Glens Falls (NY) Online Book Discussion Group discussion

"Things turn out best for those that make the best of the way things turn out." ---Art Linkletter

Yes, we must with the help of Faith, family and friends, we do.

Many years ago, the following quote was a mind-altering one for me:

"The greatest discovery of my generation is that a human being can alter his life by altering his attitudes of mind." ---William James (1842-1910)

“Child, child, do you not see? For each of us comes a time when we must be more than what we are.”
— Lloyd Alexander

That was on GR QoD today.

Jackie wrote: "“Child, child, do you not see? For each of us comes a time when we must be more than what we are.” — Lloyd Alexander That was on GR QoD today."

I like it!

“You must be true to yourself. Strong enough to be true to yourself. Brave enough to be strong enough to be true to yourself. Wise enough to be brave enough, to be strong enough to shape yourself from what you actually are.” ---Sylvia Ashton-Warner
FROM: http://www.goodreads.com/author/show/...

"She had the courage to be herself..."
---p.94, Hello, Gorgeous: Becoming Barbra Streisand (2012) by William J. Mann

"Remember always that you have not only the right to be an individual; you have an obligation to be one. You cannot make any useful contribution in life unless you do this." ---Eleanor Roosevelt

"It is nearly always a fatal mistake to go against one's nature, however unsatisfactory that nature proves to be. One must be authentic if one is to be anything at all."
---Anita Brookner, Brief Lives
(I would keep the words "within reason" in mind as I read this quote.)-Joy

"You cannot fly like an eagle with the wings of a wren." ---William Henry Hudson

"Life shrinks or expands in proportion to one's courage." ---Anais Nin, diary entry, The Diary of Anaïs Nin, Vol. 1: 1931-1934

"Courage is what it takes to stand up and speak;
courage is also what it takes to sit down and listen." ---Winston Churchill

Jackie wrote: "“Child, child, do you not see? For each of us comes a time when we must be more than what we are.”
— Lloyd Alexander

That was on GR QoD today." Couldn't that above quote be for Helen Keller?

No, it's from the book 'The Black Cauldron', a fantasy novel based on Welsh mythology.

I didn't mean she quoted that; I just meant it could almost refer to her.

Today's GR QoD, I really like this one, it's something that takes people time to realize.

The beginning of love is the will to let those we love be perfectly themselves, the resolution not to twist them to fit our own image.

Thomas Merton

Jackie wrote: "Today's GR QoD, I really like this one, it's something that takes people time to realize.

The beginning of love is the will to let those we love be perfectly themselves, the resolution not to twis..."If Only!

Jackie wrote: "... The beginning of love is the will to let those we love be perfectly themselves, the resolution not to twist them to fit our own image. Thomas Merton "

Wow, Jackie, I'll have to think about that one for a while. :)

PS-OK, perhaps the following would be a good one to follow the one above:

“Through practice, I’ve come to see that the deepest source of my misery is not wanting things to be the way they are. Not wanting myself to be the way I am. Not wanting the world to be the way it is. Not wanting others to be the way they are. Whenever I’m suffering, I find this ‘war with reality’ to be at the heart of the problem.”
---Stephen Cope

I've always known that to change the person we claim to love, is not love at all. And it never works. The changed person is resentful because they cannot be themselves and eventually they'll be who are they are anyway; and the one who wants the change isn't happy either because now they have a different person, not the one they supposedly fell in love with.

There's a difference in minor changes, like nicer clothes, than to change who a person is, when they want to change the personality.
I believe you gotta love people as they are, accept them as they are. And that's what love should be, unconditional. If it is unconditional, then there's no need for changing a person.

Changing oneself is the only way change can effectively happen. We have the right to change ourselves; it's arrogant to think we have the right to change others.

One time at work my friends said about Anthony, "You've trained him well" and my response was, "He came that way. If I had to train him then I wouldn't want him."

Jackie wrote: "I've always known that to change the person we claim to love, is not love at all. And it never works. The changed person is resentful because they cannot be themselves and eventually they'll be ..."

Amen.

Jackie wrote: "I've always known that to change the person we claim to love, is not love at all. And it never works. The changed person is resentful because they cannot be themselves and eventually they'll be ..."

Well put, Jackie!

Jackie wrote: "... The beginning of love is the will to let those we love be perfectly themselves, the resolution not to twist them to fit our own image. Thomas Merton "

Jackie, I've decided to file the above quote (which you posted) in my quote collection in the catagory I call: "PEOPLE-HOW TO TREAT THEM."

What do you think of the following quote which is food for thought:

"Treat people as if they were what they ought to be, and you help them to become what they are capable of being." ---Goethe

It's possible, depends on the person and whether they can recognize the help being given and use it in a positive manner.

Jackie wrote: "It's possible, depends on the person and whether they can recognize the help being given and use it in a positive manner."

That's true, Jackie. A good example is the case of the "odd couple". :) I tend to be very organized (even though things do get away from me most of the time). Eddie is very disorganized. He accomplishes his chores but his surroundings (e.g., his desk, the garage) are usually a mess.

