“Whoever loves and understands a garden will find contentment within.” – Chinese Proverb

“Keep your sense of proportion by regularly, preferably daily, visiting the natural world.” – Caitlin Matthews

“I go to nature to be soothed and healed, and to have my senses put in tune once more.” – John Burroughs

“Trees are the earth’s endless effort to speak to the listening heaven.” – Rabindranath Tagore

“May your trails be crooked, winding, lonesome, dangerous, leading to the most amazing view.  May your mountains rise into and above the clouds.” – Edward Abbey

“To sit in the shade on a fine day and look upon the verdant green hills is the most perfect refreshment.” – Jane Austin

“When a man moves away from nature, his heart becomes hard.”–Lakota Tribe

“Study nature, love nature, stay close to nature.  It will never fail you.” – Frank Lloyd Wright

“Be kind to everything that lives.”–Omaha Tribe

“The moon is not shamed by the barking of dogs.”–Southwest Tribe

“Those that lie down with dogs, get up with fleas.”–Blackfoot Tribe

“We come to Love not by finding a perfect person, but by learning to see an imperfect person perfectly.” – Unknown

“You are a child of the universe, no less than the trees and the stars; you have a right to be here.” – Desiderata

“The more we give love, the greater our capacity to do so.” – David Hawkins

“I learned that courage was not the absence of fear, but  the triumph over it.  The brave man is one who does not feel afraid, but he who conquers that fear.” – Nelson Mandela

“Everything in your life is there as a vehicle for transformation.  Use it! – Ram Dass

“Awake.  Be the witness of your thoughts.  You are what observes, not what you observe.” - Buddha

When you discard arrogance, complexity, and a few other things that get in the way, sooner or later you will discover that simple, childlike, and mysterious secret known to those who study the Tao of Pooh.

“You yourself, as much as anybody in the universe deserve your love and affection.” – Buddha

“The soul would have no rainbow, if the eyes had no tears.”–Minquass Tribe

“Quality is never an accident.  It is always the result of an intelligent effort.” – John Ruskin

“No matter where you stand in your business, career or life (no matter what challenges you now face), when you make the conscious decision to become a person of action (rather than being indecisive) you instantly turn the tide of life in your favor.” – Andrew Wood

“You can’t overestimate the need to plan and prepare.  In most of the mistakes I’ve made, there has been this common theme of inadequate planning beforehand.  You really can’t over-prepare in business.” – Chris Corrigan

“Success is the ability to continue to move through total disaster.” – Winston Churchill

“A business is successful to the extent that it provides a product or service that contributes to happiness in all of its forms.” – Mihaly Csikszentmihalyi

“You can’t overestimate the need to plan and prepare.  In most of the mistakes I’ve made, there has been this common theme of inadequate planning beforehand.  You really can’t over-prepare in business.” – Chris Corrigan

“Everyone experiences tough times, it is a measure of your determination and dedication how you deal with

them and how you can come through them.” – Lakshmi Mittal

“Wherever you see a successful business, someone made a courageous decision.” - Peter F. Drucker

Vincentis’ Rule:  Tell the truth, and you won’t have to remember your lies.  It’s such a simple concept.

“Speak the truth in humility to all people.  Only then can you be a true man.”–Sioux Tribe

“In the business world, the rear view mirror is always clearer than the windshield.” – Warren Buffett

“Live your life so that fear of death can never enter your heart.  When you arise in the morning, give thanks for the morning light.  Give thanks for your life and strength.  Give thanks for your food and for the joy of living.  And if perchance you see no reason for giving thanks, rest assured the fault is in your self.” – Chief Tecumseh, Shawnee Indian Chief

“All things share the same breath – the beast, the tree, the man, the air shares its spirit with all the life it supports.” – Chief Seattle

“Walk on a rainbow trail; Walk on a trail of song, And all about you will be beauty.  There is a way out of every dark mist, Over a rainbow trail.”  Navajo Song

“The Great Spirit is everywhere; he hears whatever is in our minds and our hearts, and it is not necessary to speak to Him in a loud voice.” – Black Elk

“Everything on the earth has a purpose, every disease an herb to cure it, every person a mission.” – Mourning Dove Salish

I have the privilege of traveling from Sun Valley, Idaho to Sedona, Arizona, in order to be part of the magical expotition that takes place at the Southwest Inn at Sedona.  On a recent trip home, as I was crossing over the Grand Canyon, near Lees Ferry, I saw a weather worn, older Navajo woman who needed a ride to the next town.  I picked her up, and she sat in my car for 25 minutes without uttering a single word, however she often gazed down at a bottle of wine, which I had purchased at a local Sedona Winnery.  Finally, I stated that I had got the bottle of wine, for my wife.  The old woman humphed, then re-crossed her arms, and finally stated, “Good Trade!”–From Craig Phelan, Proud Innkeeper of the Southwest Inn at Sedona

“Grown men can learn from very little children for the hearts of the little children are pure.  Therefore, the great spirit may show to them many things which older people miss.” – Black Elk, Oglala Sioux Holy Man

Thoughts are like arrows: once released, they strike their mark.  Guard them well or one day you may be your own victim.

“When you are in doubt, be still, and wait;  when doubt no longer exists for you, then go forward with courage.  So long as mists envelop you, be still;  be still until sunlight pours through and dispels the mists – as it surely will.  Then act with courage.” – Ponca Chief White Eagle