We should try in vain to describe a man’s character, but let his acts be collected and an idea of the character will be presented to us.
“‘Then why did we not bring the book?’ asked my husband. ‘Well, it weighs just over a stone,’ I said. ‘I weighed it once on the bathroom scales.’ ‘Why did you do that?’ asked my husband. ‘Because it occurred to me one day that I knew the weight of nothing except myself and joints of meat,’ I said, ‘and I just picked that up to give me an idea of something else.’”
Rebecca West | Black Lamb and Grey Falcon