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Epigrams and Quotations by Bryant McGill

Belief, Faith and Hope - Quotations and Epigrams

Hope: "The greatest joys are found not only in what we do and feel, but also in what we hope for."

Belief: "Few things are so firmly believed as those we can least disprove. All men desire knowledge, but many only believe what they desire. Deep-rooted beliefs are one of the many consequences of intellect, and also of ignorance; and telling one from the other is sometimes impossible."

Character and Virtues - Quotations and Epigrams

Loyalty: "Within the hearts of men, loyalty and consideration are esteemed greater than success."

Prudence: "While it is important for people to see your promise you must also remember that hope is the keeper of both happiness and disappointment, the father of both progress and failure."

Honesty: "Honestly appraise your defects, and diligently seek to minimize them. Self examination often only reveals that we cannot honestly examine ourselves. Be honest, and know yourself! But what good is knowing if you attempt to do nothing with the knowledge?"

Prudence: "Speak rarely, but then speak carefully. Speak with great calculation and discretion before your rivals and with great nobility of manner before friends. The opportunity to make your thoughts known arise with every social gathering, but the ability to conceal them once liberated never comes."

Patience: "The more a person knows the more they realize they don't know. To seek knowledge is healthy, but rather than making a personal investment in a proposition, make your investment in patience, time and tolerance. For nothing is more forbearing, charitable or fickle with knowledge than time."

Discretion: "Small victories, when added together, can become the sum of change. People can be divided from their ignorance more easily by gentle strikes on a wedge than with blunt hammering at their toughest seams. Sometimes the best use of intelligence is to simply not let others know your thoughts."

Prudence: "He who is silent must be agreed with, for what shall the wings of opposition thresh upon, without the winds of conversation to shoulder them."

Prudence: "While it is important for people to see your promise you must also remember that hope is the keeper of both happiness and disappointment, the father of both progress and failure."

Integrity: "Don't make the mistake of thinking that you have to agree with people and their beliefs to defend them from injustice."

Compassion, Love and Healing - Quotations and Epigrams

Love: "There is no love without forgiveness, and there is no forgiveness without love."

Forgiveness: "The ability to forgive is one of man's greatest achievements."

Compassion: "One of the greatest things you can learn in life is to be compassionate. However many people do not understand the most critical thing about compassion; that true compassion includes compassion for yourself."

Giving: "Take without forgetting, and give without remembering."

Empathy: "We are all struggling, whether we know it at times or not. Even in our moments of individual bliss, an incubus of ignorance, fear and hunger still haunts large regions of the world. I am recalcitrant to the ever pervasive ethos of apathy that haunts my part of the world, but not nearly enough."

Listening: "It has been my experience that if we make the effort to listen to people when we meet them, and work to get to know them a little, it is then easy to find something likable in practically anyone."

Compassion: "Join me in my quest for a greater understanding of our existence. Join me in my desire for a greater self. Join me as I seek the humility to love and understand my fellow man."

Love: "True love is quiescent, except in the nascent moments of true humility."

Empathy: "We all need to intimately know the sorrows of others, so that the saying, 'There but for the grace of God, go I,' becomes an epitaph to our indifference, rather than a trite allegory of elitism for those who have forgotten that they too are human, that they too are frail, that they too are subject to such miseries. And in this dervish whirlwind of vanity, indifference, greed and ignorance we fuel, we all at times, ask whatever forces we believe in for clarity and meaning of our purpose in this existence."

Listening: "One of the most sincere forms of respect is actually listening to what another has to say."

Existence, Life and Death - Quotations and Epigrams

Existence: "The mysteries we ostensibly perceive, though seemingly ubiquitous, are but mere stitches that hold the inconceivably vast fabric of the unknown tightly closed from our ever prying view."

Death: "I have watched life's light flicker, and at once fade from their eyes as they passed from this world. I have sat silent and frightened, with tears streaming from my eyes as I tried to grasp some salient thought about the absence of their breath. I have collected stories from these people, many of whom exist only as a memory in my mind, and a sentiment in my poetry."

