June, 2025
April, 2025
The Punchlines page has made some significant changes this month. The “Hope and Humor” section now contains the first installment of “The Adventures of Henrietta, The Hummingbird of Hope” including Chapters1-3 and some additional Coloring pages. Next month’s section will contain the conclusion to the story. The Hope Matters”, section will be replaced by “The Faces and Voices of Hope. The “Uplifting Expressions” sections will remain as before.
- The “Hope and Humor” section now contains the first installment of “The Adventures of Henrietta – The Hummingbird of Hope” and includes Chapters 1 -3 which can be downloaded for future viewing and printed to share with children in your families.
- The Hope Matters! Section will be replaced in the future with the section entitled: The Many Faces and Voices of Hope” which will include current and former individuals who have displayed hope in their lives and actions with individuals surrounding them.
- Uplifting Expressions. This section will continue to include inspiring poetry and prose to help lift you up each day… both now and in the future
THE MANY FACES AND VOICES OF HOPE
In this section, I intend to capture the thoughts, words, feelings, and emotions of individuals and their acquaintances who have acknowledged hope. . . in whatever form that may take.” Greg Thomas from Minnesota was such an individual and was featured in the January, 2025 blog. In the future, I will highlighl individuals, both from the past and present, who have demonstrated an active hope in their lives and their actions involving the individuals surrounding them.
UPLIFTING EXPRESSIONS
Quotes relating to Spring, Renewal and Rebirth
HOPE SPRINGS ETERNAL
January, 2025
September, 2024
June, 2024
December, 2023
The Punchlines page this month includes the normal segments of “Hope and Humor”, “Hope Matters”, and “Uplifting Expressions”.
- Hope and Humor – Featuring Cartoon Characters – Hope and Harry and Simon and Specs and Friends
- Hope Matters! On Living with Purpose and Passion. You will notice that I have repeated the selections from our June, 2023 Punchlines page containing quotes from various sources referencing Hope, Resilience, and Change throughout the ages. I felt that it was appropriate to repeat these wonderful words as we renew commitment to living our lives with purpose and passion and maximizing our potential as human beings.
- Uplifting Expressions. This section will include inspiring poetry and prose to help lift you up each day… both now and in the future.
Hope and Humor
Featuring Cartoon Characters – Hope, Harry, Oliver Owl and Friends
This section includes Cartoon characters I have enjoyed creating in the past and resurrected for this website. As a frustrated artist during my undergraduate college years, I switched to trying my hand at cartooning and created a couple of characters.
Our cartoon characters usually address some of the common idioms, terms, proverbs, cliches, expressions, sayings, and abbreviations in the English language … interjecting a few puns along the way.
However, this month our Cartoon Friends have chosen to say goodbye to my spouse, Debbie Lee Reynolds, who passed away on September 20, 2023. She was 69 years old and we were looking forward to celebrating her 70th birthday on November 11th of this year. We had been married for 46 years.
A tribute to Debbie was given as part of a Celebration Service on Saturday, November 11, 2023. But our cartoon characters would also like to say a few words of farewell to our beloved “Nana”, who had many roles as Grandmother, mother, spouse, and friend
Our Cartoon Friends have chosen to say goodbye to Debbie
Farewell to “Nana” … our loving mother, grandmother, partner and friend
HOPE MATTERS!
On Living with Purpose and Passion
- “Carpe diem! Rejoice while you are alive; enjoy the day; live life to the fullest; make the most of what you have. It is later than you think.” Horace (Quintus Horatius Flaccus – 65 BC – 8 BC) paraphrased from “Odes, Book I, ode xi, line 7: (Dum loquimur, fugerit invida Aetas: carpe diem, quam minimum credula postero)..
- “Do not let your fire go out, spark by irreplaceable spark in the hopeless swamps of the not-quite, the not-yet, and the not-at-all. Do not let the hero in your soul perish in lonely frustration for the life you deserve but have never been able to reach. Check your road and the nature of your battle. The world you desire can be won. It exists…it is real…it is possible …it’s yours.” “ Ayn Rand (1957). Atlas Shrugged. Random House, New York, NY. Chapter VII, page 1069.
- “Out of suffering have emerged the strongest souls; the most massive characters are seared with scars.” Edwin Hubbell Chapin as quoted in Dictionary of Burning Words of Brilliant Writers (1895) by Josiah Hotchkiss Gilbert. This quote has often been misattributed to Kahlil Gibran.
- “But you know, happiness can be found… even in the darkest of times…if one only remembers to turn on the light.” Professor Albus Dumbledore, Headmaster of Hogworts, to the Hogworts Students. Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban film directed by Alfonso Cuaron (2004).
- “There is no greater force to live by than faith. Prayer gives us vision, courage, strength, and endurance. Prayer dissolves our prejudices, banishes our narrow-mindedness, and melts away our judgmental tendencies by expanding our hearts, minds, and spirits…Life is prayer.” Matthew Kelly, The Rhythm of Life: Living Every Day with Passion & Purpose. Fireside / Simon and Schuster, New York, NY. Page 208
Uplifting Expressions
I have seen how easy it would be to sink into depression and despair and start drinking excessively or resort to drugs for escape and relief. But I refuse to do that. And I lean on the support I have from family and friends to continue to avoid that slippery downward slope.
And I can think of no better way than to honor and remember her in the words of two poets…i.e. my son, Erik and Edward Hays, a renowned Author and Poet.
