"The mountain of books ...."

The mountain of books has a road, but it takes diligence to climb.

The ocean of knowledge has no shores and it’s bitter work to sail the boat.

Han Yu

On learning

At fifteen, I set my mind on learning.  At thirty, I stood firm.  At forty, I had no doubts.  At fifty, I knew heaven’s commands.  At sixty, my ear obeyed the truth.  At seventy, I followed what my heart desired – without transgressing what was right.

Confucius

"There is pleasure in the pathless woods ...."

There is pleasure in the pathless woods, there is rapture in the lonely shore, there is society where none intrudes, by the deep sea, and music in its roar; I love not Man the less, but Nature more.

Lord Byron

"... from a wild animal ...."

"... from a wild animal ... I might learn something of mindlessness, something of the purity of living in the physical senses and the dignity of living without bias or motive."

"Just living is not enough ...."

Just living is not enough... one must have sunshine, freedom, and a little flower.

Hans Christian Andersen

"The bright moon rises ...."

The bright moon rises from the sea:

sky and cliff join in one moment.

My love’s so distant in this dark,

All night I think how we’re apart.

Lamp snuffed, I gaze at the full moon

and drape my cloak as the dew grows.

Unable to share what I feel:

To bed to dream of better times.

“Looking at the Moon, Thinking of One Far Away”, Zhang Jiuling