Accept no one's definition of your life, but define yourself. -- Harvey Fierstein

All mankind is divided into three classes: those that are immovable, those that are movable, and those that move. - Benjamin Franklin (1706-1790, American Scientist, Publisher, Diplomat)

All the gold in the world has no significance. That which is lasting are the thoughtful acts which we do for our fellow man.

All things are possible until they are proved impossible - and even the impossible may only be so, as of now. Cars and planes were thought of as impossible before their time. Persistence is the key to all inventive dreams. - Pearl S. Buck (1892-1973, American Novelist)

All this will not be finished in the first hundred days. Nor will it be finished in the first thousand days, nor in the life of this administration, nor even perhaps in our lifetime on this planet. But let us begin. - John F. Kennedy (1917-1963, 35th President of the USA -speaking about the space program)

All we are saying, is give peace a chance. - John Lennon (1940-1980 shot by a crazed fan -- former Beatle song writer, solo artist)

Always demanding the best of oneself, living with honor, devoting one's talents and gifts to the benefits of others - these are the measures of success that endure when material things have passed away. - Gerald R. Ford (1913-2006, Thirty-eighth President of the USA)

Ambition is the path to success. Persistence is the vehicle you arrive in. - William Eardley IV

And will you succeed? You will indeed (98 and 3/4's percent guaranteed!) - Dr. Seuss (1904-1991 cartoonist of political satire and children's books)

Anger is only one letter short of danger.

Anger makes dull men witty, but it keeps them poor. - Mark Twain (pseudonym of Samuel Taylor Clemens, 1835-1910 author of Tom Sawyer)

Any intelligent fool can make things bigger, more complex, and more violent. It takes a touch of genius -- and a lot of courage -- to move in the opposite direction. - Albert Einstein (1879-1955, German-born American Physicist)

Any person capable of angering you becomes your master. He can anger you only when you permit yourself to be disturbed by him.
 -- Epictetus

As I grow older, I pay less attention to what people say. I just watch what they do. -- Andrew Carnegie: Scottish industrialist, philanthropist. Founder, Carnegie Steel Co.

As soon as our abundance becomes more important than living a fulfilling life; we no longer own our possessions. They own us! -- Peter Walsh (professional organizer on TV show Clean Sweep and Oprah)

As we advanced in life it becomes more and more difficult, but in fighting the difficulties the inmost strength of the heart is developed. - Vincent van Gogh (1853-1890, Dutch Painter)

At the end of your life, you will never regret not having passed one more test, not winning one more verdict, or not closing one more deal. You will regret time not spent with a husband, a friend, a child or a parent. - Barbara Bush (b.1925, American First Lady, Wife of President George Bush)

Be changed and the world around you begins to change. — Gerald Epstein ( Doctor and pioneer in healing through mental imagery)

Be nice to people on your way up because you may meet them on your way down. - Jimmy Durante (comedian -vaudeville and movies "The Nose")

Be the change you wish to see in the world. - Mahatma Gandhi (1869-1948, Indian Political and Spiritual Leader )

Be who you are and say what you feel, because those who mind don't matter and those who matter don't mind. - Theodore (Dr. Suess) Geisel(1904-1991 cartoonist of political satire and children's books)

Be yourself...it's a job no one else can do.

Beautiful young people are accidents of nature, but beautiful old people are works of art to be treasured.

Beauty is only skin deep. I think what's really important is finding a balance of mind, body and spirit.
- Jennifer Lopez (International Pop Singer, actress)

Being powerful is like being a lady. If you have to tell people you are, you aren't. - Margaret Thatcher (b.1925, prime minister of England from 1979-1990)

By working together, pooling our resources and building on our strengths, we can accomplish great things. -- Ronald Reagan (1911-2004, Fortieth President of the USA, Actor)

A candle loses none of its light by lighting another candle.

Character cannot be developed in ease and quiet. Only through experience of trial and suffering can the soul be strengthened, vision cleared, ambition inspired, and success achieved. -- Helen Keller (1880-1968 Deaf and Blind, author, speaker, teacher)

Charity is the spice of riches. -- Jewish Proverb

Cherish yesterday, dream of tomorrow, live for today

Choose the way of life. Choose the way of love. Choose the way of caring. Choose the way of goodness. It's up to you. It's your choice. - Leo Buscaglia (1924-1998, American expert on love, lecturer, author )

Coming together is a beginning; keeping together is progress; and working together is success. - Henry Ford (1863-1947 Father of the Ford Motor Company and the assembly line)

Count your blessings. Once you realize how valuable you are and how much you have going for you, the smiles will return, the sun will break out, the music will play, and you will finally be able to move forward with the life that God intended for you. - Og Mandino (1923-1996, American motivational author, speaker)

Courage is what it takes to stand up and speak; courage is also what it takes to sit down and listen.
- Winston Churchill (1874-1965, Frm. Prime Minister of England during WWII)

Dance in the body you have. -- Agnes DeMille

Dance like nobody's watching.

Dance to the music of your dreams; the steps will bring you joy.

Diplomacy: the art of letting someone do it your way.

The doctor of the future will give no medicine, but will interest his patients in the care of the human body, in diet, and in the cause and prevention of disease. -- Albert Einstein (1879-1955, German-born American Physicist)

Don't be just another member of society, be a living example of your dreams and goals.

