Some quotes that make me think twice

Do you ever come across something that makes you stop and think twice?  I love reading articles and books that challenge me to think a different way.  I usually come across something and type it into my iPhone Notes app.  Here are some I've accumulated over the past few months.


“Don't think about making life better for other people who don't even deserve you, rather, focus on making your life the best, for yourself and those who love you.”
― C. JoyBell C.

“No, I am not bitter, I am not hateful, and I am not unforgiving. I just don't like you.”
― C. JoyBell C.

"I discovered very quickly that criticism is a form of optimism and when you are silent about the shortcomings of your society you're very pessimistic of your society.  It is only when you speak truthfully about it can you show your faith in that society.  Something the US and Mexico should think about."
-- Carlos Fuentes

"For why is gambling a whit worse than any other method of acquiring money?  How, for instance, is it worse than trade?  True, out of a hundred persons, only one can win; yet what business is that of yours or of mine?"
- The Gambler, Fyodor Dostoyevsky

"You learn to appreciate someone when you discover what makes you laugh, but you can not love someone really until you discover what makes you cry." 
- Unknown


"To love. To be loved. To never forget your own insignificance. To never get used to the unspeakable violence and the vulgar disparity of life around you. To seek joy in the saddest places. To pursue beauty to its lair. To never simplify what is complicated or complicate what is simple. To respect strength, never power. Above all, to watch. To try and understand. To never look away. And never, never, to forget."
- Arundhati Roy

"So many people live within unhappy circumstances and yet will not take the initiative to change their situation because they are conditioned to a life of security, conformity, and conservatism...all of which appear to give one peace of mind...but in reality, nothing is more damaging to the adventurous spirit within a person than a secure future. The joy of life comes from our encounter with new experiences, and hence there is no greater joy than to have an endlessly changing horizon, for each day to have a new and different sun. That, people...IS LIFE."
- John Tansioco


"Great beauty, great strength, and great riches are really and truly of no great use; A right heart exceeds all."
- Benjamin Franklin

"Luck is the residue of design."
- Branch Rickey