Don’t Give Up the Ship!

"For in this modern world, the instruments of warfare are not solely for waging war. Far more importantly, they are the means for controlling peace. Naval officers must therefore understand not only how to fight a war, but how to use the tremendous power which they operate to sustain a world of liberty and justice, without unleashing the powerful instruments of destruction and chaos that they have at their command."

~ Admiral Arleigh Burke, CNO

As you well know I am a sucker for a good story. Somehow I garner inspiration from almost anywhere and I love to retell the stories I discover. The story I am about to share with you came from a simple internet ad. The charge was nothing but a simple image of a navel flag with the words “Don’t Give Up the Ship” stitched in a crude font emblazoned on a sea of navy blue.

I did some very quick research and came upon the history of a thirty two year old United States Navy Captain, Captain James Lawrence who commanded the USS Chesapeake. A decorated Navy Captain who died in the heat of battle, who died some might urge as the victim of arrogance, but who lives on in history because of the dying charge he gave to his men; the men who took up his fight and carried on to victory.

Through the first year of the War of 1812, the infant United States Navy won a number of stunning victories in ship-to-ship engagements over Royal Navy vessels, including the capture of three British frigates (any warship built for speed and maneuverability with lighter armament, were square-rigged on all three masts, used for patrolling and escort). While this string of Yankee successes may not have surprised the American people, it startled, confounded, and angered the British nation which considered its sailors and warships more than a match for the upstart US fleet.

One American officer who contributed to these early triumphs over the Royal Navy was James Lawrence. On February 24, 1813, Lawrence commanded the USS Hornet in a successful battle that reduced the British Peacock to a sinking state in the space of fifteen minutes, killing and wounding more than a quarter of its crew. In recognition of this win, Lawrence was promoted to Captain and given command of the USS Chesapeake, berthed in Boston. Among the missions the Navy Department contemplated for the Chesapeake at this time was the seizure and destruction of British transports and supply ships en route from England to Canada.

When Lawrence arrived in Boston on May 20 to assume command of the Chesapeake he found his ship short of men and still in need of refitting for its intended voyage. He also discovered two British frigates cruising in the waters off Boston Harbor, awaiting the opportunity to intercept and capture any American vessel attempting to enter or depart from that port. By the 25th, only one British warship, the frigate Shannon, remained in view blockading the harbor.

Lured by the prospect of laurels in another single-ship combat with the enemy, and anxious to engage the Shannon before that ship was reinforced, Lawrence hastened to ready the Chesapeake for battle. Although the Chesapeake and the Shannon were nearly evenly matched in size and power, the Shannon held a decided advantage over its American counterpart in unit cohesiveness and training, especially gunnery. On June 1st when Lawrence sailed the Chesapeake out to meet the Shannon, he had directed his crew for less than two weeks, while the Shannon’s Captain, Philip Broke, had commanded his vessel for seven years.

This disparity in experience and service gave the well-trained Shannon the edge in the battle that ensued. After a hard-fought, bloody action lasting only a quarter of an hour, the American frigate struck her colors to the Shannon. The victory earned captain Broke a host of honors including a knighthood, while defeat gained Lawrence fame and honor as a fallen naval hero. The words of Lawrence’s last spoken command soon became a battle cry throughout the American fleet, most famously as the motto emblazoning Oliver Hazard Perry’s battle flag at the Battle of Lake Erie: “Don’t Give Up the Ship.”

To memorialize the heroism and honor of his dead friend, Perry invoked the dying command of Captain Lawrence as his personal battle flag to commemorate his memory and rally his men. Perry earned the title "Hero of Lake Erie" for leading American forces in a decisive naval victory at the Battle of Lake Erie, receiving a Congressional Gold Medal and the Thanks of Congress. His leadership materially aided the successful outcomes of all nine Lake Erie military campaign victories and the fleet victory was a turning point in the battle for the west in the War of 1812.

The point to the story is this, even if you make a mistake, jump the gun or fail in your mission; live your life at all times so that those around you will pick up where you falter and carry forward. Hopefully your mistakes won’t cost you your life, but perhaps your words and actions will inspire others to victory. We won’t always win every battle in life but hopefully we will make wise decisions and inspire others to win the war!

As we get ready to bring this year to a close and our eye is turned toward rest, family, and togetherness, I hope you are reminded of all of those around you who are impacted by your decisions. Your impact on their lives can be either positive or negative. I’m hoping you find your battle cry. I am hoping you are rallying your troops. I know that as we charge into a new year your leadership skills will empower others to follow in your footsteps and I know our community will be better because of it!

