I reflected that the genial glow that surrounds the doer of a good deed loses some of its warmth and brightness when the recipient meets every action… - Matt Hughes

Does not the acceptance of a spurious perfection end the search for true perfection?

Filidor was becoming more and more convinced that he had recently been inhabiting a reality that was at sharp variance to the rest of the world’s.

"We are all used, all users. With luck, the final tally approximates a balance in our favor. But I think you are one of those who calls the proverbial glass half empty, while I prefer to call it half full."
"No," said Filidor, "in truth, I have never given these matters much thought. I am one who quaffs the glass empty and calls for it to be refilled."