Whew! Sobering, indeed.
Moving on.
Gladiolus for strength of character."It is no dishonor to be in a minority in the cause of liberty and virtue." - Samuel Adams (1722-1803), American statesman, politician, writer and political philosopher, brewer, and one of the Founding Fathers of the United States
Adhere to what is just and good. Care less what others think. Does it matter? Yes. Should it?
Irises for faith, hope, and wisdom.
"Scientists were rated as great heretics by the church, but they were truly religious men because of their faith in the orderliness of the universe." - Albert Einstein (1879-1955), German-born theoretical physicist
I find it very possible, logical, and even agreeable, to combine reason and faith. Feel free to ask me your questions.
"Creativity comes from trust. Trust your instincts. And never hope more than you work." - Rita Mae Brown (1944-), American writer
I especially agree with Ms. Brown on that last sentence, "never hope more than you work." I don't think you have the right to hope for the best if you don't try your hardest to make things work out. Sure, I suppose you could argue you have the "privilege." But hey, God helps those who help themselves.
"We are made wise not by the recollection of our past, but by the responsibility for our future." - George Bernard Shaw (1856-1950), English author
History's no use if you don't learn from it and use that knowledge to better the future.
A red rose for love, desire, respect, and courage.
"Love is patient, love is kind.
It does not envy, it does not boast, it is not proud.
It is not rude, it is not self-seeking.
It is not easily angered, it keeps no record of wrongs.
Love does not delight in evil, but rejoices with the truth.
It always protects, always trusts, always hopes, always perseveres.
Love never fails." - 1st Corinthians 13:4-8
Well-known passage. It covers everything if you take time to analyze and apply it.
"Desire is the key to motivation, but it's the determination and commitment to an unrelenting pursuit of your goal - a commitment to excellence - that will enable you to attain the success you seek." - Mario Andretti (1940-), Italian-American racecar driver
There's a Chinese proverb that says something like, "Talent is three-tenths of the way; perserverance is the other seven-tenths." Similar. Great ideas are wonderful, but without their instigation, they remain just that - ideas.
"Never take a person's dignity; it is worth everything to them, and nothing to you." - Frank Barron (1922-2002) UC Berkeley scholar, psychologist, and professor
One has simply no right to carve away at others' dignity. When you get to the heart of it, we are all human. We are all the same.
"With courage you will dare to take risks, have the strength to be compassionate, and the wisdom to be humble. Courage is the foundation of integrity." - Keshavan Nair, keynote speaker and seminar leader for various (including Fortune 500) companies on leadership and strategic decision-making
Unfortunately, nowadays there exist too many people too cowardly to step out of their comfort zones and do what is right. Such is a lamentable point. Are we so afraid to be different?
- - - 
And here we have "The Scales of Justice." (^)
"My creed:
To love justice, to long for the right,
to love mercy,
to pity the suffering, to assist the weak,
to forget wrongs and remember benefits,
to love the truth, to be sincere,
to utter honest words, to love liberty,
to wage relentless war
against slavery in all its forms,
to love family and friend,
to make a happy home,
to love the beautiful in art, in nature,
to cultivate the mind,
to be familiar with the mighty thoughts
that genius has expressed,
the noble deeds of all the world;
to cultivate courage and cheerfulness,
to make others happy,
to fill life with the splendor of generous acts,
the warmth of loving words;
to discard error, to destroy prejudice,
to receive new truths with gladness,
to cultivate hope,
to see the calm beyond the storm,
the dawn beyond the night,
to do the best that can be done
and then be resigned.
This is the religion of reason,
the creed of science.
This satisfies the brain and the heart."
-Robert Ingersoll (1833-1899), American political leader and orator during Golden Age of Freethought
Mr. Ingersoll didn't believe in God. I do. Read his words again, and you'll find that his lack of belief has negligible effect on this work. Mr. Ingersoll's creed remains good and commendable. I urge you all to take it up, no matter what faith you follow, if any, and even if you don't adhere to one.
- - -
"Do not depend on the hope of results. You may have to face the fact that your work will be apparently worthless and even achieve no result at all, if not perhaps results opposite to what you expect. As you get used to this idea, you start more and more to concentrate not on the results, but on the value, the rightness, the truth of the work itself. You gradually struggle less and less for an idea and more and more for specific people. In the end, it is the reality of personal relationship that saves everything." - Thomas Merton (1915-1968), Catholic author and social activist
And this is the reality that I've come to know, one that I've been tested against, one that I've accepted, one that I'm willing to stick with because I have hope in God and His love for humanity. Do not depend on the hope of results, but the hope of opportunity.
"If you're going through hell, keep going." - Winston Churchill (1874-1965), British Prime Minister during WWII
