If I stayed here, something inside me would be lost forever-something I couldn't afford to lose. It was like a vague dream, a burning, unfulfilled desire. The kind of dream people have only when they're seventeen.
The quote expresses a profound realization about personal loss and the essence of one's dreams and desires. The speaker feels that remaining in a particular place would result in losing something vital, an intangible aspect of their identity. This loss resonates deeply, suggesting that it is tied to youthful dreams that are often intense and unfulfilled, characteristic of the age of seventeen.
In Haruki Murakami's "South of the Border, West of the Sun," the theme of longing and the impact of choices becomes evident. The sentiment reflects a struggle between comfort and the yearning for something deeper, a recognition that certain experiences or paths, if forsaken, may lead to an irretrievable absence in life.