Don't use time or words carelessly. Neither can be retrieved.

Each time a man stands up for an ideal, or acts to improve the lot of others, or strikes out against injustice, he sends forth a tiny ripple of hope. - Robert F. Kennedy (1925-1968, American Attorney General, Senator, Presidential Candidate)

Early to bed and early to rise makes a man healthy, wealthy, and wise. - Benjamin Franklin (1706-1790 printer, scientist, and writer, 18th-century statesman of the First Continental Congress-PA, Diplomat,)

Education, in the broadest of truest sense, will make an individual seek to help all people, regardless of race, regardless of color, regardless of condition. - George Washington Carver (1864-1943, American Scientist)

Enjoy Life - This is not a rehearsal

Every cause needs people more than money, for when the people are with you and you are giving your cause their attention, interest, confidence, advocacy and service, financial support should just about take care of itself; whereas, without them in the right quality and quantity in the right places and the right states of mind and spirit, you might as well go and get lost. - Harold J. Seymour

Every strike brings me closer to the next home run. - Babe Ruth (1895-1948 Major League Star and Home Run King)

Every winner has scars and woeful stories of their failures and triumphant stories of their victories. The true winner learns from both.

Everybody can be great...because anybody can serve. You don't have to have a college degree to serve. You don't have to make your subject and verb agree to serve. You only need a heart full of grace. A soul generated by love. - Martin Luther King, Jr. (1929-1968, American Black Leader, Nobel Prize Winner, 1964)

Exuberance is beauty. - William Blake

For most of life, nothing wonderful happens. If you don't enjoy getting up and working and finishing your work and sitting down to a meal with family or friends, then the chances are you're not going to be very happy. If someone bases his [or her] happiness on major events like a great job, huge amounts of money, a flawlessly happy marriage or a trip to Paris, that person isn't going to be happy much of the time. If, on the other hand, happiness depends on a good breakfast, flowers in the yard, a drink or a nap, then we are more likely to live with quite a bit of happiness. - Andy Rooney (American Television News Personality)

For whatever reason, God has blessed me with this ability and put me in a position to make these leaps and bounds. I'm fulfilling my part of the bargain, which is to give back and be a positive influence on others. That's all you can do; take what you've been given and spread it around. - Denzel Washington (b.1954 Oscar Winning American Actor)

Forgiveness does not change the past, but it does enlarge the future. -- Paul Boese

The future belongs to those who believe in the beauty of their dreams. - Eleanor Roosevelt (1884-1962 First Lady from 1933-1945 to Franklin D.)

The future belongs to those who prepare for it today. - Malcolm X (1925-1965 Civil Rights leader)

Good thoughts are no better than good dreams if you don't follow through.

Goodness is the only investment which never fails. - Henry David Thoreau

Great beauty, great strength, and great riches are really and truly of no great use; a right heart exceeds all. - Benjamin Franklin (1706-1790, American Scientist, Publisher, Diplomat)

A great many people think they are changing when they are only rearranging their prejudices. - William James

Great minds discuss ideas; average minds discuss events; small minds discuss people.

Great things are not done by impulse, but by a series of small things brought together. -- Vincent van Gogh (1853-1890, Dutch Painter)

Growing Older
When I was in my younger days, I weighed a few pounds less,
I needn't hold my tummy in to wear a belted dress.
But now that I am older, I've set my body free;
There's the comfort of elastic... Where once my waist would be.
Inventor of those high-heeled shoes... My feet have not forgiven;
I have to wear a nine now, But used to wear a seven.
And how about those pantyhose
They're sized by weight, you see, So how come when I put them on
The crotch is at my knee?
I need to wear these glasses... As the print's been getting smaller;
And it wasn't very long ago I know that I was taller.
Though my hair has turned to gray and my skin no longer fits,
On the inside, I'm the same old me, It's the outside's changed a bit.
But, on a positive note...
I've learned that no matter what happens, or how bad it seems today,
life does go on, and it will be better tomorrow.
I've learned that you can tell a lot about a person by the way he/she handles these three things: a rainy day, lost luggage, and tangled Christmas tree lights.
I've learned that regardless of your relationship with your parents, you'll miss them when they're gone from your life.
I've learned that making a "living" is not the same thing as making a "life".
I've learned that life sometimes gives you a second chance.
I've learned that you shouldn't go through life with a catcher's mitt on both hands. You need to be able to throw something back.
I've learned that whenever I decide something with an open heart, I usually make the right decision.
I've learned that even when I have pains, I don't have to be one.
I've learned that every day you should reach out and touch someone. People love a warm hug, or just a friendly pat on the back.
I've learned that I still have a lot to learn.
I've learned that people will forget what you said, people will forget what you did, but people will never forget how you made them feel.
- Maya Angelou (b1928 poet, historian, author, actress, playwright, civil-rights activist, producer and director)

Happiness consists more in small conveniences or pleasures that occur every day than in great pieces of good fortune that happen but seldom. - Benjamin Franklin(1706-1790, American Scientist, Publisher, Diplomat)

He who has learned to disagree without being disagreeable has discovered the most valuable secret of a diplomat. -- Robert Estabrook (Washington Post editor, correspondent)

He who loses money, loses much;
He, who loses a friend, loses much more;
He, who loses faith, loses all.

The heaviest thing you can carry is a grudge.

Hope for your wishes but follow your dreams.

