Good Living 123

“As I would not be a slave, so I would not be a master. This expresses my idea of democracy.”

— Abraham Lincoln (1809-1865)
American statesman; 16th US President: 1861-65
assassinated following Civil War

Photo by Dave Lowe

“Love and compassion are necessities, not luxuries. Without them, humanity cannot survive.”

— 14th Dalai Lama Tenzin Gyatso (1935 – )
Spiritual leader of Tibetan Buddhism

My Grandmother, Marjorie Gulumian, often noted that there was far too much hate in the world. She was right. People who claim to be for civil rights, fairness, and peace are now too often ranting about violence being the solution. As I read hate-filled words on social media and observe divisive media commentaries, I know that we can and must treat each other better, especially at times in which we feel on the downward slide of society. The pendulum swings. Right now, people who have felt terror, hopelessness, and oppression are feeling positive, hopeful, and free. However, many people who had liked the path on which our nation was walking, are now the ones feeling genuine fear, loss, and dread. Compassion needs to be the order of this day and every day.

“All the world’s a stage and most of us are desperately unrehearsed.”

— Sean O’Casey (1880 – 1964)
Irish dramatist & writer

Enjoy April Fool’s Day!

“Do as adversaries do in law. Strive mightily, but eat and drink as friends.”

— William Shakespeare (1564 – 1616)
English playwright

“A single rose can be my garden… a single friend, my world.”

— Leo Buscaglia (1924 – 1998)
American author, speaker, and professor

My love and deepest gratitude to you.

A man is not old until his regrets take the place of dreams.

— Yiddish proverb.

“Often the test of courage is not to die but to live.”

— Vittorio Alfieri (1749 – 1803)
Italian dramatist

“The world is full of willing people, some willing to work, the rest willing to let them.”

— Robert Frost (1874 – 1963)
American poet

“I love deadlines. I like the whooshing sound they make as they fly by.”

— Douglas Adams (1952 – 2001)
English writer

“The only way to discover the limits of the possible is to go beyond them into the impossible.”

— Arthur C. Clarke (1917 – 2008)
English science fiction writer

“Every cloud has a silver lining, but it is sometimes difficult to get it to the mint.”
— Don Marquis (1878 – 1937)
American humorist, journalist, and author

Three wildfires continue to burn in our little western NC county. Firefighters are working tirelessly… yet again… to protect lives and property. (We are safe.) Some homes have been lost. The air is at times challenging to breathe.

And yet, when the breezes blow in the other direction, our sky is bright blue. Hope is in the air. Our peach trees have blossomed.

And the first iris blooms are joining us. Hope. May we never let it go.

“People are about as happy as they make up their minds to be.”

— Abraham Lincoln (1809-1865)
American statesman; 16th President: 1861-1865;
assassinated following the Civil War

“I feel like a little kid who just walked into a candy store. I think that’s something to smile about.”

— Brandon Boyd (1976 – )
American musician

Celebrate National Chocolate Caramel Day by smiling… indulging… and tossing away the guilt!

Photo by Dustin Humes

“May your troubles be less and your blessings be more.”

— Irish blessing

“Do not let what you cannot do interfere with what you can do.”

— John Wooden (1910 – 2010)
American basketball coach

Blood Moon Lunar Eclipse 03-14-25 over western NC

“Enjoy yourself — it’s later than you think.”

— Guy Lombardo (1902 – 1977)
Canadian and American bandleader

“The future belongs to those who believe in the beauty of their dreams.”

— Eleanor Roosevelt (1884-1962)
American social activist & stateswoman
US First Lady (1933-45); Ambassador to UN

“The greatest thing in this world is not so much where we stand, as in what direction we are moving.”

— Oliver Wendell Holmes, Jr. (1841-1936)
Associate Justice of the US Supreme Court

“You have to have confidence in your ability and then be tough enough to follow through.”

— Rosalynn Carter (1927 – 2023)
Former First Lady of the US

“There is a tendency for things to right themselves.”

— Ralph Waldo Emerson (1803 – 1882)
American essayist & philosopher

National Grammar Day is observed annually to encourage correct grammar in both verbal and written language.

“Texting has reduced the number of waste words, but it has also exposed a black hole of ignorance about traditional – what a cranky guy would call correct – grammar.”

— Richard Corliss (1944 – 2015)
American film critic

“An expert is a man who has made all the mistakes which can be made in a very narrow field.”

— Niels Bohr (1885-1962)
Danish physicist & Nobel Prize winner

“Whoever undertakes to set himself up as a judge of Truth and Knowledge is shipwrecked by the laughter of the gods.”

— Albert Einstein (1879 – 1955)
German-born theoretical physicist;
developed the theory of relativity

“It has to be dark for the stars to appear.”

— Warren W. Wiersbe (1929 – 2019)
American Christian clergyman & writer

“I am an optimist–it does not seem to be much use being anything else.”

— Winston Churchill (1874-1965)
British statesman, soldier & writer;
former Prime Minister of the United Kingdom

“Leadership is the capacity to translate vision into reality.”

— Warren Bennis (1925 – 2014)
American scholar & author

“Patience is also a form of action.”

— Auguste Rodin (1840-1917)
French sculptor

“To the world, you may be one person, but to one person you are the world.”

— Unknown

Our own value is often unknown to us unless we dare to let ourselves be loved and feel love. Special courage is needed when we have lost love, but we must always remember the importance of caring for and encouraging others, especially when loneliness is a challenge.

“Nothing is too high for a man to reach, but he must climb with care and confidence.”

— Hans Christian Andersen (1805-1875)
Danish poet, novelist & writer of fairy tales

National Don’t Cry Over Spilled Milk Day started with the Greek storyteller Aesop (620 – 564 BC), who said, “Don’t cry over spilt milk.”

Since then, many people have repeated his philosophy and added their own spins. For example, Greek tragedian Sophocles (496 – 406 BC) questioned, “Why bemoan what is done and cannot be recalled?”

English writer W. Somerset Maugham (1874 – 1965) thought the reason was “because all the forces of the Universe were bent on spilling it.”

British celebrity chef Gordon Ramsay (1966 ) noted he’s not going to cry over spilled milk because he’s “too busy looking for the next cow.”

Whatever “take” you like on the ol’ saying, at least don’t do it today. As American humorist Evan Esar (1899 – 1995) observed, “A creature that never cries over spilt milk is a cat.”

Purrrrrfect!