--- title: "32 Way Quotes By Mark Nepo" description: "32 Way quotes by Mark Nepo. Plus more from Mark Nepo and more Way sayings from other authors." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/910/mark-nepo-1670_expression_the-life-of-expression-is-the-tuning-for_376376.png" --- > [The life of expression is the tuning fork by which we find our way to the sacred.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mark-nepo/the-life-of-expression-is-the-tuning-fork-by-which-we-find-our-way-to/) [Mark Nepo](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mark-nepo/) [Image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/910/mark-nepo-1670_expression_the-life-of-expression-is-the-tuning-for_376376.png) > [We tend to make the thing in the way the way.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mark-nepo/we-tend-to-make-the-thing-in-the-way-the-way/) [Mark Nepo](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mark-nepo/) [Image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/0ef/mark-nepo-1670_funny_we-tend-to-make-the-thing-in-the-way-the_1484766.png) > [Even if one glimpses God, there are cuts and splinters and burns along the way.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mark-nepo/even-if-one-glimpses-god-there-are-cuts-and-splinters-and-burns-along/) [Mark Nepo](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mark-nepo/) [Image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/833/mark-nepo-1670_cutting_even-if-one-glimpses-god-there-are-cuts_2231691.png) > [The world needs awakened souls the way a body needs healthy cells.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mark-nepo/the-world-needs-awakened-souls-the-way-a-body-needs-healthy-cells/) [Mark Nepo](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mark-nepo/) [Image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/57f/mark-nepo-1670_awakened_the-world-needs-awakened-souls-the-way-a_2891575.png) > [Wakefulness is not a destination but a song the human heart keeps singing, the way birds keep singing at the first sign…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mark-nepo/wakefulness-is-not-a-destination-but-a-song-the-human-heart-keeps/) [Mark Nepo](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mark-nepo/) [Image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/2b7/mark-nepo-1670_bird_wakefulness-is-not-a-destination-but-a-s_2279381.png) > [We need to give up what no longer works and find new ways of being that keeps us close to what matters.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mark-nepo/we-need-to-give-up-what-no-longer-works-and-find-new-ways-of-being/) [Mark Nepo](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mark-nepo/) [Image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/cb8/mark-nepo-1670_giving_we-need-to-give-up-what-no-longer-works_2518447.png) > [This is the ongoing purpose of full attention: to find a thousand ways to be pierced into wholeness.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mark-nepo/this-is-the-ongoing-purpose-of-full-attention-to-find-a-thousand-ways/) [Mark Nepo](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mark-nepo/) [Image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/6ec/mark-nepo-1670_attention_this-is-the-ongoing-purpose-of-full-atte_2973639.png) > [We can never be prepared for everything. No one person can anticipate all of life. In fact, overpreparation is yet another way…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mark-nepo/we-can-never-be-prepared-for-everything-no-one-person-can-anticipate/) [Mark Nepo](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mark-nepo/) [Image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/6ba/mark-nepo-1670_another-way_we-can-never-be-prepared-for-everything_448469.png) > [The glassblower knows: while in the heat of beginning, any shape is possible. Once hardened, the only way to change is to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mark-nepo/the-glassblower-knows-while-in-the-heat-of-beginning-any-shape-is/) [Mark Nepo](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mark-nepo/) [Image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/9b2/mark-nepo-1670_break_the-glassblower-knows-while-in-the-heat_91345.png) > [In daily terms, the work of listening is to be constantly worn free of our preconceptions and preferences so that nothing stands…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mark-nepo/in-daily-terms-the-work-of-listening-is-to-be-constantly-worn-free-of/) [Mark Nepo](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mark-nepo/) [Image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/882/mark-nepo-1670_communication_in-daily-terms-the-work-of-listening-is_2795428.png) > [The simplest and bravest way to counter the plight of disheartenment is to move toward what is precious.