When from a long distant past nothing persists, after the people are dead, after things are broken and scattered, still alone, more persistent, more faithful, the smell and taste of things remain poised a long, long time like souls, ready to remind us, waiting, hoping for their moment amid the ruins of all the rest, and bear unfaltering in the tiny and almost impalpable drop of their essence, the vast structure of recollection.

Chris Stevens played by John Corbett quoting Marcel Proust in Northern Exposure

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A meaty (and some would say overwhelming) expression of thought that warrants many followup reviews. I found this particular quote memorizing as it encapsulated many of my very own (and rather disparate) thoughts on longing and melancholy. Nothing reminds us more about that which no longer present than our very own sense of longing. All that was and existed in the past,  a loved one, an object  or even a moment in time, all will immediately materialize thanks to our desire and drive to never forget.

Again, Chris Steven (John Corbett) was magnificent when pronouncing these words. Northern Exposure continues to captivate me to this day, as it weaves such evocative and meaningful ideas into its narrative. For this reason, this show will forever be part of my personal “structure of recollection.”