The life of a good man will hardly improve us more than the life of a freebooter, for the inevitable laws appear as plainly in theinfringement as in the observance, and our lives are sustained by a nearly equal expense of virtue of some kind. The decaying tree, while yet it lives, demands sun, wind, and rain no less than the green one. It secretes sap and performs the functions of health. If we choose, we may study the alburnum only. The gnarled stump has as tender a bud as the sapling.
Henry David ThoreauThe bad are frequently good enough to let you see how bad they are, but the good as frequently endeavor to get between you and themselves.
Henry David ThoreauNature and human life are as various as our several constitutions. Who shall say what prospect life offers to another?
Henry David ThoreauA traveler who looks at things with an impartial eye may see what the oldest inhabitant has not observed.
Henry David ThoreauIf I wished to see a mountain or other scenery under the most favorable auspices, I would go to it in foul weather, so as to be there when it cleared up; we are then in the most suitable mood, and nature is most fresh and inspiring. There is no serenity so fair as that which is just established in a tearful eye.
Henry David Thoreau