s as an end in himself, not a means to one’s own ends. That entails trying to help those with whom one comes in contact to find fulfillment in their own way while seeking one’s own fulfillment in one’s own way.
Another ethical principle that has stood me in good stead is: Know thyself! I try to acquaint myself realistically with my possibilities and limitations. I try to suit my aspirations to goals within my probable capacity to attain. I may have missed some undiscovered possibilities for growth but I have spared myself much by not shooting for stars it clearly was not given me to attain.
I have seen much inhumanity, cheating, corruption, sordidness and selfishness but I have not become cynical. I have seen too much that is decent, kind and noble in men to lose faith in the possibility for a far finer existence than yet has been achieved. I believe the quest for a better life is the most satisfying pursuit of men and nations.
I love life but I am not worried about death. I do not feel that I have lost my son and a host of others dear to me by death. I believe with William Penn that “they that love beyond the World cannot be separated by it. Death is but Crossing the World, as Friends do the Seas; they live in one another still.” Death, I believe, teaches us the things of deathless.
在桑顿·怀尔德的 《三月的爱德斯》中，朱利叶斯·恺撒这样提醒我们：“我们所有人都处在落瓦的掌控之下。”没有人知道，我们的所爱会在何时遭到难以估量与控制的力量的沉重打击。
55年来，我的绝大多数日子都是在多事的年月中度过，然而，我还是没有学会如何避免遭到落瓦的重击。我经历了好几次沉痛的打击。母亲在我三岁时离开人世。我的长子—— 一个拥有天赋的理想主义青年，在战争中阵亡。而我依然抱着他可能存活的希望，倾尽心血苦苦寻找了二十年，最终，在无法控制的环境的逼迫下，我放弃了努力。
我之所以讲这些事情，是希望人们能够像我一样，坚信人一定要有精神依托，这样才能在遭受严重打击时，不致被打垮或是痛苦不堪。
我相信，人一生中若能信仰并保持一种哲学与思想状态，便拥有了能够承受起落瓦打击的最大希望。我看见过拥有各种信仰的形形色色的人们，在各种不同的环境中承受着各种不同的打击。因此我相信，只要坚持不懈地寻求，每个人都能找到需求的信仰。
对物质拥有、身体满足及他人的赞赏不予奢求，这是我所知道的最佳办法之一，它能使我们更坚强地承受不安全、难以预知的时代兴衰。人的所求越少，那他对命运变化的应对能力就越强。
友谊是我最大的财富。不同年龄段的朋友带给我莫大的愉悦，在我需要时给予我最大的帮助。孩提时，我便明白了维持友谊的最大秘诀之一 ——将每一位朋友都视为自己最重要的人，而不是利用他们来达到自己的目的。当我们在用自己的方式实现自我价值时，也应帮助身边的人通过他们的途径来实现自身的价值