Notable Quotes and Inspirational Thoughts
Stop and Ponder the Wisdom and the Truth on this page!

“Search for the answers yourself, and trust no one’s conclusions but your own.”–Paul MacReady’s advice to schoolchildren, quoted in Discover Magazine, Sept. 1999, p 79.

“Men never do evil so completely and cheerfully as when they do it from religious conviction.”–Blaise Pascal (1623-1662), Influential French Mathematician

“There are two ways to approach learning and understanding.
1. We can stand before What Is and ask, ‘What can I learn from this?’ or
2. We can look to our beliefs about What Is Supposed To Be and work to fit What Is into them.

Neither is necessarily right or wrong, but the question we need to ask ourselves is, which is most likely to give us what we seek in true learning and understanding?” — Cam Mosher

“The thing that most hinders our relationships, our pursuit of learning and understanding, and our search for happiness is our persistent and dogged insistence on making WHAT IS fit into our beliefs about WHAT IS SUPPOSED TO BE.” — Cam Mosher

“The Optimist can ONLY lose once. The Pessimist ALWAYS loses AT LEAST once.” — Cam Mosher in a moment of reflection.

“THE TWO MOST IMPORTANT QUESTIONS: What do I want? and What price am I willing to pay to have it?”

The MOST IMPORTANT MOMENT in a person’s life is NOW. It is the only moment where a new choice can be made!

The MOST IMPORTANT QUESTION in a person’s life is “What do I want?” It is the only question that can direct our choices toward our vision for ourselves and our place in the world.

MOST IMPORTANT DECISION in a person’s life is to assign clear priorities to desires and wants so that one’s life energy is focused toward what is TRULY most important!” — Cam Mosher

“Failure doesn’t mean you are a failure… …it does mean you haven’t succeeded yet. Failure doesn’t mean you have accomplished nothing… …it does mean you have learned something. Failure doesn’t mean you have been a fool… …it does mean you had a lot of faith. Failure doesn’t mean you have been disgraced… …it does mean you were willing to try. Failure doesn’t mean you don’t have it… …it does mean you have to do something in a different way. Failure doesn’t mean you are inferior… …it does mean you are not perfect. Failure doesn’t mean you’ve wasted your life… …it does mean you’ve a reason to start afresh. Failure doesn’t mean you should give up… …it does mean you should try harder. Failure doesn’t mean you’ll never make it… …it does mean it will take a little longer. Failure doesn’t mean God has abandoned you… …it does mean God has a better idea!” — from an email forwarded to me by Nancy DeSanto, April 24, 1999 (Cam Mosher)

“Living in the present is what makes a survivor. Concentrating on what is left, not what is lost. Victims wait for someone else to liberate them. Victims blame others. Survivors face their past and then forgive. Survivors are flexible. Victims say, “Why me?” Survivors say, “What now?” Victims get stuck in anger. Survivors make their own choices. Some of the other inmates turned to cannibalism, but I ate grass. I sat on the ground and picked through the blades. I still had a choice–which blade of grass I would eat.” — Dr. Edith Eva Eger, a survivor of Auschwitz, quoted in the Deseret News, Salt Lake City, Utah, October 15, 1998.

“The World will have Peace when the Power of Love is greater than the Love of Power.” — The signature bar of Michael W. Gifford at gif@macwiz.com

“I know you believe you understand what you think you heard me say, but I’m not sure you realize that what you heard is not what I meant.” — A comment on the communication that is typical in our families, organizations and lives; meant to be humorous, but states the truth about human communication. It is a wonder that we communicate at all!

“We learned all we could about the process of dying. Finally, together, we watched it unfold. It was the most difficult, most rewarding experience of my life.” — Sharon Randall, on her experience of the death of her husband from cancer, quoted in the Deseret News, Salt Lake City, Utah, July 26, 1998.

“Look, it’s easy to be visionary or to be credible. It’s hard to be both.”–Marc Millis, NASA engineer working on cutting-edge ideas of ‘faster-than-light’ travel, quoted in Discover, August 1998.

AND THIS IS THE KEY TO SOLVING THE PROBLEMS OF THE WORLD!

“We now have to get our hands dirty and deal with people who perhaps we don’t like in order to achieve something better.” — David Ervine, Pro-British Progressive Unionist Party on the overwhelming passage of the historic Peace Agreement in Ireland, quoted in the Deseret News, Salt Lake City, Utah, Spring 1998.

“In Sarajevo, the people tried to maintain a life amidst constant shelling from Serbs positioned on the hills surrounding the city. A line of people had formed outside a bakery which had managed to continue to produce baked goods. A musician, a professional cellist, watched the line from his window across the street. Suddenly a shell fell on this line and exploded, killing 22 people. Bodies were blown to bits. The horror of this so outraged the cellist that he donned his concert dress, took a chair and his instrument, and sat in the street by the crater where the line had been for 22 days and played a piece, Adagio in G Minor by Albioni, a mournful soul cry. This was the only way he knew to express his outcry at the madness around him. He courageously returned every day, sitting in the street with his cello, pouring out the pain and outrage of his heart, while the shells fell around him on the city. What can one man do from the convictions of his heart, giving only the best of his personal gift and talent? Would the song of his cello really make a difference in the world? Would it really be heard over the explosions and cries of death and pain?

“Someone heard of him and word spread. A composer in England was so touched that he composed a piece for the cello to pay tribute to the man. He called this piece, “The Cellist of Sarajevo.” The debut of this work was performed in England by the renowned cellist Yo Yo Ma to a large audience. Yo Yo Ma walked with his chair to the center of an empty stage and sat down. Playing unaccompanied, he performed the piece. At the end, no one applauded for there was not a dry eye in the house. Yo Yo Ma stood and motioned to the audience. A lone figure got up and moved to the stage. It was the cellist who had braved the shells to sit every day in the street.

“What can one man do to influence hearts and change the world? Readers Digest wrote this up and it went to millions of readers. Through my friend Elizabeth Lewin, it came to my attention. It has profoundly touched me. I have told this story to many people and now I tell it to you. If you are touched, tell it to others. It is possible for one man to make a difference. We never know what will happen from the seeds sown by the sincere expressions of our hearts.

“After my daughter, Erin, returned home from Ireland in the spring of 1998, the historic vote was held in which 70 % of the people said, “Stop the madness!” After the vote, one of the party leaders, David Ervine of the Progressive Unionist Party (Protestant), was quoted in the Deseret News as saying, “Now we have to get our hands dirty and work with people who perhaps we don’t like, in order to achieve something better.” That is what it will take for the madness to stop everywhere. People being willing to sit down and talk with people who perhaps they don’t like, and work with them to achieve something better. The hating and warring and killing can stop if we but learn to do that.” – L. Cameron Mosher

COMMITMENT

Until one is committed, there is hesitancy, the chance to draw back, always ineffectiveness. Concerning all acts of initiative (and creation), there is one elementary truth, the ignorance of which kills countless ideas and splendid plans: that the moment one definitely commits oneself, then Providence moves too.

All sorts of things occur to help one that would never otherwise have occurred. A whole stream of events issues from the decision raising in one’s favor all manner of unforeseen incidents and meetings and material assistance which no man could have dreamt would have come his way.

Whatever you can do, or dream you can, begin it. Boldness has genius, power, and magic in it!
— Goethe

“Subconsciously, we set our own terms with life. We make an unwritten contract with it. We set out our own limits and we restrict our own possibilities.”– Frank Richelieu