South african author Quotes

“There is nothing like returning to a place that remains unchanged to find the ways in which you yourself have altered.”

“It is necessary to heal the wounds of the past If you are going to build your country and to have unity. I am working with people who fought me very bitterly before the elections. It was my responsibility as the man who is leading the majority party, my responsibility to heal the wounds of the past and to work with people who were my opponents.”

“I came to accept that I have no right whatsoever to judge others in terms of my own customs, however much I may be proud of such customs.”

“I'm not going to sit here and argue with you. Just PUT THE BLOODY METER ON.”

“May your choices reflect your hopes, not your fears.”

“Let us remind ourselves that it is ordinary people - men and women, boys and girls - that make the world a special place”

“A leader. . .is like a shepherd. He stays behind the flock, letting the most nimble go out ahead, whereupon the others follow, not realizing that all along they are being directed from behind.”

“The real meaning of the spoken word has to be demonstrated by practical deeds”

“I would like it to be said: here lies a man who has done his duty on earth”

“I told my cellmates about the oppression of the whites and apartheid. I helped organize hunger strikes and the like in my prison.”

“You mustn't compromise your principles, but you mustn't humiliate the opposition. No one is more dangerous than one who is humiliated.”

“The victory of democracy in South Africa is the common achievement of all humanity.”

“The brave man is not the one who has no fears, he is the one who triumphs over his fears.”

“That day, Miss Mdingane told me that my new name was Nelson. Why she bestowed this particular name upon me I have no idea. Perhaps it had something to do with the great British sea captain Lord Nelson, but that would be only a guess.”

“After climbing a great hill, one only finds that there are many more hills to climb. I can rest only for a moment, for with freedom come responsibilities, and I dare not linger, for my long walk is not yet ended.”

“Like slavery and apartheid, poverty is not natural. It is man-made and it can be overcome and eradicated by the actions of human beings.”

“It is wise to persuade people to do things and make them think it was their own idea.”

“No problem is so deep that it cannot be overcome, given the will of all parties, through discussion and negotiation rather than force and violence.”

“Sport has the power to overcome old divisions and create the bond of common aspirations”

“For me, survival is the ability to cope with difficulties, with circumstances, and to overcome them.”

“For to be free is not merely to cast off one's chains, but to live in a way that respects and enhances the freedom of others.”

“Disasters will always come and go, leaving their victims either completely broken or steeled and seasoned and better able to face the next crop of challenges that may occur.”

“You can never have an impact on society if you have not changed yourself.”

“The habit of attending to small things and of appreciating small courtesies is one of the important marks of a good person.”

“A movement without vision would be a movement without moral foundation.”