Tradition says that when Solomon received the gift of an emerald vase from the Queen of Sheba he filled it with an elixir which he only knew how to prepare, one drop of which would prolong life indefinitely. A dying criminal begged for a drop of the precious fluid, but Solomon refused to prolong a wicked life. When good men asked for it they were refused, or failed to obtain it when promised, as the king would forget or prefer not to open the vase to get but a single drop. When at last the king became ill, and bade his servants bring the vase, he found that the contents had all evaporated. So it is often with our hope, our faith, our ambition, our aspiration.
A man cannot aspire if he looks down. God has not created us with aspirations and longings for heights to which we cannot climb. Live upward. The unattained still beckons us toward the summit of life’s mountains, into the atmosphere where great souls live and breathe and have their being. Life should be lived in earnest. It is no idle game, no farce to amuse and be forgotten. It is a stern reality, fuller of duties than the sky of stars. You cannot have too much of that yearning which we call aspiration, for, even though you do not attain your ideal, the efforts you make will bring nothing but blessing.
To all will come a time when the love of glory will be seen to be but a splendid delusion, riches empty, rank vain, power dependent, and all outward advantages without inward peace a mere mockery of wretchedness. The wisest men have taken care to uproot selfish ambition from their breasts. Shakespeare considered it so near a vice as to need extenuating circumstances to make it a virtue.
Who has not noticed the power of love in an awkward, crabbed, shiftless, lazy man? He becomes gentle, chaste in language, energetic. Love brings out the poetry in him. It is only an idea, a sentiment, and yet what magic it has brought. Nothing we can see has touched the man, yet he is entirely transformed.
But do not strive to reach impossible goals. It is wholly in your power to develop yourself, but not necessarily so to make yourself a king. How many Presidents of the United States or Prime Ministers of England are chosen within the working lifetime of a man? What if a thousand young men resolve to become President or Prime Minister? While such prizes are within your reach, remember that your will must be tremendous and your qualifications of the highest order, or you cannot hope to secure them. Too many are deluded by ambition beyond their power of attainment, or tortured by aspirations totally disproportionate to their capacity for execution. You may, indeed, confidently hope to become eminent in usefulness and power, but only as you build upon a broad foundation of self-culture; while, as a rule, specialists in ambition as in science are apt to become narrow and one-sided. Darwin was very fond of poetry and music when young, but after devoting his life to science, he was surprised to find Shakespeare tedious. He said that if he were to live his life again, he would read poetry and hear music every day, so as not to lose the power of appreciating such things.
Man never reaches heights above his habitual thought. It is not enough now and then to mount on wings of ecstasy into the infinite. We must habitually dwell there. The great man is he who abides easily on heights to which others rise occasionally and with difficulty. Don’t let the maxims of a low prudence daily dinned into your ears lower the tone of your high ambition or check your aspirations. Hope lifts us step by step up the mysterious ladder, the top of which no eye hath ever seen. Though we do not find what hope promised, yet we are stronger for the climbing, and we get a broader outlook upon life which repays the effort. Indeed, if we do not follow where hope beckons, we gradually slide down the ladder in despair. Strive ever to be at the top of your condition.
在圣赫勒拿，拿破仑曾对蒙托洛说：“亚历山大、恺撒、查理曼还有我自己都曾建立帝国，但我们天赋的创造基于什么之上？是武力。只有耶稣基督在爱的基础上建起了他的帝国，因而此刻有无数的人愿为他而死。我将提早离开人世，而我的躯体也将回归尘埃。这便是那个号称‘伟大的拿破仑’的命运。在我深深的痛苦和耶稣基督永恒的帝国之间，有着怎样的一道深渊啊！那永恒的帝国表明了，爱慕与崇敬可以遍布整个地球。”
传说，所罗门（以色列国王）收到示巴女王所赠的翡翠瓶后，便在瓶内装满了只有他自己才知道配方的长生不老药，而这种药只需一滴便可无限地延长寿命。一个垂死的罪犯曾向他乞求一滴珍贵的灵药，但所罗门拒绝了，他不愿延长一个罪恶的生命。而好人去求灵药时，或被拒绝，或得到允诺却迟迟拿不到药，因为国王总会忘记或根本不愿打开瓶子，哪怕只是一滴药。最终国王病倒了，他吩咐仆人拿来翡翠瓶，发现里面的灵药早已全部蒸发。所以说，所谓的灵药通常都承载着我们的希望、信念、雄心和渴望。
一个垂头丧气的人无法拥有雄心壮志。上帝创造我们时，并没有给我们对于无法攀登的高度所需的热望和期待。乐观向上地生活，因为那些不曾得到的一切依然召唤着我们朝生命的巅峰前进，到伟大灵魂生活、呼吸、存在的地方去。生活就应该满怀热情。它不是懒惰的游戏，也不是可以轻易忘却的搞笑闹剧，它是严肃的现实，满载着比天上繁星更多的责任。你无法拥有太多的渴望，因为即使无法实现自己的理想，你的努力也不会付诸东流，而是会收获祝福。
终有一天，我们都会明白：财富、地位、权势等一切世间的浮华仅仅是过眼云烟，如果无法得到内心的那份宁静，一切外在的优势也不过是其悲惨境遇的笑柄而已。睿智的人会将心中自私的野心斩草除根。莎士比亚认为，应采取措施将这近乎罪恶的野心转变为一种美德。
当一个笨拙、暴戾、无能、懒惰的人满怀爱的力量，谁会注意不到呢？他会变得举止优雅、言语谦和、精力充沛。爱会激发出他内心的诗意。那或许只是一个念头、一种情感，但它起到了神奇的作用。我们并不知道是什么影响了他，但他发生了翻天覆地的转变。
然而，不要为了那些不切实际的目标而努力。的确，你有着巨大的潜能，但不能因此就想成为国王。在劳动生涯中被选为美国总统或英国首相的人又有几个呢？就算有无数年轻人想成为总统或首相，那又怎样？当你有能力争取这些令人向往的荣誉时，切记：你必须非常杰出，而且必须拥有最高等级的资格，否则，你就没有希望得到它们。太多的人都被他们能力之外的野心所迷惑，或深受无法实现的渴望的折磨。当然，你可以满怀信心地在能力与权力方面变得杰出，前提是你必须在自身修养上打好坚实的基础。然而，那些专注于雄心的人和专注于科学的人，都容易变得狭隘、片面。达尔文年轻时，非常喜爱诗歌与音乐，然而当他投身于科学后，却惊讶地发现莎士比亚曾感受到的沉闷与无聊。他说，如果上天再给他一次生命，他会每天朗读诗歌，聆听音乐，以防失去欣赏这些美好事物的能力。
人永远无法超越他惯有的思维水平。偶尔骑上狂想的翅膀，畅游在无限的宇宙，是远远不够的。我们必须习惯在那里居住。伟人之所以成为伟人，是因为他们能毫不费力地坚守在别人艰难且偶尔才能到达的高度。不要让胆小懦弱的座右铭终日徘徊在你的耳旁，它们会压低你雄心壮志的声音或阻碍你的渴望。在希望的引导下，我们一步步踏上神秘的阶梯，而这阶梯的顶端却不曾有人见过。虽然我们并没有发现希望的任何承诺，但在攀登中变得更为强壮，同时拓宽了生活的视野，这也是努力所得的回报。的确，如果不曾跟随希望的引导，我们就会在绝望的阶梯上慢慢滑落。因此要不断奋斗，让自己达到最佳状态。
心灵小语
