Strength

Strength is one of those words with lots of layers and meanings. You can have strength, and you can be given strength. Strength comes from within, and you can gather strength from others.

I like how Rhonna worded it on her blog – it does take strength to become stronger. Thank you Rhonna for the quote in this entry. My favorite part is:

“We are all meant to shine, as children do. … And as we let our own light shine, we subconsciously give other people permission to do the same.” – Marianne Williamson

I know that we are all meant to shine. There have been many people I have met that just shine. It’s true, you do feel brighter yourself around them. Thank you also for the chance to ponder on the word, and for the “permission” to dig up quotes. I found quite a few. 🙂

One of my favorites that I can personally attest to is:

“Being deeply loved by someone gives you strength, while loving someone deeply gives you courage.” – Lao Tzu

This quote is a good one to remember during personal trials:

“If God sends us on strong paths, we are provided strong shoes.” – Corrie TenBoom

There are a few classic quotes I think of when I think of strength:

“What does not kill me makes me stronger.” – Johann Wolfgang Von Goethe

“What lies behind us and what lies before us are tiny matters compared to what lies within us.” – Ralph Waldo Emerson

“Our strength grows out of our weaknesses.” – Ralph Waldo Emerson

This one made me laugh:

“Strength is the ability to break a chocolate bar into four pieces with your bare hands – and then eat just one of those pieces.” – Judith Viorst

This quote made me think:

“There are two ways of exerting one’s strength: one is pushing down, the other is pulling up.” – Booker T. Washington

This one doesn’t really have a lot to do with strength, but was right next to one that did. Anyway, I totally fell in love with this one. Inspirational!:

“Twenty years from now you will be more disappointed by the things that you didn’t do than by the ones you did do. So throw off the bowlines. Sail away from the safe harbor. Catch the trade winds in your sails. Explore. Dream. Discover.” – Mark Twain

And the final one I selected is so poetically beautiful.:

“And the day came when the risk it took to remain tight inside the bud was more painful than the risk it took to blossom.” – Anais Nin

Note to self: Have the strength to blossom!