The following “Observations” are excerpted from Chapter 1, Uncommon Sense, from my “The Book of Observations.”
There are about 2,000 “Observations” in this book.
The future has no patience.
Remedies help; criticism hurts.
Time is the only survivor.
To draw attention to your faults, fault others.
We are mostly victims of ourselves.
The only valid generalization is that generalizations are generally invalid.
Our problems are found not
in not knowing but in not doing.
Remember, you will die.
The past pervades the present.
To love is wise.
We cannot afford enemies.
Patience is a necessity, not a virtue.
Restore what you disturb.
The pessimist sees the glass half empty, the optimist
sees it half full, the realist knows it is both.
To serve another is to serve yourself.
We don’t know what we don’t know.
Processes, not individuals, are indispensable.
The rain is as vital as the sun.
Today is the mother of tomorrow.
We either advance together,
or together, we perish.
Reality reigns and endures.
Self-sufficiency is a myth;
we are connected and interdependent.
The ultimate panacea is knowing there is none.
Truth is constant; perception changes.
What we do to our neighbor, we do to ourselves.
Sensitivity can serve or destroy.
Truth is evident.
When the student progresses, the teacher graduates.
Simplicity is not a simple matter.
The wise may not be so intelligent, the intelligent not so smart.
Untraceable are the roots of wisdom.
While knowledge may lead to arrogance,
wisdom surely results in humility.
Solitude does not teach sharing.
Words paint pictures.
There cannot be wisdom without humility.
We are part of and apart from everything.
Wisdom costs.
Speak the language of the listener.
Things are not always what they appear to be, but often they are.
We are an infant species.
Wisdom is born through the lens of a keen eye.
The easy way out seldom is.
Thoughts require time to mature.
We are here and now.
Emotions imprison; reason liberates.
We can withdraw only what we deposit.
Those who make the most babies get the most votes.
Normal varies.
Age knows youth, but youth cannot know age.