To have a quiet mind is to possess one's mind wholly; to have a calm spirit is to possess one's self. Blessed is the season which engages the whole world in a conspiracy of love. The question for each man to settle is not what he would do if he had means, time, influence, and educational advantages, but what he will do with the things he has. Nothing is lost upon a man who is bent upon growth; nothing wasted on one who is always preparing for life. By keeping eyes, mind, and heart open to nature, men, books, experience, and what he gathers, serves him at unexpected moments, in unforeseen ways. He strains his conversation through a cigar. Genius can do much, but even genius falls short of the actuality of a single human life. The mother loves her child most divinely, not when she surrounds him with comfort and anticipates his wants, but when she resolutely holds him to the highest standards and is content with nothing less than his best. Don't be afraid of opposition. Remember, a kite rises against, not with the wind. |