Quotations are the fundamental distillation of a writer’s life and thinking as recorded in words and phrases for posterity. Through them the reader is afforded the unique opportunity to share in the thoughts, the life and the experiences of the writer. In a special way, they offer the reader a window into the mind of the author and hopefully an inducement to read further and learn more about the author and the story he relates.


On a wider scale, they are, as William Feather wrote, “the wisdom of the wise and the experience of the ages preserved into perpetuity“, and as such they are available for the enrichment and enhancement of humanity, regardless of age, sex, race, educational or economic status. They are indeed, as the Talmud states, “food for the famished”.

The collection of quotations presented in this blog, have been chosen by me because of their special impact upon me. They have been published so that you too, may experience the joy I have had over the years reading them and getting to know the authors.


I trust that you will come to know the feeling of deep satisfaction possible from reading them, searching out the author and meditating upon their meaning and their impact on your life.

Thursday, January 31, 2008

HAPPINESS

You may traverse the world in search of happiness, When it is within the reach of every man. A contented mind confers it on all. …..Horace

Events will take their course, it is no good of being angry at them; he is happiest who wisely turns them to the best account. …..Euripides

The word "happiness" would lose its meaning,
If it were not balanced by sadness. ……Carl Jung


Happiness is not something ready made. It comes from your own actions. ………… Dalai Lama

Happiness is like a butterfly which when pursued, is always beyond your grasp;
But if you sit down quietly may alight upon you. …….Nathaniel Hawthorne.

Happiness is like a kiss. You must share it to enjoy it. ….Bernard Meltzer

The search for Happiness is one of the chief sources of unhappiness. …….Eric Hoffer

You cannot always have Happiness, but you can always give Happiness. ……Author Unknown

Happiness is when what you think, what you say, and what you do are in harmony. …….Mohandas Gandhi

It is a sad thing to look at Happiness only through another’s eyes …..Marguerite Blessington

When one door of Happiness closes, another opens;
But often we look so long at the closed door,
that we do not see the one which has opened for us. …….Helen Keller

Wednesday, January 30, 2008

PERSEVERENCE

-I do not think there is any other quality so essential to success of any kind as
the quality of perseverance. It overcomes almost everything, even nature.
…...John D. Rockefellar
-Great works are performed, not by strength, but by perseverance
……..Samuel Johnson.
-It is the nature of every person to err, but only the fool perseveres in error. ……Marcus Tullius

PERSEVERE

I do not think there is any other quality so essential to success of any kind as
the quality of Perseverance. It overcomes almost everything, even nature. …...John D. Rockefellar

Great works are performed, not by strength, but by Perseverance
……..Samuel Johnson.

It is the nature of every person to err, but only the fool Perseveres in error.
……Marcus Tillius
God helps those who Persevere. …….The Holy Quran

Perseverance is not a long race;
It is many short races, one after another. ……Walter Elliott

Perseverance is the hard work you do,
After you get tired of the hard work you already did. ……Newt Gingrich

Victory belongs to he who Perseveres. ………Napoleon Boneparte

Perseverance is a great element of success. ……Henry Wadsworth Longfellow

Perseverance is more prevailing than violence;
Many things which cannot be overcome when they are together,
yield themselves up, when taken little by little. …….Plutarch

Perseverance is to the character of man, as carbon is to steel. ….Napoleon Hill

To Persevere, trusting in what hopes he has, is courage in a man. ……Euripides

Perseverance must finish its work so that you may be mature and complete,
Not lacking anything. ……..James 1:4

A hero is one who knows how to hang on one minute longer. ……Norwegian Proverb

He conquers, who Perseveres. ……Persius

The heights by great men reached and kept were not attained by sudden flight,
but they, while their companions slept, were toiling upward in the night.
…….. Henry Wadsworth Longfellow

A river cuts through rock, not because of its power,
But because of its Perseverance. …..Jim Watkins

Perseverance is the key to any great accomplishment in life. ……Author Unknown

A little more Perseverance, a little more effort, and what seemed as
hopeless failure, may turn to glorious success. …..Elbert Hubbard

The difference between Perseverance and Obstinacy is that;
One often comes from a strong will, and the other from a strong won’t. ……Henry Ward Beecher

Tuesday, January 29, 2008

PROBLEMS

Problems are only opportunities with thorns on them. ...…Hugh Miller.

