Go placidly amid the noise and the haste...

Go placidly amid the noise and the haste,
and remember what peace there may be in silence.

As far as possible, without surrender,
be on good terms with all persons.
Speak your truth quietly and clearly;
and listen to others,
even to the dull and the ignorant;
they too have their story.
Avoid loud and aggressive persons;
they are vexatious to the spirit.

If you compare yourself with others,
you may become vain or bitter,
for always there will be greater and lesser persons than yourself.
Enjoy your achievements as well as your plans.
Keep interested in your own career, however humble;
it is a real possession in the changing fortunes of time.

Exercise caution in your business affairs,
for the world is full of trickery.
But let this not blind you to what virtue there is;
many persons strive for high ideals,
and everywhere life is full of heroism.
Be yourself. Especially do not feign affection.
Neither be cynical about love,
for in the face of all aridity and disenchantment,
it is as perennial as the grass.

Take kindly the counsel of the years,
gracefully surrendering the things of youth.
Nurture strength of spirit to shield you in sudden misfortune.
But do not distress yourself with dark imaginings.
Many fears are born of fatigue and loneliness.

Beyond a wholesome discipline,
be gentle with yourself.
You are a child of the universe
no less than the trees and the stars;
you have a right to be here.
And whether or not it is clear to you,
no doubt the universe is unfolding as it should.

Therefore be at peace with God,
whatever you conceive Him to be.
And whatever your labors and aspirations,
in the noisy confusion of life,
keep peace in your soul.

With all its sham, drudgery, and broken dreams,
it is still a beautiful world.
Be cheerful. Strive to be happy.

~Max Ehrmann, Desiderata, 1927

The secret of human happiness...

The secret of human happiness is not in self-seeking but in self-forgetting.
~Theodor Reik

The most loving parents and relatives commit murder...

The most loving parents and relatives commit murder with smiles on their faces. They force us to destroy the person we really are: a subtle kind of murder.
~James Douglas Morrison

If you have only one smile in you, give it to the people you love.

If you have only one smile in you, give it to the people you love.
~Maya Angelou

To love someone deeply gives you strength.

To love someone deeply gives you strength.
~Lao Tzu

What greater thing is there for two human souls...

What greater thing is there for two human souls than to feel that they are joined for life, to strengthen each other in all labor, to rest on each other in all sorrow, to minister to each other in all pain...
~George Eliot

Do or do not. There is no try.

Do or do not. There is no try.
~Yoda

There's more to the truth than just the facts.

There's more to the truth than just the facts.
~Author Unknown

All things truly wicked start from an innocence.

All things truly wicked start from an innocence.
~Ernest Hemingway

Strange as it seems, no amount of learning can cure stupidity...

Strange as it seems, no amount of learning can cure stupidity, and higher education positively fortifies it.
~Stephen Vizinczey

I think people that have a brother...

I think people that have a brother or sister don't realize how lucky they are. Sure, they fight a lot, but to know that there's always somebody there, somebody that's family.
~Trey Parker & Matt Stone

If only closed minds came with closed mouths.

If only closed minds came with closed mouths.
~Author Unknown