Erik’s words speak volumes of his love for his mother:
June, 2023
January / February, 2023
This web page is now separated into the following 3 segments:
- J Hope and Humor – Featuring Cartoon Characters – Hope and Harry and Simon and Specs and Friends
- Hope Matters! Selected quotes referencing Hope, Resilience, and Change. You will notice that I have changed the focus of this section somewhat from previous Punchlines. I will continue to list selected quotes from various sources referencing Hope, Resilience, and Change throughout the ages. But I will also concentrate on suggestions and recommendations from various sources for living our lives with purpose and passion and maximizing our potential as human beings.
- Uplifting Expressions – This section will include inspiring poetry and prose to help lift you up each day… both now and in the future.
Please note: Previous Punchline submissions from 2021 have been archived. They can be found in the following location.
https://adversityisnotoptional.com/wp-content/uploads/2022/11/punchlines-2021-2.docx
Hope and Humor
Featuring Cartoon Characters – Hope and Harry and Simon and Specs
These are Cartoon characters I have enjoyed creating in the past and resurrected for this website. As a frustrated artist during my undergraduate college years, I switched to trying my hand at cartooning and created a couple of characters. Our cartoon characters normally address some of the common idioms, terms, proverbs, cliches, expressions, sayings, and abbreviations in the English language … interjecting a few puns along the way. This month Hope, the Puppy and Oliver Owl will provide some additional “Driving Lessons for Life” to help us navigating the rough waters surrounding the challenges and adversity we face. And, as the weather in the northern hemispheres turn a bit colder at the beginning go this new year, Hope, the cat and Harry, the dog have asked Oliver Owl to provide some background on the idioms and phrases that contain the word “Cold” within them.
HOPE MATTERS!
“The great end of life is not knowledge but action.”
Thomas H. Huxley, (1897). Science and Education: Essays – Technical Education. D. Appleton and Company, New York, NY. page 422.
On Living with Purpose and Passion
“Purpose is the place where your deep gladness meets the world’s needs.” Frederick Buechner as quoted in Markova, Dawna. (2000). I Will Not Die an Unlived Life: Reclaiming purpose and passion. Conari Press, San Francisco, CA. page 137.
“Discovering what you’re passionate about in life and what matters to you is a full-contact sport, a trial-by-fire process. None of us know exactly how we feel about an activity until we actually do the activity.” Mark Manson (2022). Finding Your Life Purpose, Markmanson.net. page 22.
“Believe in the best, think your best, study your best, have a goal for your best, never be satisfied with less than your best, try your best, and in the long run things will turn out for the best.” Henry Ford, as quoted in Living Life Fully (11/5/2022). Email: tdw1220@outlook.com.
“Life is never going to give up on you because there is something important for you to do.” Iyana Vanzant, as quoted in Living Life Fully (11/7/2022). Email: tdw1220@outlook.com.
“Find a purpose in life so big it will challenge every capacity to be at your best.” David O. McKay, as quoted in Living Life Fully (11/24/2022). Email: tdw1220@outlook.com.
Uplifting Expressions
Two Poems by Max Erhmann
Desiderata (1927)
From Desiderata Free Download | Sacredart Murals (sacredart-murals.co.uk)
A Prayer (1906)
From www.Allpoetry.com
© by owner. Provided at no charge for educational purposes
Max Erhmann (1872-1945) is best known for his poem “Desiderata” (Latin for “Things Desired”), but has also written a number of other uplifting prose and poetry. Ehrmann spent most of his life in Terre Haute, Indiana as an attorney and writer after receiving degrees from DePauw and Harvard Universites.
As popular as “Desiderata” has become it is interesting to note that the poem only achieved fame after Ehrmann’s death. I hope that you enjoy the following works and perhaps locate a copy of Max Erhmann’s writing.
From Desiderata Free Download | Sacredart Murals (sacredart-murals.co.uk)
A Prayer
Let me do my work each day; and if the darkened hours of despair overcome me, may I not forget the strength that comforted me in the desolation of other times.
May I still remember the bright hours that found me walking over the silent hills of my childhood, or dreaming on the margin of a quiet river, when a light glowed within me, and I promised my early God to have courage amid the tempests of the changing years.
Spare me from bitterness and from the sharp passions of unguarded moments. May I not forget that poverty and riches are of the spirit.
Though the world knows me not, may my thoughts and actions be such as shall keep me friendly with myself.
Lift up my eyes from the earth, and let me not forget the uses of the stars. Forbid that I should judge others lest I condemn myself.
Let me not follow the clamor of the world, but walk calmly in my path.
Give me a few friends who will love me for what I am; and keep ever burning before my vagrant steps the kindly light of hope.
And though age and infirmity overtake me, and I come not within sight of the castle of my dreams, teach me still to be thankful for life, and for time’s olden memories that are good and sweet; and may the evening’s twilight find me gentle still.
Max Ehrmann – 1906
© by owner. provided at no charge for educational purposes
November / December 2022
HOPE and HUMOR
Featuring Cartoon Characters – Hope and Harry and Simon and Specs and Friends
These are Cartoon characters I have enjoyed creating in the past and resurrected for this website. As a frustrated artist during my undergraduate college years, I switched to trying my hand at cartooning and created a couple of characters. This quarter, Hope, the cat, and Harry, the dog are joining Simon and Specs, Larry the lion-hearted lion and another new friend of theirs: Oliver, the Office Supply Owl. Our cartoon characters normally address some of the common idioms, terms, proverbs, cliches, expressions, sayings, and abbreviations in the English language … interjecting a few puns along the way. This quarter they are all joining together to help Oliver provide transportation alternatives for driving into the new year and navigating the rough waters surrounding the challenges and adversity we face.
