Quotes on Things Fall Apart Important

The white man is very clever. He came quietly and peaceably with his religion. We were amused at his foolishness and allowed him to stay. Now he has won our brothers, and our clan can no longer act like one. He has put a knife on the things that held us together and we have fallen apart.

We think that the point is to pass the test or to overcome the problem, but the truth is that things don't really get solved. They come together and they fall apart.

The falcon cannot hear the falconer

We have heard stories about white men who make the powerful guns and the strong drinks and took slaves away across the seas, but no one thought the stories were true.

Age was respected among his people, but achievement was revered. As the elders said, if a child washed his hands he could eat with kings.

An old woman is always uneasy when dry bones are mentioned in a proverb

When the moon is shining the cripple becomes hungry for a walk

There is no story that is not true, [...] The world has no end, and what is good among one people is an abomination with others.

Only to the extent that we expose ourselves over and over to annihilation can that which is indestructible in us be found.

Most of us do not take these situations as teachings. We automatically hate them. We run like crazy. We use all kinds of ways to escape - all addictions stem from this moment when we meet our edge and we just can't stand it. We feel we have to soften it, pad it with something, and we become addicted to whatever it is that seems to ease the pain.

We think that the point is to pass the test or overcome the problem, but the truth is that things don't really get solved. They come together and they fall apart. Then they come together again and fall apart again. It's just like that. The healing comes from letting there be room for all of this to happen: room for grief, for relief, for misery, for joy. (10)