“One of the first lessons life teaches us is that on these occasions of back-chat between the delicately-nurtured a man should retire into the offing, curl up in a ball, and imitate the prudent tactics of the opossum, which, when danger is in the air, pretends to be dead, frequently going to the length of hanging out crêpe and instructing its friends to stand round and say what a pity it all is.”

“Other people sound flat to my ear; their words just hang in the air. But when my mother says something, the ends curl.”

“Church was doing what he often did when dropped - lying on his back with all four legs in the air, pretending to be dead in order to induce guilt in his owners.”

“There are two words that you should use frequently in your youth: ´sorry´ and ´thank-you´. Use the first one as often as possible, so that on your death bed all that you have to say to your friends is ´thank-you!´.”

“A prudent man should always follow in the path trodden by great men and imitate those who are most excellent.”

“All poetry is supposed to be instructive but in an unnoticeable manner; it is supposed to make us aware of what it would be valuable to instruct ourselves in; we must deduce the lesson on our own, just as with life.”

“Hang on to your hopes, my friend.
That's an easy thing to say,
But if your hopes should pass away
Simply pretend that you can build them again.”

“It's all very well going round with two fingers stuck up at the world, but what happens when the world turns round and sticks them back up at you?
The world's a lot bigger than I am.”

“The real lessons of life are learned by recognizing and coming to terms with being human. It is how we stand up to failure and duress which really marks our progress in life. Sometimes one of the most important lessons is to learn to just let go of the past.”

“Seems to me the only difference between your friends and your enemies is how long they stand around chatting before they shoot you.”