Don't Give Up: Aphorisms of Pain, Experience, Hope

An aphorism (from Greek aphorismos, denoting "delimitation," "distinction," and "definition") is a concise, terse, laconic, and/or memorable expression of a general truth or principle. They are often handed down by tradition from generation to generation. An aphorism is generally understood to be a concise and eloquent statement of truth: "Power tends to corrupt, and absolute power corrupts absolutely." (Lord Acton) "The true dosage of aphorisms: minimum words maximum sense." (Mark Twain).

The author states: "They [the aphorisms] just came to me, drawn from experience, I suppose, and not least, the perilous, often painful shoals of relationships. ... Readers will obtain different benefits, enjoyment, or non-enjoyment from what they find in these pages. ... By definition aphorisms are pithy. You don’t get much time to capture your slice of putative wisdom. Partly they’re a performance, a mini-performance."

This is not just a list of aphorisms. The author provides an explanation of each ... what he feels each one means, what they meant to him, why he choose them. An example:

"'Wanting too much is the surest method
of losing what you have.' — I know–William Blake said something similar, and then there’s Zen, etc. But in the main, who is fully satisfied? But some people do know how to avoid the “wanting too much.” I’ve met a few–dear friends I admire–and I’m blown away by their restraint, generally due to the fact that they came up the hard way, then carefully continued watching nickels, or walls in disrepair. Along with many others, however, one Donald Trump hasn’t been part of that restrained tribe. And never mind business people who o’er reach themselves, taking on too much debt and such, and who inevitably think of one more deal, one more stock killing, one more casino in a slum, one more quick way upward or out, not to mention a run toward the presidency! Addictions of all sorts are easier to sprout these days than in an era of village gossips and far fewer technological gismos, as well as limited mobility. Look at the internet! Look at all-you-can eat buffets! What would the old Puritans have done at the latter?"

216 6x9-inch pages