Only Original Action
One of my favorite quotes is, “There is no such thing as original thought, there is only original action.” I have expressed this statement several times over the past two decades and still do not have any idea who originally said this. Even after multiple online searches, the closest thing I could find was this quote from Mark Twain, “There is no such thing as a new idea. It is impossible. We simply take a lot of old ideas and put them into a sort of mental kaleidoscope. We give them a turn and they make new and curious combinations. We keep on turning and making new combinations indefinitely; but they are the same old pieces of colored glass that have been in use through all the ages.” While I subscribe to Mr. Twain’s sentiment, I also understand that it differs from the quote mentioned at the top. It is only now, while writing this piece, that I have become aware of the irony of this situation: I am struggling to find the original owner of a quote that co...