"We are all in the gutter, but some of us are looking at the stars."

"We all have that heritage, no matter what old land our fathers left. All colors and blends of Americans have somewhat the same tendencies. It's a breed-selected out by accident. And so we're overbrave and overfearful-we're kind and cruel as children. We're overfriendly and at the same time frightened of strangers. We boast and are impressed. We're oversentimental and realistic. We are mundane and materialistic-and do you know of any other nation that acts for ideals? We eat too much. We have no taste, no sense of proportion. We throw our energy about like waste. In the old lands they say of us that we go from barbarism to decadence without an intervening culture."

We are human and therefore contradictory by nature. Good and evil lies within us all. BUT we are not inherently either. How we CHOOSE to live our lives is what really matters. Lee and Samuel know this. So they spent a good part of their lives trying to impart this on those they cared about. Unfortunately, this is a lesson that, for the most part, needs to be learned.

This is really just a long way to sum up the idea of Timshel - thou mayest. But it's true. WE are the only ones that have control over our lives. And despite what is done or happens to us, it is how we react that determines are character.

So, take a deep breath, center yourself and live. Because thou mayest ...

NB: My good pal Oscar Wilde knew what was up as well. I just had to give a shout out.