Today's Inspiration - George Sheehan

Quote of the Day

"Happiness is different from pleasure. Happiness has something to do with struggling and enduring and accomplishing."
– George Sheehan

About George Sheehan

American doctor George Sheehan changed course midway through his life. He was born in Brooklyn in 1918 to a cardiologist father and grew up to follow in his footsteps. At age 45, bored with his life, he began reading philosophy and took up running. Within five years he ran a 4:47 mile, the fastest ever clocked by a 50 year old. He started a weekly column and became medical editor for Runner's World. He wrote eight books. Bill Clinton dubbed him the philosopher-king of running. He died in 1993.

Today's Inspiration - Anna Quindlen

Quote of the Day

"The thing that is really hard, and really amazing, is giving up on being perfect and beginning the work of becoming yourself."
– Anna Quindlen

About Anna Quindlen

Anna Quindlen was only the third woman to become an Op-Ed writer for the New York Times. She was born in 1952 near Philadelphia. As a columnist, she blended the personal with the political, drawing parallels between the two. She left the Times to write fiction. Her novel, One True Thing, became a film starring Meryl Streep. She is the first writer with books on the fiction, nonfiction, and self-help New York Times bestseller lists. She lives with her husband and children in New York.

Today's Inspiration - Henry Van Dyke

 Quote of the Day

"Use what talents you possess: the woods would be very silent if no birds sang there except those that sang best."
– Henry Van Dyke

About Henry Van Dyke

Henry Van Dyke, the American clergyman and author, is best known for the Christmas story, "The Other Wise Man." He was born in Pennsylvania in 1852. He was pastor of the Brick Presbyterian Church in New York, taught literature at Princeton, and was U.S. ambassador to the Netherlands. His love of nature influenced his spirituality, and he fought to preserve Yellowstone Park. He wrote poetry and essays as well as fiction. Helen Keller called him an architect of happiness. He died in 1933.

Today's Inspiration - Leo Tolstoy

Quote of the Day

"Truth, like gold, is to be obtained not by its growth, but by washing away from it all that is not gold."
– Leo Tolstoy

About Leo Tolstoy

Count Lev Nikolayevich Tolstoy, known as Leo Tolstoy, is considered one of the greatest novelists of all time; he wrote 25 books, including War and Peace and Anna Karenina. He was born on his family's estate in Russia. Although he fought in the Crimean War, he became a pacifist and political radical after a severe midlife crisis. His beliefs greatly influenced Mahatma Gandhi, who became a friend. He died in 1910.

Today's Inspiration - Herbert Bayard Swope

Quote of the Day

"I can't give you a sure-fire formula for success, but I can give you a formula for failure: Try to please everybody all the time."

– Herbert Bayard Swope

About Herbert Bayard Swope

Herbert Bayard Swope, the colorful, hard-driving American journalist who became famous as a war correspondent and editor of The New York World, was the first writer to win a Pulitzer Prize for reporting. He was born in St. Louis in 1882. He coined the phrase "cold war" as a speechwriter for statesman Bernard Baruch. In his leisure time, he was a brilliant gambler at the track, at cards, and at stocks, and threw lavish parties. He died in 1958.

Today's Inspiration - Carl Sandburg

Quote of the Day

"Let a joy keep you. Reach out your hands and take it when it runs by."
– Carl Sandburg

About Carl Sandburg

American poet, songwriter, and journalist Carl Sandburg played an essential role in the Chicago renaissance of the early twentieth century. He won two Pulitzer Prizes, one for poetry and one as a historian. He was born in Illinois in 1878. When he was 19, he hopped a westbound train and lived as a hobo. His poetry is filled with slang and the language of ordinary Americans. His publications include Chicago Poems, Cornhuskers, and the children's series, Rootabaga Stories. He died in 1967.

Today's Inspiration - Hermann Hesse

Quote of the Day

"I have always believed that whatever good or bad fortune may come our way we can always give it meaning and transform it into something of value."
– Hermann Hesse

About Hermann Hesse

Hermann Hesse, the Pulitzer Prize–winning German writer, became extremely popular in the 1960's and 1970's for his deeply spiritual novels spiked with Eastern philosophy. He is best known for the novels Siddhartha, The Glass Bead Game, and Steppenwolf. He was born in 1877 in Germany and immigrated to Switzerland in 1912. Hesse was exposed to Eastern thought from childhood: His grandfather taught Indian studies, and his mother had been born in India. He won the Noble Prize in Literature in 1946. He died in 1962.

