“Every saint has a past and every sinner has a future.”

When was the last time you were in the reference room of your local library or university? No doubt, not as often as in years past thanks to the Internet. I don’t remember the last time I referred to an encyclopedia. But, I still love those giant tomes full of “famous quotes”. It has always amazed me that these things get written down. Who was Bartlett and did he really spend his time putting together the best quotes ever uttered? And who made him the judge above all others? Don’t get me wrong. I find them fascinating. I have learned to love and admire certain politicians, artists, philosophers and such by just their witticisms.

One-hundred and fifty-three years ago one of my favorite and most quotable authors was born- Oscar Wilde. Brilliant, viper tongued, terribly kind, self-deprecating and self-destructive, Wilde is considered to be one of the wittiest men ever borne in England. The fact that the foul-mouthed Liam Gallagher (of Oasis fame) is mentioned in the same breath as Mr. Wilde is seriously disconcerting. But, I feel a bit better when also adjacent to Wilde is Stephen Frye (who coincidentally played Wilde in a film several years ago).

So, a happy birthday to you Mr. Wilde! Thank you for all your truisms. I leave you with a few of my favorites.

"It is absurde to divide people into good and bad. People are either charming or tedious."

“A dreamer is one who can only find his way by moonlight, and his punishment is that he sees the dawn before the rest of the world.”

“Every saint has a past and every sinner has a future.”

“Experience is simply the name we give our mistakes.”

“I see when men love women. They give them but a little of their lives. But women when they love give everything.”