HOPE MATTERS!
Selected Quotes referencing Hope, Resilience & Change
From Acknowledgement to Action
- “The great end of life is not knowledge but action.”
Thomas H. Huxley, (1897). Science and Education: Essays – Technical Education. D. Appleton and Company, New York, NY. page 422
On Living with Purpose and Passion
- “The meaning and purpose of life is for you to become the-best-version-of yourself.” Kelly, Matthew. (2004). The Rhythm of Life: Living every day with Passion & Purpose. Simon and Schuster, New York, NY. page 29.
- “Passion is in the risk, in the willingness to step from the sidelines onto the playing field. The act of courage itself, even a single bold step beyond the comfort zone, is the defibrillator that strikes the heart awake like a clapper to a bell.” Levoy, Gregg. (2014). Vital Signs: The nature and nurture of passion. Jeremy P. Tarcher/Penguin Group, New York, NY. Page xv.
- “Purpose is that deepest dimension in you — your inner-most self — where you have a profound sense of who you are, where you came from, where you’re going, and how you might reach that point. Purpose is not a noun. It’s never a static condition we can preserve. Purpose is a verb, a process we engage in over and over again. It’s a process we live every day.” Leider, Richard J. (1985). The Power of Purpose. Ballantine Books. New York, NY. p. 7.
- “We may affirm absolutely that nothing great in the world has been accomplished without passion.” Hegel, Georg Wilhelm Frederick. (1832). Lectures on the Philosophy of History. As quoted in Wikiquotes: Passion.
- “Connect with all the passions people have – for themselves, their families and their communities andwider world – and they’ll follow you to the ends of the earth. They will spread goodwill about your business, work hard for you, and buy your products, services and stock with pride. You will attract the best people, form highly motivated teams, collect loyal customers, sell the strongest brands with the greatest purpose and highest values, promising a better future.” Dixon, Patrick. (2005). Building a Better Business. Profile Books, Ltd. London. p. 1.
- “I would rather work with five people who really believe in what they are doing rather than five hundred who can’t see the point.” Dixon, Patrick. (2005). Building a Better Business. Profile Books, Ltd. London. p. 14.
- “People say that what we’re all seeking is a meaning for life. I don’t think that’s what we’re really seeking. I think what we’re seeking is an experience of being alive, so that our life experiences on the purely physical plane will have resonance within our own innermost being and reality, so that we actually feel the rapture of being alive. That’s what it’s all finally about.” Joseph Campbell, from The Power of Myth. Episode 2, Chapter 4
- “Every human being, no matter how slightly gifted he or she is, however subordinate his or her position in life may be, has a natural need to formulate a life-view, a conception of the meaning of life and of its purpose. The person who lives esthetically also does that, and the popular expression heard in all ages and from various stages is this: One must enjoy life. There are, of course, many variations of this, depending on differences in the conceptions of enjoyment ,but all are agreed that we are to enjoy life.” Søren Kierkegaard (1943) Either/Or, p. 179-180. As quoted in Wikiquotes: Meaning of Life.
- “You were born to greatness. The world has need of you.” Anderson, Greg. (1997). Living Life on Purpose. Harper Collins, New York, NY. pg. 13.
- “What is purpose? Purpose is our aim to live a life that is meaningful and makes a positive contribution to the world. It is grounded in the truth that our lives are fundamentally worth living and that each of us matters. It helps us to make sense of our lives and to organize our choices and direction in life. Purpose is dynamic; it will naturally change over the course of a lifetime. The power of purpose grows as we grow.” Leider, Richard J. and David Shapiro. (2021). Who Do You Want to be When You Grow Old? The path of purposeful aging. Berrett-Koehler Publishers, Oakland, CA. page xv.
- “In our lives there is a simple colour, as on an artist’s palette, which provides the meaning of life and art. It is the colour of love.” Marc Chagall in: C. Robertson (1998) Dictionary of quotations. p. 78 – Pagina 78. As quoted in Wikiquotes: Meaning of Life
- “We need a new way of living. We need a new way of life. Our lifestyles are self-destructive. We need a way of living that brings out the best in us. We need a way of life that honors our legitimate needs. We need a lifestyle that helps us to become the-best-version-of-ourselves.” Kelly, Matthew. (2004). The Rhythm of Life: Living every day with Passion & Purpose. Simon and Schuster, New York, NY. pages 148-149.
Helpful Resources for reviewing and re-examining our Purposes and Passions
- Anderson, Greg. (1997). Living Life on Purpose: A guide to creating a life of success and significance. Harper Collins, New York, NY.
- Burchard, Brendon. (2012). The Charge: Activating the 10 human drives that make you feel alive. Free Press / Simon and Schuster, New York, NY.
- Burchard, Brendon. (2014). The Motivation Manifesto: 9 declarations to claim our personal power. Hay House, Carlsbad,CA.
- Cameron, Julia. (2016). It’s Never Too Late to Begin Again: Discovering Creativity and Meaning at Midlife and Beyond. Tarcher/Perigee, Penguin Random House, New York, NY.
