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Quotations of Perspective
The question is not what you look at, but what you see. ~Henry David Thoreau
But other questions come upon us. What is a man's eye but a machine for the little creature that sits behind in his brain to look through?... Is it man's eyes, or is it the big seeing engine which has revealed to us the existence of worlds beyond worlds into infinity?... Or again is it the eye or the little see-engine which has shown us the existence of infinitely minute organisms which swarm unsuspected around us? ~Samuel Butler, Erewhon, 1872
If you do not raise your eyes you will think that you are the highest point. ~Antonio Porchia (1886–1968), Voces, 1943–1966, translated from the Spanish by W.S. Merwin (1927–2019), c.1968
In a rapidly ascending balloon were two men.
One watched the earth getting farther and farther away.
One watched the stars getting nearer and nearer.
~George Jean Nathan, "Viewpoint," A Book Without a Title, 1918
For angels and devils are cast in one mould,
Till love guides them upward, or downward, I hold...
The world makes grave errors in judging these things,
Great good and great evil are born in one breast.
Love horns us and hoofs us—or gives us our wings,
And the best could be worst, as the worst could be best...
~Ella Wheeler Wilcox (1850–1919), "Angel or Demon"
So often in life a new chapter awaits. You ride off into the sunset and discover it's the sunrise. ~Robert Brault, rbrault.blogspot.com
You spend years learning what's important and one heart-stopping moment learning what's more important. ~Robert Brault, rbrault.blogspot.com, 2019
Inside my empty bottle
I was constructing a lighthouse
While all the others
Were making ships.
~Charles Simic, "Solving the Riddle," Return to a Place Lit by a Glass of Milk, 1974
I am chained to the earth to pay for the freedom of my eyes. ~Antonio Porchia (1886–1968), Voces, 1943–1966, translated from the Spanish by W.S. Merwin (1927–2019), c.1968
There was a story told about a man who always put on his spectacles when he ate cherries so they would look bigger and more tempting. That is a fine idea. Why not look through the large end of the telescope when you are looking at trouble, so it will look smaller and farther away? ~Harry C. Milholland, 1935
Life just seems so full of connections. Most of the time we don't even pay attention to the depth of life. We only see flat surfaces. ~Colin Neenan, Live a Little, 1996, colinneenan.com
He is my greatest well-wisher who wishes me not only all attainment, but much defeat. ~Muriel Strode (1875–1964), My Little Book of Prayer, 1904
It is the barely-visible stars which sharpen our eyesight. ~Henry Stanley Haskins, "The Order of Nature," Meditations in Wall Street, 1940
Do not call any work menial until you have watched a proud person do it. ~Robert Brault, rbrault.blogspot.com
Strong measures are the first resort of the weak; the last of the strong. ~"Poor Richard Junior's Philosophy," The Saturday Evening Post, 1903, George Horace Lorimer, editor
...how tight a prison
The world can build with liberty...
~Joseph Auslander, "Letter to Emily Dickinson," 1920s
Set out from any point. They are all alike. They all lead to a point of departure. ~Antonio Porchia (1886–1968), Voces, 1943–1966, translated from the Spanish by W.S. Merwin (1927–2019), c.1968
Nor did they think to find what they sought by a direct gaze. For they knew that the sight is keenest at the periphery, that there are things which we may see out of the corner of our eye which will forever remain invisible should we stare at them straight: we discover truth at the margins of our lives and most clearly speak that truth when we tell it slant. ~Christopher Bigsby, Hester, 1994
I visited the Zoo one dreary day,
And in the lion's house I watched a lion,
A great Numidian lion in his cage,
With eyes three-quarters closed, with haughty gait,
Pace up and down the limits of his cage.
Was he oblivious of the tyrant bars,
The gaze of human eyes, his captive state,
And did he blink but better thus to see
The jungle's vast expanse?
He suddenly stood still; and, face to face,
We stood and stared into each other's eyes,
And we saw in one another's eyes
A royal captive in a wretched cage.
~Adolf Wolff (1883–1944), "Captives," Songs, Sighs and Curses, 1913
If we could read the secret history of our enemies, we should find in each man's life sorrow and suffering enough to disarm all hostility. ~Henry Wadsworth Longfellow (1807–1882), "Drift Wood, A Collection of Essays: Table-Talk," Prose Works of Henry Wadsworth Longfellow, 1857
A surrender is sometimes merely a way of avoiding capture. ~"Poor Richard Junior's Philosophy," The Saturday Evening Post, 1903, George Horace Lorimer, editor
Cake will tempt the Amply Fed;
What the Hungry want is Bread.
~Arthur Guiterman, "Of Food," A Poet's Proverbs, 1924
Proverbs for Paranoids, 3: If they can get you asking the wrong questions, they don't have to worry about answers. ~Thomas Pynchon, Jr., Gravity's Rainbow, 1973
As a man thinketh in his heart, so is he. As a man sees in his heart, so he sees. Through unclean windows, lenses, senses, we see things not as they are but as we are. ~Jersey Journal, 1914 [quoteinvestigator.com]
[N]o man but feels more of a man in the world if he have a bit of ground that he can call his own. However small it is on the surface, it is four thousand miles deep; and that is a very handsome property. ~Charles Dudley Warner, "Preliminary," My Summer in a Garden, 1870
He who looks before he leaps is often satisfied to stay where he is. ~"Poor Richard Junior's Philosophy," The Saturday Evening Post, 1903, George Horace Lorimer, editor
I searched up and down the earth — and found it in my own soul. I implored heaven and hell — and the field daisies answered me. ~Muriel Strode (1875–1964), My Little Book of Prayer, 1904
An impossibility does not disturb us until its accomplishment shows what fools we were. ~Henry Stanley Haskins, "Marginalia," Meditations in Wall Street, 1940
When you are joyous, look deep into your heart and you shall find it is only that which has given you sorrow that is giving you joy.
