Does it ever bug you that nobody ever whips out a pad and pen to write down some of the clever things you say? Well, it does me. I sit around chewing on a wheat straw and thinking about deep subjects. Then I climb up on a stump or a soap box and orate and my smart ideas just drift off into the ether. I never see anybody writing down my wit and wisdom to preserve it for posterity. I'd like to appoint someone to be my official biographer when I'm gone. But nobody's taking any notes. It's downright discouraging.

     On the other hand, I’m an avid quote collector. I'm forever making notes. It’s a great way to stimulate the gray matter in your skull. Take an interesting thought from someone and chase it into the thicket of your own imagination. It’s a great way to grow. Let’s have some fun today. Listed below are some brief quotes from nine women: Alice Walker, Anais Nin, Mae West, Adela Rogers St. Johns, Dorothy Sayers, Anne Morrow Lindbergh, Ann Landers, Annie Dillard, Anouk Aimee. See how many quotes you can match to the correct speaker. Be careful not look at the answers at the bottom of the page until you have finished. I have added a comment to each.

1. “Anybody can observe the Sabbath but making it holy takes the rest of the week.” This observation is inspired by the third commandment. This is, I think, the hardest commandment to obey.
2. “I walk ahead of myself in perpetual expectancy of miracles.” Is "perpetual expectancy" akin to the biblical injunction to "praying without ceasing"?
3. “A schedule defends from chaos and whim.” Isn't it true? A bit of planning prevents lots of wasted motion.
4. “People who drink to drown their sorrows should be told that sorrow knows how to swim.” How odd to take a depressant to try to ease depression.

5. “The most exhausting thing you can do is to be inauthentic.” To be phony will wear one out in a hurry.
6. "Between two evils I always pick the one I never tried before.” This certainly is a twist on the old adage about choosing the lesser of two evils.
7. “There is so little difference between husbands, you might as well keep the first.” There are at least a few other good reasons to keep the first one. But what do I know about that? My beloved has kept me for fifty years.
8. "You can only perceive real beauty in persons as they get older.” I can say amen to that!
9. “I always have a quotation for everything. It saves original thinking.” I beg to differ with that quote. I think a good quote can be like rocket fuel propelling us on an exciting flight into inner space.

     How did you do at connecting speakers with their comments? I hope this little exercise will inspire you to read these writers. They are all gifted writers and challenging thinkers. I like feisty females and they all fit that description. Especially the actress Mae West. She wasn't much of a writer but she was never lacking for a bawdy one-liner. Write your own commentary on their thoughts. Who knows, I might add some of your quotes to my collection!

Answers: 1. Alice Walker; 2. Anais Nin; 3. Annie Dillard; 4. Ann Landers; 5. Anne Morrow Lindberg; 6. Mae West; 7. Adela Rogers St. Johns; 8. Anouk Aimee; 9. Dorothy Sayers

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