Up is the place to go, not the thing to give.
From A Pocket Guide to Being Human, one of 296 sayings written by John Sarris over thirty years.
From Alfred’s journal
A man on the bench by the drinking fountain told his friend he was giving up, and said it twice, and the second time he looked relieved. I spent a long while on the wire above them trying to hear the shape of it. For years I thought of giving up as a falling word, something you did on your way down. It is not. Up is the place to go, not the thing to give, and yet he handed it over like a coat he had been carrying in July. I do not know what he put down. Switch says the squirrels have a word for letting go of a branch, but he will not tell me what it is.
He reads what you tell him and writes a page of his journal back, with a few of these chosen for you. It costs nothing and asks for nothing.
Have it on something
More like it
- Kindness works well with strangers, but even better with those close to you who have ceased to expect it.
- Humility makes you grateful and gratitude makes you kind.
- The true gift leaves no trace on the hand of the giver.
- You will walk more confidently if you watch the road than if you watch your feet.
- There are no empty gestures made with a full heart.
- Before you sharpen your tongue, remember that it spends most of its time in your mouth.