"Our youth now love luxury. They have bad manners, contempt for authority; they show disrespect for their elders and love chatter in place of exercise; they no longer rise when elders enter the room; they contradict their parents, chatter before company; gobble up their food and tyrannize their teachers."
Greek Philosopher
469 BC - 399 BC
I first discovered this quote on a large poster in 1968 when I was a college student. At the time my generation was being criticized for being hippies and many said we would never amount to anything. I learned a valuable lesson that day — every new generation is criticized by their elders and told they would never amount to anything. And while some may die young, most grow-up and become the elders of the next generation.
The other lesson to take from this quote is to be careful about listening to critics — they often get it wrong. Don't let the critics dominate your life and your art. Avoid them where possible and ignore what they say if you can't. Artists and writers have been destroyed by the critics in their lives. Some never pick up a pen or paint brush again. Listen to your inner voice, not the voices of your external critics.
