Henri Nouwen
I always try to turn my personal struggles into something helpful for others.
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Great spirits have always found violent opposition from mediocrities. The latter can not understand it when a man does not thoughtlessly submit to hereditary prejudices but honestly and courageously uses his intelligence.
Kindness is an inner desire that makes us want to do good things even if we do not get anything in return. It is the joy of our life to do them. When we do good things from this inner desire, there is kindness in everything we think, say, want and do.
A mature man is his own judge. In the end, his only form of support is being faithful to his own convictions. The advice of others may be welcomed invaluable, but it does not free him from responsibility.
Always bear in mind that your own resolution to succeed is more important than any one thing.
Spoken about by, radio announcer and good friend : never let a day go by that he didn't learn something new and, in turn pass it on to others. It was his consuming passion.
The foundation my parents laid down with our faith continues to be my core.
Who indeed can harm you if you are committed deeply to doing what is right ?
The time to make friends is before you need them.
I say to you today, my friends, that in spite of the difficulties and frustrations of the moment, I still have a dream.
Level with your child by being honest. Nobody spots a phony quicker than a child.
Happiness resides not in possessions and not in gold , the feeling of happiness dwells in the soul.
Drop the idea that you are Atlas carrying the world on your shoulders. The world would go on even without you. Don't take yourself so seriously.
I am your father.
To go against the dominant thinking of your friends, of most of the people you see every day, is perhaps the most difficult act of heroism you can perform.
To get the full value of joy you must have someone to divide it with.
No general can fight his battles alone. He must depend upon his lieutenants, and his success depends upon his ability to select the right man for the right place.
It is the heart that makes a man rich. He is rich according to what he is, not according to what he has.
The minute I heard my first love story I started looking for you, not knowing how blind that was. Lovers don't finally meet somewhere, they're in each other all along.
The difference between the impossible and the possible lies in a persons determination.
There is no real excellence in all this world which can be separated from right living.
Be afraid. Be very afraid.
If we are to have real peace, we must begin with the children.
One word frees us of all the weight and pain in life. That word is Love.
If you can imagine it, you can achieve it. If you can dream it, you can become it.
It is my principle that the will of the majority should always prevail.
It is well for the heart to be naive and for the mind not to be.
What do you feel like doing tonight ?
I love you - those three words have my life in them.
Speak what you think today in words as hard as cannon-balls and tomorrow speak what tomorrow thinks in hard words again, though it contradict every thing you said today.
A man can succeed at almost anything for which he has unlimited enthusiasm.
Never cut a tree down in the wintertime. Never make a negative decision in the low time.
Success is never ending, failure is never final.
There are no perfect human beings ! My personal judgments are that no perfect human being is possible or even conceivable, but that human beings are far more improvable than most people believe.
Learned that no matter what happens, or how bad it seems today, life does go on, and it will be better tomorrow.
Look up and not down, look forward and not back, look out and not in, and lend a hand.
Honesty characterizes the person and enables him to create an identity, to communicate a real presence, and to establish authentic bonds with others. The individual increasingly comes to know who he is through the stand he takes when he expresses his ideas, values, beliefs, and convictions, and through the declaration and ownership of his feelings.
What lies behind us and what lies before us are tiny matters compared to what lies within us.
In this world a man must either be an anvil or hammer.
Efficiency is doing things right. Effectiveness is doing the right thing.
Each action can be the one on which all depends , what is decisive is only the strength and concentration of hallowing with which I do it. To the question of what had been the most essential matter for his late teacher, a disciple answered, 'Always just what he was engaged in at the moment'.
The best effect of fine persons is felt after we have left their presence.
You can have anything you want ? if you want it badly enough. You can be anything you want to be, do anything you set out to accomplish if you hold to that desire with singleness of purpose.
There is love of course. And then there's life, its enemy.
He gives strength to the weary and increases the power of the weak. Even youths grow tired and weary, and young men stumble and fall , but those who hope in the Lord will renew their strength. They will soar on wings like eagles, they will run and not grow weary, they will walk and not be faint.