- Donnelly, Darrin. (2017). Life to the Fullest: A story about finding your purpose and following your heart. Shamrock New Media and SportsForTheSoul.com
- Fried, Robert L. (2001). The Passionate Learner: How teachers and parents can help children reclaim the joy of discovery. Beacon Press, Boston, MA.
- Jeremiah, David. (2003). Life Wide Open: Unleashing the power of a passionate life. Integrity Publishers, Brentwood, TN.
- Kamphoff, Cindra. (2018). Beyond Grit: Ten powerful practices to gain the high-performance edge. Wise Ink Creative Publishing, Minneapolis, MN.
- Kelly, Matthew. (2004). The Rhythm of Life: Living every day with Passion & Purpose. Simon and Schuster, New York, NY
- Leider, Richard L. (1985). The Power of Purpose. Fawcett Gold Medal Books. New York, NY.
- Leider, Richard L. and David A. Shapiro. (2021). Who Do You Want to be When You Grow Old? The path of purposeful aging. Barrett-Koehler Publishers, Inc. Oakland, CA.
- Levoy, Gregg. (1997). Callings: Finding and following an authentic life. Three Rivers Press, New York, NY.
- Levoy, Gregg. (2014). Vital Signs: The nature and nurture of passion. Jeremy Tarcher/Penguin, New York, NY.
- Markova, Dawna. (2000). I Will Not Die an Unlived Life: Reclaiming Purpose and Passion. Conari Press, San Francisco, CA.
- Markova, Dawna. (2008). Wide Open On living with Passion and Purpose. Conari Press, San Francisco, CA.
- O’Leary, John. (2016). On Fire: The 7 choices to ignite a radically inspired life. North Star Way/Simon and Schuster, New Yor, NY.
- O’Leary, John. (2020). In Awe: Rediscover your childlike wonder to unleash inspiration, meaning, and joy. Currency/Random House, New York, NY.
- Pearsall, Paul. (2003). The Beethoven Factor: The new positive psychology of hardiness, happiness, healing, and hope. Chapter 1: A Life Fully Lived. Hampton Roads Publishing Company, Charlottesville, VA.
- Ripp, Pernille. 2nd ed. (2016). Passionate Learners: How to engage and empower your students. Routledge, New ork, NY.
- Roulac, Ann Nichols. (2006). Power Passion & Purpose: 7 Steps to energizing your life. Green Island Publishing, Larkspur, CA.
- Sweeting, George. (2008). The Joys of Successful Aging: Living your days to the fullest. Moody Publishers, Chicago, IL.
Uplifting Expressions
A Psalm of Life
“Tell me not, in mournful numbers,
‘Life is but an empty dream!’
For the soul is dead that slumbers,
And things are not what they seem.
Life is real! Life is earnest!
And the grave is not its goal;
‘Dust thou art, to dust returnest,’
Was not spoken of the soul.
Not enjoyment, and not sorrow,
Is our destined end or way;
But to act, that each to-morrow
Finds us farther than to-day.
Art is long, and Time is fleeting,
And our hearts, though stout and brave,
Still, like muffled drums, are beating
Funeral marches to the grave.
In the world’s broad field of battle,
In the bivouac of Life,
Be not like dumb, driven cattle!
Be a hero in the strife!
Trust no Future, howe’er pleasant!
Let the dead Past bury its dead!
Act,–act in the living Present!
Heart within, and God o’erhead!
Lives of great men all remind us
We can make our lives sublime,
And, departing, leave behind us
Footprints on the sands of time;
Footprints, that perhaps another,
Sailing o’er life’s solemn main,
A forlorn and shipwrecked brother,
Seeing, shall take heart again.
Let us, then, be up and doing,
With a heart for any fate;
Still achieving, still pursuing
Learn to labor and to wait.”
Henry Wadsworth Longfellow (1807-1882). From Longfellow, Henry W. (1900). A Psalm of Life. The Lovell Company. New York NY.
August / September , 2022
This web page is separated into the following 3 segments:
- Hope and Humor – Featuring Cartoon Characters – Hope and Harry and Simon and Specs and Friends
- Hope Matters! Selected quotes referencing Hope, Resilience, and Change. This section features selected quotes from various sources referencing Hope, Resilience, and Change throughout the ages.
- Uplifting Expressions
HOPE and HUMOR
Featuring Cartoon Characters – Hope and Harry and Simon and Specs and Friends
These are Cartoon characters I have enjoyed creating in the past and resurrected for this website. As a frustrated artist during my undergraduate college years, I switched to trying my hand at cartooning and created a couple of characters. This quarter, Hope, the cat, and Harry, the dog along with Simon and Specs, and as they address some of the common idioms, terms, proverbs, cliches, expressions, sayings, and abbreviations in the English language … interjecting a few puns along the way. My hope is that this month and continuing into the future your relationships with your family, your friends, and your interactions at work will be filled with humor and hope and that you will establish or re-establish connections with the significant people in your life.
HOPE MATTERS!
Selected Quotes referencing Hope, Resilience & Change
From Acknowledgement to Action
- “The great end of life is not knowledge but action.”
Thomas H. Huxley, (1897). Science and Education: Essays – Technical Education. D. Appleton and Company, New York, NY. page 422.
