Painful beauty

[Corwyn Celesil]

Lyta, thank you for your post! I love that quote from RotK, and I had completely forgotten about it when I started the thread. Tolkien does indeed express much better than I can exactly what I mean.

until their hearts, wounded with sweet words, overflowed, and their joy was like swords, and they passed in thought out to regions where pain and delight flow together and tears are the very wine of blessedness.

The passage itself is exquisitely worded.