--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: From the tower battlements, Dustfinger…" description: "\"From the tower battlements, Dustfinger looked down on a lake as black as night, where the reflection of the castle swam in a sea of stars. The wind pas..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/406/cornelia-funke-908_bitterness_from-the-tower-battlements-dustfinger-lo_1497035.png" --- # From the tower battlements, Dustfinger looked down on a… ![“From the tower battlements, Dustfinger looked down on a lake as black as night, where the reflection of the castle swam in a sea of stars. The wind passing over his unscarred face was cold from the snow of the surrounding mountains, and Dustfinger relished life as if he were tasting it for the…” quote by Cornelia Funke](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/406/cornelia-funke-908_bitterness_from-the-tower-battlements-dustfinger-lo_1497035.png) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/406/cornelia-funke-908_bitterness_from-the-tower-battlements-dustfinger-lo_1497035.png) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/406/cornelia-funke-908_bitterness_from-the-tower-battlements-dustfinger-lo_1497035.png) > “From the tower battlements, Dustfinger looked down on a lake as black as night, where the reflection of the castle swam in a sea of stars. The wind passing over his unscarred face was cold from the snow of the surrounding mountains, and Dustfinger relished life as if he were tasting it for the first time. The longing it brought, and the desire. All the bitterness, all the sweetness, even if it was only for a while, never for more than a while, everything gained and lost, lost and found again.” [Cornelia Funke](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/cornelia-funke/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Dustfinger experiences a profound, fleeting appreciation of life’s contrasts, recognizing both joy and sorrow as temporary and intertwined. **In simple terms:** He savors life’s fleeting highs and lows. Key Takeaway Embrace moments, knowing they are temporary. Themes appreciation transience duality nature emotion Mood reflective melancholic inspirational Type literary philosophical When to use this quote - mountain trek - watching sunrise - reflective writing - artistic inspiration Key Concepts existentialism sensory perception impermanence Questions to Reflect On - What fleeting moments do you cherish? - How do you balance joy and sorrow? A Different Perspective The poetic description may romanticize suffering, overlooking practical coping strategies. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Bitterness](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/bitterness/) [Black](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/black/) [Castles](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/castles/) [Cold](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/cold/) [Desire](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/desire/) [Dustfinger](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/dustfinger/) [Dustfinger Looked](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/dustfinger-looked-5479141/) [Dustfinger Relished](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/dustfinger-relished-5479142/) [Faces](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/faces/) [First time](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/first-time/) [Firsts](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/firsts/) [Found](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/found/) [Lakes](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/lakes/) [Longing](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/longing/) [Longing Brought](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/longing-brought-5479139/) [Lost](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/lost/) [Lost and found](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/lost-and-found/) [Mountain](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/mountain/) [Mountains Dustfinger](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/mountains-dustfinger-5479140/) [Night](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/night/) [Passing](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/passing/) [Passings](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/passings/) [Reflection](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/reflection/) [Sea](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/sea/) [Snow](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/snow/) [Stars](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/stars/) [Sweetness](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/sweetness/) [Towers](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/towers/) [Wind](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/wind/) ## Related quotes > [He flung his arms around her neck, but only once he saw Silvertoungue's back was turned. He never knew with fathers. "I'll save him,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/cornelia-funke/he-flung-his-arms-around-her-neck-but-only-once-he-saw-silvertoungue/) [Cornelia Funke](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/cornelia-funke/) > [Dustfinger still clearly remembered the feeling of being in love for the first time. How vulnerable his heart had suddenly been! Such a trembling,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/cornelia-funke/dustfinger-still-clearly-remembered-the-feeling-of-being-in-love-for/) [Cornelia Funke](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/cornelia-funke/) > [My dear Elinor, you were obviously born into the wrong story,” said Dustfinger at last.