None are so old as those who have outlived enthusiasm.
Henry David ThoreauRead
But man's capacities have never been measured; nor are we to judge of what he can do by any precedents, so little have been tried.
Interpretation
This quote emphasizes the boundless potential of humanity, suggesting that we should not limit our expectations based on past examples.
Henry David Thoreau's quote reflects on the uncharted potential that exists within every individual. It challenges the notion that one's abilities and achievements can be fully understood or constrained by historical precedents. Instead, Thoreau encourages us to recognize the vast possibilities and capacities of human beings, suggesting that many of our capabilities remain untapped and unexplored.
In practice
During a motivational seminar, this quote can inspire attendees to push beyond their perceived limits.
None are so old as those who have outlived enthusiasm.
Through want of enterprise and faith men are where they are, buying and selling and spending their lives like servants.
An early-morning walk is a blessing for the whole day.
Have no mean hours, but be grateful for every hour, and accept what it brings. The reality will make any sincere record respectable.
As every season seems best to us in its turn, so the coming in of spring is like the creation of Cosmos out of Chaos and the realization of the Golden Age.
That grand old poem called Winter
If you want to cultivate a habit, do it without any reservation, till it is firmly established. Until it is so confirmed, until it becomes a part of your character, let there be no exception, no relaxation of effort.
We can say that true gratitude does not give rise to the debtor's ethic because it gives rise to faith in future grace. With true gratitude there is such a delight in the worth of God's past grace, that we are driven on to experience more and more of it in the future...it is done by transforming gratitude into faith as it turns from contemplating the pleasures of past grace and starts contemplating the promises of the future.
You might as well answer the door, my child, the truth is furiously knocking.
I'm so glad I never feel important, it does complicate life!
The faster I write the better my output. If I'm going slow, I'm in trouble. It means I'm pushing the words instead of being pulled by them.
The Indian knew how to live without wants, to suffer without complaint, and to die singing.
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