In Italy, for 30 years under the Borgias, they had warfare

Hear the paradoxical wisdom carried in the words attributed to Graham Greene, though spoken by Orson Welles in The Third Man: “In Italy, for 30 years under the Borgias, they had warfare, terror, murder and bloodshed, but they produced Michelangelo, Leonardo da Vinci, and the Renaissance. In Switzerland, they had brotherly love, 500 years of democracy and peace—and what did that produce? The cuckoo clock.” Here is irony dressed as truth, a sharp reminder that greatness often springs not from comfort, but from the fire of strife. The soil of turmoil, though red with blood, has birthed wonders that peaceful fields, watered only by ease, could not.

The ancients knew this well: hardship is the hammer of destiny. Under the cruel weight of the Borgias, Italy burned, yet from that fire came the brightest of lights. Michelangelo carved the very breath of God into stone, Leonardo painted eternity into fleeting flesh, and the Renaissance itself emerged as a rebirth of knowledge, courage, and beauty. Pain gave birth to glory; tyranny unwittingly nurtured genius. Thus the words remind us that struggle and strife, though bitter to endure, often sharpen the soul of a people and call forth creations that echo across eternity.

Contrast this with the long peace of Switzerland. Five centuries of harmony, free of terror and free of blood. Yet what lasting flame of civilization burned there? The jest lies in the answer: the cuckoo clock, a symbol not of enduring greatness but of trivial charm. It is not that peace is worthless—for it guards life and nourishes the heart—but that peace alone, untested by fire, can lull a people into comfort without greatness. For when there is no storm to resist, the spirit grows soft, content to craft toys instead of monuments.

Think of Athens, my children. It was beset by wars with Persia, torn by strife with Sparta, and fractured by civil unrest. Yet in the very furnace of these conflicts arose Socrates, Plato, Aristotle, and the democracy that shaped the future of mankind. From their hardship grew philosophy, theater, mathematics, and art that endure to this day. Would such brilliance have been born if Athens had known only unbroken tranquility? Perhaps not. For greatness does not grow in the still pond—it grows in the turbulent sea.

And yet, let us not be deceived into worshiping suffering for its own sake. War and tyranny destroy as much as they create, and countless lives are lost in their shadow. The lesson is not that strife is good, but that within strife lies the hidden seed of strength, and within hardship, the spark of creation. The soul of man, when pressed by the weight of suffering, either breaks or is transformed into something eternal. The true wisdom is not to seek war, but to understand that when suffering comes, it can be turned into the fire that forges greatness.

So too in your own lives. Do not pray for endless ease, for ease alone may dull your spirit. When challenges strike, when trials press against your heart, do not despair. Remember Italy under the Borgias—remember Athens in the fire of wars. Let your struggles carve you as Michelangelo carved stone, until the divine form within you is revealed. Let every hardship be your Renaissance, every sorrow a chisel, every difficulty a teacher. Out of turmoil, you may yet bring forth beauty that endures.

The clear lesson is this: do not fear hardship, and do not despise peace. Instead, balance them as twin teachers. Peace is the soil where life is nourished; hardship is the storm that teaches the tree to root deep. From peace, cultivate love, compassion, and wisdom. From struggle, draw strength, creativity, and resilience. And when life gives you the choice, do not waste your peace in trivialities, nor your suffering in despair. Transform both into fuel for greatness.

Thus, let the quote be a torch for your path: greatness does not arise from comfort alone, but from the soul that chooses to rise above turmoil. Whether you are in days of calm or in nights of storm, take from each what is needed. And remember: the Renaissance was born in blood, yet it gave the world beauty eternal, while the cuckoo clock, born of ease, merely chirps the hour. Choose, then, to build a legacy that sings beyond the ticking of time.