Thursday, November 11, 2010

Thoughts on Hope, Happiness and Family

"There are moments every day in family life that in and of themselves would suffice as the whole purpose of the enterprise."


"Do not ask that your kids live up to your expectations. Let your kids be who they are, and your expectations will be in breathless pursuit."


"It is the first purpose of hope to make hopelessness bearable."


"Hope is a path through a flowering meadow. One doesn't require that it lead anywhere."


"The key to compassion is to realize that everyone you meet is a set of extenuating circumstances."


"The secret to happiness is to put the burden of proof on unhappiness."


"You begin to find what you're looking for in life when you begin to look for what you're finding."


"Which of us has ever cast our eyes from another's child to our own without changing lens?"


"If you knew that hope and despair were paths to the same destination, which would you choose?"


"Happiness is directly proportionate to the amount of hope you accept as truth."


"If you cannot be impartial, then try to extend each day the number of people on whose behalf you are biased."


"In the courtroom of one's parents, there is seldom a presumption of innocence but always mitigating circumstances."


~~ Robert Brault

15 comments:

Sue said...

"There are moments every day in family life that in and of themselves would suffice as the whole purpose of the enterprise."

"Hope is a path through a flowering meadow. One doesn't require that it lead anywhere."

"The key to compassion is to realize that everyone you meet is a set of extenuating circumstances."

"The secret to happiness is to put the burden of proof on unhappiness."


These are my favorites today, with the first being the one I like most of all.

=)

Robert Brault said...

Sue,
Thanks. Will be giving it a rest for a few weeks. Have a great Thanksgiving!

smiles,
rb

Raj said...

Have often quoted & tried to internalise what Roosevelt said "the only thing to fear is fear"! Your gems Robert will go a long way "to make hopelessness bearable." and "put the burden of proof on unhappiness." Grateful !

Jan said...

I so love the thought on compassion -- because all of us need more of that. Thanks again for your talent and for your humble, sweet way of sharing it with us.

Happy Thanksgiving.

Ariana said...

Hello rb <3 Loved these quotes!!!
I've missed you and your page...but I'm back!
I used some of them on my blog again. :O)

Robert Brault said...

Raj,
You are someone who regularly offers consolations to the world, and I value highly your appreciation. Thank you.

Jan,
Thanks, but humility and sweetness are atributes I reserve for this blog. You wouldn't want to meet me in traffic. (smile)

Ariana,
Your current collection is astonishing. Please, everyone, click on Ariana's name and check this out. I can't thank you enough.

smiles all,
rb

karen said...

I loved your thought on compassion. It shouldn't be that difficult, but for some reason it is. You just gave me a new way to look at it. Happy Thanksgiving!

Robert Brault said...

karen,
"A New Way To Look At It" might well be the title of my blog. That's pretty much my sole intent here. You have a wondeful Thanksgiving yourself.

smiles,
rb

Toyin O. said...

Wise words, thanks for sharing.

Robert Brault said...

Toyin O,
Welcome. Glad you like.

smiles,
rb

Eyewitness said...

"Which of us has ever cast our eyes from another's child to our own without changing lens?"

And it often results into "poor photographs".

It's my favourite in this post.

vocalise said...

I really loved several of these. I love words. And, I enjoy how your feelings and thoughts play and mix and teach with them so tenderly.

Robert Brault said...

Eyewitness,
I once said that "Love is the greatest touch-up artist of all." I was thinking of romantic love, but parental love works its tender magic also.

vocalise,
What I do is pretty much like rearranging Scrabble tiles until you get a word. I rearrange words until I get a thought. But I prefer your description of it.

smiles,
rb

Paola Gonzalez M said...

Im so happy I accidently found this blog, thanks for the beautiful words you are sharing to the world, we really need this kind of inspiration in our everyday lives... saludos from México!

Paola

Robert Brault said...

Paola,
Thank you -- and welcome. I'm quite taken with the artwork on your blog -- entirely unique and yet entirely engaging. Nice!

smiles,
rb

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