We light the oven so that everyone may bake bread in it.
Jose MartiRead
Talent is a gift that brings with it an obligation to serve the world, and not ourselves, for it is not of our making.
Interpretation
Talent should be used to benefit others rather than just oneself.
This quote by Jose Marti emphasizes the notion that talent is not merely a personal asset but a responsibility. When we possess a gift, it is our duty to utilize it for the betterment of society, acknowledging that our abilities are not solely self-generated but rather gifts that can impact the world around us.
In practice
In a graduation speech to inspire students about their future contributions to society.
We light the oven so that everyone may bake bread in it.
Like bones to the human body, the axle to the wheel, the wing to the bird, and the air to the wing, so is liberty the essence of life. Whatever is done without it is imperfect.
Men have no special right because they belong to one race or another: the word man defines all rights.
Other famous men, those of much talk and few deeds, soon evaporate. Action is the dignity of greatness.
Man is a living duty, a depository of powers that he must not leave in a brute state. Man is a wing.
Like stones rolling down hills, fair ideas reach their objectives despite all obstacles and barriers. It may be possible to speed or hinder them, but impossible to stop them.
If I play a stupid girl and ask a stupid question, I've got to follow it through. What am I supposed to do, look intelligent?
There is nothing of which we are more ashamed than of not being ourselves. And there is nothing which brings us greater joy and happiness than to think, feel, and say what is ours.
In the end, I am quite normal. I don't have odd habits. I don't dramatize. Above all, I do not romanticize the act of writing. I don't talk about the anguish I suffer in creating. I do not have a fear of the blank page, writer's block, all those things that we hear about writers.
I have long since decided if you wait for the perfect time to write, you'll never write. There is no time that isn't flawed somehow.
We must not allow other people's limited perceptions to define us.
Do what's right. Be on time, be polite, and be honest; remain free from drugs; and if you have any questions, get out your Bible. 2. Do your best. Mediocrity is unacceptable when you are capable of doing better. 3. Treat others as you want to be treated. Practice love and understanding.
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