We ascribe beauty to that which is simple; which has no superfluous parts; which exactly answers its ends.
Ralph Waldo Emerson

It is neither wealth nor splendor, but tranquility and occupation, which give happiness.
Thomas Jefferson

I would rather stand against the cannons of the wicked than against the prayers of the righteous.
Thomas Lye

Where there is an unknowable, there is a promise.
Thornton Wilder

For years, three men were stranded on a desert island.

One day, a magic lamp washed on to the beach. They rubbed the lamp, and a genie appeared that granted each man a wish.

"I wish I was off this island and back with my familly," said the first man, and he disappeared.

"I also wish I was off this island and back home," said the second man. He too disappeared.

The third man, looked around and feeling lonely, looked up to the genie, "I really kind of like this island. I have everything I want, but it is getting a little lonely, so I wish my two friends were back to keep me company."

Necessity, who is the mother of our invention.
Plato

Those who aim at great deeds must also suffer greatly.
Plutarch

All right prayer has good effect, but if you give your whole life to the prayer you multiply its power...No one really knows the full power of prayer. Of course, there is a relationship between prayer and action. Receptive prayer results in an inner receiving, which motivates to right action.
Peace Pilgrim

The obscurity of a writer is generally in proportion to his incapacity.
Quintilian

"Oh, I sure am glad to see you," the little boy said to his grandmother (on his mother's side). "Now Daddy will do the trick he's been promising us."

The grandmother was curious. "What trick is that?" she asked.
"He told Mommy that he'd climb the walls if you came to visit," answered the boy.

He who fears he shall suffer, already suffers what he fears.
Michel de Montaigne

Smile at each other, smile at your wife, smile at your husband, smile at your children, smile at each other - it doesn't matter who it is and that will help you to grow up in greater love for each other.
Mother Teresa

Men become old, but they never become good.
Oscar Wilde

I am, indeed, a king, because I know how to rule myself.
Pietro Aretino

An elderly woman had just returned to her home from an evening of religious service when she was startled by an intruder.

As she caught the man in the act of robbing her home of its valuables, she yelled, "Stop! Acts 2:38!" ("Turn from your sin and be baptized")

The burglar stopped dead in his tracks. The woman calmly called the police and explained what she had done.

As the officer cuffed the man to take him in, he asked the burglar, "Why did you just stand there? All the old lady did was yell a scripture to you."

"Scripture?" replied the burglar. "She said she had an axe and two 38's!"

Poverty, chastity, and obedience are extremely difficult. But there are always the graces if you will pray for them.
Katheryn Hulme

In difficult situations, when hope seems feeble, the boldest plans are safest.
Livy

Then out spake brave Horatius, The captain of the gate: "To every man upon this earth Death cometh soon or late. And how can man die better Than facing fearful odds, For the ashes of his fathers And the temples of his gods?"
Macaulay

Make money and the whole world will conspire to call you a gentleman.
Mark Twain

Grandpa was reminiscing about the good old days. "When I was a lad, Ma would send me down to the corner store with a dollar bill, and I'd come back with five pounds of potatoes, two loaves of bread, three pints of milk, a pound of cheese, a packet of tea, and a half dozen eggs.

You can't do that now! Too dog gone many security cameras!"

No man can climb out beyond the limitations of his own character.
John Morley

The last thing a woman will consent to discover in a man whom she loves, or on whom she simply depends, is want of courage.
Joseph Conrad

I think the inner person is the most important. ... I would like to see an invention that keeps the mind alert. That's what is important.
Julia Child

In the beauty of the lilies Christ was born across the sea, With a glory in His bosom that transfigures you and me; As He died to make men holy, let us die to make men free, While God is marching on.
Julia Ward Howe

A woman was driving down the center of the road at 100 mph. A police officer pulled her over. "License and registration, please."

"It's OK, officer, she replied. "I have a special license that allows me to do this."

"That's impossible! There is no such license," said the cop.

The woman reached into her purse and handed him her license.

"This is an ordinary license, Miss. There's nothing here that would allow you special consideration," he told her.

She replied: "It says so right here at the bottom: 'Tear Along The Dotted Line.'"