Progress

The march of human progress seemed mainly
    a matter of getting over that initial shock of being here.

            Barbara Kingsolver, Animal Dreams

 

 

 

 

 

Heaven on earth

On Earth there is no heaven, 

        but there are pieces of it.

                    Jules Renard, Journal

 

 

 

Poem: Spring

To what purpose, April, do you return again?
Beauty is not enough.
You can no longer quiet me with the redness
Of little leaves opening stickily.
I know what I know.
The sun is hot on my neck as I observe
The spikes of the crocus.
The smell of the earth is good.
It is apparent that there is no death.
But what does that signify?
Not only under ground are the brains of men
Eaten by maggots.
Life in itself
Is nothing,
An empty cup, a flight of uncarpeted stairs.
It is not enough that yearly, down this hill,
April
Comes like an idiot, babbling and strewing flowers.

        

                Edna St. Vincent Millay

Simple

It all comes to this: the simplest way to be happy is to do good.

        Helen Keller, The Simplest Way to be Happy

 

 

 

 

One thing he can do

[About the organizing of the 1955 Montgomery, Alabama, bus boycott.
  E.D Nixon, civil rights leader and union organizer
 Rufus A. Lewis, civil rights activist and politician
 JoAnn Robinson, educator and civil rights activist
 Fred Gray, civil rights attorney
 The pastor is Martin Luther King Jr.]

They needed someone who could get Nixon and Lewis to work together, appeal to Black people from all parts of the city, present a respectable image to the press, and handle negotiations well. Robinson and Gray discussed selecting a preacher for the job. But which one?

“Well, Fred,” Robinson said, “my pastor hasn’t been here long. But one thing he can do, he can move people with his words.”

King: A Life, Jonathan Eig 

 

 

 

 

 

The simple life

To find the universal elements enough;
to find the air and the water exhilarating;
to be refreshed by a morning walk or an evening saunter...
to be thrilled by the stars at night;
to be elated over a bird's nest or a wildflower in spring —
these are some of the rewards of the simple life.

        John Burroughs, Leaf and Tendril

 

 

 

 

April Fool

The first principle is that you must not fool yourself —
        and you are the easiest person to fool.

                Richard Feynman, Surely You're Joking, Mr. Feynman!