“All around the Lady Jessica—piled in corners of the Arrakeen great hall, mounded in the open spaces—stood the packaged freight of their lives: boxes, trunks, cartons, cases—some partly unpacked.”

Valuing Yourself and Your Needs (As a Parent): This is about taking care of your OWN needs as a parent because when you consistently put yourself last to be taken care of and habitually continue to sacrifice your basic necessities to make everyone else happy…Essentially, what you’re teaching your children is that they’re here to be of service to others, then themselves. In other words, you’re teaching them to take advantage of you and use you as they please, which in turn communicates to them that they’re most likely to be used. To prevent this from happening, you need to set consistent limits that protect you from demands that could be overbearing and unfair. That way, you’re communicating that your basic needs are just as important as theirs. It’s true…often times parents that are constantly sacrificing themselves are idealized and praised by other parents. You know… the ones that have no hobbies, no friends and no avenue of enjoyment. Is this really desirable? Parents constantly stressed about the needs of others in the family are usually irritable, and unmotivated to try anything new, fun or exciting. How can parents do this long term with no outlet? Instead, us parents need to enjoy ourselves and focus on being re-energized. When you take good care of yourself, you provide the means to take better care of your children. Going out to dinner or cocktails, trips to the gym 3 or 4 times a week, date night with your spouse or even some alone time reading or going for a walk allows you to be a more productive, interested and patient parent.”

“When the weaver bird flies, nobody talks; when the busy bee flies, no one will make comments... But when a human being begins to fly, you begin to hear talks in the town such as "abomination!... where did he get the wings from?". Never mind! Your dreams are your wings, so decide to fly!”

“My greatest fear is not living before I die, to play everything so safe that even though I had no risk I also enjoyed no reward.”

“Never let the things you can't do, stop you from doing what you can.”

“If you do not connect with others, influence is out of the question.”

“And so the moment we persuade a child, any child, to cross that threshold into a library, we've changed their lives forever, and for the better. This is an enormous force for good.”

“People who make great impact are well remembered due to the empty seats that remain after their death. It takes time to fill the empty seats that are left unoccupied by people who walked great in great footprints.”

“Satan is the sower of compromise—leaving a bit of God’s truth into the dirty rags of sin. Satan is the commander in deceit, Satan is the ringleader in rebellion against the faithful. Satan is the sly serpent of temptation. Satan is the false hope of security. Satan is the great pretender. Satan is the great spoiler of everything good. And Satan wants to destroy you.”

“Keep fighting until the last buzzer sounds.”

“Living the Christian life means striving for holiness.”

“The dogmas of the quiet past are inadequate to the stormy present. The occasion is piled high with difficulty and we must rise with the occasion. As our case is new, we must think anew and act anew. We must disenthrall ourselves, and then we shall save our country.”

“distinct vision, a precise plan, plenty of resources, and incredible leadership, but if you don’t have the right people, you’re not going to get anywhere.”

“Everything that I Know, I Know Only Because I Love...”

“Between a plan and it’s achievement is a leader in the middle. With his one arm he makes the plan. With the other one he carries them through.”