How do we create a harmonious society out of so many kinds of people? The key is tolerance -- the one value that is indispensable in creating community. One thing is clear to me: We, as human beings, must be willing to accept people who are different from ourselves. - Barbara Jordan (1936-1996 professor at University of Texas, House Rep. For Texas) Article entitle "All together Now" from Sesame Street Parents, . July/August, 1994

How wonderful it is that nobody need wait a single moment before starting to improve the world. - Anne Frank (1929-1945 As she and 7 others hid from the Nazis, Anne wrote a diary on her experience.)

A human being is happiest and most successful when dedicated to a cause outside his own individual, selfish satisfaction. -- Dr. Benjamin Spock (1903-1998, American Pediatrician)

I always wish for love to surround you, good fortune to walk beside you and happiness to fill your heart.

I am beginning to learn that it is the sweet, simple things of life which are the real ones after all. - Laura Ingalls Wilder (1867-1957 writer of "The Little House on the Praire" books)

I believe that if you think about disaster you will get it. Brood about death and you hasten your demise. Think positively and masterfully with confidence and faith, and life becomes more secure, more fraught with action, richer in achievement and experience. -- Edward Vernon Rickenbacker (1890-1973, American Aviator, World War I Ace)

I care not what others think of what I do, but I care very much about what I think of what I do. That is character! -- Theodore Roosevelt (1858-1919, Twenty-sixth President of the USA)

I don't know the key to success, but the key to failure is trying to please everybody. - Bill Cosby (comedian, actor, author, producer, PhD Education)

I expect to pass through this life but once. Therefore, if there be any kindness I can show, or any good thing I can do for another human being, let me do it now, for I shall not pass this way again.
- William Penn

I glory in this world of men and women, torn with troubles, yet living on to love and laugh through it all. - Carl Sandburg (1878-1967, American Poet)

I know unless I'm true to myself I couldn't be happy. Too much emphasis is placed today on externals and too little on character. - Betty White (b.1924 American Emmy Award winning Actress, The Mary Tyler Moore Show and Golden Girls)

I have never let my schooling interfere with my education. - -Mark Twain (pseudonym of Samuel Taylor Clemens, 1835-1910 Tom Sawyer)

I have not failed. I've just found 10,000 ways that won't work. - Thomas Alva Edison (1847-1931 prolific inventor)

I lie the loudest when I lie to myself.

I like thinking of possibilities. At any time, an entirely new possibility is liable to come along and spin you off in an entirely new direction. The trick, I've learned, is to be awake to the moment. -- Doug Hall (Professional inventor and idea guru.)

I long to accomplish a great and noble task, but it is my chief duty to accomplish small tasks as if they were great and noble. - Hellen Keller (1880-1968, American Blind/Deaf Author, Lecturer)

I may not like what you have to say, but I'll defend to the death your right to say it. - Voltaire

I studied the lives of great men and famous women, and I found that the men and women who got to the top were those who did the jobs they had in hand, with everything they had of energy and enthusiasm and hard work. - Harry Truman (33rd President of the United States)

I will smile at friend and foe alike and make every effort to find, in him or her, a quality to praise. I now realize that the deepest yearning of human nature is the craving to be appreciated. -- Og Mandino (1923-1996, American Motivational Author, Speaker)

I will tell you that there have been no failures in my life. I don't want to sound like some metaphysical queen, but there have been no failures. There have been some tremendous lessons. -- Oprah Winfrey (b.1954 TV Talk Show host, Actress, Author)

I've always believed that if you put in the work, the results will come. I don't do things half-heartedly. Because I know if I do, then I can expect half-hearted results. -- Michael Jordan (Basketball Star-Chicago Bulls)

I've always thought that people need to feel good about themselves, and I see my role as offering support to them, to provide some light along the way. - Diana Spencer Windsor, Princess of Wales (1961-1997 died in car accident in Paris, AIDS activist, headed the campaign to ban land mines, worked to help children all over the world)

Ideas won't work unless 'I do'.

If a man be gracious and courteous to strangers, it shows he is a citizen of the world, and that his heart is no island, cut off from other lands, but a continent that joins to them. - Francis Bacon (1561-1626, British Philosopher, Essayist, Statesman)

If common sense is so common, why is there so little of it? -- Mark Twain (pseudonym of Samuel Taylor Clemens, 1835-1910 Tom Sawyer -life satirist)

If every word you ever uttered came back and hit you in the face, you would pick and choose your words more carefully. If you have children watch out. Those words sting when they're thrown in your direction.

If I have been able to see farther than others, it was because I stood on the shoulders of giants.
-- Sir Isaac Newton (1642-1727, British Scientist, Mathematician)

If I Knew...
If I knew it would be the last time
That I'd see you fall asleep,
I would tuck you in more tightly
and pray the Lord, your soul to keep.

If I knew it would be the last time
that I see you walk out the door,
I would give you a hug and kiss
and call you back for one more.

If I knew it would be the last time
I'd hear your voice lifted up in praise,
I would video tape each action and word,
so I could play them back day after day.

If I knew it would be the last time,
I could spare an extra minute
to stop and say "I love you,"
instead of assuming you would KNOW I do.

If I knew it would be the last time
I would be there to share your day,
Well I'm sure you'll have so many more,
so I can let just this one slip away.

