My father, Bill Gallagher’s favorite authors (whom he would quote so often in his keynote speaking) were Henry David Thoreau, Helen Keller, George Bernard Shaw, Werner Erhard and Shakespeare.

Thoreau once described, "The mass of mankind" as leading "lives of quiet desperation." While this was true of my father’s life as well, he believed more in the words of Helen Keller who said, "Life is either a daring adventure or nothing. Security is mostly a superstition. It does not exist in nature." and that "All the world is full of suffering. It is also full of overcoming."

In the 80's he was very inspired by a man named Werner Erhard who got many great idea's from Zen Buddhism, Werner said, "If you experience it, it’s the truth. The same thing believed is a lie. In life, understanding is the booby prize."

My father would often quote Shakespeare about the human condition written hundreds of years ago, "To-morrow, and to-morrow, and to-morrow, creeps in this petty pace from day to day. To the last syllable of recorded time, and all our yesterdays have lighted fools. The way to dusty death. Out, out, brief candle! Life's but a walking shadow, a poor player that struts and frets his hour upon the stage and then is heard no more: it is a tale told by an idiot, full of sound and fury, signifying nothing."

Of all these authors, my father most believed in and lived his life like the words of George Bernard Shaw, who said:

"This is the true joy in life, the being used for a purpose recognized by yourself as a mighty one; the being a force of nature instead of a feverish, selfish little clod of ailments and grievances complaining that the world will not devote itself to making you happy. I am of the opinion that my life belongs to the whole community, and as long as I live it is my privilege to do for it whatever I can. I want to be thoroughly used up when I die, for the harder I work the more I live. I rejoice in life for its own sake. Life is no "brief candle" for me. It is a sort of splendid torch which I have got hold of for the moment, and I want to make it burn as brightly as possible before handing it on to future generations."

Forgive all those you know. Love all those you meet, and make a difference in life while you’re here. Each moment is worth everything!

The only real truth is what we experience in the present moment, and dad taught me that always showing up and loving unconditionally was what it was all about.