When you are sorrowful look again in your heart, and you shall see that in truth you are weeping for that which has been your delight. ~Kahlil Gibran (1883–1931), The Prophet
Most of us look upon our personal zenith as the celestial pole, around whose axis the natural world revolves; but by an aggregation of observations, true astronomical problems are wrought out. A stereoscopic view is not to be seen with a single eye... ~Alfred A. Woodhull, "The Last Week," 1870
We envy others, for we see their lives in broad outline, while forced to live ours in every detail. ~Robert Brault, rbrault.blogspot.com
ANXIETY. — The tax paid by the higher classes for their privileges and possessions. ~"Specimens of a Patent Pocket Dictionary," 1824
All the suns labor to kindle your flame and a microbe puts it out. ~Antonio Porchia (1886–1968), Voces, 1943–1966, translated from the Spanish by W.S. Merwin (1927–2019), c.1968
One of the joys of a real emergency is throwing yourself into it. Another is that non-essentials get dumped. ~Barry Fox Stevens (1902–1985), Don't Push the River (it flows by itself), 1970
We underrate the courage of common civility, for what do we know of another person's day, of their worries and anxieties, of how deep into their innermost resources they had to reach for that friendly hello, that gracious smile. ~Robert Brault, rbrault.blogspot.com
Dare to turn life on its end, and you may find that topsy-turvy is a truer perspective than turvy-topsy. ~Robert Brault, rbrault.blogspot.com
Nothing is further than Earth from Heaven: nothing is nearer than Heaven to Earth. ~Augustus William Hare and Julius Charles Hare, Guesses at Truth, by Two Brothers, 1827
Well, every one can master a grief but he that has it. ~William Shakespeare, Much Ado about Nothing, c.1598 [III, 2, Benedick]
An hour sometimes restores us the sum of many years losses. ~Publilius Syrus, 1st century BCE, from the Latin by D. Lyman, 1856
Anytime you hear the words, "The end justifies the means," you can be sure that something mean is about to be justified. ~Robert Brault, rbrault.blogspot.com
Man looks earthward with a microscopic eye; heavenward with telescopic lenses. ~James Lendall Basford (1845–1915), Sparks from the Philosopher's Stone, 1882
As far as the Moon is concerned, he is always full. ~Terri Guillemets
Life is inherently paradoxical: every dream has the potential for nightmare; every nightmare may reveal some truth. ~Dr. Idel Dreimer, lumpenbangenpiano.com
Reading the words of Hitler, Stalin, or the Marquis de Sade may be hard on the nervous system, but set against the thoughts of a Jefferson or a John Stuart Mill they help us to see the deeper meanings of democracy and demagoguery, individualism and collectivism, intellect and propaganda. ~Wesley Douglass Camp (1915–1991), Preface to What a Piece of Work Is Man: Camp's Unfamiliar Quotations from 2000 B.C. to the Present, 1989
Nothing is less promising than precocity. A young thistle is more like a future tree than is a young oak. ~Marie Dubsky, Freifrau von Ebner-Eschenbach (1830–1916), translated by Mrs Annis Lee Wister, 1882
Would it not be wiser for people to rejoice at all that they now sorrow, and vice versâ? To put on bridal garments at funerals, and mourning at weddings? For their friends to condole with them when they attained riches and honour, as only so much care added? ~Nathaniel Hawthorne
It is good sometimes, as we jog along in our smooth-riding waggon of Progress, to steal our way... to the rear of the vehicle and look back upon the road by which it has come. Then it is that we experience the mental counterpart of that physical sensation of travelling backwards so charmingly described by Margaret Fairless Barber in The Roadmender. To look backward for a while is to refresh the eye, to restore it, and to render it the more fit for its prime function of looking forwards. There is something less dynamic and more reposeful in a retreating landscape than in an advancing one. A retreating scene appears to be withdrawn gently and smoothly from our gaze; an advancing one intrudes itself with bustle, flurry, and arrogance. This contrast is more especially felt when the vehicle is a rapidly moving one. And as with physical so it is with intellectual vision. We are all the better for the repose and refreshment of an occasional glance backward, the more so since our waggon of Progress is ever being urged forward with accelerated velocities. ~E. W. Adams, "The Philosophy of Epicurus — An Unclosed Chapter in Human Thought," in The Hibbert Journal, 1921 [A little altered. See Fairless quotation below.
I lay as in a blissful dream and watched my road unfold... It is like Life, this travelling backwards — that which has been, alone visible — like Life, which is after all, retrospective with a steady moving on into the Unknown and the Unseen... ~Michael Fairless (Margaret Fairless Barber, d. 1901), The Roadmender,
We all have fog on our path at times — but clarity comes from within. ~Terri Guillemets
If we were unable to tell the sexes by their dress, nay, if in general we had to guess at them, a new world of love would arise. ~Georg Christoph Lichtenberg (1742–1799), translated by Norman Alliston, 1908
Gratitude, respect, friendship — funny how it's never called loyalty when there's actually a reason for it. ~Robert Brault, rbrault.blogspot.com
The poor never estimate as a virtue the generosity of the rich. ~Marie Dubsky, Freifrau von Ebner-Eschenbach (1830–1916), translated by Mrs Annis Lee Wister, 1882
After the striving, the fine talk, and the grandeur of dreams — all that remains is an elegance of bones. ~Dr. Idel Dreimer, lumpenbangenpiano.com
Some people think they are in tune with the infinite when they are only out of tune with the definite. ~"Poor Richard Junior's Philosophy," The Saturday Evening Post, 1904, George Horace Lorimer, editor
You must judge a man's greatness by how much he will be missed. ~Will Rogers (1879–1935)
Expectant of greater things,
We try climbing -
Higher
And Higher;
An effort that costs us much,
Leaving us short of breath
To find only
The ground below is much prettier.
~Phillip Pulfrey, "Mountains" Love, Abstraction and other Speculations, www.originals.net
Offense is taken, not given. ~[Modern paraphrase of an older idea, I'm working on finding a good older version for quoting but haven't completed my research yet...
• "distinction between an offence given and an offence taken" (1816)
• "yet the offence is not given, but taken" (1681)
• "if others will take offence, and stumble, 'tis their sin, not mine... the offence is taken, not given" (1683)
• "the empty quibble that the offense was 'taken, not given'" (1846)
I remember when I saw very dimly that we set up all sorts of difficulties for ourselves like a barricade, haul ourselves over them, then pat ourselves on the back for our accomplishment. ~Barry Fox Stevens (1902–1985), Don't Push the River (it flows by itself), 1970
Conscientiousness is a perverse sense of honor. ~Benjamin De Casseres, "In Every Key," Puck, 1917
The Hawk with Envy sees the Otter swim,
Not dreaming how the Otter envies him.
