our brains have not yet been touched by _marasmus senilis_; we
cannot comfort ourselves with such illusions. The beginning of
Russia was in 862, but the beginning of civilized Russia has not
come yet."

But I did not grasp the meaning of these reflections. It was somehow
strange, I could not believe it, that my sister was in love, that
she was walking and holding the arm of a stranger and looking
tenderly at him. My sister, this nervous, frightened, crushed,
fettered creature, loved a man who was married and had children! I
felt sorry for something, but what exactly I don't know; the presence
of the doctor was for some reason distasteful to me now, and I could
not imagine what would come of this love of theirs.

XV

Masha and I drove to Kurilovka to the dedication of the school.

"Autumn, autumn, autumn, . . ." said Masha softly, looking away.
"Summer is over. There are no birds and nothing is green but the
willows."

Yes, summer was over. There were fine, warm days, but it was fresh
in the morning, and the shepherds went out in their sheepskins
already; and in our garden the dew did not dry off the asters all
day long. There were plaintive sounds all the time, and one could
not make out whether they came from the shutters creaking on their
rusty hinges, or from the flying cranes--and one's heart felt
light, and one was eager for life.