To Live Is to Suffer

Summary

• Nine hours before making the decision to end her life, Nora aimlessly wandered around her town, Bedford, which she saw as full of despair.
• The town contained a host of locations that brought up painful memories, like the sports centre where her deceased father once watched her swim, the Mexican restaurant where she went with her ex-boyfriend, and the hospital where her mother received treatment.
• Nora's ex-boyfriend, Dan, had recently texted her expressing his longing and desire to talk.
• Nora chose not to continue conversation with him, not because she no longer had feelings for him, but because she didn't want to cause him any more pain by getting involved.
• She blamed herself for ruining Dan's life by breaking off their engagement two days before their wedding. His life had been in chaos since then.
• Nora reflected on the concept of chaos and entropy in the universe, relating it to her life: she lost her job, and then more bad things happened.
• As she moved towards a newsagent's for shelter from the rain, Nora had a strong feeling that her circumstances were about to worsen.