(M)aybe we too busy being flowers or fairies or strawberries instead of something honest and worthy of respect . . . you know . . . like being people.
Toni Cade BambaraRead
I've never been convinced that experience is linear, circular, or even random. It just is. I try to put it in some kind of order to extract meaning from it, to bring meaning to it.
Interpretation
What this quote means
Experience doesn't have a set pattern; its significance is derived from how we interpret it.
In this quote, Toni Cade Bambara expresses skepticism about categorizing experiences into simple patterns, like linear or circular. Instead, she emphasizes the subjective nature of experience, suggesting that while we may attempt to organize our experiences to find meaning, the experiences themselves exist as they are, independent of our interpretations.
Themes
ExperienceMeaningInterpretationWisdomUnderstanding
In practice
Example use cases
This quote can be used in a discussion about personal growth and the value of our life experiences.
More from Toni Cade Bambara
All quotes →Take away the miseries and you take away some folks' reason for living.
Toni Cade BambaraRead
Write a lot and hit the streets. A writer who doesn't keep up with what's out there ain't gonna be out there.
Toni Cade BambaraRead
I'll be damned if I want most folks out there to do unto me what they do unto themselves.
Toni Cade BambaraRead
The dream is real, my friends. The failure to make it work is the unreality.
Toni Cade BambaraRead
Similar quotes
When you are unhappy, you are just coming in touch with your own boundaries. Turn the whole situation into a prayer & you will walk through it.
Sri Sri Ravi ShankarRead
When you see a good person, think of becoming like her/him. When you see someone not so good, reflect on your own weak points.
ConfuciusRead
Never let yourself be diverted, either by what you wish to believe, or what you think could have beneficent social effects if it were believed; but look only and solely at what are the facts.
Bertrand RussellRead
Any man who, having planted a vineyard, has not yet reaped the benefits should do so at once, so that he does not die in the struggle and leave it for another to enjoy.
Paulo CoelhoRead
To do nothing is sometimes a good remedy.
HippocratesRead
Look at this generation, with all of its electronic devices and multitasking. I will confidently predict less success than Warren, who just focused on reading.
Charlie MungerRead