To Live Deep

I went to the woods because I wished to live deliberately, to front only the essential facts of life, and see if I could not learn what it had to teach, and not, when I came to die, discover that I had not lived. I did not wish to live what was not life, living is so dear; nor did I wish to practise resignation, unless it was quite necessary. I wanted to live deep and suck out all the marrow of life, to live so sturdily and Spartan-like as to put to rout all that was not life, to cut a broad swath and shave close, to drive life into a corner, and reduce it to its lowest terms, and, if it proved to be mean, why then to get the whole and genuine meanness of it, and publish its meanness to the world; or if it were sublime, to know it by experience...

-- Walden
H.D. Thoreau


This bit seems to whisper inspiration to me for living deliberately. For living simply. For just living. I have read it several times on Rhonda's blog. I've heard it quoted in movies like Dead Poet's Society, and seen it referenced in various books.

I've been reading Walden the last few days, and found it to be very interesting and inspiring to live exactly how I've wanted to. Our library has some lovely old copies, which I shall photograph at some point. (I'm always in the library these days, it seems. More than normal, I mean.)