Merry CHRISTmas everyone and Never, Ever Give Up the Ship!

My research came from http://www.navalhistory.org and Wikipedia.

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* This article was originally printed in the Sunday, December 2, 2012 issue

of The Chronicle's"Planting Seeds" column.

Seek First To Understand

“Better to understand a little than to misunderstand a lot.”

~ Anonymous

Earlier this week I was graciously invited to attend lunch and present to the Ellisville Lions Club. I always enjoy getting out and meeting with our civic clubs and reminding them of all the wonderful things happening in our community. (Shameless plug, I'm available if you need someone to speak for your civic club.) I love to hear it when they say, "Wow! I had no idea we had that much going for us".

As I was preparing to give my usual updates of business openings, upcoming events and reports of how our leadership programs and other initiatives are doing, I ran across a leadership story that I had once read. It is a story I use sometimes with our leadership programs to help them remember it is better to take a moment and understand the whole situation before offering solutions; something we all need to be reminded of from time to time.

(As I told the Lions, I hope you all can get the meaning of the message, but hope none of you can truly relate.)The story goes something like this:

One day a little old and very cute couple walked into the local fast food restaurant. The little old man went up to the counter and ordered their food. He brought back to the table a hamburger, a small amount of fries and a drink.

Carefully he sliced the hamburger in two and then neatly divided the fries into two small piles. He sipped the drink and then passed it to his wife. She took a sip and passed it back.

A younger man at a nearby table observed this couple and began to feel sorry for them. He offered to buy them another meal, but the old man respectfully declined saying that they were used to sharing everything.

The old man began to eat his food while his wife sat still, not eating. The young man continued to watch the old couple feeling there was something he should be doing to help. As the old man finished his half of the burger and fries, the old lady still had not started eating hers.

The young man couldn't take it anymore. He asked, "Ma'am, why aren't you eating?" The old lady looked up and politely said, pointing to the old man, "I'm waiting on the teeth."

I hope you're not waiting on your teeth! You might have the same initial reaction my wife did when I shared this story with her. She laughed and then with a disgusted look on her face said, "Eww, Gross!"

How many times are things not as they appear? Sometimes we are eager to help. We want to help people when they are hurting. We want to do good for others. Sometimes we have to understand what the whole situation is before we do anything. Sometimes, no matter how effective our solution, if the people we are helping don't have their teeth, our help is no good to them.

I urge you to help others. I encourage you, as we enter this time of Thanksgiving and season of joyful giving, that you reach out to those in need. Give and rejoice freely. Give with a generous heart, but realize that you must seek to understand other's situation before you can effectively help them change their situation.

However you give back this holiday season and into the New Year do so with understanding and love. If you do, I know our community will be better off because of it!

Have a safe and happy Thanksgiving filled with friends, family and loved ones as you travel over the river and through the woods!

Larkin

This story is from Mike Rogers at teamworkandleadership

Choosing a Path

“As a single footstep will not make a path on the earth, so a single thought will not make a pathway in the mind. To make a deep physical path, we walk again and again. To make a deep mental path, we must think over and over the kind of thoughts we wish to dominate our lives.”

~ Henry David Thoreau

It’s dark at 5 am. It’s even darker at 5 am in November in the Mississippi Pine Belt. Surrounded by pine trees, the orange hazy glow of street lights play peek-a-boo between the pine needles as the chilly breeze whispers over the hills. Homes are dark. Their tenants and children clinging to sleep trying to liberate the last ounce of dream from their slumber before the day greets them.

I like to walk at 5am. It’s quiet. It’s serene. It’s peaceful. It’s just me and the deer and the road. There are no cars. There is an occasional opossum or barking dog. Those encounters are few and far between. Everyone and everything is hunkered down lost in sleep.

This time of year Summer refuses to release its choking grip on the South as the northern winds infiltrate the overnight hours bringing refreshing cooler air. As the seasons change we get more and more fog at 5am. The other morning as I was walking, I was quickly and without warning enveloped in a thick fog. The fog was so thick I could no longer see the orange glow of the street lights as I passed them.

My visibility was such that I could only see my feet touching the path I was on. I was operating more by touch and memory than by relying on my sight.I thought about stopping my workout, but I didn’t want to let the elements get the best of me. I didn’t want to have an excuse. I wanted to achieve what I had set out to do.

