BellaOnline Forums Beauty and Self Inspiration Inspiration Quote

Self-respect is the fruit of discipline, the sense of dignity grows with the ability to say no to oneself.
~Abraham J. Heschel, "Essay on Youth," 1960

“We think sometimes that poverty is only being hungry, naked and homeless. The poverty of being unwanted, unloved and uncared for is the greatest poverty. We must start in our own homes to remedy this kind of poverty.”
— Mother Teresa, Missionary and Saint.

Though you have not seen Him, you love Him; and though you do not even see Him now, you believe and trust in Him and you greatly rejoice and delight with inexpressible and glorious joy.

—1 Peter 1:8 AMP

Simplicity is making the journey of this life with just baggage enough.
~Charles Dudley Warner, "Simplicity," 1889

Genius, like humanity, rusts for want of use.

William Hazlitt

English essayist William Hazlitt is best known for his humanist writings, which stress free will and self-actualization. In 1826, he published “On Application to Study,” an essay discussing how staying engaged keeps us moving forward. With this line, Hazlitt suggests that the drive for knowledge keeps our minds sharp — that genius is a muscle that can be exercised. He wrote that “by continuing our efforts, as by moving forwards in a road, we extend our views, and discover continually new tracts of country.” In other words, we will always learn something new when we’re out looking for it with an open mind.

"The older I get, the greater power I seem to have to help the world; I am like a snowball—the further I am rolled, the more I gain."
–Susan B. Anthony (1820–1906)

Run to the rescue with love and peace will follow.

River Phoenix

Activist, musician, and actor River Phoenix wrote these lyrics for an unreleased song six years before his tragic death in 1993 at just 23 years old. Sometimes referred to as the “vegan James Dean,” Phoenix was a passionate animal rights activist and environmentalist. He reflects the sentiments of this work in his writing, urging readers and listeners to understand the importance of loving and empathetic compassion. Phoenix’s younger brother, actor Joaquin Phoenix, quoted these lyrics while accepting his 2020 Academy Award for Best Actor for “The Joker.” “I think that’s when we’re at our best: when we support each other,” he added. “Not when we cancel each other out for past mistakes, but when we help each other to grow, when we educate each other, when we guide each other toward redemption. That is the best of humanity.” River’s poetry is a reminder that we can cultivate great outer and inner peace through active and deliberate benevolence.

The mind is not a vessel to be filled, but a fire to be kindled.

Plutarch

Plutarch, Greek philosopher, historian, biographer, and priest, lived in Rome during the first century CE. An avid defender of free will, and of the soul’s immortality, his ideas have influenced many other great thinkers over the centuries; Ralph Waldo Emerson wrote that he found it impossible to "read Plutarch without a tingling of the blood.” This quotation reflects Plutarch’s approach to biography in his best-known work, "Parallel Lives," a collection of written portraits of well-known Greeks and Romans, such as Caesar, Cicero, and Alexander. Plutarch focused less on listing off his famous subjects’ accomplishments than on evoking their characters, their human nature. For a life — like a mind — is more than the sum of its parts. Whereas a vessel is finite and will eventually run out of space, a fire once kindled will continue to burn, and to consume everything around it.

Nothing succeeds like success. Get a little success, and then just get a little more.

Maya Angelou

In 2008, a journalist with “The Atlantic” interviewed renowned poet Maya Angelou about race, feminism, and how to break down the barriers many people face in life. Prejudices “have been built over centuries,” Angelou said, and we can’t break through them immediately. Angelou encouraged readers not to be discouraged or disheartened if the hard work doesn’t pay off right away, because with persistence, eventually we’ll see some success — and a little bit of success can be the best motivator to keep trying. “We mustn't run out of steam," she said, "but keep plugging away."

“From all their distress God rescues the just.” (Psalm 34:18)