But where, after we have made the great decision to leave the security of childhood and move on into the vastness of maturity, does anybody ever feel completely at home?
Interpretation
The quote reflects on the discomfort and uncertainty that often accompany the transition from childhood to adulthood.
Madeleine L'Engle's quote captures the essence of growing up and the challenges that come with maturity. It suggests that the leap from the familiarity and security of childhood into the complex world of adulthood can be unsettling, leaving one to question whether true comfort and belonging can ever be found in adulthood. The vastness of maturity presents uncertainties that often leave individuals feeling out of place, seeking a sense of home that remains elusive.
In practice
During a graduation speech, this quote can emphasize the uncertain journey into adulthood.
Truth is what is true, and it's not necessarily factual. Truth and fact are not the same thing. Truth does not contradict or deny facts, but it goes through and beyond facts. This is something that it is very difficult for some people to understand. Truth can be dangerous.
George MacDonald gives me renewed strength during times of trouble--times when I have seen people tempted to deny God--when he says, "The Son of God suffered unto death, not that men might not suffer, but that their sufferings might be like his.
If you don't recount your family history, it will be lost. Honor your own stories and tell them too. The tales may not seem very important, but they are what binds families and makes each of us who we are.
I never want to lose the story-loving child within me, or the adolescent, or the young woman, or the middle-aged one, because all together they help me to be fully alive on this journey, and show me that I must be willing to go where it takes me, even through the valley of the shadow.
The minute we begin to think we have all the answers, we forget the questions.
When we believe in the impossible, it becomes possible, and we can do all kinds of extraordinary things.
I used to think the years would go by in order, that you get older one year at a time. But it's not like that. It happens overnight.
Just being born makes you worthy enough to be here
You're only here for a short visit. Don't hurry, don't worry. And be sure to smell the flowers along the way.
You could sometimes see her twelfth year in her cheeks, or her ninth sparkling from her eyes; and even her fifth would flit over the curves of her mouth now and then.
Life is a series of experiences, each one of which makes us bigger, even though sometimes it is hard to realize this.
I get those fleeting, beautiful moments of inner peace and stillness - and then the other 23 hours and 45 minutes of the day, I'm a human trying to make it through in this world.
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