Ideas are like rabbits. You get a couple and learn how to handle them, and pretty soon you have a dozen.
John SteinbeckRead
My wife, my Mary, goes to her sleep the way you would close the door of a closet. So many times I have watched her with envy. Her lovely body squirms a moment as though she fitted herself into a cocoon. She sighs once and at the end of it her eyes close and her lips, untroubled, fall into that wise and remote smile of the Ancient Greek gods. She smiles all night in her sleep, her breath purrs in her throat, not a snore, a kitten's purr... She loves to sleep and sleep welcomes her.
Interpretation
What this quote means
The quote expresses deep affection and admiration for the speaker's wife as she peacefully sleeps, showcasing a tender perspective on love and intimacy.
John Steinbeck's quote reflects a profound appreciation for his wife's peacefulness in sleep, portraying an image filled with admiration and longing. He likens her act of sleeping to a delicate process of retreat, suggesting a deep affection and a yearning to capture that moment of tranquility and beauty. The metaphor of a cocoon invokes themes of safety and comfort, while the serene comparison to the 'Ancient Greek gods' signifies an idealized admiration for her grace and tranquility, highlighting both love and the sacred nature of familial bonds.
Themes
LoveAdmirationIntimacyPeaceSerenity
In practice
Example use cases
In a wedding speech, one could use this quote to illustrate the beauty of love and partnership.
More from John Steinbeck
All quotes →At one point, as Samuel urges Adam to raise his boys well regardless of the blood that might be in them, Adam tells him, "You can't make a race horse of a pig." Samuel replies, "No, but you can make a very fast pig.
John SteinbeckRead
And when that crop grew, and was harvested, no man had crumbled a hot clod in his fingers and let the earth sift past his fingertips. No man had touched the seed, or lusted for the growth. Men ate what they had not raised, had no connection with the bread. The land bore under iron, and under iron gradually died; for it was not loved or hated, it had no prayers or curses.
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The comfortable people in tight houses felt pity at first, and then distaste, and finally hatred for the migrant people.
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People do not want advice - they want corroboration.
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It is one of the triumphs of the human that he can know a thing and still not believe it.
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