I try to provide organizational tools (files, containers, etc.) for him but he always regresses. I doubt if he will every change even if he wanted to. He just isn't inclined that way.

I once worked with an accountant whose desk was always an incredible mess. But she knew exactly where everything was. Some people are organized in their mind but not with their physical surroundings. They seem to be able to function in a disorganized environment. This makes me nuts! LOL It also made the accountant's boss (the comptroller of the finance department) nuts too.

PS-Interesting etymology:
comptroller: c.1500, variant of controller, with bad spelling due to influence of unrelated French compte "an account," from Latin computare.

I'm very organized, Anthony isn't. I've tried to help him but he doesn't want to do it, so now it's on him when he needs those things. He's not allowed to touch anything in the kitchen, I have everything organized for convenience, even my spice rack is according to groups of what I use together.
My sister is like the accountant. I would go crazy in that atmosphere.
I'm one of those who believes "A place for everything and everything in it's place." Any time Eric asks for something, I tell him only if he has a place to put it.
I've got a touch of OCD, nothing outrageous, but enough that clutter and things laying out will bother me. Anthony started using our rolltop desk and it's a complete mess, the only reason I don't freak out over it is that I close the top. Out of sight, out of mind, lol

Very very cool etymology! I like how it's two meanings evolved into one.

Out of necessity I have to tolerate my own tendency to put off putting things away (no time because of the many books & films which I'm reading, listening to, & watching - lol). But at least the out-of-place items are in a designated place waiting for "transit" to their official storage spots. I keep a place where items can "mature" before they get put away. LOL

I'd love to have huge roll top desk. I know someone who has a huge one in her kitchen.

PS-Here's a good one:

"A disorderly desk requires an orderly mind." Anon.

When I am dead, I hope it may be said: "His sins were scarlet, but his books were read." Hillaire Belloc

So long as the books were read, that's what really matters.
;-)

Nina wrote: "When I am dead, I hope it may be said: "His sins were scarlet, but his books were read." Hillaire Belloc"

Great play on words. :)

This was GR's QoD today, I sent it to my sister, since it fits her so well, lol

"I decided it is better to scream. Silence is the real crime against humanity."
Nadezhda Mandelstam

Joy H. wrote: "Out of necessity I have to tolerate my own tendency to put off putting things away (no time because of the many books & films which I'm reading, listening to, & watching - lol). But at least the ou..."I have one in my basement office. Unfortunately I don't use it any more. But I did a lot once upon a time.

I saw this on facebook today:
"And those who were seen dancing were thought to be insane by those who could not hear the music"
Friedrich Nietzsche

Jackie wrote: "... "I decided it is better to scream. Silence is the real crime against humanity."
Nadezhda Mandelstam"

Good one, Jackie! Copied and saved.

"Sometimes silence is not golden--just yellow." -Anonymous

(I found the above last September at the alt.quotations newsgroup.)

Here's another one which is obliquely related:
"Well behaved women seldom make history". ---Laurel Thatcher Ulrich
It's a BOOK: Well-Behaved Women Seldom Make History by Laurel Thatcher Ulrich

Nina wrote: "Joy H. wrote: "I have one in my basement office. Unfortunately I don't use it any more. But I did a lot once upon a time."

I wish I had a GIANT roll-top desk! LOL
I saw a little one at an antique store in Glens Falls and my sister bought it for her grandkids. Here's a picture of it. I thought it was so CUTE! It was outside the store on the sidewalk for display. You'd think they would have dusted it off first!
CLICK ON THUMBNAIL

Jackie wrote: "I saw this on facebook today:
"And those who were seen dancing were thought to be insane by those who could not hear the music" Friedrich Nietzsche"

Love it! Saved it!

"There is a bit of insanity in dancing that does everybody a great deal of good." ---Edwin Denby

"There are short-cuts to happiness, and dancing is one of them." ---Vicki Baum

Jackie wrote: "I saw this on facebook today:
"And those who were seen dancing were thought to be insane by those who could not hear the music" Friedrich Nietzsche"

PS-Jackie, note the use of the word "did" instead of "could":
"And those who were seen dancing were thought to be insane by those who did not hear the music." ---Friedrich Wilhelm Nietzsche (1844-1900)

Anyway, I have the following filed under the category, "Perceptions":

“It's not what you look at that matters, it's what you see.” --- Henry David Thoreau

[Also see my previous post in reply to your same Nietzsche quote.)

All of these are great quotes, Joy! Now I'm wondering if I should start a Quote Book.

About did and could, how annoying! If they're gonna copy it, please copy it correctly! I'll bet that happens with a lot of quotes.

Jackie, my source for the Nietzsche quote was a very fussy fellow from alt.quotations. I trust his quotes. He has a website where he has posted his favorite quotes for his grandkids. See it at:
http://someworthwhilequotes.com/index...

After browsing his quotes, you will realize that this fellow is good at finding the best and most interesting quotes anywhere!

About your starting a quote book, I will tell you below how I file my quotations. It's a simple, uncomplicated method which serves me well and provides me with search capabilities.

