Good and bad Quote by Joe Meno
““Apples are kissing other apples. Gray cats are kissing other gray cats. Trees are kissing trees. You and I are not kissing. We work in an office together. We are both married to other people. It is okay because we only have ideas, you and I, about whether we should kiss or not. These ideas are both good and bad, probably. At work, we do not say these words aloud but make elaborate diagrams for one another. You write these words: Kissing you would be like this, and draw a picture of two butterflies being struck by lightning. I stare at it and wonder if you may be right. I do my own drawing and write, Kissing you would be like this, and sketch a picture of a man made of ice kissing a woman who is actually a stove. We have made hundreds of these drawings. We do not actually do any work.””
About This Quote
Source Short story: “Kissing” in The Book of Unfinished Things, Joe Meno, 2015
People imagine intimate connections but keep them hidden, expressing ideas through abstract art instead of action.
In simple terms: Ideas of intimacy stay unspoken, expressed through art.
Key Takeaway
A thoughts, act on feelings.
Themes
imagination
restrained desire
workplace dynamics
creativity
Mood
melancholic
introspective
Type
literary
psychological
When to use this quote
- office culture
- marital fidelity
- creative collaboration
Key Concepts
psychology of longing
symbolic representation
Questions to Reflect On
- What prevents you from acting on desire?
- How does art help process forbidden feelings?
A Different Perspective
Action may be necessary; imagination alone can’t resolve tension.
