My father considered a walk among the mountains as the equivalent of churchgoing. – Aldous Huxley
Uncontrolled, the hunger and thirst after God may become an obstacle, cutting off the soul from what it desires. If a man would travel far along the mystic road, he must learn to desire God intensely but in stillness, passively and yet with all his heart and mind and strength. – Aldous Huxley
Happiness is a hard master, particularly other peoples happiness. – Aldous Huxley
Consistency is contrary to nature, contrary to life. The only completely consistent people are dead. – Aldous Huxley
Only the explorer of steep and narrow trails inaccessible to cattle makes acquaintance with flowers in a grazing country. The large scale of all the physical features of California tends to monotony of vegetable life. The same trees cover miles of country. Only those who climb find variety. – Isabella G. Oakley, “Santa Barbara of Today,” in Sunset, May 1904
Who that knows the trail from Mill Valley to Bolinas, by way of Willow Camp, can ever forget the enchanting beauty of the panorama that unfolds before the vision? The tenderest tenderfoot forgets the toil of climbing in contemplation of its delights and surprises. – Eufina C. Tompkins, “Story of Two California Artists,” in Sunset, June 1904