Child of mortality, whence comest thou? Why is thy countenance
sad, and why are thine eyes red with weeping?

Child of mortality, whence comest thou? Why is thy countenance
sad, and why are thine eyes red with weeping?

There can be no rainbow without a cloud and a storm.

There can be no rainbow without a cloud and a storm.

If you see a friend without a smile; give him one of yours.

If you see a friend without a smile; give him one of yours.

We look before and after,
And pine for what is not,
Our sincerest laughter
read more

We look before and after,
And pine for what is not,
Our sincerest laughter
With some pain is fraught:
Our sweetest songs are those that tell of saddest thought.

Of all tales 'tis the saddest--and more sad,
Because it makes us smile.

Of all tales 'tis the saddest--and more sad,
Because it makes us smile.

Sadness does not inhere in things; it does not reach us from the world and through mere contemplation of the read more

Sadness does not inhere in things; it does not reach us from the world and through mere contemplation of the world. It is a product of our own thought. We create it out of whole cloth.

No society has been able to abolish human sadness, no political system can deliver us from the pain of living, read more

No society has been able to abolish human sadness, no political system can deliver us from the pain of living, from our fear of death, our thirst for the absolute. It is the human condition that directs the social condition, not vice versa.

The human mind can bear plenty of reality but not too much intermittent gloom.

The human mind can bear plenty of reality but not too much intermittent gloom.

I can see the humorous side of things and enjoy the fun when it comes; but look where I will, read more

I can see the humorous side of things and enjoy the fun when it comes; but look where I will, there seems to me always more sadness than joy in life.