~Arthur Guiterman, "Of Certain Birds," A Poet's Proverbs, 1924
Vision may sometimes sleep in the sun, while it wakens to widest revelation in utter darkness. Thus I am rapt in a trance-like acceptance of opening cavernous depths, crypts of decyphered gloom, yielding hollows of velvet obscurity that go down, down to the roots of things. ~Virginia Garland, "The Rain," Out West: A Magazine of the Old Pacific and the New, February 1908
Favors that we beg and pray for
Cost us more than those we pay for.
~Arthur Guiterman, "Of Neighborliness," A Poet's Proverbs, 1924
Exceptions do not always prove the rule; they may be even the first germs of a new rule. ~Marie Dubsky, Freifrau von Ebner-Eschenbach (1830–1916), translated by Mrs Annis Lee Wister, 1882
In smoldering ashes,
do you see dead fire? —
or the phoenix's glittering dreams?
~Terri Guillemets
Change our thought, and the world around us changes. ~Richard Bach, The Bridge Across Forever:
Circumstances will oft force a good man to swerve from the right. ~Publilius Syrus, 1st century BCE, from the Latin by D. Lyman, 1856
No Race is Won or Lost
Before the Line is crossed.
~Arthur Guiterman, "Of Sport," A Poet's Proverbs, 1924
Just as important as having a list of priorities is every once in a while starting from the bottom. ~Robert Brault, rbrault.blogspot.com
If you see the world in black and white, you're missing important grey matter. ~Jack Fyock
Listen with your feelings, see with your heart. ~Tom Brown, Jr.
Cain:
Then my father's God did well
When he prohibited the fatal tree.
Lucifer:
But had done better in not planting it.
But ignorance of evil doth not save
From evil: it must still roll on the same,
A part of all things.
~Lord Byron, "Cain"
If hindrances could hinder, not one could do his work. ~Muriel Strode (1875–1964), My Little Book of Life, 1912
The most rapid motions are those which are not perceived; and the greatest changes, both in nature and life, are brought about by invisible causes. ~William Benton Clulow, Aphorisms and Reflections: A Miscellany of Thought and Opinion, 1843
Saints in stone have done more in the world than living ones. ~Georg Christoph Lichtenberg (1742–1799), translated by Norman Alliston, 1908
Events and external objects are, so to speak, but a neutral substance, which receives its colour and its significance from our soul. ~Alexandre Vinet (1797–1847)
So much unmerited honour has been paid me in my lifetime that I may upon occasion well put up with a little unmerited censure. ~Georg Christoph Lichtenberg (1742–1799), "The Character of a Person of my Acquaintance" [Lichtenberg's unfinished "autopsychography" (Norman Alliston, 1908).
A kind soul knows impoliteness is just preoccupied with distraction. ~Mike Dolan, @HawaiianLife, tweet, 2012
The Poison Weeds and Tares that Earth produces
Are changed to Blessings when we learn their Uses.
~Arthur Guiterman, "Of Science," A Poet's Proverbs, 1924
Equality looks like a peach, tastes like a lemon. ~Dr. Idel Dreimer, lumpenbangenpiano.com
If we would see others as they see themselves, our shyness would soon become compassion. ~Robert Brault, rbrault.blogspot.com
Unappreciated Greatness often starves, while appreciated Littleness feeds on the fat of the land. ~James Lendall Basford (1845–1915), Sparks from the Philosopher's Stone, 1882
That, chang'd thro' all and yet in all the same,
Great in the Earth as in th' Ætherial frame,
Warms in the Sun, refreshes in the Breeze,
Glows in the Stars, and blossoms in the Trees...
Breathes in our soul, informs our mortal part...
Submit — in this, or any other Sphere,
Secure to be as blest as thou canst bear.
All Nature is but Art, unknown to thee;
All Chance, Direction which thou canst not see;
All Discord, Harmony not understood...
All partial Evil, universal Good...
~Alexander Pope, An Essay on Man
Jesus asked him which way he was walking, and he answered that all directions were the same to him, for he was only come out for a breath of fresh air before
An abridgement may be a bridge: it may help us over the water: but it keeps us from drinking. ~Augustus William Hare and Julius Charles Hare, Guesses at Truth, by Two Brothers, 1827
Perhaps everything terrible is in its deepest being something helpless that wants help from us. ~Rainer Maria Rilke
The shadows: some hide, others reveal. ~Antonio Porchia (1886–1968), Voces, 1943–1966, translated from the Spanish by W.S. Merwin (1927–2019), c.1968
Originality — A target best hit when not aimed at. ~Charles Searle, Look Here!, 1885
It's a shame that philosophical ideals don't always match up to pragmatic reality. We live in an analog world, not a digital one, so binary black-and-white choices and reflexive adherence to absolutes are rarely useful or applicable. Deal with it. ~David C. Hill, hill-kleerup.org/blog
It's a shame that pragmatic reality doesn't always live up to our philosophical ideals. There is right and wrong, even if we aren't always gifted with the knowledge of which is which. One can too easily get lost in a world of greys, and so guarded commitment to some absolutes (while acknowledging one's own fallibility) can be essential to avoid sliding down that old slippery slope. ~David C. Hill, hill-kleerup.org/blog
Every once in a while, turn life over to see what it looks like from the other side. ~Terri Guillemets
It is a positive fact that some thoughts please us when we are lying down which fail to please us any more when we are on our feet. ~Georg Christoph Lichtenberg (1742–1799), translated by Norman Alliston, 1908
While it may not be appropriate in every venue, and on every occasion, mockery is the guardian of reason, the enemy of pretension, and the mirror to folly. No belief, no passion, no commitment should be considered immune from the acerbic test of ridicule. ~Dr. Idel Dreimer, lumpenbangenpiano.com
The devil can cite Scripture for his purpose.
An evil soul producing holy witness
Is like a villain with a smiling cheek,
A goodly apple rotten at the heart:
O, what a goodly outside falsehood hath!