- “This is as true in everyday life as it is in battle: We are given one life, and the decision is ours whether to wait for circumstances to make up our mind, or whether to act, and in acting, to live.”
Omar Bradley as quoted in The Warrior’s Mantra, (2005) Ruge, Rodger. Barricade Books. Fort Lee, NJ. Page 25.
- If fear is to be a driving force in your life, fear what you’ll miss. Fear what happens if you don’t act. Fear what they’ll think of you down the road, for having dared so little. Think of what you’re leaving on the table. Think of the terrifying costs of playing small.
Holiday, Ryan. Courage Is Calling (pp. 55-56). Penguin Publishing Group. Kindle Edition.
- “I have had a larger responsibility of human lives than ever man or woman had before. And I attribute my success to this — I never gave or took an excuse. Yes, I do see the difference now between me and other men. When a disaster happens, I act and they make excuses.“
Florence Nightingale in a Letter to Miss H. Bonham Carter, 1861. As quoted in The Gigantic Book of Teachers’ Wisdom (2007) by Frank McCourt and Erin Gruwell, p. 410
- “A warrior lives by acting, not by thinking about acting, nor by thinking about what he will think when he has finished acting.”
Carlos Castaneda (1972). A Separate Reality: Further conversations with Don Juan. Washigton Square Press. .New York, NY. Chapter 6.
- “Just remember, you can do anything you set your mind to, but it takes action, perseverance, and facing your fears”
Stacy Kravetz (Author), Gillian Anderson (Forward), (1999). Girl Boss: Running the Show Like the Big Chicks: Entrepreneurial skills, stories, and encouragement for modern girls. Excerpt from the foreword. Girl Press.
- “The end of man is an action, and not a thought, though it were the noblest.”
Thomas Carlyle, , as quoted in Three Thousand Selected Quotations From Brilliant Writers(1909) by Josiah H. Gilbert, p. 2
- “Our grand business undoubtedly is, not to see what lies dimly at a distance, but to do what lies clearly at hand.”
Thomas Carlyle, “Signs of the Times” (1829), in Critical and Miscellaneous Essays(1827–1855). As quoted in Wikiquotes, “Action”.
- “We have the human capacity to become resilient which allows us to deal with the bombardment of events causing so much stress. And in dealing with these events we become stronger, more confident in our abilities, mores sensitive to the stress others are experiencing and even more able to bring about change to minimize or eradicate the sources of stress. . . We are not implying that resilience protects us from these stresses, these risks, these dangers. That is not the role of resilience. We want protections, yes, but resilience involves not only supports, strengths, and skills but actions to deal with the inevitable adversities we all face in life.”
Edith Grotberg (2003). Resilience for Today: Gaining strength from adversity. Praeger Publishers. Westport, CT.
- It is well to think well; it is divine to act well.
Horace Mann, quoted in Three Thousand Selected Quotations From Brilliant Writers(1909) by Josiah H. Gilbert, p. 2
Any action is often better than no action, especially if you have been stuck in an unhappy situation for a long time. If it is a mistake, at least you learn something, in which case it’s no longer a mistake. If you remain stuck, you learn nothing. Is fear preventing you from taking action? Acknowledge the fear, watch it, take your attention into it, be fully present with it. Doing so cuts the link between the fear and your thinking. Don’t let the fear rise up into your mind. Use the power of the Now. Fear cannot prevail against it. If there is truly nothing that you can do to change your here and now, and you can’t remove yourself from the situation, then accept your here and now totally by dropping all inner resistance. The false, unhappy self that loves feeling miserable, resentful, or sorry for itself can then no longer survive. This is called surrender. Surrender is not weakness. There is great strength in it. Only a surrendered person has spiritual power.
Eckhart Tolle in The Power of Now: A Guide to Spiritual Enlightenment (1997) p. 56.
Acknowledge, then Act !
Uplifting Expressions
Keep a-Goin’!
“If you strike a thorn or rose,
Keep a-goin’!
If it hails or if it snows,
Keep a-goin’!
‘Tain’t no use to sit an’ whine
When the fish ain’t on your line;
Bait your hook an’ keep a-tryin’ –
Keep a-goin’!
When the weather kills your crop,
Keep a-goin’!
Though it’s work to reach the top,
Keep a-goin’!
S’pose you’re out of every dime,
Gittin’ broke ain’t any crime;
Tell the world you’re feelin’ prime –
Keep a-goin’!
When it looks like all is up,
Keep a-goin’!
Drain the sweetness from the cup
Keep a-goin’!
See the wild birds on the wing,
Hear the bells that sweetly ring,
When you feel like sighin’, sing –
Keep a-goin’!
Frank L. Stanton (1857-1927)
From Frank Libby Stanton: Georgia’s First Poet Laureate, ed. L.L. Perry, Wightman F. Melton, & M.D. Collins (Atlanta: Georgia State Department of Education, 1938). Page 6.
June, 2022
This web page is now separated into 2 segments instead of 4:
- Hope and Humor – Featuring Cartoon Characters – Hope and Harry and Simon and Specs and Friends
- Hope Matters! Selected quotes referencing Hope, Resilience, and Change
This section will continue to feature selected quotes from various sources referencing Hope, Resilience, and Change throughout the ages. This month’s quotes focus on Hope and Happiness. We have continued the subsection within “Hope Matters” entitled “Uplifting Expressions”. And this subsection will continue to be updated in the future and with both poetry and prose.
