Quotes by Dan Groat

Memories with laughter are the best ones to keep.

He knew that prejudice was a necessary part of the weak spirit of some men.

It’s as close to true freedom as I have come. Not freedom of, but freedom from; freedom from the debris of life that piles up and forces us to dig and dig for our original self, who we were once upon a time, innocent and wonderfully naïve, as authentically pure as a human can be.

Time does not heal, but it can liberate. A race run well can never be lost.

Hope was always hard to find in the darkness.

Doing without will wear on you until temptation is stronger than character, sometimes.

Evil won’t leave you alone until you take a stand or until you’re dead.

Evil stinks and it doesn’t disappear just because you want it to. You can still smell it with your eyes closed.

There is no end to the hatred in men, but there is an end to the hatred in a man. If your hatred is just, and deeds will get you to the end of it, then go and do what must be done.

We learn to love when we’re young. If we learn hating better, it has to go somewhere. We can hate ourselves or we can hate somebody else. Most people would rather hate somebody else.

I assumed that looking back reminded older guys of what they had shot at and missed, the what-ifs, the good memories, the bad, the people left behind, the people who moved on.

I don’t know how a reporter would ever understand a politician. Your job is supposed to be about finding the truth and enlightening people. Right? A politician’s job is about hiding the truth and fooling people. Right? You want us to be better informed so we get smarter. They think we’re dumb and it’s to their advantage to keep us that way.

How do we keep convincing young people to die in fights they didn’t start for reasons we’re too devious to tell the truth about? It’s way too easy for governments to spend other people’s blood. Maybe only the sons and daughters of those who declare the wars should be allowed to fight and die.

People don’t die so the universe can gauge your reaction. They die because life is finite.

Human thought and human caring go on in one brain and one heart at a time. Groups are necessary. Regulations are necessary. Government, I would hope limited government, is necessary. But it all starts with the individual. Everything that is accomplished starts with one person, even if the group steps in and helps; it’s still one brain and one heart at a time.

A hopeful journey is more important than the destination.

Men who have been in war have a different attitude about being wronged.

Back home. What wonderful words. What a wonderful place.

I wish but to share your gifts as a young boy on his birthday would excitedly rip open his packages to the view of others.

My world was very limited in size and experience. Small things took on extra importance, at least to a child.