Today's Inspiration - Dorothea Brande

Quote of the Day

"All that is necessary to break the spell of inertia and frustration is this: Act as if it were impossible to fail."
– Dorothea Brande

About Dorothea Brande

Dorothea Brande wrote the quintessential how-to-write book, Becoming a Writer, which was among the first to address every writer's core problem: How to sit down and let the words flow. Her book, published in 1934, remains in print today. She was born in 1893 in Chicago. She worked as an editor on the Chicago Tribune and The American Review and married the latter journal's owner. She also wrote Wake Up and Live, which was adapted into a movie in 1937. She died in 1948.

Today's Inspiration - Abigail Van Buren

Quote of the Day

"A bad habit never disappears miraculously; it's an undo-it-yourself project."
– Abigail Van Buren

About Abigail Van Buren

Pauline Phillips, better known as Abigail Van Buren, wrote the syndicated "Dear Abby" column for 46 years. She was born in 1918 in Iowa. She had never written professionally when she contacted the San Francisco Chronicle's editor and said she could do better than their current advice maven. Her version was an instant success. Her twin sister, Esther Lederer, became an advice columnist under the name Ann Landers. Phillips retired in 2002; her daughter, Jeanne Phillips, took over her column.

Today's Inspiration - Abigail Van Buren

Quote of the Day

"A bad habit never disappears miraculously; it's an undo-it-yourself project."
– Abigail Van Buren

About Abigail Van Buren

Pauline Phillips, better known as Abigail Van Buren, wrote the syndicated "Dear Abby" column for 46 years. She was born in 1918 in Iowa. She had never written professionally when she contacted the San Francisco Chronicle's editor and said she could do better than their current advice maven. Her version was an instant success. Her twin sister, Esther Lederer, became an advice columnist under the name Ann Landers. Phillips retired in 2002; her daughter, Jeanne Phillips, took over her column.

Today's Inspiration - Ella Fitzgerald

Quote of the Day

"Just don't give up on trying to do what you really want to do. Where there is love and inspiration, I don't think you can go wrong."
– Ella Fitzgerald

About Ella Fitzgerald

With her three-octave range, a purity of tone, and a wonderfully expressive voice, singer Ella Fitzgerald has been called the voice of American jazz. She was born in 1917 in Virginia and began singing professionally at age 16. Her rendition of the nursery rhyme "A-Tisket, A-Tasket" launched her stardom. Her best known recordings include the Cole Porter and George Gershwin songbooks; she also toured with Duke Ellington's band. She died in 1996.

Today's Inspiration - Annie Dillard

Quote of the Day

"How we spend our days is, of course, how we spend our lives."
– Annie Dillard

About Annie Dillard

American author Annie Dillard rose to fame with her first book, Pilgrim at Tinker Creek, which weaves theology and meditations on nature into an account of a year spent in the country recovering from pneumonia. Writing the book so fully absorbed her that she forgot everything else; she lost 30 pounds and all her plants died. She was born in Pittsburgh in 1945. She married her college writing teacher but later divorced him. She remarried and lives in Connecticut.

Today's Inspiration - Oscar Wilde

Quote of the Day

"To realize one's nature perfectly — that is what each of us is here for."
– Oscar Wilde

About Oscar Wilde

Oscar Wilde, the clever, colorful Anglo-Irish writer, is best known for the play The Importance of Being Earnest and the novel The Picture of Dorian Gray. He was born in Dublin in 1854 but left when his lady love became engaged to Bram Stoker. He was a leading member of the aesthetic movement and embraced its doctrine, "Art for art's sake." Though married with two children, Wilde was known to have affairs with younger men and was jailed in 1895 for "gross indecency." He died in 1900.

Today's Inspiration - Victor Borge

Quote of the Day

"Laughter is the closest distance between two people."
– Victor Borge

About Victor Borge

Danish pianist Victor Borge was affectionately known as the Clown Prince of Denmark. Born as Børge Rosenbaum in 1909 to musician parents, he began playing piano at age three. After a stint as a classical pianist, he began combining music and jokes. His anti-Nazi jokes landed him on Hitler's enemies list. In 1942, he was named Best New Radio Performer by the American press. His Comedy in Music show on Broadway was the longest running one-man show in the 1950's. He died in 2000.

Today's Inspiration - Jacob Braude

Quote of the Day

"Always behave like a duck — keep calm and unruffled on the surface but paddle like the devil underneath."
– Jacob Braude

About Jacob Braude

American judge and author Jacob Braude was a fount of humorous and inspirational stories and quotations, which he used to regale the courtroom in Cook County, Illinois, where he presided for more that 35 years. His books of sayings, including Speaker's Encyclopedia of Humor and Braude's Treasury of Wit and Humor, have been mined by toastmasters and lecturers for decades. He was born in 1896 and died in 1970.