For surely there's always tomorrow
to make up for an oversight,
and we always get a second chance
to make everything just right.

There will always be another day
to say "I love you,"
And certainly there's another chance
to say our "Anything I can do?"

But just in case I might be wrong,
and today is all I get,
I'd like to say how much I love you
and I hope we never forget.

Tomorrow is not promised to anyone,
young or old alike,
And today may be the last chance
you get to hold your loved one tight.

So if you're waiting for tomorrow,
why not do it today?
For if tomorrow never comes,
you'll surely regret the day,

That you didn't take that extra time
for a smile, a hug, or a kiss
and you were too busy to grant someone,
what turned out to be their one last wish.

So hold your loved ones close today,
and whisper in their ear,
Tell them how much you love them
and that you'll always hold them dear

Take time to say "I'm sorry,"
"Please forgive me," "Thank you," or "It's okay."
And if tomorrow never comes,
you'll have no regrets about today.

If the human race wishes to have a prolonged and indefinite period of material prosperity, they have only got to behave in a peaceful and helpful way toward one another. -- Winston Churchill (1874-1965 British Prime Minister)

If only the people who worry about their liabilities would think about the riches they do possess, they would stop worrying. Would you sell both your eyes for a million dollars. or your legs. or your hands. or your hearing? Add up what you do have, and you'll find that you won't sell them for all the gold in the world. The best things in life are yours, if you can appreciate yourself. - Dale Carnegie (1888-1955, American Author, Trainer)

If opportunity doesn't knock, build a door. - Milton Berle (1908-2002, American comedian and actor on stage and screen, the first American television (TV) superstar)

If you accept the expectations of others, especially negative ones, then you never will change the outcome. 
-- Michael Jordan (Basketball Star-Chicago Bulls)

If you are patient in one moment of anger, you will escape a hundred days of sorrow. - Chinese Proverb

If you aren't fired with enthusiasm, then you will be fired with enthusiasm. --- Vince Lombardi (1913-1970, American football coach Green Bay Packer coach)

If you don't get out of the box you were raised in, you won't understand how much bigger the world is.
-- Angelina Jolie (American Actress)

If you don't stand up for something, you may fall for anything. -- Les Brown (b.1945, American speaker, author, trainer, motivator,)

If you get a second chance, grab it with both hands.  If it changes your life, let it. 

If you have great wealth, give alms out of your abundance; if you have but little, distribute even some of that. But do not hesitate to give alms. - Apocrypha

If you have made mistakes, even serious ones, there is always another chance for you. What we call failure is not the falling down but the staying down. - Mary Pickford (1893-1979, Canadian-born American Actress)

If you have time to whine and complain about something then you have the time to do something about it. -- Anthony J. D'Angelo, (author of The College Blue Book)

If you haven't any charity in your heart, you have the worst kind of heart trouble. -- Bob Hope (1903-2003 clearing his 100^th b-day by 2 months - actor, comidian on stage, screen and TV 12yrs “Road to...” movies with Bing Crosby and 60yrs entertaining the troops with the USO -married to Deloris Hope for 69 years.)

If you planted hope today in any hopeless heart,
If someone's burden was lighter because you did your part,
If you caused a laugh that chased a tear away,
If tonight your name is mentioned when someone kneels to pray,
Then your day was well spent.

If you only look at what is, you might never attain what could be.

If you think you CAN or think you CAN'T - you're probably RIGHT! -- Henry Ford (1863-1947 Father of the Ford Motor Company and the assembly line)

If you want to find out about the road ahead, then ask about it from those coming back. - Chinese Proverb

Imagination is the highest kite one can fly. - Lauren Becall

The individual is capable of both great compassion and great indifference. He has it within his means to nourish the former and outgrow the latter. -- Norman Cousins (1915-1990, American editor, humanitarian, author)

Inspiration: That which motivates actions, thoughts, and creativity.

It doesn't matter where you are going in life -- It's who is beside you along the way that makes your life work.

It is curious that physical courage should be so common in the world and moral courage so rare. -- Mark Twain (pseudonym of Samuel Taylor Clemens, 1835-1910 Tom Sawyer and Huckleberry Finn)

It is health that is real wealth and not pieces of gold and silver. - Mahatma Gandhi (1869-1948, Indian Political, Spiritual Leader)

It is not the strongest of the species that survive, nor the most intelligent, but the one most responsive to change. - Charles Darwin (1809-1882, British Naturalist-- Father of Evolution)

It is not the years in your life that count. It is the life in your years. - Abraham Lincoln (1809-1865 assassinated, 16th President of the US Civil War Emancipation Proclamation )

It is not what we read, but what we remember that makes us learned.
It is not what we intend but what we do that makes us useful.
And, it is not a few faint wishes but a lifelong struggle that makes us valiant.
-Henry Ward Beecher (1813-1887, American Preacher, Orator, Writer)

It is the greatest of all mistakes to do nothing because you can only do little - do what you can. - Sydney Smith

It was character that got us out of bed, commitment that moved 
us into action and discipline that enabled us to follow through. 
 - Zig Ziglar(b.1932 American author, salesperson, and motivational speaker)

It's never too soon or too late to build for your future. - Raulph Waldo Emerson (1803-1882)

It's not good enough that we do our best; sometimes we have to do what's required. - Sir Winston Churchill (1874-1965, Prime Minister of England during WWII)

It's the action, not the fruit of the action, that's important. You have to do the right thing. It may not be in your power, may not be in your time, that there'll be any fruit. But that doesn't mean you stop doing the right thing. You may never know what results come from you action. But if you do nothing, there will be no result. ---Mahatma Gandhi (1869-1948, Indian Political and Spiritual Leader )

It's tough to make predictions, especially about the future. -- Yogi Berra (b.1925, Baseball Hall of Fame player NY Yankees and coach Yankees, Mets, Astros)

Keep your face in the sunshine and you will not see the shadows. - Helen Keller (1880-1968 Deaf and Blind, author, speaker, teacher)

Learn from the mistakes of others. You can't live long enough to make them all yourself.