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/cornelia-funke/my-dear-elinor-you-were-obviously-born-into-the-wrong-story-said/) [Cornelia Funke](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/cornelia-funke/) > [“You'd like him back, too, wouldn't you?" It was difficult for her to turn her eyes away from Farid's face. "He'll never come back,"…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/cornelia-funke/you-d-like-him-back-too-wouldn-t-you-it-was-difficult-for-her-to-turn/) [Cornelia Funke](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/cornelia-funke/) > [“He bent over Farid and wiped some soot from his cold forehead. "Roxanne knows it," he said. "She'll tell it to you. Just go…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/cornelia-funke/he-bent-over-farid-and-wiped-some-soot-from-his-cold-forehead-roxanne/) [Cornelia Funke](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/cornelia-funke/) > [Dustfinger inspected his reddened fingers and felt the taut skin. ‘He might tell me how my story ends,’ he murmured. Meggie looked at him…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/cornelia-funke/dustfinger-inspected-his-reddened-fingers-and-felt-the-taut-skin-he/) [Cornelia Funke](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/cornelia-funke/) > [And there stood Basta with his foot already on another dead body, smiling. Why not? He had hit his target, and it was the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/cornelia-funke/and-there-stood-basta-with-his-foot-already-on-another-dead-body/) [Cornelia Funke](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/cornelia-funke/) > [Dustfinger closed his eyes and listened. He was home again.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/cornelia-funke/dustfinger-closed-his-eyes-and-listened-he-was-home-again/) [Cornelia Funke](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/cornelia-funke/) > [“Las malas historias no despiertan a la vida. No hay ningún Dedo Polvoriento en ellas.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/cornelia-funke/las-malas-historias-no-despiertan-a-la-vida-no-hay-ning-n-dedo/) [Cornelia Funke](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/cornelia-funke/) > [“Sometimes Dustfinger thought Basta’s constant fear of curses and sudden disaster probably arose from his terror of the darkness within himself, which made him…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/cornelia-funke/sometimes-dustfinger-thought-basta-s-constant-fear-of-curses-and/) [Cornelia Funke](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/cornelia-funke/) > [Who are you?' Mo looked at the White Women. Then he looked at Dustfinger's still face. Guess.' The bird ruffled up its golden feathers,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/cornelia-funke/who-are-you-mo-looked-at-the-white-women-then-he-looked-at-dustfinger/) [Cornelia Funke](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/cornelia-funke/) > [This world,' she said. 'Do you really like it?' What a question! Farid never asked himself such things. He was glad to be with…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/cornelia-funke/this-world-she-said-do-you-really-like-it-what-a-question-farid-never/) [Cornelia Funke](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/cornelia-funke/) > [When it came to hiding, even Gwin had nothing to teach Dustfinger. A strange sense of curiosity had always driven him to explore the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/cornelia-funke/when-it-came-to-hiding-even-gwin-had-nothing-to-teach-dustfinger-a/) [Cornelia Funke](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/cornelia-funke/) > [Don't let it worry you, not being able to speak,'Dustfinger had often told her. 'People tend not to listen anyway, right?](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/cornelia-funke/don-t-let-it-worry-you-not-being-able-to-speak-dustfinger-had-often/) [Cornelia Funke](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/cornelia-funke/) > [“We will all, at some point in our lives, fall. Every single one of us. We shouldn't spend our time trying to avoid falling.