This got me thinking about how we live our lives and how we operate in business. It would have been very easy for me to call my workout off at that moment. I could have said it was too dangerous. The conditions were not right. The benefit did not outweigh the risk. I am sure I could have come up with many excuses (which might have been valid) of why I should not continue down the path toward the goal I had set.

I am sure many of you have been in a scenario similar in business. Things are bumping along like usual, the challenges aren’t difficult but they aren’t easy either.All of a sudden the game changes. You can’t see your way forward. Do you keep pressing on knowing the path is beneath your feet? Do you turn back to what is comfortable and safe?

I am glad I chose to move forward. It was difficult. It was a challenge. It was also a very peaceful and liberating experience. My reward was much greater than when I initially started my workout with full visibility.

I had to trust my instinct. I had to know my path. I had to rely on what I have done many times before to get me safely back home to accomplish my goal.

My path was set out before I took the first step. I knew where I was going before I left the house. I have followed my route many times before. I could most probably do it blindfolded.

What if I had chosen to take a different path that morning? What if I had decided to walk through the woods instead of along the road? Would I have made the same decision? I don’t know.

Do you follow a path that is well known and well-worn or do you have an entrepreneurial spirit? Do you blaze your own path leaving it for others to follow in your footsteps?

As Robert Frost so eloquently stated in his poem The Road Not Taken, “Two roads diverged in a yellow wood/And sorry I could not travel both, And be one traveler”. Many times in our lives we will be faced with three options; follow the well-known path, create a new path, or doing nothing. Whichever you choose, doing nothing is usually never the best option. There are really only two choices: do something or do nothing.

Whichever path leads you on your journey to success, whether familiar and well-worn or a road less traveled, here’s to you finding your path, taking that first step, and never turning back. I know our community will be better off simply because you put one foot in front of the other.

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* This article was originally printed in the Sunday, November 11, 2012 issue

of The Chronicle's"Planting Seeds" column.

We Make a Life by What We Give

"We make a living by what we get. We make a life by what we give.”

~ Sir Winston Churchill

When I was a boy growing up, I would spend almost every weekend with my grandparents in Rosedale. My sister would too (before she got too old for such things). My grandparents lived about 20 miles away. They would pick me up on Fridays from school and I would stay over until daddy came on Saturday to work on whatever project my mother had schemed up or whatever my grandfather was building at the time.

I used to love going to D & Daddy Simp’s (my grandparents). I especially loved to be there during this time of year. Sometime between October and November my grandparents would get in the big J. C. Penny Christmas Catalog. I remember it being huge! We would sit and comb through it page by page marking everything we ever wanted. Toys, games, bikes, (dolls, dresses and girl stuff for my sister) it was great and a memory I will always cherish.

We no longer have that big catalog. We now get year round weekly flyers about every sale and made up “holiday” or event there is. I get tired of those things filling my mailbox. Rarely do I look at them before throwing them out. But Christmas is different. Perhaps it’s because of the time spent on the floor of my grandparents’ house in front of the fire wishing and dreaming of all that could be. Perhaps it’s something else. Whatever the cause; I will typically thumb through several “Christmas” catalogs and flyers.

Rebekah received the Restoration Hardware “Holiday Source Book” the other day. (I will admit I am a fan of Restoration Hardware and desire to have a house full of their furniture and accessories, but alas I have neither the money nor the floor space for everything Rebekah and I want.)

That being said, I was immediately struck by the Chairman’s message on the first page of the catalog. I have included it in its entirety below, as well as the quote from Churchill that started this message.

“We make a living by what we get. We make a life by what we give.”

~ Sir Winston Churchill

“Independent and rebellious with a poor academic record, a noted statesman and orator despite a speech impediment, a well regarded historian, writer and artist, Sir Winston Churchill was arguably one of the most influential business leaders of the last century. He was the only British prime minister to have received the Nobel Prize in Literature, and the first person to be made an Honorary Citizen of the United States.

His quote above defined his view of life. For over 70 years he served, led and fought for his country. His steadfast refusal to consider defeat, surrender or compromise, and his carefully chosen words delivered in speeches and radio broadcasts helped inspire British resistance when standing alone in their active opposition to Adolf Hitler. He gave people hope, inspiration and courage, priceless gifts during difficult times.