HOPE and HUMOR
Featuring Cartoon Characters – Hope and Harry and Simon and Specs
These are Cartoon characters I have enjoyed creating in the past and resurrected for this website. As a frustrated artist during my undergraduate college years, I switched to trying my hand at cartooning and created a couple of characters. This month, Hope, the cat, and Harry, the dog will again be joining Simon and Specs as they address some of the common idioms, terms, proverbs, cliches, expressions, sayings, and abbreviations in the English language … interjecting a few puns along the way. My hope is that this month and continuing into the future your relationships with your family, your friends, and your interactions at work will be filled with humor and hope and that you will establish or re-establish connections with the significant people in your life.
HOPE MATTERS!
Selected Quotes referencing Hope, Resilience & Change
“If there is Hope in the future,
There is Power in the present!”
John Maxwell. As quoted in Born to Win, (2018) Tom & Zig Ziglar. Ziglar, Inc. page 144.
“If we cannot find joy in the journey,
there will be no delight
in the destination.”
Craig, Will. (2017). Living the Hero’s Journey: Exploring your role in the Action-Adventure of a Lifetime.” Live and Learn Publishing. Kindle edition.
“Dark and difficult times lie ahead.
Soon we must all face the choice
Between what is right and what is easy.”
Professor Dumbledore
From the film Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire. (2005). Directed by Mike Newell. Screenplay by Steve Kloves
“From every joy and pain a hope leaps out eternally
to escape this pain and to widen joy.
And again the ascent begins ….
and joy is reborn and new hope springs up once more.
The circle never closes.”
Nikos Kazantzakis. The Saviors of God (1923), The Vision.
“Sunny days wouldn’t be so special, if it wasn’t for rain.
Joy wouldn’t feel so good
if it wasn’t for pain.”
Curtis Jackson. (2003)
“A life of love is one of continual growth,
where the doors and windows of experience are always open
to the wonder and magic that life offers.
To love is to risk living fully.”
Leo Buscaglia. Interview with Veronica M. Hay. From A Magazine of People and Possibilities (1998).
Uplifting Expressions
“We hold these Truths to be self-evident, that all Men are created equal, that they are endowed by their Creator with certain unalienable Rights, that among these are Life, Liberty, and the Pursuit of Happiness—-That to secure these Rights, Governments are instituted among Men, deriving their just Powers from the Consent of the Governed, that whenever any Form of Government becomes destructive of these Ends, it is the Right of the People to alter or to abolish it, and to institute new Government, laying its Foundation on such Principles, and organizing its Powers in such Form, as to them shall seem most likely to effect their Safety and Happiness.”
Thomas Jefferson, Declaration of Independence, July, 1776.
“Believing that the happiness of mankind is best promoted by the useful pursuits of peace, that on these alone a stable prosperity can be founded, that the evils of war are great in their endurance, and have a long reckoning for ages to come, I have used my best endeavors to keep our country uncommitted in the troubles which afflict Europe, and which assail us on every side.”
Thomas Jefferson, letter to the Young Republicans of Pittsburg. (December 2, 1808), in H. A. Washington, ed., The Writings of Thomas Jefferson (1871), vol. 8, p. 142.
“The care of human life and happiness, and not their destruction, is the first and only legitimate object of good government.”
Thomas Jefferson, Letter “to the Republican Citizens of Washington County, Maryland” (31 March 1809).
Find the Courage to Pursue Happiness!
It still matters!
Larry the Lion-Hearted Lion
April, 2022
This web page is now separated into 2 segments instead of 4:
- Hope and Humor – Featuring Cartoon Characters – Hope and Harry and Simon and Specs and Friends
- Hope Matters! Selected quotes referencing Hope, Resilience, and Change
This section will continue to feature selected quotes from various sources referencing Hope, Resilience, and Change throughout the ages. This quarter’s quotes focus on Courage and Combating and Crushing Fear.
Hope and Humor
Featuring Cartoon Characters – Hope and Harry and Simon and Specs and Friends
These are Cartoon characters I have enjoyed creating in the past and resurrected for this website. As a frustrated artist during my undergraduate college years, I switched to trying my hand at cartooning and created a couple of characters. This quarter, Hope, the cat, and Harry, the dog will introduce a friend of theirs: Larry the Lion, and will again be joining Simon and Specs as they address some of the common idioms, terms, proverbs, cliches, expressions, sayings, and abbreviations in the English language … interjecting a few puns along the way. Harry My hope is that this quarter and continuing into the future your relationships with your family, your friends, and your interactions at work will be filled with humor and hope and that you will establish or re-establish connections with the significant people in your life.
HOPE MATTERS!
Selected Quotes referencing Hope, Resilience & Change
The Courageous Life
- “ Hope has two beautiful daughters;
Anger and Courage:
Anger at the way things are,
And Courage to struggle to create things
As they should be.”
Saint Augustine of Hippo.
- “You gain strength, courage and confidence by every experience in which you really stop to look fear in the face. You are able to say to yourself, ‘I have lived through this horror. I can take the next thing that comes along.’ … You must do the thing you think you cannot do.”
Eleanor Roosevelt (1960). You Learn by Living. Harper Collins Publishers New York, NY. Chapter 2 -Fear – The great enemy, p. 29–30.
- “Have I not commanded thee?
