Quotations for Daily Use

Nature, Caring for Nature

"A man's heart away from nature becomes hard; lack of respect for growing, living things soon leads to a lack of respect for humans too." Luther Standing Bear, (December 1868-February 20, 1939) (Ota Kte, "Plenty Kill" or "Mochunozhin") was an Oglala Lakota chief notable in American history as an Native American author, educator, philosopher, and actor of the twentieth century.

"After the rain cometh the fair weather." Aesop, (6th century bc) Greek storyteller

"All nature's difference keeps all nature's peace." Alexander Pope, (1688–1744), English poet

"All that I have seen teaches me to trust the Creator for all that I have not seen." Ralph Waldo Emerson (1803–82), US philosopher and poet - This quote was found in A Common Life, a book in The Mitford Series by Jan Karon

"All things are connected. Whatever befalls the earth befalls the children of the earth." Chief Seattle, (1786–1866), Native American leader of the Suquamish and Duwamish tribes

" . . . And I shall have some peace there, for peace comes dropping slow,
Dropping from the veils of the morning to where the cricket sings;
There midnight's all a glimmer, and noon a purple glow,
And evening full of the linnet's wings.

I will arise and go now, for always night and day
I hear lake water lapping with low sounds by the shore;
While I stand on the roadway, or on the pavements grey,
I hear it in the deep heart's core."

William Butler Yeats, The Lake Isle of Innisfree; William Butler Yeats (13 June 1865 – 28 January 1939) was an Irish poet and one of the foremost figures of 20th-century literature.

"As our civilization advances, if our follies permit it to advance, I feel sure we will realize that progress can be measured only by the quality of life - all life not human life alone." Charles Lindbergh, (1902–74), US aviator

"An early morning walk is a blessing for the entire day." Henry David Thoreau, (1817–62), US essayist and poet

"God has created lands with lakes and rivers for man to live. And the desert so that he can find his soul." Tuareg proverb - The Tuareg people are a large Berber ethnic confederation. They principally inhabit the Sahara in a vast area stretching from far southwestern Libya to southern Algeria, Niger, Mali and Burkina Faso. Traditionally nomadic pastoralists, small groups of Tuareg are also found in northern Nigeria.

"Great beauty was something he had to work up to, he had to take it in slowly, not gulping, but sipping. He put his hands over his eyes and saw the stars dancing behind his hands, another double image in this deep and silent night." The thoughts of Father Tim, the main character in A New Song, a book in the Mitford Series by Jan Karon

"Humankind has not woven the web of life. We are but one thread within it. Whatever we do to the web, we do to ourselves. All things are bound together. All things connect." Chief Seattle, 1854,(1786–1866), Native American leader of the Suquamish and Duwamish tribes

"I do not think the measure of a civilization is how tall its buildings of concrete are, but rather how well its people have learned to relate to their environment and fellow man." Sun Bear of the Chippewa Tribe

"i think that i shall
never see
a poem
lovely as a tree.
"
Joyce Kilmer, December 6, 1886 – July 30, 1918) was an American writer and poet

"I was a hospice nurse for 25 years. I escorted many people into heaven. Now I work there." A lady working the counter in the Apgar Visitors Center in Glacier National Park told this to visitors in October 2016

"In God's wildness lies the hope of the world - the great fresh unblighted, unredeemed wilderness. The galling harness of civilization drops off, and wounds heal ere we are aware." John Muir, (1838–1914), Scottish-born American naturalist, a pioneer of environmental conservation

"It is an outcome of faith that nature - as she is perceptible to our five senses - takes the character of such a well-formulated puzzle." Albert Einstein, (1879–1955), US theoretical physicist

"Just imagine this. If those three men who went to the moon had started to befoul their aircraft, if they had begun to tear it apart and fill it with all manner of filth, we would say they had gone mad. But here we are on this planet, this huge spaceship, befouling it, ripping it asunder, and nobody seems to say very much about that. Nobody seems to care." James Caudill, activist against strip mining

"Listen to all the teachers in the woods. Watch the trees, the animals and all the living things - you'll learn more from them than books." Joe Coyhi

"More than anything, I must have flowers always, always." Claude Monet, (1840–1926), French painter. A founding member of the impressionists

"Nature is the one place where miracles not only happen, but happen all the time." Thomas Wolfe, 1900 - 1933, American Novelist

"Nature, like a kind a smiling mother, lends herself to our dreams and cherishes our fancies." Victor Hugo, 6 February 1802 – 22 May 1885) was a French poet, novelist, and dramatist of the Romantic movement.