Today's Inspiration - Phillips Brooks

Quote of the Day

"Character may be manifested in the great moments, but it is made in the small ones."
– Phillips Brooks

About Phillips Brooks

Phillips Brooks, the American clergyman now mostly known for writing the words to the Christmas song, "O Little Town of Bethlehem," was one of the most influential ministers of his time, with his sermons reprinted in major newspapers. He delivered the eulogy at Abraham Lincoln's funeral. Born in Boston in 1835, he spent most of his life there as overseer of Harvard University, rector of Trinity Church, and bishop of Massachusetts. He died in 1893, and the day of his funeral was declared an official day of mourning.

Today's Inspiration - Margaret Deland

Quote of the Day

"There isn't any virtue where there has never been any temptation."
– Margaret Deland

About Margaret Deland

American author Margaret Deland is best known for her novel, John Ward, Preacher, and for her stories about the fictional small town of Old Chester. She was born in 1857 in Pennsylvania. She and her husband took up the cause of unwed mothers, sheltering more than 60 women in a four-year period. During World War I, she did relief work in France, receiving the Legion of Honor. She wrote 25 books and was one of the first women elected to the National Institute of Arts and Letters. She died in 1945.

Today's Inspiration - Etty Hillesum

Quote of the Day

"I do believe it is possible to create, even without ever writing a word or painting a picture, by simply molding one's inner life. And that too is a deed."
– Etty Hillesum

About Etty Hillesum

Etty Hillesum, less famous than her contemporary, Anne Frank, lived a short life of great courage. She was born in 1914 in the Netherlands to a Dutch father and a Russian mother. She studied law, Slavic languages, and psychology. Hungry for knowledge, she cut down on food in order to buy books. She went voluntarily to the Westerbork camp to help fellow Jews interned by the Nazis. Her letters detail her experiences; her more meditative diary focuses on issues of faith. She died at Auschwitz in 1943.

Today's Inspiration - Lao-Tzu

Quote of the Day

"If you do not change direction, you may end up where you are heading."
– Lao-Tzu

About Lao-Tzu

The ancient Chinese philosopher Lao-Tzu is believed to have lived in the 4th century B.C. Little is known about him, but it is likely that he wrote the Tao te Ching, the foundation of Taoist philosophy, and engaged Confucius in debate, honing both men's belief systems. His name means either "old master" or the "old child," and one legend says he was born with white hair after spending 80 years in his mother's womb.

Today's Inspiration - Abraham Lincoln

Quote of the Day

"When I do good, I feel good. When I do bad, I feel bad. And that is my religion."
– Abraham Lincoln

About Abraham Lincoln

Abraham Lincoln, the American president remembered as Honest Abe, is renowned for his strong leadership during the Civil War and for ending slavery in the United States. He was born in a Kentucky cabin in 1809. He taught himself law and passed the Illinois bar in 1837, the same year he first spoke out against slavery. The Southern states seceded in response to his election to the presidency in 1860. Lincoln was assassinated in 1865, mere days after General Robert E. Lee surrendered to end the war.

Today's Inspiration - Mahatma Gandhi

Quote of the Day

"The only tyrant I accept in this world is the still voice within."
– Mahatma Gandhi

About Mahatma Gandhi

Mohandas Gandhi, known by the honorific title Mahatma ("great souled"), embodied the power of nonviolent protest to achieve great change. He was born in India in 1869 and awoke to discrimination while practicing law in South Africa. He brought the struggle for equality back to India, rousing the population to demand self-rule from the British. He was profoundly religious, spending one day a week in complete silence; he was also a devout vegetarian. He was assassinated in 1948.

Today's Inspiration - Thomas A. Edison

Quote of the Day

"Opportunity is missed by most people because it is dressed in overalls and looks like work."
– Thomas A. Edison

About Thomas A. Edison

Thomas Edison, the American inventor who made his early fortune with the stock ticker and the phonograph record, is credited with inventing the light bulb — although he simply improved upon the original idea by making the bulb burn longer. Edison was born in 1847 in Ohio. He was a dreamer in school; his teacher called him "addled," and his mother taught him at home. He used the money from his inventions to set up a lab with a number of employees; he held a record 1,093 patents in his name. He died in 1931.

