:46:00
Others recalled that no trains ran,
:46:03
and there was no fuel.
:46:05
I believed them, too.
:46:10
Both versions agreed on one thing:
:46:15
magically, for a few days,
:46:18
a huge, oppressive machine
had stopped.
:46:23
There was a wavering,
:46:26
an uncertainty.
:46:28
A state of suspense.
:46:31
A certain calm spread over France.
:46:35
Of course, afterwards
the machine ran even faster,
:46:41
more ruthlessly.
:46:43
May '68 had repealed
the few moral rules
:46:46
that had hindered
its devouring force.
:46:51
All the same,
:46:54
there had been a pause,
:46:57
a hesitation,
:46:59
a moment of metaphysical doubt.
:47:06
The next night, Our Hero fellsick.
:47:12
My left shoulder hurt.
:47:20
The pain was moving
towards my heart.
:47:25
I felt that at this rate,
I'd die soon.
:47:29
Within hours.
:47:32
Anyway, before dawn.
:47:38
To die so suddenly
seemed unfair.
:47:43
I hadn't overindulged in life.
:47:46
Okay, the last few years
had been tough,
:47:51
but that was no reason
to pack it in.
:47:55
Far from it.
:47:57
In all fairness,
life owed me a break.