Thought of the Day 6.26.12

“You can judge your age by the amount of pain you feel when you come in contact with a new idea.”

–Pearl S. Buck

Pearl S. Buck was born Pearl Comfort Sydenstricker on this day in Hillsboro, West Virginia in 1892. She would have been 120.

She was one of seven children born to Absalom and Caroline Sydenstricker. The Sydenstrickers were Southern Presbyterian missionaries who were stationed in China. Pearl spent much of the first half of her life in Asia and drew on her experiences there for East Wind, West Wind and The Good Earth. The latter won the Pulitzer Prize and the Howells Medal. She was awarded the Nobel Prize in Literature in 1938

In 1935 she moved back to the US and became active in both the Civil Rights Movement and the Woman’s Rights Movement. She also worked to bridge the cultural gap between the US and China, and she founded the Welcome House and the Pearl S. Buck Foundation.

English: Pearl Buck (Photo credit: Wikipedia)