“Strive each day to be better than the day before, focusing not on perfection but evolution.”

“It is during challenging times that we find out what we are made of—for that is when we discover the power of our spirit.”

“How we think is what we get, and gratitude is the key.”

“To find inspiration we need only look within.”

“Whether by action or spoken word, parents are the implements that write the story of a child’s future.”

“The most difficult people in our lives end up being our greatest teachers. Think of the oyster…without the irritating grain of sand there would be no pearl.”

“What others think or say about us does not matter. What matters is that we always stay true to ourselves.”

“Thank you Guardian Angels for allowing me to stumble but never letting me fall.”

“The more we understand the less we fear. The less we fear the more we love. And the more we love the further we progress our souls.”

“Our interpretation of life becomes our reality of life.”

“God does not punish us. God does not sit around keeping score and then doling out karma. We are the sole creators of our life experience.”

“The one constant in life, the one thing we can always count on, is that everything changes. There is always hope for a brighter tomorrow.”

“Feeling pain means feeling human. By allowing ourselves to feel we become stronger, more resilient, and better equipped to manage adversity.”

“An experience that did not turn out the way you’d hoped it would is just an experience that turned out the way it was meant to.”

“Spread seeds of love wherever you go and with whomever you interact, and then watch them grow.”

“The root of all love is selflessness.”

“Miracles happen, anything is possible, never say never.”

“Spirituality is our inner growth and its outward projection.”

“We cannot let go of old pain unless we are willing to remove the badge we proudly wear that says, ‘I’ve been hurt and am entitled to suffer.”

“Paint the most beautiful picture possible while you are here so you can someday gaze upon it from heaven with pride.”

“You are a unique package of thoughts, perspectives, tastes, and talents. No one has, is, or will ever be like you.”

“May you be blessed with the comforts you require and the abundance you desire.”

“Self-awareness requires courage. The hardest person you will ever have to face is the one reflected back to you in the mirror.”

“Fill your own well with love so that others may drink from it.”

“Self love does not lessen our ability to love others—it increases it. The more love we have within the more love we have to give out.”

“Our life’s path is revealed to us by spiritual guideposts. They mark the way and lead us to our soul’s ultimate purpose.”

“As the flower blossoms, so does the child. Stages of childhood are like petals opening one by one, revealing their inner beauty and complexity.”

“Take no credit for the words of wisdom and inspiration you speak, for they have come from a spiritual place that has entrusted you to share them with others and bring light to the world.”

“Letting go does not mean becoming emotionless in regard to a traumatic event. It means giving up the suffering associated with the emotions in regard to a painful event.”

“If you are living your life to please others you are wasting precious moments—there is a beginning and an end to the pleasure you can offer. Instead love yourself first and then spread that love to others without any expectations of how it will be received or reciprocated. Love is an eternal ripple in the sea of life. It has no beginning and it has no end…it just is.”

“The road to destiny is long and winding. Be sure to stop and savor the view as you ramble along the way.”

“It is with your actions not your words that you show others how much you love them—for love is as love does.”

“Faith brings comfort and reliability. It gives us the will and determination to live, because we know in our heart and soul that life has meaning.”

“Know that the Universe has perfect timing. Everything happens when it is supposed to, not because you want it to. Honoring that universal truth will help ease the challenges of your Earthly journey.”

“Happiness comes from living in the present, moment to moment. Fulfillment comes from the process of getting there.”

“True love can only grow in the soil of respect and acceptance of the individuality of ourselves and others.”

“Love is about making the other person laugh when they want to cry, or crying right along with them. It is about holding them and telling them that everything will be okay, even when you are not sure it will be.”

“It is said that only the bravest souls choose to come to Earth School. Know that you are here because your spirit is highly motivated and remarkably courageous. The next time you question your purpose, remind yourself that you are an eternal being and your purpose is far greater than you can ever fathom.”

