The taste for glory can make ordinary men behave in extraordinary ways.

Any man who has ever led an army, an expedition, or a group of Boy Scouts has sadism in his bones.

If hot food is they key to maintaining an expedition's stamina, then low grade gut-rot alcohol is the key to sustaining its sense of pleasure.

The forest did not tolerate frailty of body or mind. Show your weakness, and it would consume you without hesitation.

There comes a stage at which a man would rather die cleanly by a bullet than by the unknown terror of the phantom in the forest.

I was no longer troubled when he pulled out a machete in a crowded bar, tried to pick up schoolgirls, or threatened to scalp us, then rip off our heads and scoop out our brains.

Previous journeys in search of treasure have taught me that a zigzag strategy is the best way to get ahead.

The inertia of a jungle village is a dangerous thing. Before you know it your whole life has slipped by and you are still waiting there.

The rain of Madre de Dios is similar to that of the Amazon, but there is a petrifying aspect to it, as if it seeks to wound rather than to nurture.

On a hard jungle journey nothing is so important as having a team you can trust.

On a harsh expedition, there's no space for anyone who does not intend to finish.

No matter what we talk about, we are talking about ourselves

The white folks like for us to be religious, then they can do what they want to with us.

Wouldn't it be a tragedy to get to the top of the ladder and find you placed it against the wrong wall?

The one key line used by a very rich Hudson salesman: Would you like to buy a car now, without waiting?

Since we had nothing to do with our arrival and usually are not consulted about our departure, what makes so many of us think we're entitled to so much while we're here?

Gazing into the mirror, I saw myself as I was-a black silhouette in the room, a woman whose darkness had completely leaked through.

Companies over-emphasize idea generation and under-emphasize idea execution when it comes to innovation.

History must speak for itself. A historian is content if he has been able to shed more light.

I am too busy. I have not time for worry.

An ideal and flawless freedom, "complete freedom", enabling without disabling, is I believe an oxymoron in metaphysics as much as it is an unreachable goal in social life.