Let us realize that the privilege to work is a gift, that power to work is a blessing, that love of work is success. - David O. McKay

Let us take more responsibilitynot only for ourselves and our families but for our communities and our country. - William Jefferson Clinton (b1946, 12 years-Governor Arkansas, 42nd US President-2 terms )

Life brings simple pleasures to us every day. It is up to us to make them wonderful memories. - Cathy Allen

Life can only be understood backwards, but it must be lived forward. - Soren Kierkegaard

Life gives you the chance to love, to work, to play, and to look up at the stars. - Henry Van Dyke

Life is a great big canvas, and you should throw all the paint on it you can. - Danny Kaye (1913-1987 Comedian, singer, dancer, philanthropist, ambassador for Unicef, symphony conductor)

Life is a journey beginning each day. Make each new day the best it can be.

Life is like riding a bicycle. To keep you balance you must keep moving. - Albert Einstein (1879-1955, German-born American Physicist)

Life is not measured by the number of breaths we take but by the moments that take our breath away.

Life is not the way it's supposed to be.  It's the way it is.  The way you cope with it is what makes the difference. - Alexis Pennington

Life is what happens to you while you're busy making other plans. - John Lennon (1940-1980 -shot by a crazed fan at his home in New York-- former Beatle, song writer, solo artist)

Life's blows cannot break a person whose spirit is warmed at the fire of enthusiasm. -- Norman Vincent Peale (1898 –1993 US clergyman, motivational speaker, author "The Power of Positive Thinking")

A lifestyle is what you pay for; a life is what pays you. - Thomas Leonard ( CEO of CoachVille.com.)

Live as if you were to die tomorrow. Learn as if you were to live forever -- Gandhi

Logic will get you from A to B. Imagination will take you everywhere. -- Albert Einstein

Keep away from people who try to belittle your ambitions. Small people always do that, but the really great ones make you feel that you too, can become great. -- Mark Twain (1835-1910 pseudonym of Samuel Taylor Clemens, speaker, reporter, writer, "Tom Sawyer"- life satirist, American Humorist)

The man who views the world at 50 the same as he did at 20 has wasted 30 years of his life.
- Muhammad Ali (b.1942 as Cashus Clay-Olympic, 3 Heavy Weight Champion Boxer, Civil Rights Activist)

Many people will walk in and out of your life, but only true friends will leave footprints in your heart. - Eleanor Roosevelt (1884-1962 First Lady from 1933-1945 to FDR)

Maturity begins when we're content to be right about something without finding it necessary to prove that someone else is wrong. -- Barbara Johnson

May there always be work for your hands to do;
May your purse always hold a coin or two;
May the sun always shine on your windowpane;
May a rainbow be certain to follow each rain;
May the hand of a friend always be near you;
May God fill your heart with gladness to cheer you.

Miracles don't happen over night ... sometimes it takes all weekend.

The more anger towards the past you carry in your heart, the less capable you are of loving in the present. -- Barbara De Angelis

The moment a person forms a theory, his imagination sees, in every object, only the traits which favor that theory. -- Thomas Jefferson (1743-July 4,1826, Third President-USA, inventor, architect)

My days of whining and complaining about others have come to an end. Nothing is easier than fault finding. All it will do is discolor my personality so that none will want to associate with me. That was my old life. No more. - Og Mandino (1923-1996, American Inspirational Writer, Speaker)

My mind is like a parachute...it functions only when it is wide open.

My motto was to keep swinging. Whether I was in a slump or feeling badly or having trouble off the field, the only thing to do was to keep swinging. - Hank Aaron (b.1934 Hall of Fame Baseball Player for Milwaukee and Atlanta- Hit 755 Home Runs

Nearly all men can stand adversity, but if you want to test a man's character give him power.
- Abraham Lincoln (1809-1865, assassinated, 16th President of the US Civil War Emancipation Proclamation)

Never be afraid to try something different. Remember, amateurs built the arc. Professionals built the Titanic!

Never doubt that a small group of thoughtful, committed people can change the world. Indeed, it is the only thing that ever has. - Margaret Mead (1901-1978 anthropologist)

No matter how plain a woman may be if truth & loyalty are stamped upon her face all will be attracted to her. - Eleanor Roosevelt (1884-1962 First Lady from 1933-1945 to FDR)

No one can make you feel inferior without your consent. - Eleanor Roosevelt - From her autobiography (1884-1962 First Lady from 1933-1945 to FDR.)

Nobody can do everything, but everyone can do something.

Nobody said life would be easy, they just promised it would be worth it.