“No two souls seek the same experience and no two people share the same reality. Those who enter our lives are there to assist us in our learning process, just as we are there to assist others in theirs. Our lives are ours to live—no one can tell us how to do that. We must respect that about ourselves and each other.”

“The future may be fearful or alluring—it’s all in the perspective you choose. Do not let the hurdles in your life extinguish the flames of your passions, dreams, and heart’s desires.”

Image Credits

All Images Courtesy Of Randi G. Fine

“Your work is going to fill a large part of your life, and the only way to be truly satisfied is to do what you believe is great work. And the only way to do great work is to love what you do. If you haven’t found it yet, keep looking, and don’t settle. As with all matters of the heart,…you’ll know when you find it.”
— Steve Jobs

“When I was in the middle of writing Eat Pray Love and I fell into one of those pits of despair that we will fall into when we’re working on something that’s not coming and we think ‘this is going to be a disaster, this is going to be the worst book I’ve ever written — not just that but the worst book ever written …’ So I just lifted my face up from the manuscript and I directed my comments to an empty corner of the room and I said aloud ‘Listen you,thing! You and I both know that if this book isn’t brilliant that is not entirely my fault, right? Because you can see I am putting everything I have into this, I don’t have any more than this, so if you want it to be better then you’ve got to show up and do your part of the deal, OK? But you know what? If you don’t do that then I’m going to keep writing because that’s my job and I would please like the record to reflect today that I showed up and did my part of the job!”
— Elizabeth Gilbert

“Creativity comes from trust. Trust your instincts. And never hope more than you work.”
— Rita Mae Brown

“I am not afraid…I was born to do this.”
— Joan of Arc

“Curiosity about life in all of its aspects, I think, is still the secret of great creative people.”
— Leo Burnett

“If you want to build a ship, don’t drum up people to collect wood and don’t assign them tasks and work, but rather teach them to long for the endless immensity of the sea.”
— Antoine De Saint Exupery

“We all operate in two contrasting modes, which might be called open and closed. The open mode is more relaxed, more receptive, more exploratory, more democratic, more playful and more humorous. The closed mode is the tighter, more rigid, more hierarchical, more tunnel-visioned. Most people, unfortunately spend most of their time in the closed mode. Not that the closed mode cannot be helpful. If you are leaping a ravine, the moment of takeoff is a bad time for considering alternative strategies. When you charge the enemy machine-gun post, don’t waste energy trying to see the funny side of it. Do it in the “closed” mode. But the moment the action is over, try to return to the “open” mode—to open your mind again to all the feedback from our action that enables us to tell whether the action has been successful, or whether further action is need to improve on what we have done. In other words, we must return to the open mode, because in that mode we are the most aware, most receptive, most creative, and therefore at our most intelligent.”
— John Cleese

“I never perfected an invention that I did not think about in terms of the service it might give others… I find out what the world needs, then I proceed to invent.”
— Thomas Edison

“I don’t wait for moods. You accomplish nothing if you do that. Your mind must know it has got to get down to work.”
— Pearl S. Buck

“People who don’t take risks generally make about two big mistakes a year, people who do take risks generally make about two big mistakes a year”
— Peter Drucker

“It’s not about breaking the rules. It is about abandoning the concept of rules altogether”
— Paul Lemberg

“Our deepest fear is not that we are inadequate. Our deepest fear is that we are powerful beyond measure. It is our light, not our darkness that most frightens us. We ask ourselves, ‘Who am I to be brilliant, gorgeous, talented, fabulous?’ Actually, who are you not to be?”
— Marianne Williamson

“The things we fear most in organizations—fluctuations, disturbances, imbalances—are the primary sources of creativity.”
— Margaret J. Wheatley

“Each moment of our life, we either invoke or destroy our dreams.”
— Stuart Wilde

“In my experience, if you steer clear of dogma and muster up more love than you thought you had to give, then your vitality increases, satisfaction sets in, sweetness surfaces. I believe in the creative power of good feelings. I’m convinced that the desire to be real is everyone’s divine imperative.”
— Danielle LaPorte

