Henry Van Dyke
» Character » “What you possess in the world will be found at the day of your death to belong to someone else. But what you are will be yours forever.”
» Charm » “There is no personal charm so great as the charm of a cheerful temperament.”
» Critics and Criticism » “Half of the secular unrest and dismal, profane sadness of modern society comes from the vain ideas that every man is bound to be a critic for life.”
» Culture » “Culture is the habit of being pleased with the best and knowing why.”
» Death and Dying » “Some people are so afraid to die that they never begin to live.”
» Giving » “Look around for a place to sow a few seeds.”
» Gossip » “There are two good rules which ought to be written on every heart; never to believe anything bad about anybody unless you positively know it to be true; and never to tell that unless you feel that it is absolutely necessary, and that God is listening while you tell it.”
» Gratitude » “Gratitude is a twofold love — love coming to visit us, and love running out to greet a welcome guest.”
» Gratitude » “Gratitude is the inward feeling of kindness received. Thankfulness is the natural impulse to express that feeling. Thanksgiving is the following of that impulse.”
» Jesus Christ » “I thank God for the honesty and virility of Jesus religion which makes us face the facts and calls us to take a man’s part in the real battle of life.”
» Life and Living » “Be glad of life because it gives you a chance to love and to work and to play and to look up at stars.”
» Life and Living » “There is only one way to get ready for immortality, and that is to love this life and live it as bravely and faithfully and cheerfully as we can.”
» Nature » “Who can explain the secret pathos of Nature’s loveliness? It is a touch of melancholy inherited from our mother Eve. It is an unconscious memory of the lost Paradise. It is the sense that even if we should find another Eden, we would not be fit to enjoy it perfectly nor stay in it forever.”
» Peace » “A peace that depends on fear is nothing but a suppressed war.”
» Talent » “Use what talents you possess; the woods would be very silent if no birds sang there except those that sang best.”
» Time and Time Management » “Time is Too slow for those who wait, Too swift for those who fear, Too long for those who grieve, Too short for those who rejoice. But for those who love, time is not.”
