Endurance is nobler than strength, and patience than beauty.
John RuskinRead
Children see in their parents the past, their parents see in them the future; and if we find more love in the parents for their children than in children for their parents, this is sad but natural. Who does not entertain his hopes more than his recollections.
Interpretation
What this quote means
The quote reflects the different perspectives between parents and children, where children often represent the past for parents and vice versa, highlighting an inherent imbalance in love.
John Ruskin's quote explores the cyclical nature of relationships between parents and children. It suggests that parents often look at their children as a continuation of their past experiences, while children view their parents as the foundation for their future. The observation that parents may love their children more deeply than the reverse is presented as a natural, albeit poignant, aspect of familial love, emphasizing the hopes and aspirations that tend to dominate parental feelings over nostalgic memories.
Themes
ParentsChildrenLoveFuturePast
In practice
Example use cases
In a family reunion speech, one could use this quote to highlight the bond between generations.
More from John Ruskin
All quotes →In health of mind and body, men should see with their own eyes, hear and speak without trumpets, walk on their feet, not on wheels, and work and war with their arms, not with engine-beams, nor rifles warranted to kill twenty men at a shot before you can see them.
John RuskinRead
You talk of the scythe of Time, and the tooth of Time: I tell you, Time is scytheless and toothless; it is we who gnaw like the worm - we who smite like the scythe. It is ourselves who abolish - ourselves who consume: we are the mildew, and the flame.
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To be able to ask a question clearly is two-thirds of the way to getting it answered.
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See that your children be taught, not only the labors of the earth, but the loveliness of it.
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A little thought and a little kindness are often worth more than a great deal of money.
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