Although I am not stupid, the mathematical side of my brain is like dumb notes upon a damaged piano.

It is easier to influence strong than weak characters in life.

Haunted from my early youth by the transitoriness and pathos of life, I was aware that it is not enough to say "I am doing no harm," I ought to be testing myself daily, and asking myself what I am really achieving.

the announcement that you are going to tell a good story (and the chuckle that precedes it) is always a dangerous opening.

There are some people that you cannot change, you must either swallow them whole or leave them alone.

Too much brilliance has its disadvantages, and misplaced wit may raise a laugh, but often beheads a topic of profound interest.

The first element of greatness is fundamental humbleness (this should not be confused with servility); the second is freedom from self; the third is intrepid courage, which, taken in its widest interpretation, generally goes with truth; and the fourth-the power of love-although I have put it last, is the rarest.