I have been here for six days, far away from earthly cares in the peaceful mountains and valleys of the Caucasus. I am resting, both physically and mentally. It is a selfish feeling, but so pleasant to belong entirely to oneself sometimes, and to live as one wants, and not as one is ordered to do.
Yesterday evening I arrived in Kislovodsk to receive medical treatment. I was glad to get out of Petrograd. First of all, I was feeling very poorly, and, secondly, we’ve descended into such a cesspit of late that things have become truly nauseating. The lies are so widespread and compulsive that it’s simply unbearable. There are, it would seem, no honest people left. The Duma is full of lies, so are the ministers, and the newspapers even more so – in a word, everyone is lying without restraint or conscience. This orgy of mendacity makes living arduous and inspires pity for one’s Motherland. She will certainly be no better off for all this. But how Nicky is to grapple with these lies I simply do not know. It must be hard for him during these times.