You can't make an omelet without breaking eggs.
There is no limit to the power of the human mind. The more concentrated it is, the more power is brought to bear on one point.
When you love someone all your saved-up wishes start coming out.
End your day by privately looking directly into your eyes in the mirror and saying, 'I love you ! ' Do this for thirty days and watch how you transform.
I know that I will die laughing.
There is no such thing as failure. There are only results.
In the end, it's not the years in your life that count. It's the life in your years.
If you want to get the best out of a man, you must look for the best that is in him.
What concerns me is not the way things are, but rather the way people think things are.
A good general not only sees the way to victory , he also knows when victory is impossible.
The least movement is of importance to all nature. The entire ocean is affected by a pebble.
Stand up to your obstacles and do something about them. You will find that they haven't half the strength you think they have.
Never tell people how to do things. Tell them what to do and they will surprise you with their ingenuity.
I am not discouraged, because every wrong attempt discarded is often a step forward.
I never worry about action, but only about inaction.
Whatever it takes !
Let me tell you the secret that has led me to my goal. My strength lies solely in my tenacity.
Work spares us from three evils boredom, vice, and need.
Surmounting difficulty is the crucible that forms character.
Positive attitudes come in unlimited quantities. Everybody can have one free !
You can not step twice into the same river, for other waters are continually flowing on.
The daily grind of hard work gets a person polished.
We are ever free if we would only believe it, only have faith enough. You are the soul, free and eternal, ever free, ever blessed. Have faith enough and you will be free in a minute.
We all go a little mad sometimes.
Most ball games are lost, not won.
The main thing is to keep the main thing the main thing.
If there is anything that a man can do well, I say let him do it. Give him a chance.
Enthusiasm releases the drive to carry you over obstacles and adds significance to all you do.
Whoever renders service to many puts himself in line for greatness -- great wealth, great return, great satisfaction, great reputation, and great joy.
If you want to get somewhere you have to know where you want to go and how to get there. Then never, never, never give up.
You are the handicap you must face. You are the one who must choose your place. You can make goals for family, relationships, anything.
What the heart has once owned and had, it shall never lose.
After your jump, the net appears.
Don't dream it be it.
He didn't get all of those injuries from a fall.
All love is sweet, given or returned.
I do not think much of a man who is not wiser today than he was yesterday.
Love means never having to say you're sorry.
The only guide to man is his conscience , the only shield to his memory is the rectitude and sincerity of his actions. It is very imprudent to walk through life without this shield, because we are so often mocked by the failure of our hopes and the upsetting of our calculations, but with this shield, however the fates may play, we march always in the ranks of honor.
Without continuous personal development, you are now all that you will ever become, and hell starts when the person you are meets the person you could have been.
If you don't set goals, you can't regret not reaching them.
Where old age is evil, youth can learn no good.
Too often we underestimate the power of a touch, a smile, a kind word, a listening ear, an honest compliment, or the smallest act of caring, all of which have the potential to turn a life around.
The best remedy for those who are afraid, lonely or unhappy is to go outside, somewhere where they can be quiet, alone with the heavens, nature and God. Because only then does one feel that all is as it should be and that God wishes to see people happy, amidst the simple beauty of nature.
Most of the exercise I get is from standing and walking around laboratory tables all day. I derive more benefit and entertainment from this than some of my friends and competitors get from playing games like golf.
How do I love thee ? Let me count the ways. I love thee to the depth and breadth and height my soul can reach.
Wherever there is a human being, there is an opportunity for kindness.
A compliment is like a kiss through a veil.
Faced with the choice between changing one's mind and proving that there is no need to do so, almost everyone gets busy on the proof.
You're tearing me apart !
Whenever I get the energy to exercise, I sit down until it passes.
Examine the opportunities, the challenges you've given yourself.
We will find only what we look for, nothing more and nothing less.
To love and be loved is to feel the sun from both sides.
Change your thoughts and you change your world.
Everyone enjoys doing the kind of work for which he is best suited.