"Somewhere in the cold of the first winter, there was an optimist imagining the first spring."
"Hope is what you get if you apply logical inference to the existence of flowers."
"The experience I gained at age 21 would be useful if I were ever 21 again. But I'm 71and new at it and keep making age 71 mistakes."
"Courage: Perseverance against odds. Defined in war as bravery. Defined in parenting as parenting."
"The trick is to convince your kids that schooling can help them in life and is not just, you know, for educational purposes."
Kid to kid: "I don't get my mom -- she expects me to know why I want to do something before I even do it."
Darwin called the sudden appearance of flowers in the fossil record an "abominable mystery." You wonder, if there were proof in the fossil record of God saying, "Let there be flowers," what do you suppose Darwin would have called it?
"Perhaps God gives us a physical body so that every time we change our mind, we won't be someone else."
"Here is the basic question: Are we marionettes, or are we creatures of free will who just happen to have a lot of jerky reflexes?"
"What is a human being but a marionette pulling his own strings -- while trying to do watercolor and needlepoint."
"There is evidence of progress. Soldiers still die in battle, but horses are no longer shot out from under them. "
"It's a nasty divorce when they can't agree on how to divvy up the His and Hers towels."
"It's not over until it's over, but then it is."
"If you aren't honor-bound to do anything else, you aren't honor-bound to get even, either."
~ Robert Brault
14 comments:
Great quotes, as usual. I especially love the courage/parenting one and the one about God giving us physical bodies for a reason.
=)
Hi Robert - of course you probably know the one I connect with most is "What is a human being but a marionette pulling his own strings -- while trying to do watercolor and needlepoint." I like the Darwin one as well as the others.
LOVE the thought about the physical bodies -- I think it's something we all have to do (get comfortable with who we really are and learn to love that person.) Easier said than done -- but much easier with that physical body!
I only got as far as age 71. Brilliant! So true even though I'm barely in my thirties.
I'll have to re-visit to read the rest as I'm feeling a little under the weather.
"Perhaps God gives us a physical body so that every time we change our mind, we won't be someone else."
That, rb is absolutely priceless. I just might be quoting it at some time...
I think God was wise when he cooked up the plan of physical bodies, because I would indeed be flitting from change to change, naturally having a hard time getting it just right. I've been forced, after 56 years to become comfortable with who I am. I must have a hard time accepting reality. Or maybe I'm just ever hopeful that my reality is something else. In any case, I'm slowly getting it.
Sue,
And, of course, you couldn't go tree-climbing without a physical body -- something that struck me as I appreciated those recent California scenes on your blog.
Marlene,
Yes, sometimes hand and brush are one, and sometimes it's like your trying to paint by pulling puppet strings (or so my wife says.)
Jan,
And here's wishing you much happiness as that additional little physical body (and her blithe spirit) joins your family in May.
Ken,
Wish you a quick return to jolly good health. And if you're barely in your 30's, you really have to do something about the focus lens on that camera of yours.
Daisy,
Hey, welcome! Long time, no hear. The thing about the blogosphere is that none of us actually has a physical body, which is the way I like it.
Karen,
Ah, that "reality" word again. I think I was your age when I decided to skip the reality and accept the illusion.
smiles to all,
rb
Hi Robert... Everyone here, including myself is relating greatly to the 'physical body quote...' ...and what you wrote just above, to Daisy, is such a great follow-up!
When someone Googles this quote, 300 blogs will have posted with it :o)
~Maria
ps. Get well wishes for Ken too~
I've spent the last little bit playing catch-up on your last few posts, and have been amused, enlightened, entertained and brain tickled. Not to give you a big head or anything, but what's inside that head of yours is nothing less than amazing. As I read your thoughts, I am continually exclaiming "Yes!" or "Exactly!" Why? Because you touch on things that are so universal, but then I wonder, why didn't I have thought of them first then? No, it takes a Robert to see things in a unique way, yet see them in a way that everyone can relate to.
Seriously, I need the book. The complete works of Robert Brault. And I'm not getting any younger so make it snappy. :)
Ok, ignore the part where I wrote "..why didn't I have thought of them first then?" That's like dry erase markers squeaking on a whiteboard. I mean fingernails on a chalkboard.
Maria,
Speaking for my own physical body, I can assure you that when you have my thoughts, you have the best of me.
Randi,
What a great pleasure this Oscar night to be presented a Randi! Thanks, and thanks to my dear wife, and my mom and dad, and to all my readers, and to the creators of the internet, and to the folks who developed the English language, and....
smiles,
rb
"Perhaps God gives us a physical body so that every time we change our mind, we won't be someone else." so well said Robert - gradually am getting to understand that this physical body has huge significance in the scheme of things !! In fact in many ways its giving us many signals to figure out our passage within!
'What a great pleasure this Oscar night to be presented a Randi!', is exactly what she's talking about. You are a one-off!
She's also right in saying she's not getting any younger (oops!), so how about that book Robert?
Raj,
Are you back from India? Your blog's been quiet too long. Looking forward to new insights, now that you have drunk from the fountain.
Ken,
Randi will appreciate your observation. I Googled "one-off" to make sure it is not obscene. This is a family site.
smiles,
rb
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