Ordinary people merely think how they shall 'spend' their time; a man of talent tries to 'use' it.

No little part of the torment of existence lies in this, that Time is continually pressing upon us, never letting us take breath, but always coming after us, like a taskmaster with a whip. If at any moment Time stays his hand, it is only when we are delivered over to the misery of boredom. But

Bad books are intellectual poison; they destroy the mind. In order to read what is good one must make it a condition never to read what is bad; for life is short, and both time and strength limited.

Ordinary people think merely how they shall spend their time; a man of any talent tries to use it.

In the blink of an eye everything can change. So forgive often and love with all your heart. You may not have that chance again.

The whole of world history there is always only one really significant hour—the present...

Life is too short to be little. Man is never so manly as when he feels deeply, acts boldly, and expresses himself with frankness and with fervor.

The secret of success in life is for a man to be ready for his opportunity when it comes.

Glorious wrappings sheath the gift of one day more. Breathless I unwrap the package. Never lived this day before.

So much in writing depends on the superficiality of one's days. One may be preoccupied with shopping and income tax returns and chance conversations, but the stream of the unconscious continues to flow undisturbed, solving problems, planning ahead: one sits down sterile and dispirited at the desk, and suddenly the words come as though from the air: the situations that seemed blocked in a hopeless impasse move forward: the work has been done while one slept or shopped or talked with friends.

We should all start to live before we get too old.

I'm not against technology, but all tools should be used to their best advantage. We should be spending our time on things that have staying power, instead of on the latest thought of the latest blogger - and then moving on quickly to the next blogger.