Time for school, let’s read some more!

You know I like to read a lot. My reading has taken a back seat recently, but I still am able to find some enticing lines to provoke one’s thinking anyway.

And that’s almost as good as reading a book.

A small sip of blackberry libation with a bite or two of those angelic apple dumpling delights from the Benevola church are friendly companions.

If you don’t have either, I extend my solicitude.

And I thought I might proffer this little exercise to stir your thinking. You don’t have to tell me, really, if or how you think, but imagine your brain cells tugging up a Dargan hill like that little engine that could.

Or maybe you can pretend you’re in a fifth-grade classroom and yearning to discover more about life in a world outside the window.

Perhaps your IQ will be enriched by a few of these tiny nuggets too, or maybe not, that I discovered on social media.

"The most valuable lineman are not in the NFL; they are climbing poles down in Florida." (This refers to power company workers restoring utilities following Hurricane Ian.)

"Kindness is like snow; it beautifies everything it covers." I like that one.

"Who knows why we were taught to fear witches, and not them who burnt them alive."

More:Breaker 1-9, we got an alligator station talkin' turkey hearses and Barney Fife. Come on?

‘Do you remember in October of 1962 when President Kennedy established the naval blockade around Cuba to prevent the Russians from bringing in more military supplies so close to America’s shore? Just wondering here if Russian President Putin might have learned a thing or two from Kennedy’s playbook?"

"Never forget: 'If we learn nothing else from this tragedy, we learn that life is short and there is no time for hate.' — Sandy Dahl, wife of Flight 93 pilot Jason Dahl"

"The average dog is nicer than the average person." My fond memories of dogs Pebbles and Plato seem to confirm this thought.

"How many nuclear weapons would be needed to destroy the world? According to a 1947 Los Alamos study, it would take some 10 to a 100 ‘super nukes’ to destroy humanity … as of 2019 there were an estimated 13,000 nuclear weapons on planet earth."

"'This would be a great time in the world for a man to come along that knew something.' — Will Rodgers."

"One moment of patience may ward off great disaster. One moment of impatience may destroy the entire world." That's a troubling omen.

"A great man is hard on himself; a small man is hard on others."

"‘Never underestimate the power of stupid people in large groups.’ — George Carlin." I often think of some American voters as I ponder this one.

"The further society drifts from the truth, the more it will hate those who speak it."

These little one-liners are most provoking to some and totally oblivious to others. Some of these gems often create my own pause so I can measure humanity’s progress.

A tiny sip and another bite of dumpling do the very same thing; please permit me to contemplate a few more items scraped from online.

"‘Clocks go back on November 6; I hope mine goes back to when people had Morals, Values, Loyalty, Appreciation and Respect."

"Don’t be fooled — the really true Christians in life are those who are forgiving and not mean to others. How to identify a real Christian? 'You will know them by their love.'"

"'If wisdom and diamonds grew on the same tree, we could soon tell how much men loved wisdom.' — Lemuel K. Washburn."

"'The best way to cheer yourself up is to try and cheer somebody else up.’ — Mark Twain."

"The saddest three words in the English language — Rest in Peace."

As I sit here in my den at 3:34 n the morning, I am reminded of this one attributed to Elbert Hubbard: “Life: the insomnia of death."

"'Life without love is like a tree without blossoms or fruit.' — Kahlil Gibran."

Are you still remembering that fifth-grade classroom, the things you studied, and those many other lessons you learned beyond the schoolhouse?

Even life has a mystical way of displaying its love and affection along a simple honeysuckle path. Ever stop to notice?

When you begin to more closely examine some of those hidden treasures of life, you will come to better appreciate your "Uncharted Voyage" (an old friend’s memory) and the rest of the world.

People and adventures are made especially for you. Learning is to be discovered in many venues; emotions are to be awakened.

Hope I have aroused your living.

As for me?

“Forgive, O Lord, my little jokes on TheeAnd I'll forgive Thy great big one on me.”— Robert Frost, "In the Clearing," 1962

Pete Waters is a Sharpsburg resident who writes for The Herald-Mail.

This article originally appeared on The Herald-Mail: Columnist contemplates some quotes found on social media