„Der ist der Herr der Erde,
wer ihre Tiefen misst,
und jeglicher Beschwerde
in ihrem Schoß vergisst.
Wer ihrer Felsenglieder
geheimen Bau versteht
und unverdrossen nieder
zu ihrer Werkstatt geht.
Er ist mit ihr verbündet
und inniglich vertraut
und wird von ihr entzündet,
als wär’ sie seine Braut.
Er sieht ihr alle Tage
mit neuer Liebe zu
und scheut nicht Fleiß noch Plage;
sie lässt ihm keine Ruh’.
Die mächtigen Geschichten
der längstverfloss’nen Zeit
ist sie ihm zu berichten
mit Freundlichkeit bereit.“
„Black care rarely sits behind a rider whose pace is fast enough.“
„The world will little note, nor long remember what we say here, but it can never forget what they did here. It is for us the living, rather, to be dedicated here to the unfinished work which they who fought here have thus far so nobly advanced. It is rather for us to be here dedicated to the great task remaining before us: – that from these honored dead we take increased devotion to that cause for which they gave the last full measure of devotion – that we here highly resolve that these dead shall not have died in vain.“
„It is incumbent on us, the survivors, to do a thorough analysis of volcanological data collected at risk of tragedy.“
„Oh, misty eye of the mountain below,
keep careful watch of my brothers’ souls.
And should the sky be filled with fire and smoke,
keep watching over Durin's sons.
If this is to end in fire
then we should all burn together.
Watch the flames climb high into the night.
[....]
Calling out father, oh.
Prepare as we will
watch the flames burn auburn on
the mountain side.
Desolation comes upon the sky.
Now I see fire
inside the mountain.
I see fire
burning the trees.
And I see fire
hollowing souls.
I see fire,
blood in the breeze.
And I hope that you remember me.
Oh, should my people fall
then surely I’ll do the same.
Confined in mountain halls
we got too close to the flame.
[...]“
„Again, you can’t connect the dots looking forward; you can only connect them looking backward. So you have to trust that the dots will somehow connect in your future. You have to trust in something – your gut, destiny, life, karma, whatever. This approach has never let me down, and it has made all the difference in my life. [...] Sometimes life hits you in the head with a brick. Don’t lose faith. [...] You’ve got to find what you love. [...] Your work is going to fill a large part of your life, and the only way to be truly satisfied is to do what you believe is great work. And the only way to do great work is to love what you do. If you haven’t found it yet, keep looking. Don’t settle. As with all matters of the heart, you’ll know when you find it. And, like any great relationship, it just gets better and better as the years roll on. So keep looking until you find it. Don’t settle. [...] I have looked in the mirror every morning and asked myself: ‚If today were the last day of my life, would I want to do what I am about to do today?‘ And whenever the answer has been ‚No‘ for too many days in a row, I know I need to change something. [...] Your time is limited, so don’t waste it living someone else’s life. Don’t be trapped by dogma – which is living with the results of other people’s thinking. Don’t let the noise of others’ opinions drown out your own inner voice. And most important, have the courage to follow your heart and intuition. They somehow already know what you truly want to become. Everything else is secondary.“
