Aphorisms for All

— Reflections of an Optimist —

To be smart is to know ignorance.

A snowflake is pretty—but cold.

A door is only a window 'til you walk through it.

Each moment in your life becomes "now" only once.

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

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

You can't measure the depth of a river standing on the bank.

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

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

Narrow paths that cross share little at the intersection.

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

It's the rider that needs the reins, not the horse.

A dam impedes a river, a bridge conquers it.

When appraising a tree, consider its roots.

Smell the flowers, but harvest the corn.

We are "they" through different eyes.

Pessimism pays no dividends.

Good things grow in dirt.

Helping trumps hoping.

A fork in the road offers three alternatives.

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

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.

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

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

The trick to cheating death is an illusion.

Today could be the rest of your life.

Optimists die just the same.

Human being is a verb.

To err iss hunam.

History must repeat itself because it mumbles.

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