I'm attracted to subjects who overcome tremendous suffering and learn to cope emotionally with it
Interpretation
The quote highlights the resilience of individuals who endure significant hardship and grow emotionally from their experiences.
Laura Hillenbrand emphasizes the admiration for those who face and conquer severe suffering. These individuals not only endure pain but also develop a deeper emotional understanding and coping mechanisms, demonstrating resilience and strength in the face of adversity. Their journey transforms them and serves as an inspiration for others, illustrating the profound connection between suffering and personal growth.
In practice
In a motivational speech about overcoming challenges, one might use this quote to illustrate the strength found in adversity.
Every day after lunch when I was writing my first book, I'd nibble a square of fine chocolate and meditate on all that had gone into its creation: the sun and rain that spilled on the cocoa plant, the soil that nourished it, the hands that picked the beans, and so on. My taste of chocolate became a lesson on the interconnectedness of things, and the infinite blessings for which I am grateful.
I identified in a very deep way with the individuals I was writing about because the theme that runs through this story is of extraordinary hardship and the will to overcome it.
Without dignity, identity is erased.
It's easy to talk to a horse if you understand his language. Horses stay the same from the day they are born until the day they die. They are only changed by the way people treat them.
Most people, when they hear the disease name, it's all they know about it. It sounds so mild. When I first was sick, for the first 10 years or so, I was dismissed. I was ridiculed and told I was lazy. It was a joke.
The paradox of vengefulness is that it makes men dependent upon those who have harmed them, believing that their release from pain will come only when their tormentors suffer.
To make mistakes is human; to stumble is commonplace; to be able to laugh at yourself is maturity.
Money is a needful and precious thing, and when well used, a noble thing, but I never want you to think it is the first or only prize to strive for. I'd rather see you poor men's wives, if you were happy, beloved, contented, than queens on thrones, without self-respect and peace.
There is no point in apportioning blame. What is done, is done.
You should not be carried away by the dictation of the mind, but the mind should be carried by your dictation.
Suppose you read about a pill that you could take once a day to reduce anxiety and increase your contentment. Would you take it? Suppose further that the pill has a great variety of side effects, all of them good: increased self-esteem, empathy, and trust; it even improves memory. Suppose, finally, that the pill is all natural and costs nothing. Now would you take it? The pill exists. It is meditation.
Part of us believes the new car is better because it lasts longer. But, in fact, that's the worst thing about the new car. It will stay around to disappoint you, whereas a trip to Europe is over. It evaporates. It has the good sense to go away, and you are left with nothing but a wonderful memory.
Subscribe for the occasional hand-picked quote. No noise.