He inadvertently opened the door to a storeroom on the station and found it full of aircrew uniforms on hangers. He thought they must be replacement issue until he looked more closely and saw the brevets and stripes and ribbon medals and realized they had come off the bodies of the dead and injured. The empty uniforms would have provided a poetic image if he hadn’t more or less relinquished poetry by then. Kate Atkinson
About This Quote

The author, who was a writer of poetry, felt he had no right to be writing fiction. He was fearful of writing about violence and death. However, by chance, he walked into an airforce station and saw the uniforms on hangers. The uniform was so full of life that it made him think that there was still hope for humanity. He also said that he didn’t want to be a poet anymore after writing this short story.

Source: A God In Ruins

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