===========================================
1. Simply create a directory/folder called "Jackie's Quotations" or whatever name you want to give it.
2. In that folder, create a notepad or wordpad document for EACH category. In each document, list your quotations for that category. You can add quotations anytime to any document. It's fun making up category names too.
NOTE: Your categories will be automatically alphabetized by the computer. Easy!
==========================================

Below is a sample from my Notepad document for the category I call: "Cleverness".
----------------------------------------------
CLEVERNESS

When I was young, I admired clever people. Now that I am old, I admire kind people. -Abraham Joshua Heschel, theology professor (1907-1972) [posted at aq by Martin DeMello 5/6/09]

Cleverness is serviceable for everything, sufficient for nothing. -Henri-Fréderic Amiel, Journal intime [dailyquotation.com]

It's no use trying to be clever - we are all clever here; just try to be kind - a little kind. -F. J. Foakes Jackson, Advice given to a new don at Jesus College, Cambridge. Noted in A. C. Benson's Commonplace Book [dailyquotation.com]

An ounce of loyalty is worth a pound of cleverness. -Elbert Green Hubbard, The Note Book (from dailyquotation.com)

"The height of cleverness is to be able to conceal it." -François, Duc de La Rochefoucauld
From book on sale at amazon.com: _The Most Brilliant Thoughts of All Time (In Two Lines or Less)_ by John M. Shanahan (Author)
----------------------------------------------

Note that my files are raw. Usually they indicate where I found the quote. That way you can verify or compare sources.

Joy H. wrote: "Nina wrote: "Joy H. wrote: "I have one in my basement office. Unfortunately I don't use it any more. But I did a lot once upon a time."

I wish I had a GIANT roll-top desk! LOL
I saw a little one a..."That is darling.

Nina wrote: "That is darling."

Yes, I thought so too, Nina! :)

Was it for a boy or girl?

For two sweet little girls. :)

Oh, I bet they love it. Just finished watching a very good, exciting well acted movie, "The Couple." Check it out.

Nina wrote: "Oh, I bet they love it. Just finished watching a very good, exciting well acted movie, "The Couple." Check it out."

Thanks, Nina. It's streamable and free for me at Amazon Prime because I'm a member there. So I don't have to wait for a DVD from Netflix. It's not streamable from Netflix. I've put it on my Amazon Prime Watchlist.

"The Couple" (aka The Aryan Couple) (2004)
http://www.amazon.com/The-Couple/dp/B...
http://dvd.netflix.com/Movie/The-Coup...
http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0407536/?...

"Based on the true story of a Jewish Hungarian's desperate attempts to save his family from Nazi death camps."

I've been meaning to tell you , Joy, but as usual I keep forgetting, that a TV show I watch, Criminal Minds, opens and ends each episode with a quote. Sometimes I write them down, if they resonate with me.

Yes, Jackie, the quotes have to resonate or they are meaningless to us.

"All truly wise thoughts have been thought already thousands of times; but to make them truly ours, we must think them over again honestly, till they take root in our personal experience." ---Johann Wolfgang von Goethe

BTW, I keep an icon on my desktop which takes me directly to my quotations folder.

"I love quotations because it is a joy to find thoughts one might have, beautifully expressed with much authority by someone recognizedly wiser than oneself." ---Marlene Dietrich

A favorite quote: "The best and most beatiful things in the world cannot be seen, nor touched..but are felt in the heart." Helen Keller

That's lovely, Nina.
Here's one that is along those same lines:

“People are like stained-glass windows. They sparkle and shine when the sun is out, but when the darkness sets in, their true beauty is revealed only if there is a light from within.”
---Elisabeth Kubler-Ross

That is special. Thanks for sharing and it is so true.

Are you blizzard bound? It's hard to keep track of where it's headed except for Boston. Miracle of the Day. My granddaughter who lives on Long Island Sound on the CT side sent me a message today on Facebook; "It's great to receive a package consisting of homemade brownies made by your grandmother delivered to your door during a blizzard. Thank you, grandma Teresa."

Nina, that is so sweet! You are a wonderful grandmother. Perfect timing too. :)
PS-Yes, the snow is coming down. I swept a path for Romeo. :)

How neat, Nina. I haven't hear from anyone in my family on Long Island. I do know that James & Lauren lost their power yesterday evening. They're in RI.

More about the dancing theme, GR's QoD today:

Hard times require furious dancing. Each of us is proof.

Alice Walker

Jackie wrote: "More about the dancing theme, GR's QoD today: Hard times require furious dancing. Each of us is proof. Alice Walker"

Can't match that one, Jackie. It's food for thought.

Perhaps it means that, rather than dwelling on our troubles, we can distract ourselves by lively dancing.

"And when you think only about your adversities, you bring more adversity to yourself, and the adversities become dominant." ---Dr. Norman Vincent Peale

Here's one about how we celebrate with dance:

“I have stretched ropes from steeple to steeple; garlands from window to window; golden chains from star to star, and I dance." ["...I am dancing."]
---Arthur Rimbaud, translated from French

[I heard the above quote on the Ovation Channel, a program about art:
"Rings of Passion - 5 Emotions of the Art World" (love, anguish, awe, triumph & joy)
The quote was in the section on "Joy".]