~William Shakespeare, The Merchant of Venice, c.1596 [I, 3, Antonio]
Everywhere is walking distance if you have the time. ~Steven Wright, A Steven Wright Special, 1985, stevenwright.com
Damn the lights! Watch the cars! The lights ain't never killed nobody! ~Jackie "Moms" Mabley [on telling children to watch traffic lights when crossing the street
When some one asks to see you on urgent business the urgency usually is his. ~Arnold H. Glasow (1905–1999), "Glasow's Gloombusters," 1947
Love can illumine a dungeon, but it cannot fill an empty stomach. ~Minna Thomas Antrim (1861–1950), Phases, Mazes, and Crazes of Love, 1904
GRACE Something that comes just before Grumble at the dinner table. ~Charles Wayland Towne, The Altogether New Foolish Dictionary, by Gideon Wurdz, 1914
I have scarcely touched clay and I am made of it. ~Antonio Porchia (1886–1968), Voces, 1943–1966, translated from the Spanish by W.S. Merwin (1927–2019)
Given a little time, regulation regulates nothing. ~Martin H. Fischer (1879–1962)
For many things which are not true in the exact sense, are yet dear to Truth; and follow her as a baby's tripping tongue lisps the language of its mother, not very successfully, but still with loyalty, and with a meaning which attentive ears can always catch. ~Louise Imogen Guiney, 1887
Today I'm in a window mood,
to live seems just to look...
And when night falls, who knows,
perhaps I'll find I've spent all day
given to you, inexhaustible window,
to be the other half of the world.
~Rainer Maria Rilke (1875–1926), translated from the French by
The last thing we learn in life is to put first things first. ~Arnold H. Glasow (1905–1999)
Don't reinvent the wheel, just realign it. ~Anthony J. D'Angelo, The College Blue Book, 1995, collegiate-empowerment.org
Past happiness augments present wretchedness. ~Publilius Syrus, 1st century BCE, from the Latin by D. Lyman, 1856
Nothing's a gift, it's all on loan. ~Wisława Szymborska (1923–2012), "Nothing's a Gift," The End and the Beginning, 1993, translated from the Polish by Stanisław Barańczak and Clare Cavanagh
The pain which kills pain, is as good as a medicine. ~Publilius Syrus, 1st century BCE, from the Latin by D. Lyman, 1856
The commonest opinions and the things that everybody takes for granted often most deserve examination. ~Georg Christoph Lichtenberg (1742–1799), translated by Norman Alliston, 1908
While his eyes saw the sky, his soul saw Heaven. ~
There is no great evil which does not bring with it some advantage. ~Publilius Syrus, 1st century BCE, from the Latin by D. Lyman, 1856
Everyone slips onto the naughty list once in a while. ~Stevie Wermers-Skelton, Kevin Deters, and Chris Williams, Prep & Landing, 2009 [Santa to Wayne
Even a devil, when you become accustomed to the sight of him, may prove a pleasant acquaintance. ~Japanese Buddhist proverb, quoted by Lafcadio Hearn, In Ghostly Japan, 1899
I love and honour him,
But must not break my back to heal his finger...
~William Shakespeare, Timon of Athens, c.1607 [II, 1, Senator]
It is hard to reform the boy who got whipped in his youth for telling the truth. ~"Poor Richard Junior's Philosophy," The Saturday Evening Post, 1903, George Horace Lorimer, editor
You wonder sometimes what good might accomplish if it had evil's sense of self-righteousness. ~Robert Brault, rbrault.blogspot.com
Why should I be ambitious? Shall I write verses? I am not likely to surpass Mr Tennyson or Mr Browning in that walk. Shall I be a musician? The blackbird singing this moment somewhere in my garden-shrubbery puts me to instant shame. Shall I paint? The intensest scarlet on an artist's palette is but ochre to that I saw this morning at sunrise.... I am happier as it is. I do not need to make history—there are plenty of people willing to save me trouble on that score. ~Alexander Smith, "Books and Gardens," Dreamthorp: A Book of Essays Written in the Country, 1863
Disappointment is as inevitable as hope is necessary. ~Dr. Idel Dreimer, lumpenbangenpiano.com
Old fool! I have made you weep again! Do not listen! I am death advising life how to live! Be deaf to me! Strive after what your heart desires! Who can ever know which are the mistakes we make? One should be either sad or joyful. Contentment is a warm sty where the eaters sleep and the sleepers eat! Do not weep! ~Eugene O'Neill, Marco's Millions, 1925–1927
...the hurt you give yourself hurts us too. ~George Sand, letter to Gustave Flaubert, 1870
If all the year were playing holidays,
To sport would be as tedious as to work...
~William Shakespeare, Henry IV, Part I, c.1597 [I, 2,
Life is a series of tasks that you absolutely must get done before they don't matter any more. ~Robert Brault, rbrault.blogspot.com
Because the Well resounds, it does not follow
That it is Deep; it may be merely Hollow.
~Arthur Guiterman, "Of Self-Esteem," A Poet's Proverbs, 1924
Some women look prettier than they are; others are prettier than they look. ~Charles Searle, Look Here!, 1885
Eddy is white, and we know he is because nobody says so. ~Toni Morrison, Playing in the Dark: Whiteness and the Literary Imagination, 1992
When Famine must be fed,
Remember, Crumbs are Bread.
~Arthur Guiterman, "Of Thrift," A Poet's Proverbs, 1924
The less Fortune has given, the less she can take away. ~Publilius Syrus, 1st century BCE, from the Latin by D. Lyman, 1856
...repose is not necessarily our
Our deeds determine us, as much as we determine our deeds; and until we know what has been or will be the peculiar combination of outward with inward facts, which constitute a man's critical actions, it will be better not to think ourselves wise about his character. There is a terrible coercion in our deeds which may at first turn the honest man into a deceiver, and then reconcile him to the change; for this reason—that the second wrong presents itself to him in the guise of the only practicable right. The action which before commission has been seen with that blended common sense and fresh untarnished feeling which is the healthy eye of the soul is looked at afterward with the lens of apologetic ingenuity, through which all things that men call beautiful and ugly are seen to be made up of textures very much alike. ~George Eliot, Adam Bede
The evil that visits us with a smiling countenance, is the hardest to bear. ~Publilius Syrus, 1st century BCE, from the Latin by D. Lyman, 1856
A neighbor is apt to look on our affairs with an evil eye. ~Publilius Syrus, 1st century BCE, from the Latin by D. Lyman, 1856
It is easier to be the hero of the moment than the hero of every drudging hour and every grinding day. ~Robert Brault, rbrault.blogspot.com
Do the stars out-number the sands of the sea?
What part is an hour of eternity?
Is the Past quite as long as the Future will be?