"One touch of nature makes the whole world kin." William Shakespeare, (1564–1616), English playwright

"Speak to the earth, and it shall teach thee." Job 12:8

"Take only memories, leave nothing but footprints." Chief Seattle, Chief Seattle, (1786–1866), Native American leader of the Suquamish and Duwamish tribes

"The best time to plant a tree was 20 years ago. The second best time is now." Chinese Proverb

"The earth and myself are of one mind." Chief Seattle, (1786–1866), Native American leader of the Suquamish and Duwamish tribes

"The earth laughs in flowers." Ralph Waldo Emerson (May 25, 1803 – April 27, 1882), known professionally as Waldo Emerson, was an American essayist, lecturer, and poet

"The old Lakota was wise. He knew that man's heart away from nature becomes hard." Luther Standing Bear, Oglala Sioux

"The song of the river ends not at her banks but in the hearts of those who have loved her." Buffalo Joe,Joe McBrayan, established Buffalo Airways as a family-run airline based in Hay River, Northwest Territories, Canada in 1970

"The waters hold all heaven within their heart." Yeats

"The world is emblazoned with such 'clues,' none of which individually proves anything, but which taken together give a cumulative case for believing in God. These 'clues' are the threads that make up the great pattern of the universe." C.S. Lewis, (29 November 1898 – 22 November 1963) was a British novelist, poet, academic, medievalist, literary critic, essayist, lay theologian, broadcaster, lecturer, and Christian apologist

"Those who pause to contemplate the beauty of the earth will find reserves of strength that will endure for as long as life lasts." Rachel Carson, (1907–64), US biologist and environmentalist (Shared by ODS Woodstock)

"Treat the earth well; it was not given to you by your parents, it was loaned to you by your children. We do not inherit the earth from our ancestors, we borrow it from our children." Ancient Indian Proverb

"Walk quietly in any direction and taste the freedom of the mountaineer." John Muir, (1838–1914), Scottish-born American naturalist, a pioneer of environmental conservation

"We do not inherit the earth from our ancestors; we borrow it from our children." Haida Proverb, Haida are American Indian people of coastal British Colombia and southeastern Alaska

"We must protect the forests for our children, grandchildren and children yet to be born. We must protect the forests for those who can't speak for themselves such as the birds, animals, fish and trees." Zitkala-Sa, (1876–1938) (Dakota: pronounced zitkála-ša, which translates to "Red Bird"), also known by the missionary-given name Gertrude Simmons Bonnin, was a Sioux writer, editor, musician, teacher and political activist.

We "ought to prove ourselves better than the beasts precisely by the fact of acknowledging duties to them which they do not acknowledge to us." C.S. Lewis, (29 November 1898 – 22 November 1963) was a British novelist, poet, academic, medievalist, literary critic, essayist, lay theologian, broadcaster, lecturer, and Christian apologist

"We never grow tired of each other, the mountain and me." Li Po, (ad 701–62), Chinese poet

"When all the trees have been cut down, when all the animals have been hunted, when all the waters are polluted, when all the air is unsafe to breathe, only then will you discover you cannot eat money." Cree Prophecy, Cree are American Indian people living in a vast area of central Canada

"When one tugs at a single thing in nature, he finds it attached to the rest of the world." John Muir (April 21, 1838 – December 24, 1914) also known as "John of the Mountains" and "Father of the National Parks", was an influential Scottish-American, naturalist, author, environmental philosopher, glaciologist, and early advocate for the preservation of wilderness in the United States of America.

"Who loves a garden still his Eden keeps." Bronson Alcott (1799–1888), US educator; father of Louisa May Alcott; full name Amos Bronson Alcott. He advocated radical reforms in education, including racial integration in the classroom. Appointed superintendent of schools in Concord, Massachusetts, in 1859, he created the first parent–teacher association.

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