Amazon.com description: Product Description: This book is a collection of seventy-seven short essays written by Dr. Allen W. Smith that borrow bits of wisdom from throughout the ages. The essays, which start with a short quotation to set the theme, are designed to inspire and comfort readers, as well as to stimulate some deep thinking about some very ordinary ideas. The essays were previously published as installments of Dr. Smith's weekly syndicated newspaper column, "CONTEMPLATING LIFE," which was first launched in July 1994 and was appearing in 14 newspapers in seven states at the beginning of the new millennium. The essays can be read in any order since each one stands alone. Readers who are looking for something specific can get a general idea of the content of each essay from its lead quotation. A list of the theme-setting lead quotations is provided at the beginning of the book. Below are a few examples:

"Each day the world is born anew for him who takes it rightly."--James Russell Lowell

"There is no higher religion than human service. To work for the common good is the greatest creed."--Albert Schweitzer

"I am only one, but still I am one; I cannot do everything, but still I can do something."--Helen Keller

"Learn the sweet magic of a cheerful face--not always smiling, but at least serene."--Oliver Wendell Holmes

"Love is the only service that power cannot command and money cannot buy."--Serbian Proverb