Death: "Death is the great hope of all life; the desire to expend itself; to be used and consumed by its own longing for itself."

Death: "Through death all life is converted into food for the inconceivably vast maw of eternity."

Life: "You may find many contradictory statements and philosophies within my writings. However, to this I will say such is life, for life is full of contradictions."

Life: "I am just a student of the world; a miniscule and frail embodied consciousness struggling to understand, and be a meaningful part of this great, mysterious play of life which is set on the stage of our baffling home in the universe."

Birth: "I am a contemplative person by nature, and as it is such, there has seldom been a period of time that has gone by wherein I did not reflect back to the moments my children were born. What I remember most; having had a true lasting impact on me are two things. Of the two, what I consider most awe-inspiring was their first breath. I have thought intently about it over the years; about its profound implications on my understanding of the mysterious world around us, and ultimately about its paradoxical beauties. There I stood in each case as they came into the world, and I witnessed their very first, amazing and miraculous breath. With that breath came the animations of life and their helpless, compelling cries. The second thing that has continued to impact me is as this happened, in that instant of their springing into being, my wife and I helplessly collapsed into an embrace, and together wept tears of utter and absolute humility and joy."

Life: "The clues to the great mystery are all around us! To understand the mysteries of life you must look around and within. You will see patterns everywhere; patterns that seem to manifest themselves over and over again. These patterns exist intertwined within nature and man bridging the gap between the enigma of self and universe. You see them in spiraling galaxies and the Mandelbrot fractal of fossilized Ammonoidea; growing from the unknown to atoms to molecules to solar systems to galaxies to the paradoxical expanses of the universe with origins and destinations unknown; just like us in birth and death. The similarities of tree branches, rivers and blood veins. The power of cellular division and nuclear fission, the patterns of finger prints like endoplasmic reticulum, or a black opal's play of fire like the nebula of supernova. Moon shots are like protoplasmic lurches, while simple thoughts and observations of the nature around us take us beyond the unknown. The clues to the great mystery are all around us and deep within us."

Life: "Life is a wonderful journey. I believe we should make good use of the precious time and talents we have been given. We should look at the world around us, as well as the mysteries within us, as we seek for understanding and harmony with self. The gift of thought is more than I can bear, and I am elated in gracious joy for each moment I have in this beautiful and painful experience called life."

Life: "Birth and death; we all move between these two unknowns."

Imagination, Genius and Creativity - Quotations and Epigrams

Creativity: "Creativity is the greatest expression of liberty."

Imagination: "Science, after all, is only an extension of reason, a proving ground, if you will. Though science may lend many needed things to our world it can not afford us the most important ones, such as the human will, hope, determination and our ability to defy the forces of the physical universe with our conscious will. In most ways science is just one of many tools that we use to accomplish the goals of our conscious will. Science fiction, which constantly expands our vision of possibility and the future of true science, is the offspring of our creative emotional aspirations. Many of our scientific realities have been born from our hopeful vision, will and emotional determination; forged from fantasy with the tools of reason, logic and science serving only as the mold into which the molten fruition of our minds are poured."

Curiosity: "Curiosity is one of the great secrets of happiness."

Imagination: "The realities of the world seldom measure up to the sublime designs of human imagination."

Enthusiasm: "Genius is always accompanied by enthusiasm."

Enthusiasm: "Enthusiasm is the energy and force that builds literal momentum of the human soul and mind."

Justice, Fairness and Intention - Quotations and Epigrams

Intention: "A single lie can forever destroy your reputation, a single truth the reputation of another. Not all truths should be spoken, not all lies reviled. Intention is often more important than truth, for truth is regularly a device of choice by those of ill intent."

Intention: "The test of a belief is not exclusively in the belief itself, but also in the intentions and actions of those who embrace it."

