It is hard for a black man to just be himself. We spend so much time in defense of something that is indefensible because there is nothing to defend.
The great fact in life, the always possible escape from dullness, was the lake. The sun rose out of it, the day began there; it was like an open door that nobody could shut. The land and all its dreariness could never close in on you. You had only to look at the lake, and you knew you would soon be free.