The past is never dead. It's not even past.
That man, I think, has had a liberal education who has been so trained in youth that his body is the ready servant of his will.  
"The worst enemy of truth is not the lie—deliberate, contrived, and dishonest—but the myth—persistent, persuasive, and unrealistic."
"Life is a journey that must be traveled no matter how bad the roads and accommodations."