Justice: "Be willing to give all, even to your own physical demise, in order to protect truth from injustice. Be eager to pay any price, so long as it is your own stand for that which you are committed to by truth and honor; this is the price freedom."

Intention: "When you are doing things for the right reasons, you do not need to play by the rules."

Knowledge and Intelligence - Quotations and Epigrams

Knowledge: "Remember that the greatest fool in the world may ask more than the wisest man can answer."

Emotions: "Emotion is often what we rely upon to carry us across the unfathomable voids in our intelligence."

Intelligence: "An intelligent person is never afraid or ashamed to find errors in his understanding of things."

Intelligence: "Human intelligence may not be the best trick nature has to offer."

Knowledge: "Knowledge is that possession that no misfortune can destroy, no authority can revoke, and no enemy can control. This makes knowledge the greatest of all freedoms."

Truth: "Truth is not a matter of fact but a state of harmony with progress and hope. Enveloped only in its wings will we ever soar to the promise of our greater selves."

Knowledge: "The terrain of our knowledge is scattered with assumptions like precarious, narrow, towering-peaks and mysteries like abysmal rifts. And as is in nature, these mountains and valleys of enlightenment and ignorance are leveled with time."

Learning, Growth, Success and Change - Quotations and Epigrams

Potential: "We are defined by, what we are confined by."

Growth: "In order to deserve, we must pay our dues and steadily work for perfection. We must relish in struggle, and relinquish pride. We must dispel fear and seek enlightenment. We must shun division and honor love. We must know our hearts and seek to understand others. We must try, live, create, feel, grow and love. "

Change: "One column of truth cannot hold an institution of ideas from falling into ignorance. It is wiser that a person of prudence and purpose save his strength for battles that can be won."

Change: "Leave room for other possibilities in your life. When we have made up our minds about something or someone, we often never revisit the circumstances that led us to our conclusions. People change and so do situations, as most situations are comprised of people's lives. When we leave no room in our lives for other possibilities we are sometimes left behind, for we stand still while the world is transformed around us."

Learning: "A person who makes few mistakes makes little progress."

Ambition: "Yearning for the seemingly impossible is the path to human progress."

Success: "The successful often expect others to esteem their accomplishments as they do, but find contempt in its place. This is because success is hard for many to relate to. For some, long-suffering is easier to respect because it reminds them of their own lives."

Ambition: "Ambition is not what a man would do, but what a man does, for ambition without action is fantasy."

Liberty, Freedom and Tyranny - Quotations and Epigrams

Freedom: "Freedom is not a gift nor does it simply exist for us to have, but rather it is a sacred duty, and its blessed yield of hope is born from none other than the blood of the innocent."

Freedom: "It is better to lose everything you have to keep the balance of justice level, than to live a life of petty privilege devoid of true freedom."

Rights: "The right to justice is something that no one can bestow, nor take away, for it is in one's heart."

Freedom: "True freedom is where an individual's thoughts and actions are in alignment with that which is true, correct, and of honor - no matter the personal price."

People and Relationships - Quotations and Epigrams

Mankind: "In all known time there has never been a greater monster or miracle than the human being."

People: "There are amazingly wonderful people in all walks of life; some familiar to us and others not. Stretch yourself and really get to know people. People are in many ways one of our greatest treasures."

People: "People are really amazing when you sit back and think about it. They are funny, curious, and never seem to stop amazing me with the clever things they come up with. I have met a lot of people in the world. I can say from my experience that most people are good."

Fathers: "I dare not try to express the depths of a father's love, for though I have dedicated much of my life to words and poetry I doubt I could come close to expressing my feelings. I will say that a father's love is often expressed in many different ways."

Relationships: "The experiences of meeting and interacting with people carries with it most of the greatest opportunities to be had; the opportunity to laugh, to learn, to grow, to change, to hurt, to cry, to share, to empathize, to help, to serve, to love, to regret, to long for, to remember and to live."

