Shadow of the Sword

"But the sword is not fearful. Everything passes away - suffering, pain, blood, hunger and pestilence. The sword will pass away too, but the stars will remain when the shadows of our presence and our deeds have vanished from the earth. There is no man who does not know that. Why, then, will we not turn our eyes towards the stars? Why?" 

- Mikhail Bulgakov, The White Guard

and now only the memory remains

A stump grinder is pretty amazing device, rent a big enough machine; the evidence of our mistakes disappears. We can move on, start over secure, for the moment, in our power and wisdom.