LOSS, n. Privation of that which we had, or had not. Thus, in the latter sense, it is said of a defeated candidate that he "lost his election".
Interpretation
Loss can be understood as the deprivation of something we possessed or desired.
This quote by Ambrose Bierce offers a profound reflection on the concept of loss, presenting it not merely as an absence but as a nuanced experience that encompasses both what we have lost and what we never had. By illustrating how a defeated candidate 'lost his election', Bierce emphasizes that loss can arise from actively seeking something and failing, highlighting the emotional and psychological dimensions associated with defeat and aspiration.
In practice
In a motivational speech about resilience after failure.
PALM, n. A species of tree . . . of which the familiar "itching palm" ("Palma hominis") is most widely distributed . . . . This noble vegetable exudes a kind of invisible gum, which may be detected by applying to the bark a piece of gold or silver.
Human nature is pretty well balanced; for every lacking virtue there is a rough substitute that will serve at a pinch--as cunning is the wisdom of the unwise, and ferocity the courage of the coward.
Indigestion: A disease which the patient and his friends frequently mistake for deep religious conviction and concern for the salvation of mankind. As the simple Red Man of the Western Wild put it, with, it must be confessed, a certain force: 'Plenty well, no pray; big belly ache, heap God.'
Disobey n:To celebrate with an appropriate ceremony the maturity of a command
NOUMENON, n. That which exists, as distinguished from that which merely seems to exist, the latter being a phenomenon. The noumenon is a bit difficult to locate; it can be apprehended only by a process of reasoning - which is a phenomenon.
PARDON, v. To remit a penalty and restore to the life of crime. To add to the lure of crime the temptation of ingratitude.
Your faith has saved you; go in peace.
The intelligent man finds almost everything ridiculous, the sensible man hardly anything.
Without imagination we can go nowhere. And imagination is not restricted to the arts. Every scientist I have met who has been a success has had to imagine.
Half-instructed confessors have done my soul great harm; for I could not always have such learned ones as I would have desired. They certainly did not wish to deceive me, but the fact was that they knew no better. Of something which was a venial sin, they said it was no sin, and out of a very grave mortal sin they made a venial sin. This has done me such harm, that my speaking here of so great an evil, as a warning to others, will be readily understood.
Ambition first sprung from your blest abodes: the glorious fault of angels and of gods.
When you have indulged a lust, your wing drops off; you become lame, abandoned by a fantasy. β¦People fancy they are enjoying themselves, but they are really tearing out their wings for the sake of an illusion.
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