What Would Life Be If We

Scholars trace this line to a letter written from The Hague to Theo, dated December 29, 1881. Van Gogh wrote it during one of the most turbulent stretches of his early life: he had just broken off an engagement, was struggling to establish himself as an artist, and was beginning his relationship with Sien Hoornik. The broader passage insists that the difficulty of a path is no argument against taking it.