Problems are never stop signs, they are merely guidelines. …….Robert Schuller

Every solution breeds new problems. …….. Arthur Bloch

We are continually faced with great opportunities,
brilliantly disguised as insoluble problems. .......Lee Iacocca

A Clever person solves a Problem. A Wise person avoids it. …...Albert Einstein

The Problem is not that there are problems.

The Problem is expecting otherwise and thinking that having problems,- is a Problem. …….Theodore Rubin

The Problem with troubleshooting is that trouble shoots back. ……..Author Unknown

Every Problem has in it the seeds of its own solution. If you don’t have any Problems, you don’t get any seeds. ……..Norman Vincent Peale

Problems are only opportunities with thorns on them. ……..Hugh Miller,

Problems are the price you pay for progress. …….Branch Rickey

Sunday, January 27, 2008

TOMORROW

- Never leave till tomorrow, that which you can do today. ……..Benjamin Franklin

- Tomorrow hopes we have learned something from yesterday ………John Wayne

- Live as if you were to die tomorrow.
Learn as if you were to live forever. .......Mohandas Gandhi

Friday, January 25, 2008

ACHIEVEMENT

The world needs dreamers and the world needs doers.
But above all, the world needs dreamers who do. …….Sarah Breathnach,

Never Start by doing what's necessary;
then do what's possible,
and suddenly you are doing the impossible …..St. Francis of Assisi

Never doubt that a small group of thoughtful, committed people can change the world.
Indeed, it is the only thing that ever has. …….Margaret Mead

Only those who dare to Fail greatly, can ever Achieve greatly. ….Robert F. Kennedy

The Greater the difficulty,
the more glory in Achieving it. ……..Epictetus

Nothing great was ever Achieved without Enthusiasm …….Ralph Waldo Emerson

The most splendid Achievement of all is the constant striving to surpass yourself, and to be worthy of your own approval. …….Denis Waitley

The Future is not a gift -- it is an Achievement. ……. Harry Lauder

Achievement is largely the product of steadily raising one's levels of aspiration . . and expectation. ……Jack Niklaus

All great achievements require time. …….Maya Angelou

The only way of finding the limits of the possible,
is by going beyond them into the impossible. …..Arthur C. Clarke

The Harder you fall, the higher you bounce. …..Author Unknown

The man who does things, makes many mistakes;
But he never makes the biggest mistakes of all, -Doing Nothing. ….Benjamin Franklin

Aviation is proof that given the will,
We have the capacity to Achieve the impossible. ……Edward Rickenbacker

Cherish your visions and your dreams as they are the children of your soul;
-The blueprints of your ultimate Achievements. …….Napoleon Hill

The height of your accomplishments,
will equal the depth of your convictions. …..William F. Scolavino

We would Achieve many more things;
If we did not think of them as impossible …..Vincent Lombardi

People with clear, written goals Achieve far more in a shorter time;
Than people without them can ever imagine. …..Brian Tracy

Don't judge each day by the harvest you reap,
but by the seeds you plant. ……Robert Louis Stevenson

Friday, January 4, 2008

SECURITY

My son, if you have put up Security for your neighbor,
you have struck hands in pledge for another, ……Proverbs 6:1

There is no Security on this earth;
There is only opportunity. ……. Gen. Douglas McArthur

Too many people are thinking of Security instead of opportunity;
They seem to be more afraid of Life than of death. ……..James F. Byrnes

Security is a kind of death ……Tennessee Williams

Security is mostly superstitious, it does not exist in nature.
Life is either a daring adventure or nothing. …….Helen Keller

Better be despised for too anxious apprehension,
Than ruined by too confident Security. …….Edmund Burke

They who would give up an essential liberty for temporary security,
deserve neither liberty or security. …….Benjamin Franklin

True individual freedom cannot exist without economic Security and Independence.
…..Franklin Delano Roosevelt

OPPORTUNITY

A Pessimist is one who makes difficulties of his Opportunities,
An Optimist is one who makes opportunities of his difficulties. …..Harry Truman

Opportunities are never lost;
Someone always takes the one you miss. …..Author Unknown

Many an Opportunity is lost because a man is out looking for four-leaf clovers.
......Author Unknown
Whenever you fall, don’t despair,
Look around, you may find something worth picking up. ……Edward A. Moses