Top 100 Henry van Dyke Quotes (2025 Update)

1. “Time is too slow for those who wait, too swift for those who fear, too long for those who grieve, too short for those who rejoice, but for those who love, time is eternity.”

— Henry van Dyke

Featured in: Time Quotes, Sweet Quotes, Appreciation Quotes, Meaning of Life Quotes, Valentine's Day Quotes

2. “Some succeed because they are destined to, but most succeed because they are determined to.”

— Henry van Dyke

3. “Use what talents you possess; the woods would be very silent if no birds sang there except those that sang best.”

— Henry van Dyke

Featured in: Be Yourself Quotes, Cute Quotes, Quotes About Skills

4. “If only the best birds sang, the forest would be silent.”

— Henry van Dyke

5. “Hours fly, Flowers die: New days, New ways: Pass by! Love stays.”

— Henry van Dyke

Featured in: Flower Quotes

6. “Those who would see wonderful things must often be ready to travel alone.”

— Henry van Dyke

7. “The first day of spring is one thing, and the first spring day is another. The difference between them is sometimes as great as a month.”

— Henry van Dyke

8. “Some people are so afraid do die that they never begin to live.”

— Henry van Dyke

9. “I shall grow old, but never lose life’s zest, because the road’s last turn will be the best.”

— Henry van Dyke

10. “There is a loftier ambition than merely to stand high in the world. It is to stoop down and lift mankind a little higher.”

— Henry van Dyke

11. “Four things a man must learn to do If he would make his record true; To think without confusion clearly; To love his fellowmen sincerely; To act from honest motives purely; To trust in God and Heav’n securely.”

— Henry van Dyke

12. “There is a better thing than the observance of Christmas day, and that is, keeping Christmas.”

— Henry van Dyke

13. “As long as habit and routine dictate the pattern of living, new dimensions of the soul will not emerge.”

— Henry van Dyke

14. “Every house where love abides And friendship is a guest, Is surely home, and home sweet home For there the heart can rest.”

— Henry van Dyke

15. “Love is not getting, but giving; It is goodness, and honor, and peace and pure living.”

— Henry van Dyke

16. “Faith is an adventure; it is the courage of the soul to face the unknown. But that courage springs from the hope and confidence of the soul that its adventure will succeed.”

— Henry van Dyke

17. “Be glad of life because it gives you the chance to love, to work, to play, and to look up at the stars.”

— Henry van Dyke

18. “Love is the best thing in the world, and the thing that lives the longest.”

— Henry van Dyke

19. “Gratitude is the inward feeling of kindness received. Thankfulness is the natural impulse to express that feeling. Thanksgiving is the following of that impulse.”

— Henry van Dyke

20. “Life is an arrow, therefore you must know What mark to aim at, how to use the bow – Then draw it to the head and let it go!”

— Henry van Dyke

21. “Love is not about getting – but giving.”

— Henry van Dyke

22. “Who seeks for heaven alone to save his soul, May keep the path, but will not reach the goal; While he who walks in love may wander far, Yet God will bring him where the blessed are.”

— Henry van Dyke

23. “In the progress of personality, first comes a declaration of independence, then a recognition of interdependence.”

— Henry van Dyke

24. “There are many kinds of love, as many kinds of light, And every kind of love makes a glory in the night. There is love that stirs the heart, and love that gives it rest, But the love that leads life upward is the noblest and the best.”

— Henry van Dyke

25. “A friend is what the heart needs all the time.”

— Henry van Dyke

26. “What is Fortune, what is Fame? Futile gold and phantom name- Riches buried in a cave, Glory written on a grave.”

— Henry van Dyke

27. “It is better to burn the candle at both ends, and in the middle, too, than to put it away in the closet and let the mice eat it.”

— Henry van Dyke

28. “What you possess in the world will be found at the day of your death to belong to someone else. But what you are will be yours forever.”

— Henry van Dyke

29. “Gratitude is a two fold love – love coming to visit us, and love running out to greet a welcome guest.”

— Henry van Dyke

30. “Happiness is inward, and not outward; and so, it does not depend on what we have, but on what we are.”

— Henry van Dyke

31. “Look around for a place to sow a few seeds.”

— Henry van Dyke

32. “Be grateful for the tiny details of your life and make room for unexpected and beautiful blessings.”

— Henry van Dyke

33. “You can never begin to live until you dare to die.”

— Henry van Dyke

34. “Self is the only prison that can ever bind the soul.”

— Henry van Dyke

35. “Not to the swift, the race: Not to the strong, the fight: Not to the righteous, perfect grace: Not to the wise, the light. But often faltering feet Come surest to the goal; And they who walk in darkness meet The sunrise of the soul.”

— Henry van Dyke

Featured in: Strong Quotes

36. “Love is the heart s immortal thirst to be completely known and all forgiven.”

— Henry van Dyke

37. “Let me but find it in my heart to say, When vagrant wishes beckon me astray, “This is my work; my blessing, not my doom; Of all who live, I am the one by whom This work can best be done in the right way.””

— Henry van Dyke

38. “Courage is the standing army of the soul which keeps it from conquest, pillage, and slavery.”

— Henry van Dyke

39. “Jazz: Music invented for the torture of imbeciles.”

— Henry van Dyke

40. “Heaven is blessed with perfect rest but the blessing of earth is toil.”

— Henry van Dyke

41. “Deeds not Words: I say so too! And yet I find it somehow true, A word may help a man in need, To nobler act and braver deed.”

— Henry van Dyke

42. “Even if we should find another Eden, we would not be fit to enjoy it perfectly nor stay in it forever.”

— Henry van Dyke

43. “What do I owe my father? Everything!”

— Henry van Dyke

44. “Oh, London is a man’s town, there’s power in the air; And Paris is a woman’s town, with flowers in her hair; And it’s sweet to dream in Venice, and it’s great to study Rome; But when it comes to living, there is no place like home.”

— Henry van Dyke

45. “Natural beauty and wonder are priceless heirlooms which God has bestowed upon our nation. How shall we escape the contempt of the coming generation if we suffer this irreplaceable heritage to be wasted?”

— Henry van Dyke

46. “The birth of Jesus is the sunrise in the Bible.”

— Henry van Dyke

47. “The strength of your life is measured by the strength of your will.”

— Henry van Dyke

48. “Oh, it’s home again and home again, America for me! I want a ship that’s westward bound to plough the rolling sea To the blessed land of Room Enough beyond the ocean bars, Where the air is full of sunlight and the flag is full of stars.”

— Henry van Dyke

49. “One truly affectionate soul in a family will evert a sweetening and harmonizing influence upon all its members.”

— Henry van Dyke

50. “We measure success by accumulation. The measure is false. The true measure is appreciation. He who loves most has most.”

— Henry van Dyke