Be strong and of a good courage;
Be not afraid, neither be thou dismayed:
For the LORD thy God
Is with thee whithersoever thou goest.”
Joshua 1:9 KJV
- “Courage is resistance to fear, mastery of fear – not absence of fear.”
Mark Twain (1894). Pudd’nhead Wilson, Chapter 12.
- “Courage comes alive in actions.”
Lewis Smedes. (1990). A Pretty Good Person: What it takes to live with courage, gratitude, and integrity. Harper Collins Publishers. New York, NY. Page 33.
- “Cowards die many times before their deaths; the valiant never taste of death but once.”
William Shakespeare, Julius Caesar. Act II, Scene 2, line 32
- “I’ve never forgotten for long at a time that living is struggle. I know that every good and excellent thing in the world stands moment by moment on the razor-edge of danger and must be fought for…”
Thornton Wilder (1942). The Skin of Our Teeth. Antrobus, Act 3
- “Live where the magic happens. . . Get out of your comfort zone.”
Sunil Saxena (2017). Massive Action Equals Massive Results. Saxena Publishing, Page 27.
- “Nihil timendum est. Fear Nothing.”
- 50 Cent with Robert Greene. (2009). The 50th Law. Harper Collins. New York, NY.
- “Life is the art of living with uncertainty without being paralyzed by fear.”
Dr. W. Dillon as quoted by Victoria Maxwell (2012) in “18 Quotes to Get You Through Instead of Going Under.” Psychology Today
- “Remember this: what Fear does, Love can also do. Fear can transform us falsely, making it difficult if not impossible for us to see the Truth, but Love works a different kind of Transformation. Love sees the flaws, the weaknesses, the failures in our humanity and recognizes the truth of their existence. But Love sees beyond to the greater Truth that we are creatures who can be transformed because we all live in the Soul of God.”
Randall Wallace. (2015). Living the Braveheart Life: Finding the courage to follow your heart.”. W. Publishing Group / Thomas Nelson. Nashville, TN. Page 142.
- “It’s important to remember that both faith and fear live in the unknowable future, Andre said. Neither is reality at the moment. Both faith and fear are nothing more than the beliefs you have about your future. Fear makes you afraid of what the future might bring. Faith makes you excited about what the future might bring.”
Darrin Donnelly. (2019). Victory Favors the Fearless: How to defeat the 7 fears that hold you back. Shamrock New Media, Inc. Page 71.
- “Every man dies; not every man really lives.”
Stated by William Wallace responding to Princess Isabele from the movie Braveheart. As quoted in Randall Wallace. (2015). Living the Braveheart Life: Finding the courage to follow your heart.. W. Publishing Group / Thomas Nelson. Nashville, TN. Page 123.
- “I’ve been tested,
But I’ll be OK because I’m invested
In this second chance I’ve been granted
And I know I’ll never give up,
In the darkness before the dawn
To find the strength to live on.
I’ve been…Tested.”
Nathan Furst and Beth Waugh. From the Movie “6 Below: Miracle on the Mountain” (2017). Momentum Pictures, Directed by Scott Wau
Combating and Crushing Fear
- “I must not fear. Fear is the mind killer.
Fear is the little-death that brings total obliteration.
I will face my fear.
I will permit it to pass over me and through me.
And when it is gone past, I will turn the inner eye to see its path.
Where the fear has gone, there will be nothing.
Only I will remain.” (Bene Gesserit – Litany Against Fear).
Frank Herbert. (1965). Dune. (Dune Chronicles Book 1). Penguin Random House. New York, NY.
- “I learned that courage was not the absence of fear, but the triumph over it. The brave man is not he who does not feel afraid, but he who conquers that fear”.
Nelson Mandela (1995) Long Walk to Freedom. Little Brown and Company. New York, NY.
- “Fear is an emotional response to a specific perceived danger or threat…Fears can be established after just one encounter with a frightening experience (e.g. getting bitten by a pit bull), and they can also exist without direct contact with the feared situation. Some fears are universal (like fear of the dark), and others are more limited (like fear of crossing bridges), but for all their outward variety, they all operate about the same way.”
Randall J. Strossen, PH.D. (1994). Iron Mind: Stronger minds, stronger bodies. IronMind Enterprises, Inc. Nevade City, CA. pages 117-118.
- “Don’t wish for a life without hardships. Accept every mistake and every headache in life, and wish that you can learn from them all.”
William Thinh Than (2018).
- “The greatest glory in living lies not in never falling, but in rising every time we fall.
Nelson Mandela (1995) Long Walk to Freedom. Little Brown and Company. New York, NY.
- “I am fundamentally an optimist. Whether that comes from nature or nurture, I cannot say. Part of being optimistic is keeping one’s head pointed toward the sun, one’s feet moving forward. There were many dark moments when my faith in humanity was sorely tested, but I would not and could not give myself up to despair. That way lies defeat and death.”
Nelson Mandela (1995) Long Walk to Freedom. Little Brown and Company. New York, NY.
- “For God has not given us a spirit of fear;
but of power, and of love, and of a sound mind.” Timothy 1:7 KJV
Uplifting Expressions
Life’s Mirror
“There are loyal hearts, there are spirits brave
There are souls that are pure and true.
Then give to the world the best you have,
And the best will come back to you.
Give love, and love to your life will flow,
A strength, in your utmost need.
