“On top of the world, or in the depths of despair.”

I laugh at my heart, and do its will.

You can easily judge the character of a man by how he treats those who can do nothing for him.

None are more hopelessly enslaved than those who falsely believe they are free.

All that is transitory is but a metaphor.

I love those who yearn for the impossible.

There are two things children should get from their parents: roots and wings.

Two souls, alas, are housed within my breast, and each will wrestle for the mastery there.

Knowing is not enough; we must apply. Willing is not enough; we must do.

We know accurately only when we know little; doubt grows with knowledge.

One ought, every day at least, to hear a little song, read a good poem, see a fine picture, and, if it were possible, to speak a few reasonable words.

There is no past we can bring back by longing for it. There is only an eternal now that builds and creates out of the past something new and better.

The intelligent man finds everything laughable, the sensible man hardly anything.

The suffering may be moral or physical; and in my opinion it is just as absurd to call a man a coward who destroys himself, as to call a man a coward who dies of a malignant fever.

Doubt can only be removed by action.

There is nothing worse than aggressive stupidity.

Daring ideas are like chessmen moved forward. They may be beaten, but they may start a winning game.

What I think we need to do is infuse everyday and every action with the kind of values we hope will be in the future, with kindness, with nurturing, with dreams, ambition, using your talents, not resorting to violence, other forms of conflict resolution, with humor, with poetry, with music.

Women have two choices: Either she’s a feminist or a masochist.

It is easier to live through someone else than to become complete yourself.

Is a decision made in advance really any kind of choice?

I try never to be governed by fear; that’s how I choose things.

The people who inspire me most are those who are willing to see the world from a loving perspective. People who perceive obstacles as opportunities and problems as spiritual assignments. People who choose love.

We choose to be writers because we don’t want to talk.

Given the choice between accomplishing something and just lying around, I’d rather lie around. No contest.