Belief like any other moving body follows the path of least resistance.
Samuel ButlerRead
A friend who cannot at a pinch remember a thing or two that never happened is as bad as one who does not know how to forget.
Interpretation
What this quote means
True friends should have the ability to forgive and forget, as well as appreciate the good memories.
Samuel Butler emphasizes the importance of having a forgiving and flexible memory in friendships. A friend who cannot overlook past grievances or who clings too tightly to negative memories is as detrimental to a relationship as one who fails to recall the positive moments shared. Friendship thrives on both the appreciation of the past and the ability to move forward without unnecessary burdens.
Themes
FriendshipForgivenessMemoryRelationshipsUnderstanding
In practice
Example use cases
During a toast at a wedding, you might mention how true friends embrace both the good and the bad, citing Butler's quote.
More from Samuel Butler
All quotes βTo know God better is only to realize how impossible it is that we should ever know him at all. I know not which is more childish to deny him, or define him.
Samuel ButlerRead
Academic and aristocratic people live in such an uncommon atmosphere that common sense can rarely reach them.
Samuel ButlerRead
An apology for the devil: it must be remembered that we have heard one side of the case. God has written all the books.
Samuel ButlerRead
Young people have a marvelous faculty of either dying or adapting themselves to circumstances.
Samuel ButlerRead
People care more about being thought to have taste than about being thought either good, clever or amiable.
Samuel ButlerRead
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If you wish to win a man over to your ideas, first make him your friend.
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Let our friends perish, provided that our enemies fall at the same time.
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To let friendship die away by negligence and silence is certainly not wise. It is voluntarily to throw away one of the greatest comforts of the weary pilgrimage.
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