not have been a fisherman, he thought. But that was the thing that I was born for..“
“Fish, I love you and respect you very much. But I will kill you dead before this day ends..“
“But I must have the confidence and I must be worthy of the great DiMaggio who does all things perfectly even with the pain of the bone spur in his heel..“
“The fish is my friend too. I have never seen or heard of such a fish. But I must kill him. I’m glad we do not have to kill the stars..“
“A man is never lost at sea….“
“You are killing me, fish, the old man thought. But you have a right to. Never have I seen a greater, or more beautiful, or a calmer or more noble thing than you, brother. Come on and kill me. I do not care who kills who..“
“I think the great DiMaggio would be proud of me today..“
“But a man is not made for defeat. A man can be destroyed but not defeated.”
“You did not kill the fish only to keep alive and to sell for food, he thought. You killed him for pride and because you are a fisherman. You loved him when he was alive and you loved him after. If you love him, it is not a sin to kill him. Or is it more?.“
“To hell with luck. I’ll bring the luck with me..“
“Do not think about sin, he thought. There are enough problems now without sin. Also I have no understanding of it..“
“The fish is my friend too…I have never seen or heard of such a fish. But I must kill him. I am glad we do not have to try to kill the stars. Imagine if each day a man must try to kill the moon, he thought. The moon runs away. But imagine if a man each day should have to try to kill the sun? We were born lucky; he thought.“
“I hate a cramp, he thought. It is a treachery of one’s own body..“
“Take a good rest, small bird,” he said. “Then go in and take your chance like any man or bird or fish..“
“But, he thought, I keep them with precision. Only I have no luck anymore. But who knows? Maybe today. Every day is a new day. It is better to be lucky. But I would rather be exact. Then when luck comes you are ready..“
“He rested sitting on the un-stepped mast and sail and tried not to think but only to endure..“
“Have faith in the Yankees my son. Think of the great DiMaggio..“
“I have never seen or heard of such a fish. But I must kill him. I am glad we do not have to try to kill the stars.” Imagine if each day a man must try to kill the moon, he thought. The moon runs away. . . . Then he was sorry for the great fish that had nothing to eat and his determination to kill him never relaxed in his sorrow for him. . . . There is no one worthy of eating him from the manner of his behavior and his great dignity. I do not understand these things, he thought. But it is good that we do not have to try to kill the sun or the moon or the stars. It is enough to live on the sea and kill our true brothers..“