Remarks by Ella Wheeler Wilcox | V2Melody Quotations

“Declare they are yours, right in the face of the worst disasters.”

Encouraging confidence even when circumstances appear overwhelmingly negative · Essay, The Sowing of the Seed

“All you can reasonably look for is a gradual improvement.”

A practical statement of patience with personal development · Essay, The Sowing of the Seed

“But first, last and always, the lesser self must be subjugated, and the weak and unworthy qualities overcome.”

A forceful statement of her emphasis on overcoming selfish impulses · Essay, Self-Conquest

“A man is more likely to keep calm if he wakes in the night and discovers that the house is on fire than he is if his coffee is below the standard.”

A humorous illustration of how trivial annoyances can test self-control · Essay, The Important Trifles

“It demands, too, that we seek to avoid giving others unnecessary irritation by a thoughtless disregard of the importance of trifles.”

Showing how consideration in small matters becomes an ethical duty · Essay, The Important Trifles

“Do not sit down to see it grow.”

A humorous reminder to move on rather than obsess over the results of one's influence · Essay, Thought Force

“Before you go, insist on saying cheerful, hopeful and bright things, sowing the seed, as it were, in the mental ground behind you.”

Encouraging people to leave an atmosphere of hope wherever they go · Essay, Thought Force

“No tie of blood or law should compel you to listen to what means discomfort and disaster to you.”

A striking statement of personal boundaries even within family or legal obligations · Essay, Thought Force

“You must try and better the conditions of the world as you go along.”

Linking individual progress with a duty towards society · Essay, Obstacles

“While you apply this rule to yourself and make no scapegoat of fate, you must have consideration for the weakness of others.”

Combining personal responsibility with compassion for people facing greater difficulties · Essay, Obstacles

“In spite of them, the strong, well-poised, earnest and determined soul can reach any desired success.”

Celebrating determination in the face of external barriers · Essay, Obstacles

“It is an obstacle to greatness which few are strong enough to surmount, and it rarely results in happiness to the recipient.”

Arguing that inherited wealth can weaken ambition and independence · Essay, High Noon

“Next to that evil I believe the worst thing possible for a human soul is to be born to wealth.”

Her deliberately provocative argument that privilege can obstruct character · Essay, High Noon

“How rarely do we find these qualities in the children of wealth.”

A provocative criticism of the character-forming effects of privilege · Essay, High Noon

“Self-dependence, self-reliance, energy, ambition, were all developed in this way.”

Identifying qualities she associated with growing up without wealth · Essay, High Noon

“The majority of the really great people of the world, in all lines of achievement, have sprung from poverty.”

Arguing that hardship can foster independence and ambition · Essay, High Noon

“Thought is eternal in its effects, and every hopeful thought which enters the mind sets vibrations in motion.”

Expressing her belief that constructive thought has consequences beyond the individual · Essay, Let the Past Go

“If you will study your own spirit and its limitless powers, you will gain a greater secret than any alchemist ever held.”

Presenting self-knowledge as more valuable than material transformation · Essay, Let the Past Go

“You are missing them if you permit yourself instead to grow melancholy and irritable.”

Warning that grief can become destructive when allowed to harden into bitterness · Essay, Let the Past Go

“A whole, clear, glorious year lies before you.”

A vivid expression of optimism about the future · Essay, Let the Past Go

“Keep the box burnished and clear of dust, but remember always that the jewel within is the precious part of it.”

Encouraging care of the body without confusing it with inner worth · Essay, Let the Past Go

“Be alive, from crown to toe.”

A brisk exhortation towards physical and mental vitality · Essay, Let the Past Go

“It has a tendency to lower their self-respect and to make them look to you, instead of to themselves, for support.”

Warning that poorly conceived charity can undermine independence · Essay, Old Clothes

“God gives Nature new garments every season. We are a part of Nature.”

Drawing a connection between natural renewal and human renewal · Essay, Old Clothes

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