Have faith, and a score of hearts will show
Their faith in your word and deed.
Give truth, and your gift will be paid in kind
And honor will honor meet;
And the smile that is sweet will surely find
A smile that is just as sweet!
Give pity and sorrow to those that mourn,
You will gather in flowers again;
The scattered seeds from your thought out-borne
Though the sowing seemed but vain.
For life is the mirror of king and slave
It is just what we are, and do.
Then give to the world the best you have
And the best will come back to you.”
Mary Ainge De Vere: pen name Madeline Bridges(1844-1920)
From De Vere, Mary Ainge (1904). The Wind-Swept Wheat. The Gorham Press. Boston, MA. Page 87.
Be Strong and Courageous!
January, 2022
This web page is now separated into 2 segments instead of 4:
- Hope and Humor – Featuring Cartoon Characters – Hope and Harry and Simon and Specs
- Hope Matters! Selected quotes referencing Hope, Resilience, and Change
This section will continue to feature selected quotes from various sources referencing Hope, Resilience, and Change throughout the ages. This month’s quotes focus on the future.
Hope and Humor
Featuring Cartoon Characters – Hope and Harry and Simon and Specs
These are Cartoon characters I have enjoyed creating in the past and resurrected for this website. As a frustrated artist during my undergraduate college years, I switched to trying my hand at cartooning and created a couple of characters. This month, Hope, the cat, and Harry, the dog will again be joining Simon and Specs as they address some of the common idioms, terms, proverbs, cliches, expressions, sayings, and abbreviations in the English language … interjecting a few puns along the way. My hope is that this month and continuing into the future your relationships with your family, your friends, and your interactions at work will be filled with humor and hope and that you will establish or re-establish connections with the significant people in your life.
Hope Matters!
Selected Quotes referencing Hope, Resilience & Change
- “How wonderful it is that nobody need wait a single moment before starting to improve the world.”
Anne Frank (As quoted in McRaven, William H. (2021). The Hero Code: Lessons Learned from Live Well Lived. New York, NY. page viii.
- “Never let the future disturb you. You will meet it, if you have to, with the same weapons of reason which today arm you against the present.”
Marcus Aurelius Antonius, Meditations
- “Now let us thank the Eternal Power: Convinced that Heaven but ties our virtue by affliction, that oft the cloud which wraps the present hour serves but to brighten all our future days.”
John Brown, Essayist. Barbarossa (1754), Act V, Scene 3. (As quoted in Wikiquotes).
- “People ask me to predict the future when all I want to do is prevent it. Better yet, build it. Predicting the future is much too easy, anyway. You look at the people around you, the street you stand on, the visible air you breathe, and predict more of the same. To hell with more. I want better
Ray Bradbury, Beyond 1984: The People Machines. (1979). (As quoted in Wikiquotes).
- “I do not mistrust the future; I do not fear what is ahead. For our problems are large, but our heart is larger. Our challenges are great, but our will is greater. And if our flaws are endless, God’s love is truly boundless.”
George H. W. Bush Inaugural Address (1989), Washington, D. C. (20 January 1989)
- “Whatever the future may have in store for us, one thing is certain… Human thought will never go backward. When a great truth once gets abroad in the world, no power on earth can imprison it, or prescribe its limits, or suppress it. It is bound to go on till it becomes the thought of the world… Now that it has got fairly fixed in the minds of the few, it is bound to become fixed in the minds of the many, and be supported at last by a great cloud of witnesses, which no man can number and no power can withstand. “
Frederick Douglass, speech to the International Council of Women. March 31, 1888. (As quoted in Wikiquotes).
- “It no longer has to be you or me. Selfishness is unnecessary and henceforth unrationalizable as mandated by survival.”
Buckminster Fuller, Critical Path. (1981). St. Martin’s Press, New York, NY.
- “The only thing we know about the future is that it is going to be different.”
Peter Drucker, Management: Tasks, Responsibilities, Practices (1973), Harper Collins Publishers, New York, NY. Part 1, Chapter 4.
- “The Great Western Disease is that we fixate on the future at the expense of enjoying the life we’re living now.”
Marshall Goldsmith (2010), What Got You Here Won’t Get You There. Hyperion, New York, NY.
- “The greatest danger to our future is apathy.”
Jane Goodall, “The Power of One“, Time Magazine (August 26, 2002)
- “Marty, the future isn’t written. It can be changed. You know that. Anyone can make their future whatever they want it to be.”.
Doc Emmett Brown, (played by Christopher Lloyd, Back to the Future Part III (1990), screenplay by Bob Gale. (As quoted in Wikiquotes).
- “Your task is not to foresee the future, but to enable it.”
.Antoine de Saint Exupéry, The Wisdom of the Sands (Citadelle). (1984). University of Chicago Press, Chicago, IL.
- “I’ve been tested,
But I’ll be OK because I’m invested
In this second chance I’ve been granted
And I know I’ll never give up,
In the darkness before the dawn
To find the strength to live on.
I’ve been…Tested.”
Nathan Furst and Beth Waugh. From the Movie “6 Below: Miracle on the Mountain” (2017). Momentum Pictures, Directed by Scott Waugh.
Happy New Year!
Please note: Previous Punchline submissions from 2021 have been archived. They can be found in the following location.
https://adversityisnotoptional.com/wp-content/uploads/2022/11/punchlines-2021-2.docx
Hanging on to Hope! 