Bits and pieces Quote by Haruki Murakami
““Can I be honest with you, Mr. Wind-Up Bird? I mean, really, really, really honest? Sometimes I get sooo scared! I’ll wake up in the middle of the night all alone, hundreds of miles away from anybody, and it’s pitch dark, and I have absolutely no idea what’s going to happen to me in the future, and I get so scared I want to scream. Does that happen to you, Mr. Wind-Up Bird? When it happens, I try to remind myself that I am connected to others—other things and other people. I work as hard as I can to list their names in my head. On that list, of course, is you, Mr. Wind-Up Bird. And the alley, and the well, and the persimmon tree, and that kind of thing. And the wigs that I’ve made here with my own hands. And the little bits and pieces I remember about the boy. All these little things (though you’re not just another one of those little things, Mr. Wind-Up Bird, but anyhow…) help me to come back “here” little by little.””
About This Quote
Source Novel: Kafka on the Shore by Haruki Murakami, 2002
The narrator combats existential fear by recalling personal connections and memories, grounding himself in a network of relationships and objects.
In simple terms: Fear is eased by remembering people and things that matter.
List and cherish meaningful connections.
Themes
Mood
Type
When to use this quote
- nighttime anxiety
- creative block
- loneliness
- personal crisis
Key Concepts
Questions to Reflect On
- What relationships anchor you in fear?
- How can you create new meaningful ties?
Overreliance on memory can ignore present action.