Wednesday, December 2, 2009

Mark Twain

"The problem with the world is not that people know too little, but that they know so many things that ain't so." ~ the illustrious...Mark Twain

Samuel Langhorne Clemens, more known by his pen name, Mark Twain. This is a man whom I would have loved to have met and been able to sit on the front porch with, rock in our chairs while perhaps smoking a cigar and enjoying a nice cold mug of moonshine. My oh my! The fascinating conversations we would have had! The knowledge and wisdom that I would have gained from him.
Mr. Twain was known for his wit and was admired and praised by his friends as well as his critics. During his lifetime, he became friends with industrialists, artists, European royalty and presidents. He was an amazing author and has been extensively quoted. One of my favorites is the quote above - so much truth there is in those simple words of his. How especially true in the world today...with so many things out there trying to grab our attention and make us lose focus. I try to remember to delight in and stay true to the simple things in life, simple truths.
I am thankful that folks like Mark Twain lived and left a great, positive mark on the world...so that we who came after him can learn and appreciate what he did and believed in and gain a bit of insight into the wisdom and knowledge he had.
Godspeed -
Kasey

3 comments:

Anonymous said...

I grew up in Elmira, New York. His wife was from there and he wrote most of his best-known works in the study his sister-in-law built for him.

I wish I'd been a child somewhere else because that tiny town has very little going for it, so Twain was kind of forced down our throats and I, of course, rebelled against it. :-)

But if you ever visit there, the study is on the Elmira College campus (you can see it from the road as you drive by, or park and got right up to it). Many of his personal items are kept in the college library, you can tour Quarry Farm, where the study originally sat and you can visit Twain's grave.

Something interesting is that he was an animal lover. The road to Quarry Farm is very steep and long, so he had water troughs made to be placed along the way for the horses. There was one trough for each of his children, with their names engraved on the troughs.

Kasey said...

Wow! Very interesting...thank you for sharing this information! I think it is really neat that he was an animal lover...my mother has a love for animals and the gift of healing them...I inherited the love of them from her...but not so much the healing...I really appreciate you reading and commenting! -Kasey

Stacia said...

I just love your old soul... and how you truly appreciate history and people before our time... and realize how we can learn a lot by looking back, in a positive way. The simple things in life will always make us most rich.
*Hugs and Smooches*