~James Lendall Basford (1845–1915), Seven Seventy Seven Sensations, 1897
Nothing supports evil like the assumption of good people that there is some sort of line it will not cross. ~Robert Brault, rbrault.blogspot.com, 2019
You taught me all about love, all about faith, and then God turned your lessons inside out, let me see the underside of every good thing you gave me. ~Margaret Blair Young, Heresies of Nature, 2002
Everything is best until we know better. ~James Lendall Basford (1845–1915), Seven Seventy Seven Sensations, 1897
Publicity is not the same thing as immortality. ~Alena Smith, "Because I could not stop," Dickinson, 2019 [S1, E1; Death speaking to Emily
A crown is no cure for the headache. ~German proverb
The hand of one person may express more than the face of another. ~Nathaniel Hawthorne
Every once in a while I get to just this point in the day and realize that I really have nothing to say. I suppose I don’t actually mean this literally, although it feels like I do. I think it’s more that I feel that nothing I have to say makes much of a difference.
And I’m not the sort of person who has a lot of patience with people who run around saying that they “want to make a difference,” either. The phrase always feels to me incredibly vague and not very well thought out. Make a difference to what? In what sense?
Hitler made a difference. In fact, he changed the world. So did Stalin and Mao. So did the Black Plague. Of course, so did Washington and Jefferson and Adams, and Jonas Salk. There are people who “make a difference” for the better.
But the phrase always seems to me to be aimed at something more fundamental, and probably at something impossible to change. Or it’s something worse — it’s a catch phrase for not doing very much of anything, but feeling noble about it. ~Jane Haddam, "Speechless," blog.janehaddam.com, 2011
He who holds me by a thread is not strong; the thread is strong. ~Antonio Porchia (1886–1968), Voces, 1943–1966, translated from the Spanish by W.S. Merwin (1927–2019), c.1968
The activities you spent your time on yesterday were the things that were important to you. Calendars don't lie. ~Scott Ginsberg, hellomynameisscott.com
Sometimes we must unfocus our way to clarity. ~Terri Guillemets
Don't confuse fun with fulfillment, or pleasure with happiness. ~Michael Josephson, whatwillmatter.com
Hints to the thoughtful are often more convincing than elaborate arguments. ~James Lendall Basford (1845–1915), Sparks from the Philosopher's Stone, 1882
Distance is inspiration's best hearting. ~
One day it's your turn, and all the stumbling words of consolation you ever said are said to you — and they don't seem stumbling at all. ~Robert Brault, rbrault.blogspot.com
To see the world in a grain of sand,
And a heaven in a wild flower,
Hold infinity in the palm of your hand
And eternity in an hour.
~William Blake (1757-1827), "Auguries of Innocence"
It's really too bad that so much crumby stuff is a lot of fun sometimes. ~J. D. Salinger, The Catcher in the Rye, 1951
Edges are more beautiful than anything—
Edges
Where the quiet deep shallows into loveliness,
Where the clouds feather to wavering silver,
And color kisses its brighter self.
Life is most whitely light
Where its low edge
Melts in the still pool of death,
As the sky-rim sinks
In a moon-filled sea.
~Henry Bellamann, "Edges," c.1921
I was walking my dog around my building — on the ledge. A lot of people are afraid of heights, not me — I'm afraid of widths. ~Steven Wright, A Steven Wright Special, 1985, stevenwright.com
Nothing lasts forever, and forever doesn't last, either. ~Robert Brault, rbrault.blogspot.com, 2019
As this clay hardens, and as this wax melts in one and the same flame, so may Daphnis melt with love for me! ~Virgil
Purity of intent does not guarantee purity of result. ~Dr. Idel Dreimer, lumpenbangenpiano.com
My great day came and went, I do not know how. Because it did not pass through dawn when it came, nor through dusk when it went. ~Antonio Porchia (1886–1968), Voces, 1943–1966, translated from the Spanish by W.S. Merwin (1927–2019), c.1968
Why am I considered rude if I say I don't want it and not rude for the other person to foist it on me? ~Barry Fox Stevens (1902–1985), Burst Out Laughing, 1985
The worst danger is that which is concealed. ~Publilius Syrus, 1st century BCE, from the Latin by D. Lyman, 1856
If I could save a life by enduring a pinprick, I would. But if I could save a billion lives by enduring a billion pinpricks, I would not. It is my duty to do what I reasonably can to help another, but it is not my duty to single-handedly save the world, for if it were, what would be your duty? ~Robert Brault, rbrault.blogspot.com
To live in scarcity is to worry about the cost of food; to live in abundance is to worry about who else you can invite for dinner. ~Mike Dolan, @HawaiianLife, tweet, 2015
We feed upon the finest of animal flesh, and at last ourselves become food for worms. ~James Lendall Basford (1845–1915), Seven Seventy Seven Sensations, 1897
A senseless tragedy remains forever tragic, but it is up to us whether it remains forever senseless. ~Robert Brault, rbrault.blogspot.com
You take my house when you do take the prop
That doth sustain my house; you take my life
When you do take the means whereby I live.
~William Shakespeare, Merchant of Venice, c.1596 [IV, 1, Shylock]
If the world were crumbled to the finest dust, and scattered through the universe, there would not be an atom of dust for each star. ~Nathaniel Hawthorne
There is differency between a grub and a butterfly;
yet your butterfly was a grub...
~William Shakespeare
The virtues of a thing do not come from it: they go to it. ~Antonio Porchia (1886–1968), Voces, 1943–1966, translated from the Spanish by W.S. Merwin (1927–2019), c.1968
Down the small and crooked road
I walk straight toward my death.
How marvelous the moon sits on my shoulder!
The wind is laughing as I laugh.
