You need the living, loving heart of living, loving men and women to quicken other hearts, which can live too and love too, and, in their turn, will quicken others which are dying now.
'Do you pray for the senators, Dr. Hale?' No, I look at the senators and I pray for the country.
Interpretation
What this quote means
The quote emphasizes prioritizing the well-being of the country over its individual leaders.
Edward Everett Hale's quote reflects a perspective that is more concerned with the broader implications of governance than the personal actions of politicians. It suggests that one's prayers and hopes should be directed toward the nation as a whole, indicating a desire for a strong, healthy country rather than focusing solely on the individuals who govern it. This stance can be interpreted as a call for civic responsibility and engagement, urging citizens to care about the governance and future of their society.
Themes
In practice
Example use cases
During a civic engagement event, someone might use this quote to highlight the importance of focusing on the community's needs rather than just the actions of its leaders.
More from Edward Everett Hale
All quotes βNever bear more than one trouble at a time. Some people bear three kinds - all they have had, all they have now, and all they expect to have.
The Resurrection miracle is nothing to you and me if it is only an event of eighteen centuries bygone. Unless we can live the immortal life - unless we can receive God to his own home in these hearts of ours - the texts are nothing to us unless these daily lives illustrate them.
It seems as if, for every dragon head that is lopped off, two more terrible appear. Seems so. But in truth, Life is gaining all the while. Brute force, such power as there seems to be in things, cannot stand against ideas which are eternal.
Life seeks life and loves life. The opening of a catkin of a willow, in the flight of the butterfly, in the chirping of a tree-toad or the sweep of an eagle - my life loves to see how others live, exults in their joy, and so far is partner in their great concern.
I am only one, but I am one. I cannot do everything, but I can do something. And I will not let what I cannot do interfere with what I can do.
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