Quotes By Henry Van Dyke

To desire and strive to be of some service to the world, to aim at doing something which shall really increase the happiness and welfare and virtue of mankind - this is a choice which is possible for all of us; and surely it is a good haven to sail for.

The first day of spring is one thing, and the first spring day is another. The difference between them is sometimes as great as a month.

It is with rivers as it is with people: the greatest are not always the most agreeable nor the best to live with.

A peace that depends on fear is nothing but a suppressed war.

There are two good rules which ought to be written on every heart - never to believe anything bad about anybody unless you positively know it to be true; never to tell even that unless you feel that it is absolutely necessary, and that God is listening.

There is a loftier ambition than merely to stand high in the world. It is to stoop down and lift mankind a little higher.

A friend is what the heart needs all the time.

Happiness is inward, and not outward; and so, it does not depend on what we have, but on what we are.

Half of the secular unrest and dismal, profane sadness of modern society comes from the vain ideas that every man is bound to be a critic for life.

As long as habit and routine dictate the pattern of living, new dimensions of the soul will not emerge.

What you possess in the world will be found at the day of your death to belong to someone else. But what you are will be yours forever.

Genius is talent set on fire by courage.

Culture is the habit of being pleased with the best and knowing why.

There is only one way to get ready for immortality, and that is to love this life and live it as bravely and faithfully and cheerfully as we can.

Gratitude is the inward feeling of kindness received. Thankfulness is the natural impulse to express that feeling. Thanksgiving is the following of that impulse.

Many a treasure besides Ali Baba's is unlocked with a verbal key.

Look around for a place to sow a few seeds.

What we do belongs to what we are; and what we are is what becomes of us.

Some people are so afraid do die that they never begin to live.

There is no personal charm so great as the charm of a cheerful temperament.

In the progress of personality, first comes a declaration of independence, then a recognition of interdependence.

Time is too slow for those who wait, too swift for those who fear, too long for those who grieve, too short for those who rejoice, but for those who love, time is eternity.

Use what talents you possess; the woods would be very silent if no birds sang there except those that sang best.

Be glad of life because it gives you the chance to love, to work, to play, and to look up at the stars.

Love is the best thing in the world, and the thing that lives the longest.