Not everything that can be counted counts, and not everything that counts can be counted.
- Albert Einstein (1879-1955, German-born American Physicist)

Not only must we be good, but we must also be good for something. - Henry David Thoreau

Nothing ever succeeds which exuberant spirits have not helped to produce. -- Friedrich Nietzsche

Nothing is a waste of time if you use the experience wisely. - Auguste Rodin (1840-1917, French sculptor)

Nothing that I can do will change the structure of the universe. But maybe, by raising my voice I can help the greatest of all causes -- goodwill among men and peace on earth. - Albert Einstein (1879-1955, German-born American Physicist)

Obstacles are those frightful things you see when you take your eyes off your goal. - Henry Ford (1863-1947 Father of the Ford Motor Company and the assembly line) -

One day our descendants will think it incredible that we paid so much attention to things like the amount of melanin in our skin or the shape of our eyes or our gender instead of the unique identities of each of us as complex human beings. - Franklin Thomas

One of the most difficult things is not to change society - 
but to change yourself. - Nelson Mandela (Anti-apartheid activist and former president of South Africa.)

One of the most tragic things I know about human nature is that all of us tend to put off living. We are all dreaming of some magical rose garden over the horizon instead of enjoying the roses that are blooming outside our windows today. -- Dale Carnegie ( 1888-1955 Writer and pioneer of famous courses in self-improvement, salesmanship, corporate training, public speaking and interpersonal skills.)

The one thing I can give and always keep is my word.

The one thing I can not recycle is wasted time.

The only source of knowledge is experience. - Albert Einstein (1879-1955, German-born American Physicist)

The only way you can fully embrace today is being at peace with yesterday.

Opportunity is missed by most people because it is dressed in overalls and looks like work. - Thomas Alva Edison (1847-1931 prolific inventor)

Optimism is the faith that leads to achievement. Nothing can be done without hope and confidence. - Helen Keller (1880-1968 Deaf and Blind, author, speaker, teacher)

An optimist sees the opportunity in every difficulty. - Winston Churchill (1874-1965, Prime Minister of England during WWII)

Our task must be to free ourselves from the prison by widening our circle of compassion to embrace all living creatures and the whole of nature in its beauty. - Albert Einstein (1879-1955, German-born American Physicist)

Out of difficulties grow miracles. - Jean De La Bruyere

The past should be a springboard, not a hammock. - Ivern Ball

The pessimist sees difficulty in every opportunity. The optimist sees opportunity in every difficulty. - Winston Churchill (Prime Minister of England)

People who are the happiest, in their life, don't have the best of everything.
They make the best of everything they have.

Pick battles big enough to matter, small enough to win. -- Jonathan Kozol: Author, educator, education activist.

PRIORITIES: A hundred years from now it will not matter how big my bank account was, the sort of house I lived in, or the kind of car I drive... But the world may be different because I was important in the life of a child.

Problems cannot be solved by the same level of thinking that created them. - Albert Einstein (1879-1955, German-born American Physicist)

The purpose of life is to live it, to taste and experience to the utmost, to reach out eagerly and without fear for that newer, nicer experience. - Eleanor Roosevelt (1884-1962 First Lady from 1933-1945 to Franklin D.)

Practice random kindness and senseless acts of beauty. -- Anne Herbert

The quality of life depends upon the quality of thought.

The real art of conversation is not only to say the right thing at the right time, but also to leave unsaid the wrong thing at the tempting moment.

Remember that you can't stop the waves, but you can learn to surf.

A representative of the people owes the people not only his industry, but his judgment. And he betrays them if he scarifies it to their opinion. -- Edmond Burke [1729-1797· Member of Parliament-Britain (spoken November, 1774)

The Serenity Prayer
God grant me the serenity to accept the things I cannot change,
the courage to change the things I can, and the wisdom to know the difference.

Sometimes the heart sees what is invisible to the eyes.

The Space Age is shrinking distances between us on the planet and in the universe with irreversible momentum, bringing us ever closer to each other. We will eventually live in the intimacy of a village. A village lives by the harmonious cooperation of its people - to share in the digging of a well or the reaping of a harvest or the education of its children. So I believe the Peace of the Millennium is inevitable - and I celebrate it! -- Burgess Meredith (1907-1997, American Actor, Director)

Small deeds done are better than great deeds planned. -- Peter Marshall (1902-1949, American Presbyterian Clergyman)

Spend each moment perfecting the next, not correcting the last. - Scott Michael Durski

Spread love everywhere you go: first of all in your own house. Give love to your children, to your wife or husband, to a next door neighbor. Let no one ever come to you without leaving better and happier. Be the living expression of God's kindness; kindness in your face, kindness in your eyes, kindness in your smile, kindness in your warm greeting. - Mother Teresa, (1910-1997, Albanian-born Roman Catholic Missionary)

Statistically 100% of the shots you don't take don't go in. - Wayne Gretsky (Stanley Cup winning hockey player)

A stitch in time saves nine. - Benjamin Franklin (1706-1790, American Scientist, Publisher, Diplomat)

Success is a journey, not a destination. The doing is usually more important than the outcome.

Not everyone can be Number 1. - Arthur Ashe (1943-1993, African-American tennis player, civil rights and AIDS activist)

Success is not permanent. The same is also true for failure. -- Unknown

Take pride in how far you have come And have faith in how far you can go.

Take time to Love the little things.

