#achieve

As for my own part I care not for death, for all men are mortal; and though I be a woman yet I have as good a courage answerable to my place as ever my father had. I am your anointed Queen. I will never be by violence constrained to do anything. I thank God I am indeed endowed with such qualities that if I were turned out of the realm in my petticoat I were able to live in any place in Christendom. ↗

— Elizabeth I Tudor

#courage #death #defiance #dignity #good-governance

Human beings are the only ones in nature who are aware that they will die. For that reason and only for that reason, I have a profound respect for the human race, and I believe that its future is going to be much better than its present. Even knowing that their days are numbered and that everything will end when they least expect it, people make of their lives a battle that is worthy of a being with eternal life. What people regard as vanity-leaving great works, having children, acting in such a way as to prevent one's name from being forgotten- I regard as the highest expression of human dignity. ↗

— Paulo Coelho

#achievement #death #life #work #death

I could try composing wonderful musical works, or day-long entertainment epics, but what would that do? Give people pleasure? My wiping this table gives me pleasure. And people come to a clean table, which gives them pleasure. And anyway" - the man laughed - "people die; stars die; universes die. What is any achievement, however great it was, once time itself is dead? Of course, if all I did was wipe tables, then of course it would seem a mean and despicable waste of my huge intellectual potential. But because I choose to do it, it gives me pleasure. And," the man said with a smile, "it's a good way of meeting people. So where are you from, anyway? ↗

— Iain M. Banks

#choice #death #meeting-people #people #pleasure

As long as the constitution of my country is not amended to cut down the sizes of the dreams of its citizens, I have the freedom to dream extra largest dreams. I am even dreaming over-size dreams now. ↗

— Israelmore Ayivor

#big-dreams #constitution #country #cut-down #dream

We are in a position of financial and social power, and we could be agents of change in our society. Without pretension, I believe we could be a nice little gardener who takes care of the garden, and hopefully our neighbor will do the same. Then, maybe we'll achieve a better world. ↗

— Guy Laliberte

#agents #believe #better #better world #care

I have always struggled to achieve excellence. One thing that cycling has taught me is that if you can achieve something without a struggle it's not going to be satisfying. ↗

— Greg LeMond

#always #cycling #excellence #going #i

Aspiring to a souffle, he achieves a pancake at which the reader saws without much appetite. ↗

— John Leonard

#appetite #aspiring #much #pancake #reader

We shall never achieve harmony with land, any more than we shall achieve absolute justice or liberty for people. In these higher aspirations, the important thing is not to achieve but to strive. ↗

— Aldo Leopold

#achieve #any #aspirations #harmony #higher

I think that if you can achieve a balance, then you appease a lot of yourself and your career and what it takes to maintain in this business for a while. ↗

— Ray Liotta

#appease #balance #business #career #i

Let freedom reign. The sun never set on so glorious a human achievement. ↗

— Nelson Mandela

#freedom #glorious #human #never #reign