We try to exile ourselves more and more from nature - not always consciously: We build houses; we dismiss nature; nature has to be outside, because we're inside. God forbid something like a cockroach comes inside, or some dust.
Diane AckermanRead
Don't just live the length of your life - live the width of it as well.
Interpretation
What this quote means
Life should be lived fully and deeply, not just for its duration.
Diane Ackerman's quote emphasizes the importance of enriching our lives not just by the amount of time we have, but by the depth of our experiences and the joy we derive from them. It encourages us to seek and appreciate meaningful moments, relationships, and adventures, reminding us that quality of life is just as important as the quantity of years we live.
Themes
LifeExperiencesQualityDepthMeaning
In practice
Example use cases
During a speech about living life to the fullest, one might quote Ackerman to inspire the audience.
More from Diane Ackerman
All quotes βWe ogle plants and animals up close on television, the Internet and in the movies. We may not worship the animals we see, but we still regard them as necessary physical and spiritual companions. Technological nature can't completely satisfy that yearning.
Diane AckermanRead
Because IQ tests favor memory skills and logic, overlooking artistic creativity, insight, resiliency, emotional reserves, sensory gifts, and life experience, they can't really predict success, let alone satisfaction.
Diane AckermanRead
American writer_x000D_ _x000D_ 1803-1882_x000D_ _x000D_ Play is our brain's favorite way of learning.
Diane AckermanRead
In rare moments of deep play, we can lay aside our sense of self, shed time's continuum, ignore pain, and sit quietly in the absolute present, watching the world's ordinary miracles. No mind or heart hobbles. No analyzing or explaining. No questing for logic. No promises. No goals. No relationships. No worry. One is completely open to whatever drama may unfold.
Diane AckermanRead
There is a way of beholding nature which is a form of prayer, a way of minding something with such clarity and aliveness that the rest of the world recedes. It . . . gives the brain a small vacation.
Diane AckermanRead
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