Change may be the vitalizing wind blowing through the house of life, but it is not an abiding force. We need permanent things to soak peace into us as well as progress - the beauty of the earth, seedtime and harvest, the smiles of lovers, the joy of the young in being alive, pride in craftsmanship. Why, oh why must we let ourselves forget these lasting treasures in an age of consuming ambition, speed madness and accumulated goods that leave us no chance to live? If we cannot be contented with a little no wealth will ever satisfy us.
Helen KellerMore than at any other time, when I hold a beloved book in my hand my limitations fall from me, my spirit is free.
Helen KellerIt is so pleasant to learn about new things. Every day I find how little I know, but I do not feel discouraged since God has given me an eternity in which to learn more.
Helen KellerThe beginning of my life was simple and much like every other little life. I came, I saw, I conquered, as the first baby in the family always does.
Helen KellerYour success and happiness lie in you. External conditions are the accidents of life, its outer trappings.
Helen KellerI cannot remember how I felt when the light went out of my eyes. I suppose I felt it was always night and perhaps I wondered why the day did not come.
Helen KellerA person who is severely impaired never knows his hidden sources of strength until he is treated like a normal human being and encouraged to shape his own life.
Helen KellerI seldom think about my limitations, and they never make me sad. Perhaps there is just a touch of yearning at times; but it is vague, like a breeze among flowers.
Helen KellerThey took away what should have been my eyes (but I remembered Milton's Paradise). They took away what should have been my ears, (Beethoven came and wiped away my tears) They took away what should have been my tongue, (but I had talked with god when I was young) He would not let them take away my soul, possessing that I still possess the whole.
Helen KellerSo long as the memory of certain beloved friends lives in my heart, I shall say that life is good.
Helen KellerThe civilization of a state should be measured by the amount of suffering it prevents and the degree of happiness it makes possible for its citizens.
Helen Keller...our enjoyment of the great works of literature depends more upon the depth of our sympathy than upon our understanding.
Helen KellerUnless we form the habit of going to the Bible in bright moments as well as in trouble, we cannot fully respond to its consolations because we lack equilibrium between light and darkness.
Helen KellerThe tragic side of many architectural enterprises is that they destroy natural beauties which are a priceless possession and cannot be replaced.
Helen KellerThe only moral virtue of war is that it compels the capitalist system to look itself in the face and admit it is a fraud. It compels the present society to admit that it has no morals it will not sacrifice for gain.
Helen KellerIt is not possible for civilization to flow backwards while there is youth in the world. Youth may be headstrong, but it will advance it allotted length.
Helen KellerOne's life story cannot be told with complete veracity. A true autobiography would have to be written in states of mind, emotions, heartbeats, smiles and tears; not in months and years, or physical events. Life is marked off on the soul by feelings, not by dates.
Helen KellerThe power of effecting changes for the better is within ourselves, not in the favorableness of circumstances.
Helen KellerIf the blind put their hands in God's, they find their way more surely than those who see but have not faith or purpose.
Helen KellerOnce it was necessary that the people should multiply and be fruitful if the race was to survive. But now to preserve the race it is necessary that people hold back the power of propagation.
Helen KellerI am not a perfect being. . . . I have more faults than I know what to do with. I have a naughty temper. I am stubborn, impatient of hindrances and of stupidity. I have not in the truest sense a Christian spirit. I am naturally a fighter. I am lazy. I put off till tomorrow what I might better do today. I do not feel that I have been compensated for the two senses I lack. I have worked hard for all the senses I have got, and always I beg for more.
Helen KellerMany people know so little about what is beyond their short range of experience. They look within themselves - and find nothing! Therefore they conclude that there is nothing outside themselves either.
Helen KellerI thank God for my handicaps. For through them, I have found myself, my work and my God.
Helen KellerI have depended on books not only for pleasure and for the wisdom they bring to all who read, but also for that knowledge which comes to others through their eyes and their ears.
Helen KellerIt is curious to observe what different ideals of happiness people cherish, and in what singular places they look for this well-spring of their life. Many look for it in the hoarding of riches, some in the pride of power, and others in the achievements of art and literature; a few seek it in the exploration of their own minds, or in search for knowledge.
Helen KellerFor my part, I wish, with Mr. Howells, that the literature of the past might be purged of all that is ugly and barbarous in it, although I should object as much as any one to having these great works weakened or falsified.
Helen KellerThe true task is to unite and organize all workers...and it is the workers themselves who must secure freedom for themselves.
Helen KellerI find that fact and fancy look alike across the years that link the past with the present.
Helen KellerInstead of being satisfied to alleviate suffering, we shall labor hard and continually to prevent it.
Helen KellerThe struggle of life is one of our greatest blessings. It makes us patient, sensitive, and Godlike. It teaches us that although the world is full of suffering, it is also full of the overcoming of it.
Helen KellerI am conscious of a soul-sense that lifts me above the narrow, cramping circumstances of my life. My physical limitations are forgotten- my world lies upward, the length and the breadth and the sweep of the heavens are mine!
Helen Keller