— Reflections of an Optimist —

A fork in the road may offer three alternatives.

Smell the flowers, but harvest the corn.

A snowflake is pretty, but cold.

They are us through different eyes.

A dam impedes a river, a bridge conquers it.

A door is only a window until you walk through it.

A house needs at least a roof, a home not even that.

If you want to climb a mountain, do not look for stairs.

You may not always see it, but the sun is always shining.

By wheels the traveler arrives sooner, but by foot, stronger.

You cannot measure the depth of a river standing on the bank.

You must hear the thunder, but you should listen to the rain.

Narrow paths that cross share little at the intersection.

When appraising a tree consider its roots.

To be smart is to know ignorance.

Pessimism pays no dividends.

Helping trumps hoping.

Good things grow in dirt.

It is the rider that needs the reins, not the horse.

Examine a cloud too closely and you end up in fog.

— Reflections of a Pessimist —

If you think the glass is half full, yours was the top half.

The trick to cheating death is an illusion.

Nagging hope only aggravates despair.

Blood is thicker than water, but less appealing.

Once upon a time money could not buy happiness.

It’s easy to be lulled into thinking that life is not strange.

Just because the shoe fits doesn’t mean you should wear it.

When everything is coming up roses, things get pretty thorny.

Beauty is only skin deep as any flesh wound will demonstrate.

Marriage is a lot like bungee jumping, often without the bungee.

If the sun does not shine today it probably wouldn’t have anyway.

The enemy of your friend is your enemy, unless you are a politician.

If you are saving for a rainy day, you have things turned around.

Confession is good for the soul; denial better for the ego.

He who laughs last obviously didn’t get the joke.

Today could be the rest of your life.

Optimists die just the same.

To err is hunam.

History must repeat itself because it mumbles.

Nothing is knowable for certain—but I’m not sure.