Posts Tagged: inspiration

A grab-bag of left-over quotes, here at the end of the series. Don’t expect too much continuity. “The basis of optimism is sheer terror.” Oscar Wilde I never knew exactly where Wilde was going with this, so I’ve adopted my own interpretation. The “sheer terror” is universal; we only get ourselves into trouble when we

“Phantasie ist wichtiger als Wissen.” (“Imagination is more important than knowledge.”) Albert Einstein Ah, Albert. You’re right up there with Martha Graham as my favorite muse. And surprisingly so, because I thought you were a scientist… Yes, I know that the great scientists and mathematicians are artists. I can’t say I understand how, for the

“Probleme kann man niemals mit derselben Denkweise lösen, durch die sie entstanden sind.” (“Problems cannot be solved with the same kind of thinking in which they were created.”) Albert Einstein Of course, this is all looping around on itself, and that’s good. Two weeks ago, we considered our toolkits, and how it makes a tremendous

“Life shrinks or expands in proportion to one’s courage.” Anaïs Nin This is where we separate the wheat from the chaff. The last three weeks’ ruminations on perspective, focus, preparation and receptiveness are just the beginning. You can embrace all of those but still not be in the game. This business of making a living

“For every complex problem there is an easy answer, and it is wrong.” H.L. Mencken I am rarely unequivocal. A true and unrehabilitatable liberal, I’m always open to the possibility that someone else’s idea just might be better than mine. But this is one topic on which I take no prisoners. (The other one, specifically

“It is better to know some of the questions than all of the answers.” James Thurber Yesterday’s exercise in being flexible enough to stop trying to change things beyond our control is just the start. This new worldview only has a chance of sticking if we embrace uncertainty. Our Western culture is not so good

“You can’t stop the waves but you can learn to surf.” Swami Satchitananda I can’t say it any more clearly than that. I came of age in the 60’s and the 70’s, when the Serenity Prayer was becoming a bit of a cliché. That powerful mantra that helped so many people get their lives back

“Nobody can do two things at once, you know.” The Red Queen, via Lewis Carroll (Through the Looking Glass) Take that, multi-taskers. The Red Queen was a tough customer, but she had much to teach Alice that is more important today than ever. Endless scientific studies are showing us what we already knew; that it’s

“Nothing can be more useful to a man than a determination not to be hurried.” Henry David Thoreau Of all the bon mots that I’ve shamelessly stolen for the last few weeks, these are the ones that strike closest to home. Daily life is getting faster and faster for many of us, and yet our