~Thomas McGrath, Passages Toward the Dark, 1982
The real purpose of arbitration is to show that the other fellow is wrong. ~"Poor Richard Junior's Philosophy," The Saturday Evening Post, 1903, George Horace Lorimer, editor
Gayety always keeps company with servitude. This blessing God has given the poor to console them for their miseries, just as he has made certain grasses to grow between the pavements that we tread under our feet, certain birds to sing on the old towers, and the beautiful verdure of the ivy to smile upon grimacing ruins. ~Claude Tillier (1801–1844), My Uncle Benjamin: A Humorous, Satirical, and Philosophical Novel, 1843, translated from the French by Benjamin R. Tucker, 1890 [a little altered
The difference between a bandit and a patriot is a good press agent. ~Will Rogers (1879–1935)
The most amazing things that can happen to a human being will happen to you, if you just lower your expectations. ~"Phil's-osophy" by Phil Dunphy (Christopher Lloyd, Steven Levitan, and Dan O'Shannon, Modern Family, "Schooled," original airdate 2012 Oct 10)
The courage of the soldiers depends upon the wisdom of the general. ~Publilius Syrus, 1st century BCE, from the Latin by D. Lyman, 1856
Most men are good through fear, not through a love of goodness. ~Publilius Syrus, 1st century BCE, from the Latin by D. Lyman, 1856
He who takes his own time generally takes other people's, too. ~"Poor Richard Junior's Philosophy," The Saturday Evening Post, 1904, George Horace Lorimer, editor
A word is dead when it is said, some say. I say it just begins to live that day. ~Emily Dickinson, 1872
In the hey-day I painted the spirit of the free, unfettered flight, and men passed it by, but later I painted the shadow of the broken pinion, and they came to look. ~Muriel Strode (1875–1964), My Little Book of Life, 1912
What makes it so hard to organize the environment sensibly is that everything we touch is hooked up to everything else. ~Isaac Asimov
One jet of flame hardly makes a prick in the darkness; another sets fire to a volcano. Some sparks are gigantic. ~Victor Hugo, The Man Who Laughs, 1869, translated from the French by Joseph L. Blamire
It is concentration that counts. The flame of a candle applied direct is more uncomfortable than the diffused heat of a blast furnace. ~"Poor Richard Junior's Philosophy," The Saturday Evening Post, 1903, George Horace Lorimer, editor
The bow too tensely strung is easily broken. ~Publilius Syrus, 1st century BCE, from the Latin by D. Lyman, 1856
I have been alone in a crowd and, in fact, have many times sought a crowd for that purpose. ~Robert Brault, rbrault.blogspot.com
Progress is slow because it is the work of dreamers. ~"Poor Richard Junior's Philosophy," The Saturday Evening Post, 1903, George Horace Lorimer, editor
There is no pain in the wound received in the moment of victory. ~Publilius Syrus, 1st century BCE, from the Latin by D. Lyman, 1856
Minerva, who sees clearly at night but is blind by day. ~Jacques Deval (1890–1972), Afin de vivre bel et bien, 1970
A child on a farm sees a plane fly overhead and dreams of a faraway place. A traveler on the plane sees the farmhouse below and dreams of home. ~Robert Brault, rbrault.blogspot.com
Power gains power by a multitude of pardons. ~Publilius Syrus, 1st century BCE, from the Latin by D. Lyman, 1856
But even Hell, you must admit, has always had its patriots... ~Christopher Morley, "To a New Yorker a Hundred Years Hence," 1921
Poverty needs little; avarice every thing. ~Publilius Syrus, 1st century BCE, from the Latin by D. Lyman, 1856
Avarice is as destitute of what it has, as what it has not. ~Publilius Syrus, 1st century BCE, from the Latin by D. Lyman, 1856
If something is possible for Man, tell yourself that it is within your reach. ~Jacques Deval (1890–1972), Afin de vivre bel et bien, 1970
You never know what you can't do till you try. ~"Poor Richard Junior's Philosophy," The Saturday Evening Post, 1904, George Horace Lorimer, editor
Evil always tries to paint good as foolishness and itself as common sense. ~Robert Brault, rbrault.blogspot.com
Any one can hold the helm, when the sea is calm. ~Publilius Syrus, 1st century BCE, from the Latin by D. Lyman, 1856
When the tree has fallen, any one can cut wood. ~Publilius Syrus, 1st century BCE, from the Latin by D. Lyman, 1856
...my experience — my own observation — is that trying to make everything safe — like the U.S. has been doing for so long — leads to madness like the war in Vietnam, and in any case if we had a fool-proof world, only fools could live in it. ~Barry Fox Stevens (1902–1985), Don't Push the River (it flows by itself), 1970
Sometimes the faces of the wicked are turned towards heaven for the first time when they are laid in the grave. ~James Lendall Basford (1845–1915), Sparks from the Philosopher's Stone, 1882
Even the sun can't shine on an entire world at once. ~Terri Guillemets
A barley-corn is better than a diamond to a cock. ~Thomas Fuller's Gnomologia, 1732
Every peach has a pit — though we can't see it. ~William Ellis, 1904
One of the advantages of being disorderly is that one is constantly making exciting discoveries. ~A. A. Milne
Stillness and action are relative, not absolute, principles. It is important to find a balance of yin and yang, not just in qigong, but in everyday life. In movement, seek stillness and rest. In rest, be mindful and attentive. ~Kenneth S. Cohen, The Way of Qigong: The Art and Science of Chinese Energy Healing, 1997, qigonghealing.com
Just so if we were to take, as a principle — all the climates of the earth are meant to be made habitable for man, by the efforts of man — the objection would be immediately raised, — Will the top of Mount Blanc ever be made habitable? Our answer would be, it will be many thousands of years before we have reached the bottom of Mount Blanc in making the earth healthy. Wait till we have reached the bottom before we discuss the top. ~Florence Nightingale, Notes on Nursing: What It Is, and What It Is Not, 1860
Honors adorn the worthy; they are a stigma to the undeserving. ~Publilius Syrus, 1st century BCE, from the Latin by D. Lyman, 1856
I looked at myself in the mirror (such a wiggly old glass that showed one in streaks like bacon)... ~Lloyd Osbourne, "ffrenches First," 1902
I'm right-handed, whereas the fellow in my mirror is left-handed. I start shaving from the left; he starts from the right. Differences only in perception, but religious wars have been fought over such. ~Robert Brault, rbrault.blogspot.com
The tougher you are, the more fragile. ~Terri Guillemets
There is no fruit which is not bitter before it is ripe. ~Publilius Syrus, 1st century BCE, from the Latin by D. Lyman, 1856
The minute atom has as many degrees of latitude and longitude as the mighty Jupiter. ~James Lendall Basford (1845–1915), Seven Seventy Seven Sensations, 1897
If I choose to believe that we're all God's children, it's because I'm darn sure it's all or none. ~Robert Brault, rbrault.blogspot.com
I know what I have given you. I do not know what you have received. ~Antonio Porchia (1886–1968), Voces, 1943–1966, translated from the Spanish by W.S. Merwin (1927–2019), c.1968
When the young doctors come to me and complain that the older men don't "throw them anything," I tell them that they don't know how to catch. ~Martin H. Fischer (1879–1962)
From a natural standpoint, each and every species survives by taking life in some way, shape, or form. ~R. D. Lawrence, Secret Go the Wolves, 1980
If a dream is realistic, it's not really a dream. It's a
The bee can never be an eagle, but it can make honey. ~William Arthur Ward, Thoughts of a Christian Optimist, 1968
The judicial mind is too commonly characterized by a regard for a fourth decimal as the equal of a whole number. ~Martin H. Fischer (1879–1962)
God and the devil lose to a common enemy: inertia. ~Mignon McLaughlin, The Neurotic's Notebook, 1963
We pray for fruition, when, if our prayer were answered, our all-too-soon-ripened fruit would be worm-mellowed and wind-blown. ~Muriel Strode (1875–1964), My Little Book of Life, 1912
Yes and No are always dancing. ~Betsy Cañas Garmon, wildthymecreative.com
Eventually you realize that not all opposing viewpoints come from people who oppose you. ~Robert Brault, rbrault.blogspot.com
A single instant brings much to pass that no one dreams of. ~Publilius Syrus, 1st century BCE, from the Latin by D. Lyman, 1856
Satire.— Attacking the vices and follies of others instead of reforming our own. ~"Specimens of a Patent Pocket Dictionary, For the use of those who wish to understand the meaning of things as well as words," The New Monthly Magazine and Literary Journal, 1824‑5
Too much attention to others' business often directs their attention to yours. ~James Lendall Basford (1845–1915), Sparks from the Philosopher's Stone, 1882
Suspicion cleaves to the dark side of things. ~Publilius Syrus, 1st century BCE, from the Latin by D. Lyman, 1856
How much is essential? Really essential. Our biological needs are few...
