To laugh is to risk appearing the fool.
To weep is to risk being called sentimental.
To reach out to another is to
risk involvement.
To expose feelings is to risk
showing your true self.
To place your ideas and your
dreams before a crowd is to risk being called
naive.
To love is to risk not being
loved in return.
To live is to risk dying.
To hope is to risk despair, and to try is to
risk failure.
Risks must be taken, because the
greatest risk in life is to risk nothing. The
person who risks nothing, does nothing, has
nothing, is nothing, and becomes nothing. He may
avoid suffering and sorrow, but he simply cannot
learn and feel and change and grow and love and
live. Chained by things that are certain, he is
a slave. He has forfeited his freedom. Only the
person who risks is truly free