Today's Inspiration - Dag Hammarskjöld

Quote of the Day

"Never look down to test the ground before taking your next step; only he who keeps his eye fixed on the far horizon will find the right road."
– Dag Hammarskjöld

About Dag Hammarskjöld

Dag Hammarskjöld, a Noble Peace Prize winner, was a diplomat who strengthened the United Nations' peacekeeping mission. Born in Sweden in 1905, he followed his father's footsteps into national government, where he coined the term "planned economy" before becoming a delegate to the U.N. and a two-time secretary-general. He negotiated the release of Americans captured by the Chinese in the Korean War, worked to resolve the Suez Canal crisis, and was on a mission to the Congo when his plane crashed in 1961, killing all aboard.

Today's Inspiration - Eleanor Roosevelt

Quote of the Day

"You gain strength, courage and confidence by every experience in which you really stop to look fear in the face."
– Eleanor Roosevelt

About Eleanor Roosevelt

Eleanor Roosevelt, wife of president Franklin Delano Roosevelt, was a powerful political figure in her own right, crusading tirelessly for humanist causes. She was born in New York in 1884 and was orphaned young. After Franklin was struck by polio, she acted as his eyes and ears. She was central to the creation of the United Nations Universal Declaration of Human Rights, which she considered her crowning achievement, and wrote numerous essays, including a long-running column called "My Day." She died in 1962.

Today's Inspiration - Samuel Johnson

Quote of the Day

"What we hope ever to do with ease we may learn first to do with diligence."
– Samuel Johnson

About Samuel Johnson

Samuel Johnson, the sharp-witted British essayist, wrote the first English language dictionary; his definitions still form the backbone of current dictionaries. He was born in Staffordshire in 1709. Johnson married a widow 20 years his senior and lived in poverty before achieving success with his essays when he was in his forties. Later in life, he befriended the young James Boswell, whose Life of Johnson became the quintessential English biography. Johnson died in 1784.

Today's Inspiration - Theodore Roosevelt

Quote of the Day

"Keep your eyes on the stars, and your feet on the ground."
– Theodore Roosevelt

About Theodore Roosevelt

Known both for his larger-than-life personality and his many achievements, Theodore Roosevelt was the youngest US president at age 42. He was born in 1858 in New York. He led the Rough Riders, a motley volunteer cavalry, to victory in the battle of San Juan Hill. As the "Trust Buster" president, he instigated some 40 lawsuits to break up monopolies. An ardent conservationist, he put 230 million acres under federal protection. The Panama Canal was begun under Roosevelt. He died in 1919.

Today's Inspiration - Robert Frost

Quote of the Day

"Courage is the human virtue that counts most — courage to act on limited knowledge and insufficient evidence. That's all any of us have."
– Robert Frost

About Robert Frost

Robert Frost, the influential American poet known for his rural settings, uncluttered language, and meditative themes, wrote the poems, "A Road Not Taken" and "Mending Walls," among many others. He was born in San Francisco in 1874 and moved to Massachusetts at age 11. He ran a farm for ten years, selling it to move to England and become a full-time poet. After achieving his goal, he moved back to New Hampshire. His ambition was to write "a few poems it will be hard to get rid of." He died in 1963.

Today's Inspiration - Johann Wolfgang von Goethe

Quote of the Day
"Whatever you can do or dream you can, begin it. 
Boldness has genius, power, and magic in it."

– Johann Wolfgang von Goethe

About Johann Wolfgang von Goethe

Johann Wolfgang von Goethe, the multitalented and prolific German author and scientist, is best known for the play Faust, which has been adapted into operas, films, and novels. He was born in 1749 in Frankfurt. An unhappy love affair inspired his first play; his similarly themed novel, The Sorrows of Young Werther, created the prototype of the romantic hero. He also invented the color wheel concept of light and made important discoveries in plant and human biology. He died in 1832.

Today's Inspiration - Lucille Ball

Quote of the Day

"Luck? I don't know anything about luck. I've never banked on it and I'm afraid of people who do. Luck to me is something else: hard work — and realizing what is opportunity and what isn't."

– Lucille Ball

About Lucille Ball

Lucille Ball, the beloved redheaded comedian, was born in 1911 in New York. She enrolled in drama school — where she was told she had no acting talent, so she became a model. That career led to her discovery by Hollywood. Ball and her bandleader husband, Desi Arnaz, pitched a sitcom to CBS, which refused it, but they went on the road with it as a vaudeville act. The act — about a ditzy housewife and her bandleader husband — was a success, as was the ensuing TV show, I Love Lucy. The show made TV history when Lucy's sitcom character was pregnant on the air. She died in 1989.