"How we shall earn our bread is..." - Quote by Henry David Thoreau
How we shall earn our bread is a grave question; yet it is a sweet and inviting question. Let us not shirk it, as is usually done.It is the most important and practical question which is put to man. Let us not answer it hastily. Let us not be content to get our bread in some gross, careless, and hasty manner. Some men go a-hunting, some a-fishing, some a-gaming, some to war; but none have so pleasant a time as they who in earnest seek to earn their bread.
More by Henry David Thoreau
“Truth strikes us from behind and in the dark, as well as from before and in broad daylight.”
“Concord River is remarkable for the gentleness of its current, which is scarcely perceptible, and some have referred to its influence the proverbial moderation of the inhabitants of Concord, as exhibited in the Revolution, and on later occasions.”
“Aim above morality. Be not simply good, be good for something.”
More on Work
“France: As a professional journalist, I like the idea of a society where it is considered an acceptable occupation to basically sit around and drink.”
“My life has been happy because I have had wonderful friends and plenty of interesting work to do.”
“This gave me occasion to observe, that when Men are employ'd they are best contented. For on the Days they work'd they were good-natur'd and chearful; and with the consciousness of having done a good Days work they spent the Evenings jollily; but on the idle Days they were mutinous and quarrelsome, finding fault with their Pork, the Bread, and in continual ill-humour. (Autobiography, 1771)”
More on Purpose
“In the works of Nature, purpose, not accident, is the main thing.”
“Still we live meanly like ants, though the fable tells us we were long ago changed into men.”
“As I see it then, the formula runs something like this: a man must choose a path which will let his ABILITIES function at maximum efficiency toward the gratification of his DESIRES.”