On the Navajo reservation, Beulah, the cook in the dormitory, one morning gave the children fried eggs by putting the fried eggs in their hands. They carried them into the dining room, at the table, and ate them out of their hands.
HORRORS!
This was talked about over a hundred miles of reservation for two weeks — by the white folks. ~Barry Fox Stevens (1902–1985), Don't Push the River (it flows by itself), 1970
I have found that the conclusion, "Nobody cares" is always based on an insufficient sampling. ~Robert Brault, rbrault.blogspot.com
the universe isn't big
it fits inside each of us
~Terri Guillemets
It is more tolerable to be refused than deceived. ~Publilius Syrus, 1st century BCE, from the Latin by D. Lyman, 1856
What's frustrating about being disliked is that it's invariably for the wrong reason. ~Robert Brault, rbrault.blogspot.com
An exhibitionist is nothing without a voyeur. ~S. A. Sachs
The one true measure of the things that matter in life is that they can't be insured against loss. ~Robert Brault, rbrault.blogspot.com
If the complexity of the universe demands, as explanation, an intelligent creator — then, by the same reasoning — so does the intelligent creator. ~Dr. Idel Dreimer, lumpenbangenpiano.com
A Jest, unduly pushed, becomes no Jest;
Remember always, too far East is West.
~Arthur Guiterman, "Of Anger," A Poet's Proverbs, 1924
What matters it how much you have? There is more which you can not have. ~Publilius Syrus, 1st century BCE, from the Latin by D. Lyman, 1856
Merited rebuke from an inferior has a double sting. ~James Lendall Basford (1845–1915), Sparks from the Philosopher's Stone, 1882
What shall I be —
the angry sea
that pounds against the shore
or soft agleam
the quiet stream
that carves the canyon floor?
~Robert Brault, rbrault.blogspot.com
Malevolence keeps its teeth hidden. ~Publilius Syrus, 1st century BCE, from the Latin by D. Lyman, 1856
The vicious are most to be feared, when they pretend to be good. ~Publilius Syrus, 1st century BCE, from the Latin by D. Lyman, 1856
Some enmities conceal themselves beneath a mask, some under a kiss. ~Publilius Syrus, 1st century BCE, from the Latin by D. Lyman, 1856
To go wrong is sometimes the surest way to go right. It is not always down to depths: it is down, sometimes, to heights. I got my first perspective of heaven from hell. ~Muriel Strode (1875–1964), My Little Book of Life, 1912
How, child, do I know where you're headed? Because I'm there, and I can see you coming. ~Robert Brault, rbrault.blogspot.com
My endurance may be born of courage, but I will not forget that it may also be born of that most pitiable of human things, — weakness. ~Muriel Strode (1875–1964), My Little Book of Life, 1912
Necessity may force from men whatever she wishes. ~Publilius Syrus, 1st century BCE, from the Latin by D. Lyman, 1856
Necessity takes what she wishes by force, if not voluntarily yielded. ~Publilius Syrus, 1st century BCE, from the Latin by D. Lyman, 1856
Necessity can turn any weapon to advantage. ~Publilius Syrus, 1st century BCE, from the Latin by D. Lyman, 1856
Here's to the floor,
Our best friend of all,
Who sticks to us close
In the time of our fall.
When benches are fickle
And tables betray
And rugs are revolving,
He meets us half-way.
~Oliver Herford, "The Floor," Happy Days, illustrated by John Cecil Clay, 1917
To the best of refuges I prefer their doorways. ~Antonio Porchia (1886–1968), Voces, 1943–1966, translated from the Spanish by W.S. Merwin (1927–2019), c.1968
Every person born has been chosen from a trillion possibilities, in case you wonder what you would do if you won the lottery. ~Robert Brault, rbrault.blogspot.com
Monotony is what is found by those who seek sensations. ~"Poor Richard Junior's Philosophy," The Saturday Evening Post, 1904, George Horace Lorimer, editor
Just remember that if you had the most winning personality on earth, you'd always wonder if people liked you only for your personality. ~Robert Brault, rbrault.blogspot.com
...for there is nothing either good or bad but thinking makes it so. ~William Shakespeare, Hamlet, c.1600 [II, 2, Hamlet]
The keenest critic of the sculptor is the stone-cutter. ~"Poor Richard Junior's Philosophy," The Saturday Evening Post, 1903, George Horace Lorimer, editor
...glitter is antagonistic to repose... ~John Crowdy, "On Recent Progress in the Small Arts," 1882
Life is not all Beer and Skittles. The inherent tragedy of things works itself out from white to black and blacker, and the poor things of a day look ruefully on. Does it shake my cast-iron faith? I cannot say it does. I believe in an ultimate decency of things; ay, and if I woke in hell, should still believe it. ~Robert Louis Stevenson, letter to Sidney Colvin, 1893 August 23rd
...DISTRACTS HIMSELF FROM WHAT MATTERS WITH STRING OF EPHEMERAL OBSESSIONS... ~David Burr Gerrard, The Epiphany Machine, 2017
He is the most popular plagiarist who improves most upon what he steals. ~James Lendall Basford (1845–1915), Sparks from the Philosopher's Stone, 1882
Who praised the Bad work falsely, is the one
To blame for Future Work as badly done.