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nicole-williams/we-will-all-at-some-point-in-our-lives-fall-every-single-one-of-us-we/) [Nicole Williams](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nicole-williams/) ## More by Cornelia Funke > [ There was another reason \[she\] took her books whenever they went away. They were her home when she was somewhere strange. They were familiar… ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/cornelia-funke/there-was-another-reason-she-took-her-books-whenever-they-went-away/) [Cornelia Funke](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/cornelia-funke/) > [“A story is a labyrinth, it looks as if there were several ways to go, but only one is right, and there's a nasty…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/cornelia-funke/a-story-is-a-labyrinth-it-looks-as-if-there-were-several-ways-to-go/) [Cornelia Funke](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/cornelia-funke/) > [He put his hands on her shoulders and kissed her full on the mouth. His skin was wet with rain. When she didn't pull…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/cornelia-funke/he-put-his-hands-on-her-shoulders-and-kissed-her-full-on-the-mouth/) [Cornelia Funke](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/cornelia-funke/) > [“For a moment Dustfinger felt as if he had never been away- as if he had simply had a bad dream, and the memory…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/cornelia-funke/for-a-moment-dustfinger-felt-as-if-he-had-never-been-away-as-if-he/) [Cornelia Funke](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/cornelia-funke/) > [Don't let it worry you, not being able to speak,'Dustfinger had often told her. 'People tend not to listen anyway, right?](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/cornelia-funke/don-t-let-it-worry-you-not-being-able-to-speak-dustfinger-had-often/) [Cornelia Funke](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/cornelia-funke/) > [“And he will have a great aunt called Elinor who tells him there's a world not like this one. A world with neither fairies…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/cornelia-funke/and-he-will-have-a-great-aunt-called-elinor-who-tells-him-there-s-a/) [Cornelia Funke](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/cornelia-funke/) > [“Yes, Mo would come. Meggie could think of nothing else as Fenoglio led her away with him, his arm around her as if he…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/cornelia-funke/yes-mo-would-come-meggie-could-think-of-nothing-else-as-fenoglio-led/) [Cornelia Funke](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/cornelia-funke/) > [When it came to hiding, even Gwin had nothing to teach Dustfinger. A strange sense of curiosity had always driven him to explore the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/cornelia-funke/when-it-came-to-hiding-even-gwin-had-nothing-to-teach-dustfinger-a/) [Cornelia Funke](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/cornelia-funke/) > [Because fear kills everything," Mo had once told her. "Your mind, your heart, your imagination.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/cornelia-funke/because-fear-kills-everything-mo-had-once-told-her-your-mind-your/) [Cornelia Funke](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/cornelia-funke/) > [Perhaps there's another, much larger story behind the printed one, a story that changes just as our own world does. And the letters on…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/cornelia-funke/perhaps-there-s-another-much-larger-story-behind-the-printed-one-a/) [Cornelia Funke](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/cornelia-funke/) > [Mo could paint pictures in the empty air with his voice alone.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/cornelia-funke/mo-could-paint-pictures-in-the-empty-air-with-his-voice-alone/) [Cornelia Funke](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/cornelia-funke/) > [I remember the feeling. Whenever my father got so absorbed in a book that we might have been in visible I felt like taking…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/cornelia-funke/i-remember-the-feeling-whenever-my-father-got-so-absorbed-in-a-book/) [Cornelia Funke](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/cornelia-funke/) > [I wish you luck,' she said, kissing him on the cheek. He still had the most beautiful eyes of any boy she'd ever seen.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/cornelia-funke/i-wish-you-luck-she-said-kissing-him-on-the-cheek-he-still-had-the/) [Cornelia Funke](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/cornelia-funke/) > [Because by now Elinor had understood this, too: A longing for books was nothing compared with what you could feel for human beings. The…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/cornelia-funke/because-by-now-elinor-had-understood-this-too-a-longing-for-books-was/) [Cornelia Funke](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/cornelia-funke/) > [The night breathed through the apartment like a dark animal. The ticking of a clock. The groan of a floorboard as he slipped out…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/cornelia-funke/the-night-breathed-through-the-apartment-like-a-dark-animal-the/) [Cornelia Funke](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/cornelia-funke/) [Explore all 286 Cornelia Funke quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/cornelia-funke/) ## More Bitterness quotes > [You should be angry. You must not be bitter. Bitterness is like cancer. It eats upon the host. It doesn't do anything to the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/maya-angelou/you-should-be-angry-you-must-not-be-bitter-bitterness-is-like-cancer/) [Maya Angelou](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/maya-angelou/) > [If Japanese tea 'stands,' it acquires a coarse bitterness and an unwholesome astringency. Milk and sugar are not used.