Relationships: "In the company of the accomplished, people hope it will rub off on themselves, in the company of the misfortunate, they fear it!"

Power, Control and Fear - Quotations and Epigrams

Fear: "If we fear the unknown then surely we fear ourselves."

Purpose and Action - Quotations and Epigrams

Purpose: "Having a sense of purpose is having a sense of self. A course to plot is a destination to hope for."

Action: "Do not let your ambitions become a sanctuary for your failures."

Action: "Do not let your grand ambitions stand in the way of small but meaningful accomplishments."

Purpose: "It is better to have a meaningful life and make a difference than to merely have a long life."

Action: "It is better to have a fair intellect that is well used than a powerful one that is idle."

Progress: "Speak to protect the ideals of goodness, and act to make them real in the world. The first proves a consummate mind, the second a valorous heart. Noble words are the seeds of noble actions, and noble actions enable true human progress."

Truth: "There is little more powerful than when truth joins action."

Self-worth and Confidence - Quotations and Epigrams

Confidence: "Learn to have confidence in yourself and attempt to rely on your instincts. Instincts are often the last remnants of a once good judgment that has been dispirited by fear; the tireless master that regularly bridles true individual possibility."

Self-worth: "Many openly show discontentment with their looks, but few with their intelligence. I, however, assure you there are many more plain minds than faces."

Service, Helping and Influence - Quotations and Epigrams

Service: "No time is better spent than that spent in the service of your fellow man."

Influence: "Never doubt the power of suggestion. Never doubt the powerful influence you can have on someone weaker than yourself. If you have moral courage and strength then it is your responsibility to help others with that influence through your example. Given the right friends and environment, even the weakest in integrity and character will try harder."

Influence: "As you grow older you will realize something very important. And that is, you have more influence on people's lives than you may first imagine. People feed off of their friends and associates for guidance and support. So what I am getting to here is that before you deem a person as 'bad', be sure that your sphere of influence, or rejection does not help tip them over the edge of becoming your perception."

Influence: "If you study the Parable of the Sower, its surface suggests that people are much like a field that needs to be sowed with the seeds of good examples; carefully cultivated, weeded and tended to in order to produce a worthy crop. Ask yourselves what seeds do you sow in others? Do you cultivate and weed that the sprouts of goodness have a chance to grow. Don't make the mistake of sowing seeds of doubt and mistrust. Again, give people a chance and you will become a living part of their success."

Suffering, Pain, and Ignorance - Quotations and Epigrams

Suffering: "Suffering is one of life's great teachers."

Ignorance: "Most people do not actually know how to think for themselves, and unfortunately that prevents them from even knowing it."

Ignorance: "The common person fears to think beyond the common."

Understanding and Wisdom - Quotations and Epigrams

Understanding: "I would like to build bridges to greater understanding and empathy. It is not that I believe there is no evil in the world; for there surely is, and it must be dealt with. I do, however, believe there is an appalling lack of understanding, communication and concession between individuals and groups."

Understanding: "Do not allow the adumbrations of Aristotelian logic to prevent you from seeing a vast spectrum of truths; the post-Boolean continuum of shades of grey where we spend most of our lives."

Clarity: "Change will never happen when people lack the ability and courage to see themselves for who they are."

Understanding: "True meaning is an apparition. Life is complex and full of illusions. Absolute understanding in this life is unattainable, and time without profound change is inescapable. Yet, we are all still compelled, like the moth to the flame, to attain that which is beyond our reach, and this we must do."

Understanding: "To know something you must also know its seasons. What would one know of the Earth who only saw the winter, and what would one say of the moon who only saw its faint image in the bright of day? The same is true of people, for only in great time may the seasons of their hearts be known."

Various Thoughts - Quotations and Epigrams

Appearances: "It is better to be respected as wise than feared as cunning. Being clever is no fault, nor is calculating necessarily devious, but virtue often abides with the simple and corruption often with the quick."

