Laurence Overmire > Quotes

“I reserve the right to evolve. What I think and feel today is subject to revision tomorrow.”
― Laurence Overmire

“Life is a poem most people never read.”
― Laurence Overmire

“History remembers only the celebrated, genealogy remembers them all.”
― Laurence Overmire, One Immigrant's Legacy: The Overmyer Family in America, 1751-2009: A Biographical Record of Revolutionary War Veteran Capt. John George Overmire and His Descendants

“Whenever you speak the truth, someone will be offended.”
― Laurence Overmire, Report from X-Star 10

“Love is active, not passive. It is our love for one another, for Mother Earth, for our fellow creatures that compels us to act on their behalf.”
― Laurence Overmire, The One Idea That Saves The World: A Call to Conscience and A Call to Action

“My forebears played a significant part in making me who I am. I honor their legacy. I will never forget what they gave me. I will love them until the day I die. And no one can take them away from me.”
― Laurence Overmire, The Ghost of Rabbie Burns: An American Poet's Journey Through Scotland

“Dead people are easy to love. It's the living ones who are hard.”
― Laurence Overmire

“All of our ancestors give us the precious gift of life. Do we use it wisely? Do we use it well? Do we make a name for ourselves and for our children of which we can be proud?”
― Laurence Overmire, A Revolutionary American Family: The McDonalds of Somerset County, New Jersey

“There is no such thing as an insignificant life, only the insignificance of mind that refuses to grasp the implications.”
― Laurence Overmire, One Immigrant's Legacy: The Overmyer Family in America, 1751-2009: A Biographical Record of Revolutionary War Veteran Capt. John George Overmire and His Descendants

“We are the last generation with a real opportunity to save the world.”
― Laurence Overmire, The One Idea That Saves The World: A Call to Conscience and A Call to Action

“When you trace your genealogy, you find connections to many of the people and events that shaped history. History is not the story of some old irrelevant strangers. No. History is your story. Your family was there - your grandmothers and grandfathers, uncles and aunts, cousins, nephews and nieces. If not for them, you wouldn't even be here.”
― Laurence Overmire, The Ghost of Rabbie Burns: An American Poet's Journey Through Scotland

“The more we understand the One Idea, how all of life is interconnected and interdependent, the more we can act in positive ways for the good of all.”
― Laurence Overmire, The One Idea That Saves The World: A Call to Conscience and A Call to Action

“Over the course of the millennia, all these multitudes of ancestors, generation upon generation, have come down to this moment in time—to give birth to you. There has never been, nor will ever be, another like you. You have been given a tremendous responsibility. You carry the hopes and dreams of all those who have gone before. Hopes and dreams for a better world. What will you do with your time on this Earth? How will you contribute to the ongoing story of humankind?”
― Laurence Overmire, One Immigrant's Legacy: The Overmyer Family in America, 1751-2009: A Biographical Record of Revolutionary War Veteran Capt. John George Overmire and His Descendants

“Our stories make us who we are. And each story has its own purpose and its own reward. Each story rings true and each story is worthy of the ages. There is no such thing as an insignificant life.”
― Laurence Overmire, New York Minute: An Actor's Memoir

“Dare to find your own truth, despite what others say, then have the courage to live it.”
― Laurence Overmire, The One Idea That Saves The World: A Call to Conscience and A Call to Action

“Being good or being evil is not something that is inherent in our nature over which we have no control, rather we define ourselves by the choices we make, moment by moment, situation by situation. All it takes is an act of will to be the best that we can be.”
― Laurence Overmire, The One Idea That Saves The World: A Call to Conscience and A Call to Action

“Only through love will we find our way to create a world worthy of our children and our grandchildren.”
― Laurence Overmire, The One Idea That Saves The World: A Call to Conscience and A Call to Action

“All of our ancestors live within each one of us whether we are aware of it or not.”
― Laurence Overmire

“A society that has no respect, no regard for its bards, its historians, its storytellers, is a society in steep decline, a society that has lost its very soul and may never find its way.”
― Laurence Overmire, The Ghost of Rabbie Burns: An American Poet's Journey Through Scotland

“Some of us are given more time on this Earth than others, but none of us should ever take the gift of life for granted. If we strive to be the best we can be, committing ourselves to what is right and true, while helping others along the way, then we will leave our own story worth the telling and be a shining example for our children and our grandchildren and all those great, great, great, great grandchildren in those far off times to come.”
― Laurence Overmire, A Revolutionary American Family: The McDonalds of Somerset County, New Jersey

“Racists cling to the false notion that we are separate. They refuse to acknowledge that they are connected to, and even descended from, other people of different skin color. Their egos demand that they be superior and that others be inferior. This is how they seek to justify their hatred of, and cruelty towards, others.”
― Laurence Overmire, The One Idea That Saves The World: A Call to Conscience and A Call to Action

“Good people turn to love, courage and kindness in times of crisis, not hate, fear and cruelty.”
― Laurence Overmire

“Expect nothing and accept everything and you will never be disappointed.”
― Laurence Overmire

“As a genealogist, I have seen the Big Picture as very few have. Most people now living have no clue who they are or where they come from. We are all descended from the ancient kings of our various cultures. There is nothing unique about it. And let's be honest, most of those kings were pretty ruthless individuals. What's important for us today is that we wake up to the fact that we are all literally cousins. How would our world change if we honored that relationship and started treating one another as family?”
― Laurence Overmire, The Ghost of Rabbie Burns: An American Poet's Journey Through Scotland

“There are basically two kinds of people: those who have empathy and care about others and those who don't. The ones who don't are creating most of the problems in the world.”
― Laurence Overmire

“One can never be 100% certain when it comes to family lineage. One must always keep an open mind, willing to go wherever the facts may lead.”
― Laurence Overmire, One Immigrant's Legacy: The Overmyer Family in America, 1751-2009: A Biographical Record of Revolutionary War Veteran Capt. John George Overmire and His Descendants

“If you can make your ancestors real for yourself, learn their stories and who they were, your life - and death - will take on added meaning. You will see yourself in the Big Picture that includes all human life that has come and gone on the planet.”
― Laurence Overmire, Digging for Ancestral Gold: The Fun and Easy Way to Get Started on Your Genealogy Quest

“Every succeeding generation has the opportunity to heal the wounds of the past.”
― Laurence Overmire, A Revolutionary American Family: The McDonalds of Somerset County, New Jersey

“No matter who our ancestors are, our own personal and monumental task is to become the best person that we can possibly be - someone in whom our own descendants in times to come can take great pride and find inspiration.”
― Laurence Overmire, Digging for Ancestral Gold: The Fun and Easy Way to Get Started on Your Genealogy Quest

“There is no nobler profession, nor no greater calling, than to be among those unheralded many who gave and give their lives to the preservation of human knowledge, passed with commitment and care from one generation to the next.”
― Laurence Overmire