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/isabella-bird/if-japanese-tea-stands-it-acquires-a-coarse-bitterness-and-an/) [Isabella Bird](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/isabella-bird/) > [Stronger than alcohol, vaster than poetry, Ferment the freckled red bitterness of love!](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/arthur-rimbaud/stronger-than-alcohol-vaster-than-poetry-ferment-the-freckled-red/) [Arthur Rimbaud](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/arthur-rimbaud/) > [“What?" I ask. I try not to get snappy with her. She hasn't really done anything wrong. Falling in love with Turner isn't a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/c-m-stunich/what-i-ask-i-try-not-to-get-snappy-with-her-she-hasn-t-really-done/) [C.M. Stunich](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/c-m-stunich/) > [“The fairest things have fleetest end, Their scent survives their close: But the rose’s scent is bitterness To him that loved the rose. —Francis…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ann-rule/the-fairest-things-have-fleetest-end-their-scent-survives-their-close/) [Ann Rule](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ann-rule/) > [Life appears to me too short to be spent in nursing animosity, or registering wrongs. With this creed, revenge never worries my heart, degradation…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/charlotte-bronte/life-appears-to-me-too-short-to-be-spent-in-nursing-animosity-or/) [Charlotte Bronte](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/charlotte-bronte/) > [“No," I say. "I didn't know that," and as I say it I feel flooded with bitterness at all the things Ingrid kept secret…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nina-lacour/no-i-say-i-didn-t-know-that-and-as-i-say-it-i-feel-flooded-with/) [Nina LaCour](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nina-lacour/) > [Forgiving someone who've done you wrong or didn't treat you right could mean that you are allowing yourself to end up away from bitterness.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/april-t-pascua/forgiving-someone-who-ve-done-you-wrong-or-didn-t-treat-you-right/) [April T Pascua](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/april-t-pascua/) > [You cannot be inspired if you are surrounded with negativity, open the door and step into the inspirational garden of nature. Do not let…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kemmy-nola/you-cannot-be-inspired-if-you-are-surrounded-with-negativity-open-the/) [Kemmy Nola](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kemmy-nola/) > [It's not the load that breaks you down, it's the way you carry it. Carry it by the comfortable handles of gratitude for what's…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lena-horne/it-s-not-the-load-that-breaks-you-down-it-s-the-way-you-carry-it/) [Lena Horne](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lena-horne/) > [Not forgiving prolongs hurt and anger and leads to smoldering resentment, which will make us miserable until it kills us. Resentment destroys the perception…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/richard-walters/not-forgiving-prolongs-hurt-and-anger-and-leads-to-smoldering/) [Richard Walters](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/richard-walters/) > [Let us not give in to pessimism, to that bitterness that the devil offers us every day.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/pope-francis/let-us-not-give-in-to-pessimism-to-that-bitterness-that-the-devil/) [Pope Francis](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/pope-francis/) > [“Sometimes it is good to remind ourselves how bitterness tastes.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rin-chupeco/sometimes-it-is-good-to-remind-ourselves-how-bitterness-tastes/) [Rin Chupeco](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rin-chupeco/) > [What folly made young people, even those in middle age, think they were immortal? How much better, their lives, if they could remember the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rohinton-mistry/what-folly-made-young-people-even-those-in-middle-age-think-they-were/) [Rohinton Mistry](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rohinton-mistry/) > [Be sure there is something waiting for you after much patience, to astonish you to a degree, that you forget the bitterness of the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ritu-ghatourey/be-sure-there-is-something-waiting-for-you-after-much-patience-to/) [Ritu Ghatourey](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ritu-ghatourey/) [Browse all 1,210 Bitterness quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/bitterness/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "From the tower battlements, Dustfinger looked down on a lake as black as night, where the reflection of the castle swam in a sea of stars. 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