My life has been the poem I would have writ, But…

My life has been the poem I would have writ,
But I could not both live and utter it.

Sourced, A Week on the Concord and Marrimack Rivers
(1849)

My Life Has Been a Poem I Would Have Writ

Other Henry David Thoreau Quotes

You must love the crust of the earth on which you dwell more than the sweet crust of any bread or cake; you must be able to extract nutriment out of a sand heap. - View Quote Details on You must love the crust of the earth on which…
It is so rare to meet with a man out-doors who cherishes a worthy thought in his mind, which is independent of the labor of his hands. - View Quote Details on It is so rare to meet with a man out-doors…
We do not live for idle amusement. I would not run round a corner to see the world blow up. - View Quote Details on We do not live for idle amusement. I would not…
Whate’er we leave to God, God does
And blesses us. - View Quote Details on Whate’er we leave to God, God does
And blesses us.
It seems to me that the god that is commonly worshipped in civilized countries is not at all divine, though he bears a divine name, but is the overwhelming authority and respectability of mankind combined. Men reverence one another, not yet God. If I thought that I could speak with discrimination and impartiality of the nations of Christendom, I should praise them, but it tasks me too much. They seem to be the most civil and humane, but I may be mistaken. - View Quote Details on It seems to me that the god that is commonly…
If one advances confidently in the direction of his dreams, and endeavors to live the life which he has imagined, he will meet with a success unexpected in common hours. - View Quote Details on If one advances confidently in the direction of his dreams,…
Truly, Nature absorbed his attention, but I don’t think he cared much for what is called the beauties of nature; it was her way of working, her mystery, her economy in extravagance; he delighted to trace her footsteps toward their source…. He liked to feel that the pursuit was endless, with mystery at both ends of it…. - View Quote Details on Truly, Nature absorbed his attention, but I don’t think he…
It is not enough to be industrious; so are the ants. What are you industrious about? - View Quote Details on It is not enough to be industrious; so are the…
Rather than love, than money, than fame, give me truth. **Walden: Thoreau’s classic account of the two years he spent living in a cabin at Walden Pond. (Non-Fiction, 1854, 251 pages) - View Quote Details on Rather than love, than money, than fame, give me truth…
What are the earth and all its interests beside the deep surmise which pierces and scatters them? - View Quote Details on What are the earth and all its interests beside the…