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Vincent van Gogh - Cart with Red and White Ox 1884

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The Letters of Vincent van Gogh

To Theo van Gogh. Paris, Wednesday, 29 September 1875.
My dear Theo,
Be careful, old boy, don’t lose your resilience. See things as they are, and, for yourself, don’t think everything good. One can deviate, both to the left hand and to the right hand. Remember what Pa no doubt once told you too: understanding and feeling must go together. Warm regards and ever,
Your loving brother
Vincent
Write again soon.
I advised you to go out quite a lot, but if you don’t like it, don’t do it. You know that I didn’t go out so very much either, and that people often remarked upon it. How much I’d like for us to be able to breakfast together or drink a cup of chocolate in my room. Keep well, old chap. Don’t take things that don’t concern you directly too much to heart, and don’t let them weigh upon you too heavily. How is it going, eating bread? Have you tried it yet? In haste, I shake your hand heartily in thought.

To Theo van Gogh. Paris, Thursday, 30 September 1875.
My dear Theo,
Herewith the book about Michel that I promised you, also an etching after the Margaret by Scheffer and a lithograph after Corot, and a package of chocolate.
I do know that things aren’t easy for you at the moment, old chap, but remain steadfast and be brave; ‘Not to dream, not to sigh’ is also necessary sometimes.
You know ‘that you are not alone but that the Father is with you’. I shake your hand heartily in thought. Ever,
Your loving brother
Vincent
Please keep the enclosed etching after Rembrandt, along with the photos of the Corot and the Jules Breton sent previously, until Pa and Ma are comfortably settled in Etten, and send them then, at the end of November for example.