“Whatever the cost of our libraries, the price is cheap compared to that of an ignorant nation.”

“Hope has two beautiful daughters; their names are Anger and Courage. Anger at the way things are, and Courage to see that they do not remain as they are.”

“I shall not waste my days in trying to prolong them.”

“Our lives improve only when we take chances- and the first and most difficult risk we can take is to be honest with ourselves.”

“For me, winning isn’t something that happens suddenly on the field when the whistle blows and the crowds roar. Winning is something that builds physically and mentally every day that you train and every night that you dream.”

“The future does not belong to those who are content with today, apathetic toward common problems and their fellow man alike, timid and fearful in the face of bold projects and new ideas. Rather, it will belong to those who can blend passion, reason and courage in a personal commitment to [their] ideals.”

“The need for devotion to something outside ourselves is even more profound than the need for companionship. If we are not to go to pieces or wither away, we must have some purpose in life; for no man can live for himself alone.”

“Raise your words, not voice. It is rain that grows flowers, not thunder.”

“Your life does not get better by chance, it gets better by change.”

“The longest journey you will ever take is the 18 inches from your head to your heart.”

“Some walks you have to take alone.”

“Always vote for a principle, though you vote alone, and you may cherish the sweet reflection that your vote is never lost.”

“My whole life I've been telling myself, 'don't be afraid'. And it is only now that I'm realizing how stupid that is. Don't be afraid. Like saying, 'don't move out of the way when someone tries to punch you' or 'don't flinch at the heat of fire' or 'don't blink'. Don't be human. I'm afraid and you're afraid and we're all always going to be afraid, because that's the point. What I should be telling myself is 'be afraid, but do it anyway'. Live anyway.”

“A wise man will make more opportunities than he finds.”

“Love is something eternal; the aspect may change, but not the essence.”

“Twenty years from now you will be more disappointed by the things you didn't do than by the ones you did. So throw off the bowlines. Sail away from the safe harbor. Catch the trade winds in your sails. Explore. Dream. Discover.”

“A mature person is one who does not think only in absolutes, who is able to be objective even when deeply stirred emotionally, who has learned that there is both good and bad in all people and in all things, and who walks humbly and deals charitably with the circumstances of life, knowing that in this world no one is all-knowing and therefore all of us need both love and charity.”

“In life you can never be too kind or too fair; everyone you meet is carrying a heavy load. When you go through your day expressing kindness and courtesy to all you meet, you leave behind a feeling of warmth and good cheer, and you help alleviate the burdens everyone is struggling with.”

“The true essence of humankind is kindness. There are other qualities which come from education or knowledge, but it is essential, if one wishes to be a genuine human being and impart satisfying meaning to one's existence, to have a good heart.”

“It may be those who do most, dream most.”

“You cannot save people. You can only love them.”

“We are not here merely to make a living. We are here to enrich the world with a finer spirit of hope and achievement- and we impoverish ourselves if we forget the errand.”

“An original life is unexplored territory. You don't get there by taking a taxi- you get there by carrying a canoe.”

“Have faith in yourself. But have faith in your friends and neighbors, too. I know life is competitive- but it isn't a jungle. Like begets like. Faith inspires faith. People give back substantially what we give them.”

“You've failed many times, although you may not remember. You fell down the first time you tried to walk. You almost drowned the first time you tried to swim, didn't you? Did you hit the ball the first time you swung a bat? Babe Ruth struck out 1,330 times, but he also hit 714 home runs. Don't worry about failure. Worry about the chances you miss when you don't try.”

“If you are working on something exciting that you really care about, you don't have to be pushed. The vision pulls you.”

“To each there comes in their lifetime a special moment when they are figuratively tapped on the shoulder and offered the chance to do a very special thing, unique to them and fitted to their talents. What a tragedy if that moment finds them unprepared or unqualified for that which could have been their finest hour.”

“A great goal in life is the only fortune worth finding.”

“We are not creatures of circumstance; we are creators of circumstance.”

“The most powerful agent of change is a change of heart.”

“If I made it, it's half because I was game enough to take a lot of punishment along the way and half because there were a lot of people who cared enough to help me.”

“Sometimes there is nothing you can do, and in those times, you must do something anyway.”

“Nothing that had happened in the past could be taken away. This was an amazing gift. The past was done and over and settled; you couldn’t get it back, but still, whatever good you had gotten from it, spiritually, emotionally, would be yours for your lifetime.”