In order to do great things, it is necessary to live as if one was never to die.
The maxim that men are not to be praised before their death was invented by envy and too lightly adopted by philosophers.
The common excuse for those bringing misfortune on others is that they desire their good.
Despair exaggerates not only our misery but also our weakness.
We are forced to respect the gifts of nature, which study and fortune cannot give.
Sometimes a lengthened period of prosperity melts away in a moment; just as the heat of summer flies before a day of tempest.