Common sense is the measure of the possible; it is composed of experience and prevision; it is calculation applied to life.

Conquering any difficulty always gives one a secret joy, for it means pushing back a boundary-line and adding to one's liberty.

He who asks of life nothing but the improvement of his own nature... is less liable than anyone else to miss and waste life.

Tell me what you feel in your room when the full moon is shining in upon you and your lamp is dying out, and I will tell you how old you are, and I shall know if you are happy.

Learn to... be what you are, and learn to resign with a good grace all that you are not.

Destiny has two ways of crushing us - by refusing our wishes and by fulfilling them.