"In the depths of adversity, the roots of true happiness grow deep in the present moment."

"Patience is not passive waiting; it is active endurance with a calm countenance. In this truth lies the bedrock of all virtue — an essential principle for the reflective life."

"You have to come to your closed doors before you get to your open doors... What if you knew you had to go through 32 closed doors before you got to your open door? Well, then you'd come to closed door number eight and you'd think, 'Great, I got another one out of the way'... Keep moving forward."

"It is a steadfast truth that the river of time washes away kings and empires, leaving only virtue intact."

"Ignorance more frequently begets confidence than does knowledge: it is those who know little, and not those who know much, who so positively assert that this or that problem will never be solved by science."

"I have often said one of the reasons more blacks don't support Republicans is because they don't trust the GOP establishment."

"Optimism is the faith that leads to achievement. Nothing can be done without hope and confidence."

"I have great faith in fools; self-confidence my friends call it."