12 July 2009

"How vain it is to sit down to write when you have not stood up to live."

American writer and Transcendentalist, Henry David Thoreau was born today in 1817. This man is my idol. I liked Civil Disobedience, and loved Walden even more. Although it may seem a bit hypocritical, speaking for my love of fashion, since Thoreau preached things like "Beware of all enterprises that require new clothes," and "Every generation laughs at the old fashions, but follows religiously the new." But so much else from him has influenced me.



"Cultivate the habit of early rising. It is unwise to keep the head long on a level with the feet."
--This quote turned me into a morning person.



"Every man is the builder of a temple called his body"
--This one inspired me to take better care of my body.



Not to mention the love of nature I have learned to appreciate over the course of reading his work. Sometimes I wish I could spend 2 months living in a cabin out on the woods. That peaceful serenity must be amazing. Not to mention the sunsets over Walden Pond.

8 comments:

Couture Carrie said...

Fabulous post! I love that Thoreau is your idol! And I didn't know that "your body is a temple" quote was his - cool!

xoxox,
CC

Winnie said...

Love that quote. I will definitely be getting up early tomorrow!

crystal said...

Thoreau was brilliant. I enjoy transcendentalist writings.

Amelia said...

I really need to try reading Thoreau again. For some reason, I just couldn't get that into Walden when I was 13. I'm sure I would enjoy it more now.

Unknown said...

Unfortunately I most definitely am not a morning person. Recent research has found that actually if late-risers were allowed to work by their own schedule, they may outperform early birds. Tehehehe - this is not Thoreau but http://www.theglobeandmail.com/news/technology/science/want-to-get-ahead-sleep-in/article1065333/

yumiko said...

How do you memorize all the birthdays of these people?
"Cultivate the habit of early rising. It is unwise to keep the head long on a level with the feet."
I love this quote!

yiqin; said...

Great post! I am not a morning person too :(

Anonymous said...

I love the quote that you used as a title.What a nice post.