Far better it is to have a stout heart always and suffer one's share of evils, than to be ever fearing what may happen.

If a man insisted always on being serious, and never allowed himself a bit of fun and relaxation, he would go mad or become unstable without knowing it.

Men trust their ears less than their eyes.

The secret of success is that it is not the absence of failure, but the absence of envy.

Adversity has the effect of drawing out strength and qualities of a man that would have laid dormant in its absence.

In peace sons bury fathers, but war violates the order of nature, and fathers bury sons.

Egypt is the gift of the Nile.

Where wisdom is called for, force is of little use.

Very few things happen at the right time, and the rest do not happen at all. The conscientious historian will correct these defects.

It is better to be envied than pitied.

All of life is action and passion, and not to be involved in the actions and passions of your time is to risk having not really lived at all.

Seas roll to waft me, suns to light me rise; My footstool earth, my canopy the skies.

I really just followed my musical instincts every step of my life.

The gospel is good news only if it arrives in time.

Imaginative writers often project their own monsters and meanings on basic facts.

The TSA is under fire for major security lapses. The TSA has let through pipe bombs, knives, and the last three Nicolas Cage movies.

Your heart has to let your head know what it wants.

I believe in the possibility of happiness, if one cultivates intuition and outlives the grosser passions, including optimism.

Meditate on the Word in the Word.

I really feel the need to create an alternate world, a vision of what might be magical and beautiful and fantastic about being human.

I love driving around east London - it's always full of surprises. Actually, I don't drive myself - I like to be driven.