There is nothing so easy as to be wise for others; a species of prodigality, by which we are generous at the expense of our friends.
Maria Edgeworth – Ennui
Wisdom for Others
W
Income and Happiness
I
A large income is the best recipe for happiness I ever heard of.
Maria Edgeworth – Ennui
Mind Over Place
M
It is not the place, nor the climate, but the mind alone that can make anyone happy or miserable.
Maria Edgeworth – Ennui
Belief’s Error
B
One of the greatest, and at the same time the most common errors, is to believe in too much rather than too little.
Maria Edgeworth – Ennui
Future’s Consolation
F
The habit of looking forward to the future as something which must necessarily be better than the present, is one of the best consolations to the human mind in this vale of tears.
Maria Edgeworth – Ennui
Idleness and Discontent
I
People who have nothing to do are quickly tired of their own company.
Maria Edgeworth – Ennui
Mistaking Vocation
M
We are apt to mistake our vocation by looking out of the way for occasions to exercise great and rare virtues, and by stepping over the ordinary ones that lie directly in the road before us.
Maria Edgeworth – Ennui
Unbounded Indulgence
U
When people are once accustomed to unbounded indulgence, they feel any restraint as an insupportable grievance.
Maria Edgeworth – Ennui
Love of Bustle
L
The love of bustle is often only the love of change; but it is a proof of idleness certainly.
Maria Edgeworth – Ennui
Contagious Enthusiasm
C
Nothing is so contagious as enthusiasm; it moves stones, it charms brutes. Enthusiasm is the genius of sincerity, and truth accomplishes no victories without it.
Maria Edgeworth – Ennui