“Be faithful to that which exists nowhere but in yourself — and thus make yourself indispensable.”

—  André Gide

Les Nourritures Terrestres (1897), Envoi
Variant: Be faithful to that which exists within yourself.
Context: What another would have done as well as you, do not do it. What another would have said as well as you, do not say it; what another would have written as well, do not write it. Be faithful to that which exists nowhere but in yourself — and thus make yourself indispensable.

Original

Ce qu'un autre aurait aussi bien fait que toi, ne le fais pas. Ce qu'un autre aurait aussi bien dit que toi, ne le dis pas, — aussi bien écrit que toi, ne l'écris pas. Ne t'attache en toi qu'à ce que tu sens qui n'est nulle part ailleurs qu'en toi-même, et crée de toi, impatiemment ou patiemment, ah! le plus irremplaçable des êtres.

Adopted from Wikiquote. Last update June 3, 2021. History

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André Gide 74
French novelist and essayist 1869–1951

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