The natural principle of war is to do the most harm to our enemy with the least harm to ourselves and this of course is to be effected by stratagem. – Washington Irving
Acting provides the fulfillment of never being fulfilled. Youre never as good as youd like to be. So theres always something to hope for. – Washington Irving
The tie which links mother and child is of such pure and immaculate strength as to be never violated. – Washington Irving
The scholar only knows how dear these silent, yet eloquent, companions of pure thoughts and innocent hours become in the season of adversity. When all that is worldly turns to dross around us, these only retain their steady value. – Washington Irving
It breaks your heart. It is designed to break your heart. The game begins in spring, when everything else begins again, and it blossoms in the summer, filling the afternoons and evenings, and then as soon as the chill rains come, it stops and leaves you to face the fall alone. – A. Bartlett Giamatti, "The Green Fields of the Mind," Yale Alumni Magazi