This book is like a comforter, A quilt with many parts.
A keeper of our memories, A place to warm our hearts.
The fabrics of our life's events, Those things we want to keep.
The programs, cards and photographs, Placed here not in a heap!
The scraps are stitched together, Held fast with love and care,
They create a family legacy, A gift for all to share.

There are no conditions to which a man cannot become accustomed. (violence, sex, torture, abuse) - Leo Tolstoy (1828-1910, Russian Novelist, Philosopher)

There are no secrets to success. It is the result of preparation, hard work, and learning from failure. - Colin Powell (b.1937 retired Army General, Frm.Secretary of State to Pres.George W. Bush)

There are risks and costs to action. But they are far less than the long range risks of comfortable inaction. - John F. Kennedy, (1917-1963, 35th President of the USA)

There are two kinds of men who never amount to much -- those who cannot do what they are told and those who can do nothing else. - Cyrus H. K Curtis

There is nothing like a dream to create the future. - Victor Hugo

There never was a good war or a bad peace! - Benjamin Franklin (Inventor of the stove, by-focal glasses, Writer, Statesman of the First Continental Congress-PA)

There wouldn't be enough stars if everyone had the same wish/dream.

They seem like little things to talk about--our children, but little things often make up the sum of human life ... little things often produce great things. -- Mark Twain (1835-1910 pseudonym of Samuel Taylor Clemens, speaker, reporter, writer, "Tom Sawyer"- life satirist)

This is is a story about a guy, who like most of us, sometimes questions his existence, measuring himself to others, not believing enough in his abilities or his own worth. Then one day, his passion outgrew his fears as he stepped onto a stage, (Britain's Got Talent ) a stage that took him to a place beyond his self-imposed prison. When he walked out on the stage in his $75 suit and open dress shirt you could almost see what the judges were thinking. They pre-judged him based on his looks and the fact that he's a cell phone salesman. He started to sing and he blew their socks off!!! Maybe he just stopped believing in what people told him for so many years and ultimately started listening to his passion. (One of the judges was Simon Cowell “This was a complete breath of fresh air. I thought you were absolutely fantastic!”)

Those who bring sunshine to others can not keep it from themselves. - Sir James M. Barrie

Those who give up liberty for the sake of security deserve neither liberty nor security. - Benjamin Franklin (Inventor of the stove, by-focal glasses, Writer, Statesman of the First Continental Congress-PA)

Time and money spent in helping men to do more for themselves is far better than mere giving. - -Henry Ford (1863-1947 Father of the Ford Motor Company and the assembly line)

Times like this remind us of all that matters most in life ... And we realize the things that matter most aren't really "things" at all.

To be upset over what you don't have is to waste what you do have. - Ken Keyes Jr.(1921-1995, American Author)

To handle yourself, use your head; to handle others, use your heart.

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

Tomorrow is the most important thing in life. Come into us at midnight very clean. It's perfect when it arrives and it puts itself in our hands. It hopes we've learned something from yesterday. - John Wayne (award winning actor-"America's Cowboy)

Too often we underestimate the power of a touch, a smile, a kind word, a listening ear, an honest compliment, or the smallest act of caring, all of which have the potential to turn a life around. - Leo Buscaglia (1924-1998 American Expert on Love, Lecturer, Author-This man gets it!)

The trouble with self-made men is that they tend to worship their creator.

Try not. Do or do not. There is no try. - Yoda in The Empire Strikes Back

Two roads diverged into a wood, and I -- I took the one less traveled by. And that has made all the difference. - Robert Frost (1874-1963 Pulitzer Prize Poet)

Until he extends the circle of his compassion to all living things, man will not himself find peace. - Albert Schweitzer (1875-1965, German Born Medical Missionary, Theologian, Musician, and Philosopher)

Vision with action can change the world. - Joel Arthur Barker

We are what we repeatedly do. Excellence, therefore, is not an act but a habit. - Aristotle (384BC-322BC mathematician, philosopher)

We are not here to merely make a living. We are here to enrich the world, and we impoverish ourselves if we forget this errand. - Woodrow T. Wilson (1856-1924, Twenty-eighth President of the USA)

We can't help everyone, but everyone can help someone. -- Dr Loretta Scott

We learn wisdom from failure much more than from success. We often discover what will do, by finding out what will not do. He who never made a mistake never made a discovery. - Samuel Smiles (1812-1904, Scottish author)

We live surrounded by a sea of poverty. Nevertheless, this sea can decrease in size. Our work is only a drop in a bucket, but this drop is necessary. - Mother Teresa (1910-1997, Albanian-born Roman Catholic Missionary)

We make a living by what we get, we make a life by what we give. -- Winston Churchill (1874-1965, Prime Minister of England during WWII)

We tend to get what we expect. -- Norman Vincent Peale (1898 - 1993)US clergyman, motivational speaker, author "The Power of Positive Thinking")

We think our fathers fools, so wise we grow. Our wiser sons, no doubt will think us so. -- Alexander Pope (1688-1744, British Poet, Critic, Translator)

We should all be concerned about the future because we will have to spend the rest of our lives there.
- C.F. Kettering (1876 - 1958 Vice President of General Motors and GM Research Laboratories.)

