To laugh often and love much;
to win the respect
of intelligent persons and
the affection of children;
to earn the approbation
of honest citizens and
endure the betrayal
of false friends;
to appreciate beauty;
to find the best in others;
to give of one’s self;
to leave the world a bit better,
whether by a healthy child,
a garden patch,
or a redeemed social condition;
to have played and laughed
with enthusiasm and
sung with exultation;
to know even one life
has breathed easier
because you have lived
- this is to have succeeded.
~Ralph Waldo Emerson
