virgin islands scene

Common sense is the knack of seeing things as they are, and doing things as they ought to be done.
-- Harriet Beecher Stowe
 

 

Thursday, January 13, 2000

A steady course

Be free without being reckless. Be generous without being naive. Be smart without being conceited. Be happy without being complacent. Be strong without being a bully. Be confident without being arrogant. Thoughtfully consider but don’t let it stop you from taking action. Be courageous while also being careful.

Go far without going over the edge. Achieve, but not to the point of hopeless obsession. Even the best things can become a burden when you get too much of them. Even the fastest car has a good brake system. Even on the highest flying aircraft are wheels with which to land.

Flying high has little value if you never come back to earth. Run, and then rest. Soar, and then land so that you may soar even higher again.

Your tremendous energy can take you places only when you rein it in sufficiently and put your purpose behind it. Go for the good things but don’t let them take you over. Steer a steady course, and delight in the wholeness of being alive.

— Ralph Marston

previousAdapt       Freedom to thinknext

Copyright ©2000 Ralph S. Marston, Jr. All Rights Reserved. The Daily Motivator is provided for your personal, non-commercial use only. Other than personal sharing, please do not re-distribute without permission.