Great Throughts Treasury

"How majestic is naturalness. I have never met a man whom I really consider a great man who was not always natural and simple. Affection is inevitably the mark of one not sure of himself."

"Mediocrity requires aloofness to preserve its dignity."

"A great library contains the diary of the human race."

"Half the gossip of society would perish if the books that are truly worth reading are read."

"Children killing children. That's a terrible thing. What do you think has gone wrong? It's not just the children. It's the grown-ups too. Some people are growing children, not raising children, and there's a big difference. What do you mean? Well, people grow hogs. You give them a place to live, give them all the food they need to keep growing, and make sure that they don't get sick on you. With children you got to raise them. Of course, you feed and clothe them. But a parent has to take the time to teach them right and wrong. A parent has to discipline them. And a parent got to be there to listen to them, help them with their problems. I think most people do their best, but there are some parents these days that are growing children, not raising children. It's a sad thing. These children have everything they need to grow up, but they are missing something inside. They must hurt awful bad and no one has shown them the way to live. Buying them their food or even fancy clothes or a car ain't going to help if a child is hurting inside. We all need the same things."

"George, I know you’re tired. But President Lincoln, he didn’t free us to be lazy and no good. He freed us to work hard and improve ourselves.-George’s Grandmother."

"I said, “The children wanted to know what life was like.” Junior said, “They [the children] don’t have any idea how rough it was.” (George responds) “Or how good it was either! People forget that a picture ain’t made from just one color. Life ain’t all good or all bad. It’s full of everything.”"

"Life is so good, and it gets better every day."

"That's what God does. He moves the wind across the water or leaves it still. He can do all that. That's God doing that and He can do it on any lake that He wants to."

"Things will be alright. People need to hear that. Life is good, just as it is. There isn't anything that I would change about my life."