No man can swim ashore and take his baggage with him. – Seneca What does that mean? While this quote has a slightly different meaning in the context of the letter to Lucilius, the basic topic was the of the futility of half-measures. The image of someone swimming to shore from a sinking boat trying…
The moment you think it’s out of reach, it will be. – Cornell Thomas What does that mean? Pardon me for answering a question with another question, but when is anything truly out of reach? As long as you are trying, there is always a chance, right? You might get lucky. It might fall into…
Whether we follow a religious path or not, as human beings we all need affection. – Dalai Lama What does that mean? Even tough guys need a little affection. Sometimes very little, but they’ve got a soft spot somewhere. Even Hollywood knows it. And they use it in their movies. But how many people do you…
Anger has this poor quality: It refuses to be ruled. Anger rages against truth itself if the truth is shown to be contrary to its own will. – Seneca What does that mean? This quote details but one of the many reasons why anger is not a very useful emotional state. Unless, of course, you’re…
Memory is the treasury and guardian of all things. – Cicero What does that mean? A treasury is the place where you keep your treasures, all those things you value. The quote says, in part, that that is one of the jobs of our memory. It also says that our memory is the guardian of…
Now we’re so interdependent, we need to build trust and confidence. On a national or personal level self-centeredness is a source of trouble. – Dalai Lama What does that mean? Are you an island onto yourself? Do you need no one, and interact with no one? Very few people are that independent that they stand truly…
If we are lashed and torn by Fortune, let us bear it; it is not cruelty but a struggle, and the oftener we engage in it, the stronger we shall be. – Seneca What does that mean? This quote has a variety of translations, and is part of a much longer discussion on being tough…
We should not teach children the sciences; but give them a taste for them. – Rousseau What does that mean? This quote interested me as I was taught this way as a child. Books to read, ideas and demon-strations provided, but not actually taught to me. For a kid with curiosity, that was certainly the…
Living your life honestly and truthfully will create trust and friendship. – Dalai Lama What does that mean? How do you define your friends or the people you trust? Do the words honest and truthful show up very often? What about the words dishonest and untruthful? Not everyone is perfect. We all have our flaws. Most…
Therefore the wise man will lose nothing which he will be able to regard as loss; for the only possession he has is virtue, and of this he can never be robbed. – Seneca What does that mean? This is an interesting quote in that it teaches you a new way to look at what…
Treat everyone with kindness and respect. Not because they are nice, but because you are. – Unknown What does that mean? If we waited until others were nice to us before we are nice to them, it might be a long wait. Especially if they are waiting for us to be nice to them first….
You can’t help someone just by making a wish to do so, you have to take action. – Dalai Lama What does that mean? This quote, to me, is about the difference between thinking about doing something and taking action. Wishing for something to happen is thought without action. It is action which gets things…
Each man, in corrupting others, corrupts himself. – Seneca What does that mean? This quote is part of a larger discussion of patterns of corruption. It talks about how entire communities and even countries have a pattern of what is acceptable. That pattern is usually impressed on the population as they grow up. They become…
You’ve been criticizing yourself for years and it hasn’t worked. Try approving of yourself and see what happens. – Louise Hay What does that mean? This is an interesting quote, in that it describes so many of us, at least at some point in our lives. Sadly, this behavior seems to be part of human nature. We are…
Sorry that this is coming out on the 1st of April, typically a day of jokes and pranks, but my life has become unexpectedly busy. I will be going to a Monday, Wednesday, Friday publishing pattern for the next few months while I get everything else caught up. There are over 1100 posts here for…
