Passion
Don’t ask yourself what the world needs; ask yourself what makes you come alive. And then go and do that. Because what the world needs is people who have come alive.
— Harold Whitman
Books must be read as deliberately and reservedly as they are written.
— Henry David Thoreau, Walden
I have always been a deliberate reader. When I stumbled across this quote while reading Walden so many years ago, it simply gave me permission to enjoy the pace at which I read. Good writing is more than just conveying ideas or recounting a story. Good writing creates a mood, and images, and evokes emotions — and these cannot be digested while speed reading.
One of my favorite writers is Pat Conroy, and my favorite book of his is Prince of Tides. When I read this poetic prose I am drawn in to the rich and colorful images Conroy is able to create. Every sentence feels like a sculpture carefully crafted.
There are two major products to come out of Berkeley: LSD and UNIX. We don’t believe this to be a coincidence.
— Unknown
It is the mark of an educated mind to be able to entertain a thought without accepting it.
— Aristotle
Here is a test to find out whether your mission on earth is finished; if you’re alive, it isn’t.
— Richard Bach, Illusions: The Adventures of a Reluctant Messiah
I came to Richard Bach via Neil Diamond’s soundtrack to Jonathan Livingston Seagull. While the metaphors in Jonathan Livingston Seagull are rather obvious now, the wisdom and insights from Illusions remain much more subtle and lasting.
Richard Bach was quite popular in the late 70’s and 80’s. Amazon calls him the Kahil Gibran of the Me! generation. I was in my twenties at the time and, like most people in that decade of their life, I had an overwhelming sense of calling. I had a deep sense that I was placed on this earth to complete a mission, to help people see themselves, and the world, in a fresh way.
Much has transpired since those heady days of youth. I think I have helped many people along the way, albeit never in the grand style I envisioned in my twenties. Nevertheless, on a quite day, I can still hear that voice calling inside. Since I am very much alive again today, it is good to know that my mission is not yet complete.
We do not have to visit a madhouse to find disordered minds; our planet is the mental institution of the universe.
— Goethe
Goethe lived from 1749 to 1832. In the two centuries since his death I am please to report that the planet has made great strides in mental health. At the dawn of the 21st century we have managed to confine the majority of our disordered minds to the executive suites and the board rooms of our largest corporations. A small consolation to the millions of us who must work in these corporations but progress nonetheless.
A job done by half is never done right.
— Mom