At times of suffering, or when the road is long and the way is hard, it is the wise words of others that shine out like stars when the mist that hovers over the road lifts briefly and we can see a little way ahead. These last ten quotes I have read, memorized, and reread over and over during the last two years of working, writing, and trying to keep my foot on the path. If they can inspire me, I hope they may do the same for you.
“The only way out is through.” — Robert Frost
“Strength does not come from physical capacity. It comes from an indomitable will.” — Mahatma Gandhi
“Fall seven times, stand up eight.” — Japanese Proverb
“Pain is temporary. If I quit, however, it lasts forever.” — Lance Armstrong
“The wound is the place where the light enters you.” — Rumi
“Courage doesn’t always roar. Sometimes courage is the quiet voice at the end of the day saying, ‘I will try again tomorrow.’” — Mary Anne Radmacher
“You may encounter many defeats, but you must not be defeated. In fact, it may be necessary to encounter the defeats, so you can know who you are, what you can rise from, how you can still come out of it.” — Maya Angelou
“Tough times never last, but tough people do.” — Robert H. Schuller
“The only limit to our realization of tomorrow will be our doubts of today.” — Franklin D. Roosevelt
“In the midst of winter, I found there was, within me, an invincible summer.” — Albert Camus
May these quotes inspire us in our darkest moments of hardship to remember where we came from, and who we are, to never give up, to carry on and emerge victorious on the bright side of life.