Unfortunate is he who cannot gain a few sincere friends during his life and more unfortunate is the one who has gained them and then lost them (through his deeds).
"I leave you, hoping that the lamp of liberty
will burn in your bosoms until there shall no longer
be a doubt that all men are created free and equal."
-Abraham Lincoln (1809-1865)
"Just as there is no loss of basic energy in the universe,
so no thought or action is without its effects,
present or ultimate, seen or unseen, felt or unfelt."
-Norman Cousins (1912-1990)
The purpose of life is to listen - to yourself, to your neighbor, to your world and to God and, when the time comes, to respond in as helpful a way as you can find... from within and without.