Edgar Lee Masters

Immortality is not a gift, Immortality is an achievement; And only those who strive mightily Shall possess it.

How shall the soul of a man be larger than the life he has lived?

Beware of the man who rises to power from one suspender.

Those who first oppose a good work, seize it and make it their own, when the cornerstone is laid and memorial tablets are erected.

The tongue may be an unruly member-- But silence poisons the soul.

To put meaning in one's life may end in madness, But life without meaning is the torture Of restlessness and vague desire-It is a boat longing for the sea and yet afraid.