The weak can never forgive. Forgiveness is the attitude of the strong. - Mahatma Gandhi (1869-1948 Indian Political and Spiritual Leader )

We are citizens of the world. The tragedy of our times is that we do not know this. -- Woodrow T. Wilson (1856-1924, Twenty-eighth President USA, formed the League of Nations after WWI)

A well developed sense of humor is the pole that adds balance to your steps as you walk the tightrope of life. - William Arthur Ward

What do we live for if not to make life less difficult for each other? - George Eliot

What makes you happy, makes you rich. - Russian Proverb

What the people want is very simple. They want an America as good as its promise. - Barbara Jordan (1936-1996 professor at University of Texas, House Representative Democrat-Texas)

What we have done for ourselves alone dies with us; what we have done for others and the world remains and is immortal. - Albert Pike

What would you attempt if you knew you could not fail???

What you are will show in what you do. -- Thomas Edison, (1847-1931, American Inventor and Founder of GE)

When life seems just a dreary grind; and things seem fated to annoy; say something nice to someone else and watch the world light up with joy.

When choosing between two evils, I always like to try the one I've never tried before. At least I'll learn something new. - Mae West

When things are bad, we take comfort in the thought that they could always be worse. And when they are, we find hope in the thought that things are so bad that they have to get better. - Malcolm S. Forbes (1919-1990, American Publisher, Businessman)

When we long for life without difficulties, remind us that oaks grow strong in contrary winds and diamonds are made under pressure. - Peter Marshall(1902-1949, American Presbyterian Clergyman)

When you are born, you are crying and everyone around you is smiling. Live your life so that when you die, you are smiling and everyone around you is crying.

When you cease to make a contribution, you begin to die. - Eleanor Roosevelt (1884-1962 First Lady from 1933-1945 to FDR.)

Wherever life's path leads you, may every step along the way be filled with peace and courage.

Wherever you go, no matter what the weather, always bring your own sunshine. -- Anthony J. D'Angelo, The College Blue Book

With everything that has happened to you, you can either feel sorry for yourself or treat what has happened as a gift. Everything is either an opportunity to grow or an obstacle to keep you from growing. You get to choose. -- Wayne Dyer (b.1940Self-help advocate, author, and lecturer)

Who are we if we are not useful to others. -- Angelina Jolie (b 1975 American film actress, former fashion model, Ambassador for the UN Refugee Agency, mother of 1 and 4 adopted.)

Who is wise? One who learns from all. -- The Talmud (BC 500?-400? AD, Jewish Archive of Oral Tradition)

Why do some people always see beautiful skies and grass and lovely flowers and incredible human beings, while others are hard-pressed to find anything or any place that is beautiful? - Leo Buscaglia (1924-1998 American Expert on Love, Lecturer, Author "Dr.Hug")

Why are you so nice . . . because nice matters.

A wise man once said every society is judged by how it treats it's least fortunate amongst them.

The world belongs to the energetic. - Ralph Waldo Emerson

Words of Wisdom: Live, Imagine, Giggle, Forgive, Thankfulness, Behave, Create, Pride, Simplify, Produce, Dream, Hope, Inspire, Love, Faith, Blessings, Encourage, Praise, Give, Love (pop these words throughout your pages for inspiration)

Work joyfully and peacefully, knowing that right thoughts and right efforts will inevitably bring about right results. -- James Allen: Author, As a Man Thinketh.

Work like you don't need the money. Love like you've never been hurt.

Wringing your hands only stops you from rolling up your sleeves. - James Rolling

Yesterday is history - tomorrow is a mystery - today is a gift.

You can achieve anything you want in life if you have the courage to dream it, the intelligence to make a realistic plan, and the will to see that plan through to the end. - Sidney A. Friedman (b.1935 American Entrepreneur, Motivational Speaker, Author)

You can never tell what type of impact you may make on another's life by your actions or lack of action. Sometimes just with a smile on the street to a passing stranger can make a difference we could never imagine. -- Ed Foreman: Congressman, advisor to 5 American presidents.

You cannot do a kindness too soon; for you never know how soon it will be too late. - Ralph Waldo Emerson (1803-1882, American poet, essayist)

You don't just luck into things. You build them step by step, whether it's friendships or opportunities.
- Barbara Bush (First Lady, Wife of President George H. Bush)

You have to have a dream so you can get up in the morning. - Billy Wilder (1906-2002 American Film Director)

You must learn from the mistakes of others. You can't possibly live long enough to make them all yourself.
- Sam Levenson

You must see your goals clearly and specifically before you can set out for them. Hold them in your mind until they become second nature. - Les Brown (b.1945, American Speaker, Author, Trainer, Motivator Lecturer)

You never get a second chance to make a first impression.

You only lose energy when life becomes dull in your mind. Your mind gets bored and therefore tired of doing nothing. Get interested in something! Get absolutely enthralled in something! Get out of yourself! Be somebody! Do something. The more you lose yourself in something bigger than yourself, the more energy you will have. -- Norman Vincent Peale (1898-1993, American Christian Reformed Pastor, Speaker, Author)

You really have to look inside and find your inner strength, and say, "I'm proud of what I am and who I am, and I'm just going to be myself. - Mariah Carey (b1969 American Singer)

You should keep your words soft and sweet in case you have to eat them.

You're not obligated to win. You're obligated to keep trying to do the best you can every day. - Marian Wright Edelman *Activist for children's rights.)

You've got to get up in the morning with a smile on your face, and show the world all the love in your heart. - Carole King (b.1941 American Composer-lyricist)