“Steer your boat with justice: forge A tongue on truth's anvil.”

“The compass simply represents the ideal, present but unachievable, and sight-steering a compromise with perfection which allows your boat to exist at all.”

“Tell people the hammered truth, and it will ring like steel against an anvil.”

“Life's a forge! Yes, and hammer and anvil, too! You'll be roasted, smelted, and pounded, and you'll scarce know what's happening to you. But stand boldly to it! Metal's worthless till it's shaped and tempered! More labor than luck. Face the pounding, don't fear the proving; and you'll stand well against any hammer and anvil.”

“Time is like this boat that you are on. You can't see who is steering it, but it is taking you to weird unknown and sometimes awful or terrifying places.”

“You'll find truth in your looking glass, not on the tongues of men.”