So many gods, so many creeds, so many paths that wind and wind while just the art of being kind is all the sad world needs.
Interpretation
Kindness is the essential virtue needed in a world filled with diversity and complexity.
Ella Wheeler Wilcox's quote emphasizes that amidst the multitude of beliefs, religions, and life paths people follow, the fundamental necessity for humanity is kindness. It suggests that no matter the differences among individuals, a simple act of kindness can bridge gaps and bring compassion to a world that is often sorrowful.
In practice
In a speech about community service, I could use this quote to highlight the importance of kindness.
Sweep up the debris of decaying faith; _x000D_ Sweep down the cobwebs of worn-out out beliefs, _x000D_ And throw your soul wide open to the light of reason and of knowledge. _x000D_ Be not afraid _x000D_ To thrust aside half-truths and grasp the whole.
I am the voice of the voiceless; Through me the dumb shall speak. Till the deaf world's ears be made to hear. The wrongs of the wordless weak. And I am my brothers keeper, And I will fight his fights; And speak the words for beast and bird. Till the world shall set things right.
A weed is but an unloved flower.
'Tis easy enough to be pleasant, When life flows along like a song; But the man worth while is the one who will smile when everything goes dead wrong.
Do you wish the world were happy? Then remember day by day, just to scatter seeds of kindness as you pass along the way. . . .
It is easy to be pleasant when life flows by like a song, but the man worth while is the one who will smile when everything goes dead wrong. For the test of the heart is trouble, and it always comes with years, and the smile that is worth the praises of earth is the smile that shines through the tears.
The thing about working with time, instead of against it, he thought, is that it is not wasted. Even pain counts.
There [is] no innocence more dangerous than the innocence of age.
An idea is a feat of association.
I think that much of the advice given to young men about saving money is wrong. I never saved a cent until I was forty years old. I invested in myself - in study, in mastering my tools, in preparation. Many a man who is putting a few dollars a week into the bank would do much better to put it into himself.
The hardest thing is to tell the truth about oneself. One doesn't like to remember unpleasant details, but forgetting them makes one's life seem disorganized.
It is wisest to be impartial. If you have health, but are attached to it, you will always be afraid of losing it. And if you fear that loss, but become ill, you will suffer. Why not remain forever joyful in the Self?
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