“Nobody cares if you can’t dance well. Just get up and dance. Great dancers are not great because of their technique, they are great because of their passion.”
—Martha Graham

“The only thing all successful people have in common is that they’re successful, so don’t waste your time copying “the successful strategies” of others.”
— Seth Godin

“Everyone has talent. What is rare is the courage to follow the talent to the dark place where it leads.”
— Erica Jong

“It’s easy to come up with new ideas; the hard part is letting go of what worked for you two years ago, but will soon be out of date.”
— Roger von Oech

Photo Credits

“Periodic Art” Xerones @ Flickr.com. Creative Commons. Some Rights Reserved.

“art” eye.contact! @ Flickr.com. Creative Commons. Some Rights Reserved.

“Magnetic Poetry 3” M.JasonPrickett @ Flickr.com. Creative Commons. Some Rights Reserved.

“PsyArt” Louis L @ Flickr.com. Creative Commons. Some Rights Reserved.

To talk well and eloquently is a very great art, but that an equally great one is to know the right moment to stop.
— Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart

I worked hard. Anyone who works as hard as I did can achieve the same results.
— Johann Sebastian Bach

Recommend to your children virtue; that alone can make them happy, not gold.
— Ludwig van Beethoven

Every difficulty slurred over will be a ghost to disturb your repose later on.
— Fryderyk Franciszek Chopin

From Recent Times …

The beautiful thing about learning is nobody can take it away from you.
— B. B. King

Without deviation progress is not possible.
— Frank Zappa

A hero is someone who understands the responsibility that comes with his freedom.
— Bob Dylan

You want to be a writer, don’t know how or when? Find a quiet place, use a humble pen.
— Paul Simon

Sorrow is so easy to express and yet so hard to tell.
— Joni Mitchell

The secret of life is enjoying the passage of time.
— James Taylor

Photo Credits

Fryderyk Franciszek Chopin – Public Domain

Joni Mitchell – By Capannelle Bunga Bunga, Creative Commons. Some Rights Reserved.

Thumb Nail – Frank Zappa Bust – Creative Commons. Some Rights Reserved.

Piano Feature Pic – MS Word Clip Art Collection

Be who you are and say what you feel, because those who mind don’t matter and those who matter don’t mind.
— Dr. Seuss

Every time you don’t follow your inner guidance, you feel a loss of energy, loss of power, a sense of spiritual deadness.
— Shakti Gawain

We are so accustomed to disguising ourselves to others that in the end we become disguised to ourselves.
— François Duc de La Rochefoucauld

We all wear masks, and the time comes when we cannot remove them without removing some of our own skin.
— André Berthiaume, Contretemps

How many cares one loses when one decides not to be something but to be someone.
— Gabrielle “Coco” Chanel

If you cannot be a poet, be the poem.
— David Carradine

The most exhausting thing in life is being insincere.
—  Anne Morrow Lindbergh

Originality is… a by-product of sincerity.
— Marianne Moore

Almost all absurdity of conduct arises from the imitation of those whom we cannot resemble.
— Samuel Johnson

All the knowledge I possess everyone else can acquire, but my heart is all my own.
— Johann von Goethe

It is better to be hated for what you are than to be loved for something you are not.
— Andre Gide

If you are ashamed to stand by your colors, you had better seek another flag.
— Author Unknown

We are what we pretend to be, so we must be careful about what we pretend to be.
— Kurt Vonnegut

I am told to just be myself, but as much as I have practiced the impression, I am still no good at it.
— Robert Brault

The great majority of us are required to live a life of constant duplicity. Your health is bound to be affected if, day after day, you say the opposite of what you feel, if you grovel before what you dislike, and rejoice at what brings you nothing but misfortune.
— Boris Pasternak

It takes courage to grow up and become who you really are.
— e.e. cummings

Photo Credits

“Fingerprints” Helen Thomas Photography @ Flickr.com. Creative Commons. Some Rights Reserved.

