Whenever death may surprise us, let it be welcome if our battle cry has reached even one receptive ear and another hand reaches out to take up our arms.

You have to do your own growing no matter how tall your grandfather was.

There is nothing that makes its way more directly into the soul than beauty.

I go to assume a task more difficult than that which devolved upon Washington. Unless the great God, who assisted him, shall be with me and aid me, I must fail; but if the same omniscient mind and almighty arm that directed and protected him shall guide and support me, I shall not fail – I shall succeed.

A loving heart is the truest wisdom.

Life is a song to me.

Once we start to act, hope is everywhere. So instead of looking for hope, look for action. Then, and only then, hope will come.

A hero is no braver than an ordinary man, but he is brave five minutes longer.

Dying is one of the few things that can be done as easily lying down.

My mom and I have always been there for each other. We had some tough times, but she was always there for me.

Great geniuses have the shortest biographies.

My son has died of AIDS.

I believe with all my heart that America remains ‚the great idea‘ that inspires the world. It is a privilege to be born here. It is an honor to become a citizen here. It is a gift to raise your family here, to vote here, and to live here.

Men shrink less from offending one who inspires love than one who inspires fear.

Test a servant while in the discharge of his duty, a relative in difficulty, a friend in adversity, and a wife in misfortune.

Bravery never goes out of fashion.

I think a number of the leaders are, whether you like it or not, in the hip-hop generation. And when they understand enough, they’ll do wonders. I count on them.

The Paralympic Games is about transforming our perception of the world.

Yesterday is not ours to recover, but tomorrow is ours to win or lose.

America is a poem in our eyes; its ample geography dazzles the imagination, and it will not wait long for metres.

Faith activates God – Fear activates the Enemy.

All of my writing is God-given.

Helped are those who create anything at all, for they shall relive the thrill of their own conception and realize a partnership in the creation of the Universe that keeps them responsible and cheerful.

If thou art a man, admire those who attempt great things, even though they fail.

One of the wonderful things about Oprah: She teaches you to keep on stepping.

I try to use my experience and the fact that I grew up in the ghetto – I tell people you don’t have to rob or steal to get out of the ghetto.

You should treat a muse like a fairy.

People respond when you tell them there is a great future in front of you, you can leave your past behind.

Imagination rules the world.

Opportunity dances with those already on the dance floor.

I only wish that ordinary people had an unlimited capacity for doing harm; then they might have an unlimited power for doing good.

I used to – my earliest memory of waking up with a melody in my head was, you know, 8, 9, 10. I’ve always heard kind of melodies in my head.

Life loves to be taken by the lapel and told: ‚I’m with you kid. Let’s go.‘

Poetry is the key to the hieroglyphics of nature.

The writing process, the way I go about it is I do whatever the beat feels like, whatever the beat is telling me to do. Usually when the beat comes on, I think of a hook or the subject I want to rap about almost instantly. Within four, eight bars of it playing I’m just like, ‚Oh, OK. This is what I wanna do‘.

There is spontaneity to my work.

Death is not natural for a state as it is for a human being, for whom death is not only necessary, but frequently even desirable.

There have to be reasons that you get up in the morning and you want to live. Why do you want to live? What’s the point? What inspires you? What do you love about the future? If the future does not include being out there among the stars and being a multi-planet species, I find that incredibly depressing.

No one was ever great without some portion of divine inspiration.

A good character is the best tombstone. Those who loved you and were helped by you will remember you when forget-me-nots have withered. Carve your name on hearts, not on marble.

People ask me where I got my singing style. I didn’t copy my style from anybody.

I go through a lot of depression, and I know other people do, too, but I have an outlet that so many people don’t. If you have that inside of you and can’t get it out, what do you do?

‚Tis not enough to help the feeble up, but to support them after.

As a musician and a songwriter, it is an act of the ego to believe that other people might be interested in your point of view. But it is usually an empathetic nature that gets you going in the first place. Music keeps the heart porous in many ways.

God puts people in our lives on purpose so we can help them succeed and help them become all He created them to be. Most people will not reach their full potential without somebody else believing in them.

You don’t have to be a renowned artist like Q-Tip to try your hand at poetry. You don’t need any special equipment – that’s the beauty of it.

Billy Graham is one of my great lifetime heroes. I think he epitomizes the essence of what a Christian leader should be. I have participated in some of his crusades a couple of times in Atlanta. I’ve seen the profound impact he’s had on me personally, and on other people who were not Christians and accepted Christ as Savior.

To those of you who received honours, awards and distinctions, I say well done. And to the C students, I say you, too, can be president of the United States.

Keep your face to the sunshine and you cannot see a shadow.

The quietly pacifist peaceful always die to make room for men who shout.

My music definitely comes from a place of experience. Everything connects to a truth.

We love life, not because we are used to living but because we are used to loving.

Instead of worrying about what people say of you, why not spend time trying to accomplish something they will admire.

What kind of people do they think we are? Is it possible they do not realize that we shall never cease to persevere against them until they have been taught a lesson which they and the world will never forget?

I’ve 20,000 hours of clinical practice; you’re not naive after the first few thousand. I’ve helped people deal with things that most people can’t imagine.

It’s so clear that you have to cherish everyone. I think that’s what I get from these older black women, that every soul is to be cherished, that every flower Is to bloom.

Stand with anybody that stands right, stand with him while he is right and part with him when he goes wrong.

We had problems like all families but we had a lot of love. I was extremely loved. We always felt we had each other.

Friendship improves happiness and abates misery, by the doubling of our joy and the dividing of our grief.

Find a beautiful piece of art. If you fall in love with Van Gogh or Matisse or John Oliver Killens, or if you fall love with the music of Coltrane, the music of Aretha Franklin, or the music of Chopin – find some beautiful art and admire it, and realize that that was created by human beings just like you, no more human, no less.

A book must be the ax for the frozen sea within us.