~Arthur Guiterman, "Of Judgments," A Poet's Proverbs, 1924
It takes a while, but eventually we appreciate that the people who were always there for the special occasions of our youth had other things to do. ~Robert Brault, rbrault.blogspot.com
The long way around is the shortcut when everybody knows the shortcut. ~Robert Brault, rbrault.blogspot.com
The wings of angels and devils are in all of us. ~Jakarat Chotdamorng, @jakarat, May 2011 entry to The Quote Garden create your own quote contest on Twitter, @quotegarden
Sometimes I prefer Zen even if it does take twenty years. ~Barry Fox Stevens (1902–1985), Don't Push the River (it flows by itself), 1970
So often we complain of a good thing because it isn't better while accepting a bad thing because it isn't worse. ~Robert Brault, rbrault.blogspot.com
Everything's got a moral, if only you can find it. ~Lewis Carroll, Alice's Adventures in Wonderland
The request of a master is a command. ~Publilius Syrus, 1st century BCE, from the Latin by D. Lyman, 1856
There is nothing as easy as denouncing. It don't take much to see that something is wrong but it does take some eyesight to see what will put it right again. ~Will Rogers (1879–1935)
I come from dying, not from having been born. From having been born I am going. ~Antonio Porchia (1886–1968), Voces, 1943–1966, translated from the Spanish by W.S. Merwin (1927–2019), Voices, 1988
Perhaps there should be one day a week when you tackle your "Things I Gotta Undo" list. ~Robert Brault, rbrault.blogspot.com
If the day ever comes when everything worth doing has been done, there will be plenty worth undoing. ~Robert Brault, rbrault.blogspot.com
The stars, like many other things, are only romantic from a distance. ~Terri Guillemets
You know, not all Freudian slips are created equal. ~Rachel Maddow, 2009 [On George W. Bush saying "authoritarian" instead of "authoritative."
We may build a mountain in a day that a lifetime cannot remove. ~James Lendall Basford (1845–1915), Seven Seventy Seven Sensations, 1897
A flattering discourse carries its own poison. ~Publilius Syrus, 1st century BCE, from the Latin by D. Lyman, 1856
Walking into someone's house for the first time is like entering another country. ~My
I do love my friends who wouldn't dare judge me — but we all need to be judged, sometimes. ~Terri Guillemets, "Dissent," 2016
To every corner there is always more than one way out. ~James Lendall Basford (1845–1915), Sparks from the Philosopher's Stone, 1882
Don't Praise yourself, lest others Doubt and Grieve you;
Yet don't Dispraise yourself — they might Believe you.
~Arthur Guiterman, "Of Bragging," A Poet's Proverbs, 1924
Fortune is a centaur —
half man, half luck.
~Terri Guillemets, "Hoofprints," 2019
Great Works demand Great Critics: Is it well
To Measure Ocean with an Oyster Shell?
~Arthur Guiterman, "Of Criticism," A Poet's Proverbs, 1924
It is hard to say which is the more indelible memory — the anxious minute that lasted forever or the comfortable forever that lasted a minute. ~Robert Brault, rbrault.blogspot.com
Helping others out of trouble generally helps the helper into trouble. ~James Lendall Basford (1845–1915), Seven Seventy Seven Sensations, 1897
The greater your joys, the greater your occasion for fear. ~Publilius Syrus, 1st century BCE, from the Latin by D. Lyman, 1856
In the life we might have lived, the years never pass. On the person we might have been, time never leaves its mark. How different would seem our might-have-beens if we could picture them as would-be-nows. ~Robert Brault, rbrault.blogspot.com
It is not easy, the choice between God and the devil, for it is presented to us as a choice between forgiveness and understanding. ~Robert Brault, rbrault.blogspot.com
How many merits one sees in those one likes! how many faults in those one dislikes! Yet people fancy they see with their eyes. ~Augustus William Hare and Julius Charles Hare, Guesses at Truth, by Two Brothers, 1827
A whirl of torrid dust veils the picture. ~Vladimir Nabokov, The Gift, 1963, translated from Russian by Michael Scammell
Life itself is an insult to the wretched. ~Publilius Syrus, 1st century BCE, from the Latin by D. Lyman, 1856
To depend on another's nod for a livelihood, is a sad destiny. ~Publilius Syrus, 1st century BCE, from the Latin by D. Lyman, 1856
When you are one of the pieces, it doesn't seem like a game. ~Robert Brault, rbrault.blogspot.com
Naughts are Nothings till our Pens
Put in Strokes and make them Tens.
~Arthur Guiterman, "Of Achievement," A Poet's Proverbs, 1924
Apocalypse by a thousand paper cuts. ~Lucifer, "Goodbye, Lucifer," 2021, written by Chris Rafferty [S6, E9, Amenadiel]
Darkness is the thief's best accomplice. ~James Lendall Basford (1845–1915), Sparks from the Philosopher's Stone, 1882
Venus yields to caresses, not to compulsion. ~Publilius Syrus, 1st century BCE, from the Latin by D. Lyman, 1856
How poor the assistance which injures while it aids! ~Publilius Syrus, 1st century BCE, from the Latin by D. Lyman, 1856
When we try to pick out anything by itself, we find it hitched to everything else in the universe. ~John Muir, 1869, My First Summer in the Sierra
It is easier for me to see everything as one thing than to see one thing as one thing. ~Antonio Porchia (1886–1968), Voces, 1943–1966, translated from the Spanish by W.S. Merwin (1927–2019), c.1968
There is only one pretty child in the world, and every mother has it. ~Author unknown, 1800s
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published 1998 Mar 18
revised 2021 Mar 7
last saved 2025 Jan 6
www.quotegarden.com/perspective.html