As the arteries grow hard, the heart grows soft.
Interpretation
As people become rigid in their beliefs, they may lose their emotional capacity and compassion.
H. L. Mencken's quote suggests that as one's mindset becomes inflexible, akin to hardened arteries, the ability to empathize and feel deeply may diminish, leading to a 'softness' of character. This contrast underscores the importance of remaining open and compassionate, as rigidity can affect not only physical health but also emotional well-being and relationships with others.
In practice
During a discussion on personal growth, one might say this quote to emphasize the need for adaptability.
I know a good many men of great learning-that is, men born with an extraordinary eagerness and capacity to acquire knowledge. One and all, they tell me that they can't recall learning anything of any value in school. All that schoolmasters managed to accomplish with them was to test and determine the amount of knowledge that they had already acquired independently-and not infrequently the determination was made clumsily and inaccurately.
It takes a long while for a naturally trustful person to reconcile himself to the idea that after all God will not help him
It is the theory of all modern civilized governments that they protect and foster the liberty of the citizen; it is the practice of all of them to limit its exercise, and sometimes very narrowly.
The central belief of every moron is that he is the victim of a mysterious conspiracy against his common rights and true deserts.
The cure for the evils of democracy is more democracy.
It is my conviction that no normal man ever fell in love, within the ordinary meaning of the term, after the age of thirty.
As one studies these preconditions, one becomes saddened by the ease with which human potentiality can be destroyed or repressed, so that a fully-human person can seem like a miracle, so improbable a happening as to be awe-inspiring. And simultaneously one is heartened by the fact that self-actualizing persons do in fact exist, that they are therefore possible, that the gauntlet of dangers can be run, that the finish line can be crossed.
Insomnia is a gross feeder. It will nourish itself on any kind of thinking, including thinking about not thinking.
In order to reprogram the subconscious mind, you need to relax the body. Release the tension. Let the emotions go. Get to a state of openness and receptivity. You are always in change. You are always safe.
Rage cannot be hidden, it can only be dissembled. This dissembling deludes the thoughtless, and strengthens rage and adds, to rage, contempt.
If I had followed my better judgment always, my life would have been a very dull one.
Anger is never without a reason, but seldom with a good one.
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