Only the worthy merit abuse. The higher you go, the lower you reach. Atheists and theists are bedfellows, for they both presume to know. An aphorism is a brief expression of a truth or sentiment, and while volumes have been written on life and death, love and loss, pain and pleasure, and right and wrong, sometimes it is a simple aphorism that can best capture the truth and express a point of view, enriching the old and bringing something of the new. In Aphorisms: Brief Bursts of Truth, author Donald Patrick Redheffer takes his love of philosophy and poetry and probes the human condition in pursuit of truth wherever it lies. With over four thousand succinct, concise bursts of truth-categorized by topic from absolutes, adversity, anticipation, and authority to walking, weather, why, and wisdom-each aphorism provides a truth that is brief and to the point, never allowing belief or desire to change the focus. Explore within these simple marriages of thought and language a provocative, sometimes profound, and always incomplete reflection of truth-for fiction surrounds truth, whereas aphorisms capture its essence. My writings come from a place Enriched by heart and mind, Where one stares into empty space For hours at a time, Pursuing the sublime.