What was any art but a mould in which to imprison for a moment the shining elusive element which is life itself - life hurrying past us and running away, too strong to stop, too sweet to lose.
Willa CatherRead
To fulfil the dreams of one's youth; that is the best that can happen to a man. No worldly success can take the place of that.
Interpretation
What this quote means
Achieving the dreams from our youth is the greatest accomplishment, surpassing any material success.
Willa Cather emphasizes the importance of pursuing and realizing the dreams we had in our youth as the highest form of success. This idea suggests that personal fulfillment and the pursuit of one's passions are more valuable than conventional measures of success, such as wealth or status.
Themes
DreamsSuccessYouthFulfillmentPersonal Growth
In practice
Example use cases
During a graduation speech emphasizing the importance of following one's passions.
More from Willa Cather
All quotes βThat is happiness; to be dissolved into something complete and great.
Willa CatherRead
Our tree became the talking tree of the fairy tale; legends and stories nestled like birds in its branches.
Willa CatherRead
Writing ought either to be the manufacture of stories for which there is a market demand - a business as safe and commendable as making soap or breakfast foods - or it should be an art, which is always a search for something for which there is no market demand, something new and untried, where the values are intrinsic and have nothing to do with standardized values.
Willa CatherRead
The air and the earth interpenetrated in the warm gusts of spring; the soil was full of sunlight, and the sunlight full of red dust. The air one breathed was saturated with earthy smells, and the grass under foot had a reflection of the blue sky in it.
Willa CatherRead
This is reality, whether you like it or not--all those frivolities of summer, the light and shadow, the living mask of green that trembled over everything, they were lies, and this is what was underneath. This is the truth.
Willa CatherRead
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