Let us also be inspired by Churchill’s words. This holiday season as we consider what to give, let us be reminded that the gift of words, written, spoken, or broadcast; words of appreciation or admiration, affection, respect, gratitude, forgiveness and love can fill an empty heart and ignite the human spirit.

Many of us find ourselves stressed when we consider what to ‘get’ for those we care about during the holidays, when all that really matters is that we ‘give’ something of ourselves.

We’ve worked all year to make a living. Here’s to a season of making a life.

Wishing you and yours love and light this season of giving.

Carpe diem,

Guy Friedman

Chairman Emeritus, Creator & Curator
Restoration Hardware”

I applaud Guy Friedman and Restoration Hardware on their message and I agree with his sentiments on two main points. The first that it is not about what you get. It is about what you give. As this Christmas season approaches, think about how you can give to others; give your words of encouragement and inspiration, give your time, and give your support. Encourage someone. Challenge someone. Mentor someone. Be involved with the lives and success of others. I guarantee you will get more than you give.

The second thing I am a firm believer in is the power of words. Words can cut down but words can also encourage. Make sure that what you are saying (and what you are not saying) is in a positive light for the benefit of others. Even if you have to give someone constructive criticism, do so to the benefit and success of the other person. Make sure your words are enriching and not tearing down.

I know it is a little early for a Christmas message, but as we prepare for all the blessings of this CHRISTmas season and season of Thanksgiving, let us be thankful for those in our lives and those opportunities we have to give and bless others. Let’s make an effort not only now and through the end of the year, but also into 2013 to constantly use our words to encourage and build up those around us.

If you agree to take on this challenge, you will receive over and over so much more than you ever give and our community will be better because of it.

Let me be the first to wish you and your families a Happy Thanksgiving, a Merry CHRISTmas and a lifetime full of joy and blessing!

Larkin

Love What You Do

“If any man seeks greatness, let him forget greatness and ask for truth, and he will find both.”

~ Horace Mann

Do you ever wonder why you do what you do? Do you feel like you are in a dead end job? Feel like you are going nowhere? Are you doing what you love? Are you doing what you want to do? Are you doing what you were meant to do? Is your life segmented into who you are at work and who you are at home? Do you ever question “is this what I was meant to do” or have “I missed my purpose”?

Perhaps you think you have no purpose. Perhaps you think you have no hope of changing your situation and only think the idea of working at what you love is simply that, just an idea. I am here to tell you that maybe, just maybe, it’s your priorities that need to be changed in order to find your true purpose.

Where are your priorities? Are they focused on the things that truly matter to you or are your priorities focused so much on providing and getting by that doing what you truly love is on the back burner?

I know this is going to sound odd coming from a thirty something year old. But when I started my working career I hated what I was doing. I started out in graphic design at a magazine publishing company. I then moved to a University in technology and then to an international technology company that led me to working with rural Mississippi communities. When I finally figured out what I wanted to do, I had no clue what it was even called.

Only through truly assessing what makes me happy and putting my network to use did I come to find what I truly have a passion for and learned what I am good at. I know two things about myself with certainty. I love connecting people and mentoring to them and I love to tell stories. Through my own assessment and finding those two main focuses (among others) was I able to realize how much I love working with communities, working with people, growing business, telling a community’s story and sharing its heritage and culture. All of these things make up Community and Economic Development.

There is a story that one of my first bosses and mentors shared with me early on in my career. I have carried it with me through every job and transition I have had. I keep a laminated copy in my desk so that I always remember to keep my priorities in check.

The story is called “Do You Have Time for a Cup of Coffee”

A professor stood before his philosophy class and had some items in front of him. When the class began, wordlessly, he picked up a very large and empty mayonnaise jar and proceeded to fill it with golf balls.

He then asked the students if the jar was full. They agreed that it was.
The professor then picked up a box of pebbles and poured them into the jar. He shook the jar lightly, and the pebbles rolled into the open areas between the golf balls. He then asked the students again if the jar was full. They agreed again that it was.

The professor next picked up a box of sand and poured it into the jar. Of course, the sand filled up the rest of the space. He asked once more if the jar was full, and his students responded with a unanimous “yes.”

The professor then produced two cups of coffee from under the table and poured the contents of both into the jar, effectively filling the empty space between the grains of sand. The students laughed.

“Now,” said the professor, as the laughter subsided, “I want you to recognize that this jar represents your life. The golf balls are the important things - your family, children, health, friends and your favorite passions; things that, if everything else was lost and only they remained, would still make your life full.”

