"The loftier the building, the deeper must the foundation be laid." - Thomas Kempis I heard the whistle of an interesting train of thought while listening to a podcast the other day about the life of Michael Page, an Olympic-medal winning American equestrian. The interviewer asked Page which horseman had influenced his riding career most …
Tag: victory
Infinite Possibility
"Man must realize that he was not placed in the world, as a finality, something fixed, limited, restricted and unchangeable. He was entrusted with himself as infinite possibility, as mere raw material to fashion as he will for better or for worse as he may determine. It is part of his glorious gift of freedom, …
The Days of the Duel
"Self-respect meets attacks squarely, as a man should do; but it wields an honest sword. It fights in the open, and scorns to win victory by a treacherous thrust. It is a hard fighter; but it fights by the code and will stand up for the rights and honour of the individual as courageously and …
By Bread Alone
"Analysis kills spontaneity. The grain once ground into flour springs and germinates no more." ~ Henri Frederic Amiel Life is a mix of predictable cycles punctuated on occasion by the unexpected. The most obvious rhythms we experience are those caused by the machinations of the universe. Our planet turns on its axis, its revolutions give …
The Triumph of Things
The first two stanzas of Whitman's Song at Sunset came to mind while I walked my dogs under the trees lit by the setting sun last evening: Splendor of ended day, floating and filling me! Hour prophetic—hour resuming the past! Inflating my throat—you, divine average! You, Earth and Life, till the last ray gleams, I …
The Library of Wisdom and Your Excalibur
"In the conquest of any weakness in our mental or moral make-up; in the attainment of any strength; in our highest and truest relation to ourselves and to the world, let us ever make “love” our watchword, not mere “duty.” If we desire to live a life of truth and honesty, to make our word …
Throwing Away Our Happiness III
"The soul of our happiness may be—love. This love may be so fine and great and simple and it so fills our life that it leaves no room for pain, as light crowds out darkness. It may, with its Midas touch, turn even our trials and troubles into the gold of sweetness, strength and consolation. …
Throwing Away Our Happiness II
"Happiness does not consist of what we have but what we are; not in our possessions but in our attitude towards them. It is the serenity of the soul in the presence of a present joy. It is not absolute, requiring certain fixed conditions; it is relative. What would be a fast for one might …
The Better Angels of our Nature
"We must not be enemies. Though passion may have strained, it must not break our bonds of affection. The mystic chords of memory, stretching from every battlefield and patriot's grave, to every living heart and hearthstone, all over this broad land, will yet swell the chorus of the Union, when touched again, as surely they …
Commit to the Move
A younger friend of mine was describing the keys to advancement in the sport of wakeboarding to my brother-in-law and I and his philosophy was summarized by the brilliant statement that at a certain point you have to stop thinking and commit to the move. The idea, for instance of jumping the wake and doing …
Gregory Hake 