difficulty

The difficulties, hardships and trials of life, the obstacles one encounters on the road to fortune are positive blessings. They knit the muscles more firmly, and teach self-reliance. Peril is the element in which power is developed.

Gardening is a luxury occupation: an ornament, not a necessity, of life. . . . Fortunate gardener, who may preoccupy himself solely with beauty in these difficult and ugly days! He is one of the few people left in this distressful world to carry on the tradition of elegance and charm. A useless member of society, considered in terms of economics, he must not be denied his rightful place. He deserves to share it, however humbly, with the painter and poet.

It is often difficult to change circumstances, but a positive attitude can help lift discouragement.

Why are husbands like lawn mowers? They are difficult to get started, emit foul smells, and don't work half the time.

It is difficult to get a man to understand something when his salary depends upon his not understanding it.

It isn't that what we're told to do is too difficult - it only seems so when compared to how easily we do nothing.

In a world of envy and struggle and animosity, the united nations will continue to be confronted with difficult problems. But as it faces and meets each challenge it gains strength. If it surmounts the challenges it faces today, it will be stronger tomorrow, and the more able to tackle and perhaps solve what appear now to be insurmountable problems.

It is difficult for sorrow to intrude on a busy life.

It is difficult to place a monetary value on the many vital services that trees provide. However, the California Department of Forestry and Fire Protection calculates that a single tree that lives for fifty years will contribute service worth nearly $200,000 (in 1994 dollars) to the community during its lifetime. This includes providing oxygen ($31,250), recycling water and regulating humidity ($37,000), controlling air pollution ($62,500), producing protein ($2,500), providing shelter for wildlife ($31,250), and controlling land erosion and fertilizing the soil ($31,250).

Sooner or later, a man, if he is wise, discovers that life is a mixture of good days and bad, victory and defeat, give and take. He learns that it doesn't pay to let things get his goat; that he must let some things go over his head like water off a duck's back. He learns that carrying a chip on his shoulder is the quickest way to get into a fight. He learns that buck-passing acts as a boomerang. He learns that carrying tales and gossip about others is the surest way to become unpopular. He learns that giving others a mental lift by showing appreciation and praise is the best way to lift his own spirits. He learns that the world will not end when he fails or makes an error; that there is always another day and another chance. He learns that listening is frequently more important than talking, and that he can often make a friend by letting the other fellow tell his troubles. He learns that all men have burnt toast for breakfast now and then, and that he shouldn't let their grumbling get him down. He learns that people are not any more difficult to get along with in one place than another, and that "getting along" depends about 98 per cent on his own behavior.