In the novel, love for those touched by solitude is far from a joyous experience. The most prominent symbol of ill-fated love is Remedios the Beauty; anyone who seeks her meets a tragic end. Often, the quest for love involves writing, yet love poems and letters are seldom sent. Instead, they pile up at the bottoms of trunks and eventually serve as kindling for fires. This pursuit can spark sibling rivalry and lead to the downfall of innocents. However, pure passion frequently brings joy to those involved. For example, Aureliano Segundo's ardor for his mistress, Petra Cotes, brings fertility and prosperity to the family. Still, consummation is often complex and dangerous, involving peering through roof holes, threats of removing chastity belts, or following strange calendars. At its simplest, love is described as a "physical sensation...like a pebble in his shoes." At its most extreme, it can drive a man to suicide, "his wrists cut by a razor and his hands thrust in a basin of benzoin." In the end, the only Buendia child "engendered with love" ends up killing its mother, being eaten by ants, and heralding the end of the novel's world.