Science enhances the moral value of life, because it furthers a love of truth and reverence—love of truth displaying itself in the constant endeavor to arrive at a more exact knowledge of the world of mind and matter around us, and reverence, because every advance in knowledge brings us face to face with the mystery of our own being.

Meaning: Someone's belief may have been produced by what they want to be true, rather than by good evidence that it is true.

Meaning: The rhyme presents a spring ague as medicine fit for a king. It gives a feverish illness a surprising positive value rather than simply treating it as misfortune.

Meaning: Distance may weaken a mild attachment while making an intense one feel stronger. The contrast between cooling and inflaming describes different possible responses to absence, rather than a dependable rule for measuring love or deciding how relationships should work.

Meaning: Caring for children brings responsibilities, while the comfort a parent hopes to receive from them cannot be guaranteed. The saying contrasts present duties with uncertain future expectations, rather than defining children as a debt owed to adults.