WIST

Suicidal glory is the luxury of the irresponsible. We’re not giving up. We’re waiting for a better opportunity to win.

Lois McMaster Bujold (b. 1949) American author
Barrayar (1991)

All great human deeds both consume and transform their doers. Consider an athlete, or a scientist, or an artist, or an independent business creator. In service of their goals they lay down time and energy and many other choices and pleasures; in return, they become most truly themselves. A false destiny may be spotted by the fact that it consumes without transforming, without giving back the enlarged self. Become a parent is one of these basic human transformational deeds. By this act, we change our fundamental relationship with the universe — if nothing else, we lose our place as the pinnacle and end-point of evolution, and become a mere link.

Lois McMaster Bujold (b. 1949) American author
Cordelia’s Honor, “Afterword” (1996)