"Men have forgotten this truth," said the fox. "But you must not forget it. You become responsible, forever, for what you have tamed."

It was the contemplation of God that created men who were equal, for it was in God that they were equal.

You know...my flower...I'm responsible for her. And she's so weak! And so naive. She has four ridiculous thorns to defend her against the world.

Loneliness is bred of a mind that has grown earth-bound.

She cast her fragrance and her radiance over me. I ought never to have run away from her... I ought to have guessed all the affection that lay behind her poor little stratagems. Flowers are so inconsistent! But I was too young to know how to love her.

It would have been better to come back at the same hour,” said the fox. “If, for example, you came at four o’clock in the afternoon, then at three o’clock I shall begin to be happy. I shall feel happier and happier as the hour advances. At four o’clock, I shall already be worrying and jumping about. I shall show you how happy I am! But if you come at just any time, I shall never know at what hour my heart is to be ready to greet you . . . One must observe the proper rites . . .

You cannot plant an acorn in the morning, and expect that afternoon to sit in the shade of an oak.