Paulo Coelho

At the end of the forty days of deluge, Noah came out of the ark. He was filled with hope, but all he found outside was death and destruction.

Noah protested:

“Almighty God, if You knew the future, why did You create man? Just for the pleasure of punishing him?”

A triple perfume rose up into the sky: incense, the perfume of Noah’s tears, and the aroma of his actions. Then God replied:

“The prayers of a just man are always heard. I will tell you why I did this: so that you will understand your work.
“You and your descendents will always be rebuilding a world which came from nothing – and in this way we share the work and the consequences.
“Now we are all responsible.”