Words Worth Living

“In all things it is better to hope than to despair.” Johann Wolfgang von Goethe

What we know matters but who we are matters more.” Brené Brown

A beginning: A common theme throughout this blog has been the inclusion of quotes to accompany my comments. Searching and vetting these words are important to me, and several of you have commented on specific quotes used to-date. The theme here revolves around words worth living, words of inspiration; consistent with the comment by Cassandra Clare that “We live and breathe words.”

Being positive and staying strong: Having a disorder like Parkinson’s is like walking on the ocean’s shoreline where your feet sink a little into the sand as the wave moves you slightly by its impact; slowly evolving, subtly changing, mysteriously arriving. Finding meaning for a chronic illness requires being positive and staying strong. Pave a path as you walk through your own personal ‘ocean’s shoreline’ by constantly trying, step-by-step, and stay courageous. To support our journey, here are some words worth living derived from quotes on hope, courage, journey, persistence, positivity, strength, adversity, mindfulness, and life (please note that some quotes below have previously been used in these blog posts).

Hope:
“Hope is faith holding out its hand in the dark.” George Iles

“You do not need to know precisely what is happening, or exactly where it is all going. What you need is to recognize the possibilities and challenges offered by the present moment, and to embrace them with courage, faith and hope.” Thomas Merton

“No matter how dark the moment, love and hope are always possible.” George Chakiris

“While the heart beats, hope lingers.” Alison Croggon

“I plead with you–never, ever give up on hope, never doubt, never tire, and never become discouraged.” Pope John Paul II

“The very least you can do in your life is figure out what you hope for. And the most you can do is live inside that hope. Not admire it from a distance but live right in it, under its roof.” Barbara Kingsolver

Courage:
“Courage is found in unlikely places.” J.R.R. Tolkien

“Success is not final, failure is not fatal: it is the courage to continue that counts.” Winston S. Churchill

“Vulnerability sounds like truth and feels like courage. Truth and courage aren’t always comfortable, but they’re never weakness.” Brené Brown

“Courage is not simply one of the virtues but the form of every virtue at the testing point, which means at the point of highest reality. ” C.S. Lewis

“You have plenty of courage, I am sure,” answered Oz. “All you need is confidence in yourself. There is no living thing that is not afraid when it faces danger. The true courage is in facing danger when you are afraid, and that kind of courage you have in plenty.” L. Frank Baum, The Wonderful Wizard of Oz

Journey:
“We are each on our own journey. Each of us is on our very own adventure; encountering all kinds of challenges, and the choices we make on that adventure will shape us as we go; these choices will stretch us, test us and push us to our limit; and our adventure will make us stronger then we ever know we could be.” Aamnah Akram

Wouldn’t take nothing for my journey now.” Maya Angelou

“Every journey has a destination, known or unknown.” Dean Koontz

“The only journey is the one within.” Rainer Maria Rilke

“The journey itself is going to change you, so you don’t have to worry about memorizing the route we took to accomplish that change.” Daniel Quin

Persistence:
“We are made to persist. That’s how we find out who we are.” Tobias Wolff

“It is in our genes to understand the universe if we can, to keep trying even if we cannot, and to be enchanted by the act of learning all the way.” Lewis Thomas

“Nothing in the world can take the place of persistence.” Calvin Coolidge

“You may be the only person left who believes in you, but it’s enough. It takes just one star to pierce a universe of darkness. Never give up.” Richelle E. Goodrich

“Sometimes life knocks you on your ass… get up, get up, get up!!! Happiness is not the absence of problems, it’s the ability to deal with them.” Steve Maraboli

Positivity:
“The question is not how to survive, but how to thrive with passion, compassion, humor and style.” Maya Angelou

“The most important thing is to stay positive.” Saku Koivu

“Believe that life is worth living and your belief will help create the fact.” William James

“There are two ways of spreading light: to be the candle or the mirror that reflects it.” Edith Wharton

“At the center of your being you have the answer; you know who you are and you know what you want.” Lao Tzu

Strength:
“When we long for life without difficulties, remind us that oaks grow strong in contrary winds and diamonds are made under pressure.” Peter Marshall

“Be strong. Live honorably and with dignity. When you don’t think you can, hold on.” James Frey

“Perhaps I am stronger than I think.” Thomas Merton

“Strength does not come from winning. Your struggles develop your strengths. When you go through hardships and decide not to surrender, that is strength.” Arnold Schwarzenegger

“Life doesn’t get easier or more forgiving, we get stronger and more resilient.” Steve Maraboli

Adversity:
“Everyone is handed adversity in life. No one’s journey is easy. It’s how they handle it that makes people unique.” Kevin Conroy

“The most authentic thing about us is our capacity to create, to overcome, to endure, to transform, to love and to be greater than our suffering.” Ben Okri

“Adversity is like a strong wind. It tears away from us all but the things that cannot be torn, so that we see ourselves as we truly are.” Arthur Golden

“Extraordinary people survive under the most terrible circumstances and they become more extraordinary because of it.” Robertson Davies

“A happy life consists not in the absence, but in the mastery of hardships.” Helen Keller

Mindfulness:
“The present moment is filled with joy and happiness. If you are attentive, you will see it.” Thich Nhat Hanh

“To meditate means to go home to yourself. Then you know how to take care of the things that are happening inside you, and you know how to take care of the things that happen around you.” Thich Nhat Hanh

“We have more possibilities available in each moment than we realize.” Thich Nhat Hanh

“Drink your tea slowly and reverently, as if it is the axis on which the world earth revolves – slowly, evenly, without rushing toward the future. Live the actual moment. Only this moment is life.” Thich Nhat Hanh

Life:
“We cannot tell what may happen to us in the strange medley of life. But we can decide what happens in us —how we can take it, what we do with it —and that is what really counts in the end.” Joseph Fort Newton

“He who has a why to live can bear with almost any how.” Friedrich Nietzsche

“Live to the point of tears.” Albert Camus

“When we least expect it, life sets us a challenge to test our courage and willingness to change; at such a moment, there is no point in pretending that nothing has happened or in saying that we are not yet ready. The challenge will not wait. Life does not look back.” Paulo Coelho

“We must be willing to let go of the life we planned so as to have the life that is waiting for us.” Joseph Campbell

An ending with two different thoughts: The words of Michael J. Fox always deal with the truth and reality of Parkinson’s yet they are reinforced by hope, courage and perseverance: “For everything this disease has taken, something with greater value has been given–sometimes just a marker that points me in a new direction that I might not otherwise have traveled. So, sure, it may be one step forward and two steps back, but after a time with Parkinson’s, I’ve learned that what is important is making that one step count; always looking up.”

And I listened to this song recently, which has a meaningful sentiment (The Beatles “The End” from Abbey Road): “And in the end / The love you take / Is equal to the love / You make.”