“Beautiful Eye” Helen Thomas Photography @ Flickr.com. Creative Commons. Some Rights Reserved.

The small percentage of dogs that bite people is monumental proof that the dog is the most benign, forgiving creature on earth.
— W.R. Koehler, The Koehler Method of Dog Training

“I had a linguistics professor who said that it’s man’s ability to use language that makes him the dominant species on the planet.That may be. But I think there’s one other thing that separates us from animals. We aren’t afraid of vacuum cleaners.”
— Jeff Stilson

“Life is as dear to a mute creature as it is to man. Just as one wants happiness and fears pain, just as one wants to live and not die, so do other creatures.
— His Holiness The Dalai Lama

“Thou shall not kill. Thou shall not commit adultery. Don’t eat pork. I’m sorry, what was that last one?? Don’t eat pork. God has spoken. Is that the word of God or is that pigs trying to outsmart everybody?”
— Jon Stewart

“Our task must be to free ourselves… by widening our circle of compassion to embrace all living creatures and the whole of nature and its beauty.”
— Albert Einstein

“Did you ever walk in a room and forget why you walked in? I think that’s how dogs spend their lives.”
— Sue Murphy

“My dog is usually pleased with what I do, because she is not infected with the concept of what I “should” be doing.”
— Lonzo Idolswine

“Until one has loved an animal, a part of one’s soul remains unawakened.”
— Anatole France

“Mankind’s true moral test, its fundamental test (which lies deeply buried from view), consists of its attitude towards those who are at its mercy: animals…”
— Milan Kundera, The Unbearable Lightness of Being

“I don’t believe in the concept of hell, but if I did I would think of it as filled with people who were cruel to animals.”
— Gary Larson

“Eagles may soar, but weasels don’t get sucked into jet engines.”
— John Benfield

“I was so moved by the intelligence, sense of fun and personalities of the animals I worked with on Babe that by the end of the film I was a vegetarian.”
— James Cromwell

“I PLEDGE to live, work and act in a loving, respectful way towards this Earth that I call home, and towards all who live upon it, every insect, animal, fish, bird, plant, human and tree….”
— Guy Dauncey

“Man is the only creature that consumes without producing. He does not give milk, he does not lay eggs, he is too weak to pull the plough, he cannot run fast enough to catch rabbits. Yet he is lord of all the animals.”
— George Orwell

“Did you ever notice when you blow in a dog’s face he gets mad at you? But when you take him in a car he sticks his head out the window.”
— Steve Bluestone

“When my cats aren’t happy, I’m not happy. Not because I care about their mood but because I know they’re just sitting there thinking up ways to get even.”
— Percy Bysshe Shelley

“I like pigs. Dogs look up to us. Cats look down on us. Pigs treat us as equals.”
— Winston Churchill

“I know at last what distinguishes man from animals: financial worries.”
— Romain Roland

“Horse sense is the thing a horse has which keeps it from betting on people.”
—W. C. Fields

“The Animals of the planet are in desperate peril. Without free animal life I believe we will lose the spiritual equivalent of oxygen.”
— Alice Walker

Do you know some great quotes about humans and animals? Please share them in the comments!

Photo Credits

“Stealing Those Gorilla Kisses” ucumari @ Flickr.com. Creative Commons. some Rights Reserved.

“Dog and Cat” Tiger Lily’s Photostream @ Flickr. com. Creative Commons. Some Rights Reserved.

“Handshake” Lens Envy @ Flickr.com. Creative Commons. Some Rights Reserved.

“Animal Innocence” Durian Photography @ Flickr.com. Creative Commons. Some Rights Reserved.

“Paragliding, Tod on Pule Hil” purplemattfish @ Flickr.com. Creative commons. Some Rights Reserved.