Give what you can, share what you have, and receive the love and kindness returned with a open heart, a smile and a kind word. – Mala Shah What does that mean? This appears to be an original quote from MDS, but that doesn’t make it any less beautiful, or any less impactful. It’s a sentence my…
If you want the present to be different from the past, study the past. – Spinoza What does that mean? There are plenty of ways to look at this quote, but at the heart of it is a simple thought. Learn from experiences. We can learn from our own experiences, and by studying the past, from…
It has been my observation that most people get ahead during the time that others waste. – Henry Ford What does that mean? This quote, as one might expect from one of the foremost industrialists of his era, is about work. Specifically how to get ahead, or to get more done than the next guy (or gal)….
It is not he who reviles or strikes you who insults you, but your opinion that these things are insulting. – Epictetus What does that mean? I like this quote. It has an interesting perspective on things, and that is what the quote is all about. Someone shouts an insult at you, and you believe…
Where we love is home, home that our feet may leave, but not our hearts. – Oliver Wendell Holmes What does that mean? This quote is, to me, about the difference between a physical location and an emotion. The quote says that where we love, that is our home. Put another way : “Home is where the…
Peace can only be achieved through non-violence. This is something we have to train and educate our children to put into effect. – Dalai Lama What does that mean? This is an interesting quote, because talks about the history of mankind and the inability of violence to settle differences. This is with one exception: the wars which…
No untroubled day has ever dawned for me. – Seneca What does that mean? This is a classic bit of wisdom. Who has ever had a day completely free of troubles? It might be statistically possible, but typically, they are rare at best. And how do you define ‘troubles’? Could something you enjoy be a trouble for…
You must decide what it is you believe in and take steps towards achieving it and creating the universe and world you want to see. – Forest Whitaker What does that mean? This is a bit of a departure from the norm, as this is a quote from just a few days ago. It doesn’t exist in…
Far and away the best prize that life offers is the chance to work hard at work worth doing. – Theodore Roosevelt What does that mean? This is a quote, taken from a speech by a sitting American President, so I hope you can understand his focus on Americans. This longer version of the quote is from…
If evil be spoken of you and it be true, correct yourself, if it be a lie, laugh at it. – Epictetus What does that mean? This is a classic of introspection. It says that people will speak ill of you. It’s going to happen. Unless you’re really young, it’s probably already happened, right? The quote…
To refrain from imitation is the best revenge. – Marcus Aurelius What does that mean? Another classically brief quote. But it is packed with meaning. It is talking about revenge and how to best achieve it. However, it doesn’t say to serve it cold, or when they aren’t looking for it. The quote is about restraint….
One word frees us of all the weight and pain in life. That word is Love. – Sophocles What does that mean? This quote is not from a philosopher, but from a ground-breaking Greek playwright, from his play Oedipus at Colonus (line 1616). And it, while a little bit artsy, encapsulates a basic truth of life….
A person who practices compassion and forgiveness has great inner strength, whereas aggression is usually a sign of weakness. – Dalai Lama What does that mean? Anyone who has been in the school yard knows of this, even if they never thought of it in this manner. This is a fairly common truth in life, which probably…
Whenever the speech is corrupted so is the mind. – Seneca What does that mean? This quote is a cold hard truth, and one that is recognized by many people. It is a method which is regularly used to manipulate people all over the world. It was one of the core concepts of a book by…
Remember that the happiest people are not those getting more, but those giving more. – H. Jackson Brown, Jr. What does that mean? This quote is about the difference between giving and getting. As kids, I imagine most of us liked one a whole lot more than the other. But how has that changed as we have…
