ON YOUTH

The whole secret of remaining young in spite of years,
and even of gray hairs, is to cherish the enthusiasm in
oneself, by poetry, by contemplation, by charity -
that is, in fewer words, by the maintenance of harmony
in the soul. When everything is in its right place within us,
we ourselves are in equilibrium with the whole work of God.
Deep and grave enthusiasm for the eternal beauty and
the eternal order, reason touched with emotion and
a serene tenderness of heart - these surely are
the foundations of wisdom.
[Henri Frederic Amiel]