Equality: "American society will never completely understand the true meaning of equality."

Fanaticism: "Fanatic is often the name given to people of action by people who are lazy."

Constitution: "For the weak, beliefs are not always in line with their own personal truths, but instead they follow the path of least social resistance. Over time this reshapes the innate values nature instills within each soul into corrupt half-truths; values neither of the individual nor of a civil order, but a convoluted perversion of both. For many this makes it impossible to remain faithful to their values and yet equally impossible to escape from them. They are paralyzed with indifference and their intellectual and spiritual growth is stunted between fear and acceptance."

Loans: "Never expect a loan to a friend to be paid back if you want to keep that friend."

Persistence: "The act of beginning is powerful, but the greater force is the art of ending. Raw intellect can begin the momentum of an idea, but only diligence, perseverance and unrelenting determination will materialize that gift of creation into the real world."

Tolerance: "The best way to win against the intolerable is to tolerate them, for this they have seldom dealt with. Your indulgence may soften their malice and open their eyes to more honorable ways."

Reputation: "Unfortunately, your reputation often rests not on your ability to do what you say, but rather on your ability to do what people expect."

Comedy: Why do we laugh at such terrible things? Because comedy is often the sarcastic realization of inescapable tragedy.

Emotions: "Comfort in expressing your emotions will allow you to share the best of yourself with others, but not being able to control your emotions will reveal your worst."

Weakness, Vices and Evil - Quotations and Epigrams

Corruption: "The world is not fair, and often fools, cowards, liars and the selfish hide in high places."

Corruption: "Sometimes power is all a person has, so they will protect it even unto their own destruction, for without power they have nothing."

Anger: "Keep your anger in check. Anger is like a fire's ember; the hotter it burns the quicker it consumes itself and those things around it. Unchecked, anger often turns into an explosion of cruelty that can forever destroy a reputation and wound the tenderness of those whom we care about."

Vanity: "Self-made men often worship their creator."

Jealously: "There are few surer ways to become disliked by men than to perform well where they have performed poorly."

Deception: "Truth is often the favorite tool of those who deceive."

Anger: "A wise person lets his anger die quickly for one who conquers his anger in fact conquers a brutal and timeless enemy. Anger is a short madness, and wrath, its brightest flame, is nothing less than a communion with our darkest most primitive aggressions. Remember it is easiest to destroy your anger while it is still small before it has seized your intelligence and turned your own strength against you."

Vanity: "Architects of grandeur are often the master builders of disillusionment."

Words, Language and Communication - Quotations and Epigrams

Discourse: "Where wise actions are the fruit of life, wise discourse is the pollination."

Language: "Language is vastly important to nearly all human progression. Language is a factor that joins nations of people together. It is a common denominator among civilizations of people where in some cases there may be few others but hate. Though through language there may be division, without its powers there would be only division. If a person cannot communicate his ideas effectively to others because of a weakness in language, then how may they understand the concepts of others fully? And even more important, how may one conceive and understand one's own creative thoughts? How can you bring to fruition that which you cannot convert from the abstract?"

Reading: "I have never read for entertainment, but rather for understanding and to satisfy my eager curiosity."

Discussion: "Try to keep your mind open to new ideas and never let offense stand in the way of discourse, for discourse and the exchange of ideas is the only motion by which the chaff is separated from the wheat in the world of ideas."

Words: "Words are the tools that verbally enable our thoughts. If a person cannot communicate his ideas effectively to others because of a weakness in language, then how may he understand the concepts of others fully? Moreover, how may one conceive and understand one's own creative thoughts? How can you bring to fruition that which you cannot convert from the abstract?"

Opinions: "Try not to let your prejudices stand in the way of learning. What seems one way to one person seems very different to another. What would be correct and good in one instance can be wrong under other circumstances. Therefore, I consider the opinions of others as I do the words from a friend's conversation; to be considered alongside my own and carefully weighed and thought about."

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