Ah, but a man's reach should

Ah, but a man's reach should exceed his grasp,
Or what's a heaven for?

Robert Browning (1812-1889)
"Andrea del Sarto", 1855
line 97

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So many worlds,

So many worlds, so much to do,
So little done, such things to be.

Alfred Tennyson (1809-1892)
"In Memoriam", 1850
Canto 73, stanza 1

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Then indecision brings its own delays,

Then indecision brings its own delays,
And days are lost lamenting over lost days.
Are you in earnest? Seize this very minute;
What you can do, or dream you can do, begin it;
Boldness has genius, power and magic in it.

John Anster (1793-1867)
Faust: A Dramatic Mystery, 1835
(A very free translation of Goethe's Faust)

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No ascent is too steep

No ascent is too steep for mortals. Heaven itself we seek in our folly.

Horace (65-8 BC)
Odes, book I, 23 BC
ode iii, line 8

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