Jean Houston Quotes

To be truly radical is to make hope possible rather than despair convincing.

I wanted to tell people that hope is really powerful.

Be passionate. Be courageous. Be your best.

You may not always have a comfortable life and you will not always be able to solve all of the world's problems at once but don't ever underestimate the importance you can have because history has shown us that courage can be contagious and hope can take on a life of its own.

Many people remember that spirit that President Kennedy summoned forth. Many people look to me as somebody who embodies that sense of possibility.

Cancer has taught me a lot of things. Maybe it is the best thing that has happened to me. I can't say right now, but maybe some years down the line, I would realise. When I was taking chemotherapy, there were a lot of elderly patients, and that would inspire me. I thought, 'If they can be cured, why can't I be?'

Never underestimate the power of dreams and the influence of the human spirit. We are all the same in this notion: The potential for greatness lives within each of us.

The most authentic thing about us is our capacity to create, to overcome, to endure, to transform, to love and to be greater than our suffering.

The point about hope is that it is something that occurs in very dark moments. It is like a flame in the darkness; it isn't like a confidence and a promise.

Let us not curse the darkness. Let us kindle little lights.

The depth of darkness to which you can descend and still live is an exact measure of the height to which you can aspire to reach.

My father once told me when I was a young girl that I was destined to do great things. His belief in my abilities and ambition is rooted deeply in the spirit of Malawians; resilient and determined for a better Malawi and a better Africa.

Hope is the most important four-letter word in the language.

Even in the hardest circumstances, dreams can give you the courage to live, and I hope I can share that message with children in need.

I feel like Obama in a way. His idea that hope means not shrinking from a fight; it's the courage to reach for something. My music is that. Those are principles I try to embody.

Hope is not a form of guarantee; it's a form of energy, and very frequently that energy is strongest in circumstances that are very dark.

Through the potent example of his own life, President Obama enabled us to believe the best about America, and, therefore, about ourselves. That uplifting narrative - essentially equating the promise of America with his extraordinary life story - swept candidate Obama into the presidency.

My big inspiration for hope is the courage that I read about from people from all over the world, or that I see on a daily basis from the kids I get to work with.

If you can see the magic in a fairytale, you can face the future.

I have an incredible confidence in the resilience of the human spirit and the creative ability of the Holy Spirit. So, if you can get people asking the right questions, it really will start moving in the right direction.

The courage to imagine the otherwise is our greatest resource, adding color and suspense to all our life.

With the new day comes new strength and new thoughts.

A person, who no matter how desperate the situation, gives others hope, is a true leader.

I know that there are a lot of people out there with stories far worse than mine but you, too, can make it. To those of you who have, welcome to life. I celebrate you.

I thought, if ever there were a time to write a book about hope, it's now.