Without hurry, without rest, the human spirit goes forth from the beginning to embody every faculty, every thought, every emotion, which belongs to it in appropriate events.
From History, First Series by Ralph Waldo Emerson
If there is nothing else to take away from Emerson, it is the universality of human experience. He encourages reading in order to experience the thoughts of those who have written. He encourages conversation in order to feel how another may feel.
I can find Greece, Asia, Italy, Spain and the Islands - the genius and creative principle of each and of all eras in my own mind.
Wow.
Every mind must know the whole lesson for itself - must go over the whole ground.
In other words, there are no short-cuts.
History is useful as a reference, but not as a guide. Blanket application of past experiences to current dilemmas will not suffice.