The pebbles are the other things that matter like your job, your house and your car. The sand is everything else - the small stuff.

“If you put the sand into the jar first,” he continued, “There is no room for the pebbles or the golf balls. The same goes for life. If you spend all your time and energy on the small stuff, you will never have room for the things that are important to you.”

“Pay attention to the things that are critical to your happiness. Play with your children, take time to get medical checkups, take your partner out to dinner and play another 18 holes. 

There will always be time to clean the house and fix the leaky tap. Take care of the golf balls first - the things that really matter. Set your priorities, because the rest is just sand.”
One of the students raised her hand and inquired what the coffee represented.

The professor smiled. “I’m glad you asked. It goes to show you that no matter how full your life may seem to be, that there’s always room for a cup of coffee with a friend.”
48 Days to the Work You Love by Dan Miller and Never Eat Alone by Keith Ferrazzi

Wherever you are in life, whether it is a dead end job or just a job you have taken to make ends meet. If you priorities aren’t aligned with your day to day tasks, stop what you are doing and reevaluate. Find what brings joy into your life. Find what allows you to focus on your priorities.

The new head of the Mississippi Development Authority, Brent Christenson, once said to me, and I am paraphrasing, If you can’t find a job [that you like] find a customer!

Now is a great time to find a side business and to align your priorities with your career. If you can’t find a job that lines up with your priorities and what you want to be when you grow up, go create it! If you love your idea so much that you can make it profitable full time, chances are someone will love it enough to pay for it.

There are two books that, I highly recommend to anyone looking to better their career, get more out of their current job or just find what their priorities are and makes them happy. Check them out and I promise you won’t be disappointed.

Here’s to your success at finding what your priorities are and loving what you do. I know that once those two things come together our community will be better off because of it.

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* This article was originally printed in the Sunday, October 21, 2012 issue of

The Chronicle's"Planting Seeds" column.

To Everything There Is A Season

“What lies behind us and what lies ahead of us are tiny matters compared to what lives within us”

~ Ralph Waldo Emerson

There is something about this time of year I truly love. I am an outdoor-woodsy type. I love being in the outdoors, especially in the fall and winter months. I’m not a big hunter (although I see nothing wrong with it). I would just rather be in the woods camping, hiking or thinking.

As I was running this past Sunday morning at day break I passed a particularly beautiful corner lot in my neighborhood. I’ve passed by this place hundreds of times since moving here and have never given it much thought.

This time as I was passing by, the morning fog was lifting. Dew covered the ground. A fresh blanket of red and yellow leaves had fallen the day before. A few leaves were still falling. A chill was in the air. A sure sign that winter would soon be on the way.

As I watched the leaves fall I was taken back to a comment someone had made in a discussion we were having on integrity. The question was asked, “What happens when someone shakes your tree? Do your leaves fall or do you hold firm to your ideals and morals?”

What a powerful thought?

How firm are you in your convictions and beliefs? Do your ideals change with the times like the trees and the seasons? Are you firmly rooted in what you believe and have justification as to why you believe what you do?  Are you convicted by your inner integrity to do what is right and what is just? Is this how you run your business and interact with others in your community?

This point was driven home for me further when I read an excerpt from the speech, Citizenship in a Republic, delivered by Theodore Roosevelt in 1910.

Roosevelt declares in his delivery, “A number of years ago I was engaged in cattle-ranching on the great plains of the western United States. There were no fences. The cattle wandered free, the ownership of each being determined by the brand; the calves were branded with the brand of the cows they followed. If on the round-up an animal was passed by, the following year it would appear as an unbranded yearling, and was then called a maverick. By the custom of the country these mavericks were branded with the brand of the man on whose range they were found. One day I was riding the range with a newly hired cowboy, and we came upon a maverick. We roped and threw it; then we built a little fire, took out a cinch-ring, heated it at the fire; and the cowboy started to put on the brand. I said to him, ‘It is So-and-so’s brand,’ naming the man on whose range we happened to be. He answered: ‘That’s all right, boss; I know my business.’ In another moment I said to him: ‘Hold on, you are putting on my brand!’ To which he answered: ‘That’s all right; I always put on the boss’s brand.’ I answered: ‘Oh, very well. Now you go straight back to the ranch and get what is owed you; I don’t need you any longer. ’He jumped up and said: ‘Why, what’s the matter? I was putting on your brand.’ And I answered: ‘Yes, my friend, and if you will steal for me you will steal from me.’

