Excerpt from a letter to a former student

The life of the middle-class frustrates the revolutionary. I kid no one but myself when I say I am trapped. But lest ye follow your elders, take heed this tale of caution. Do not handcuff yourself with bourgeois preoccupations. Live for others and leave yourself to the margins. There's nothing sadder than a self-absorbed intellectual. This year, I vow to be more like you if you vow to read more like me.