Now, the same principle which applies in private life applies also in public life. If a public man tries to get your vote by saying that he will do something wrong in your interest, you can be absolutely certain that if ever it becomes worth his while he will do something wrong against your interest.”

I encourage you to be men (and women) of good moral character. Have integrity in all you do and say. If you say you will do something, do it. If you can’t, say so.

We will soon be electing new leadership to our country. I encourage you all to vote your conscience. But even more strongly, I encourage you to know your convictions and understand why you choose to vote the way you do.

Vote, conduct your business, interact with your community and lead your families with character, integrity and honesty. Don’t be like the leaves of the trees that fall to the ground in a stiff breeze. Hang on to your values and I know our community will be better because of it!

Go vote and happy fall y’all!

Larkin

Oh Bother!

“Promise me you'll never forget me because if I thought you would, I'd never leave.”

~ Piglet

Maybe it’s because I have a three year old at home. Maybe it’s because I am a big kid myself and refuse to grow up. Whatever the case, I always seem to find meaning and purpose when Ethan and I are sitting on the couch watching cartoons.

Thanks to Netflix, Comcast OnDemand, and a host of other “instant access” technologies, I am trying to introduce the boy to some of the classic cartoons I grew up with. I want him to see cartoons that have actual morals and life lessons, unlike the stuff that is on now. We watch the original Mickey Mouse, Tom & Jerry (his mother’s favorite), Looney Toons and even Winnie the Pooh.

Ethan seems to like Winnie the Pooh.

The stories of Winnie the Pooh have been shared by generations for years. Since 1924 when the lovable Pooh Bear was first introduced to the world by writer A. A. Milne, stories of the ragtag gang of friends from the Hundred Acre Wood have been captivating the hearts and imaginations of Millions.

Milne wrote the stories for his son, the actual Christopher RobinMilne. He wrote them based on an actual bear in the London Zoo, Winnipeg, that his son loved to visit. The characters of Piglet, Eeyore, Tigger and Roo were based on the boy’s actual stuffed animals; a pig, a donkey (with no tail), a tiger, and a baby kangaroo.

I am sure you are wondering how this all relates to business and our community. Well, in addition to the life lessons that permeate through the stories, there is a very real lesson we could all learn from the mistakes of author A. A. Milne and his son Christopher Robin.

I have written to you about having passion in what you do and about making an impact on the lives of others. Passion is only effective if it doesn't affect the PURPOSE of your passion. A. A. Milne wanted to create something for his young son. He wanted to be the hero in his son’s eye. (Very much the way many of us parents do).

The mistake Milne made was that Christopher Robin never wanted the stories published. As a young boy Christopher Robin was made fun of at school because the other children thought the stories were factually true about him playing make believe with the stuffed animals.

In addition, Milne was so involved with the writing of the stories that he neglected to spend time with his son. The boy’s childhood was gone before his father realized it. His purpose for doing a good thing for his son was overshadowed by his passion for doing them. His gift, while blessing millions and generations of families, tore apart the only family Milne cared about.

I am a firm believer that you must have a passion for what you do. But you also must not lose focus of your purpose. If your passion and your purpose are not aligned, you may be doing more harm than good.

I sincerely hope you find your passion and I truly hope you find your purpose. Whatever you decide to do, whether it is spending time with your family, giving back to your community through service or growing your business through leadership; I hope your purpose and passion always remain in sight. I know your community will benefit because of it.

Larkin 

These are some of my favorite Winnie the Pooh Quotes

“It is more fun to talk with someone who doesn't use long, difficult words but rather short, easy words like "What about lunch?"”

“If ever there is tomorrow when we're not together… there is something you must always remember. You are braver than you believe, stronger than you seem, and smarter than you think. But the most important thing is, even if we're apart… I’ll always be with you.”

“If you live to be 100, I hope I live to be 100 minus 1 day, so I never have to live without you.”

“When late morning rolls around and you're feeling a bit out of sorts, don't worry; you're probably just a little eleven o'clockish.”

"Well," said Pooh, "what I like best -- " and then he had to stop and think. Because although Eating Honey was a very good thing to do, there was a moment just before you began to eat it which was better than when you were, but he didn't know what it was called”

“Just because an animal is large, it doesn't mean he doesn't want kindness; however big Tigger seems to be, remember that he wants as much kindness as Roo.”