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mark-nepo/the-simplest-and-bravest-way-to-counter-the-plight-of-disheartenment/) [Mark Nepo](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mark-nepo/) [Image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/d0f/mark-nepo-1670_moving_the-simplest-and-bravest-way-to-counter_1421165.png) > [Living is the original art. As a young man I wanted to be a poet and I learned along the way that…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mark-nepo/living-is-the-original-art-as-a-young-man-i-wanted-to-be-a-poet-and-i/) [Mark Nepo](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mark-nepo/) [Image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/2ac/mark-nepo-1670_art_living-is-the-original-art-as-a-young-ma_329119.png) > [As the seed buried in the earth cannot imagine itself as an orchid or hyacinth, neither can a heart packed with hurt…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mark-nepo/as-the-seed-buried-in-the-earth-cannot-imagine-itself-as-an-orchid-or/) [Mark Nepo](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mark-nepo/) [Image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/100/mark-nepo-1670_buried_as-the-seed-buried-in-the-earth-cannot-i_577517.png) > [It is the courage to be authentic that keeps us strong enough to withstand the heartbreak through which enlightenment can occur. And…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mark-nepo/it-is-the-courage-to-be-authentic-that-keeps-us-strong-enough-to/) [Mark Nepo](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mark-nepo/) [Image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/ad8/mark-nepo-1670_buddhism_it-is-the-courage-to-be-authentic-that-k_2485615.jpg) > [In the same way that we have to clean wax from our ears and dirt from our eyes, we're all asked to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mark-nepo/in-the-same-way-that-we-have-to-clean-wax-from-our-ears-and-dirt-from/) [Mark Nepo](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mark-nepo/) [Image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/ac5/mark-nepo-1670_block_in-the-same-way-that-we-have-to-clean-wa_2938531.png) > [Through the opened heart, the world comes rushing in, the way oceans fill the smallest hole along the shore. It is the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mark-nepo/through-the-opened-heart-the-world-comes-rushing-in-the-way-oceans/) [Mark Nepo](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mark-nepo/) [Image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/156/mark-nepo-1670_again-and-again_through-the-opened-heart-the-world-comes_2235072.png) > [The many ways to listen have been reaching into me for years. To enter deep listening, I've had to learn how to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mark-nepo/the-many-ways-to-listen-have-been-reaching-into-me-for-years-to-enter/) [Mark Nepo](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mark-nepo/) [Image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/a89/mark-nepo-1670_accepting_the-many-ways-to-listen-have-been-reachi_2153865.jpg) > [I was a very driven person, wanting to help and to do good, hopefully to write and teach in a meaningful way…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mark-nepo/i-was-a-very-driven-person-wanting-to-help-and-to-do-good-hopefully/) [Mark Nepo](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mark-nepo/) [Image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/ef3/mark-nepo-1670_change_i-was-a-very-driven-person-wanting-to-he_475525.png) > [Whatever difficulty you face, there are time-tried ways you can listen your way through. Because listening is the doorway to everything that…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mark-nepo/whatever-difficulty-you-face-there-are-time-tried-ways-you-can-listen/) [Mark Nepo](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mark-nepo/) [Image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/433/mark-nepo-1670_alive_whatever-difficulty-you-face-there-are-t_1120344.jpg) > [There are many ways that we grow, but there are two major ways: We shed what no longer works, or we're broken…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mark-nepo/there-are-many-ways-that-we-grow-but-there-are-two-major-ways-we-shed/) [Mark Nepo](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mark-nepo/) [Image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/5d5/mark-nepo-1670_beauty_there-are-many-ways-that-we-grow-but-the_3124894.jpg) > [We often move away from pain, which is helpful only before being hurt. Once in pain, it seems the only way out…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mark-nepo/we-often-move-away-from-pain-which-is-helpful-only-before-being-hurt/) [Mark Nepo](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mark-nepo/) [Image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/3ea/mark-nepo-1670_accepting_we-often-move-away-from-pain-which-is-he_1681200.png) > [Just opening quietly for moments everyday can create a path by which life can reach us, the way rain carves a little…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mark-nepo/just-opening-quietly-for-moments-everyday-can-create-a-path-by-which/) [Mark Nepo](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mark-nepo/) [Image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/3e2/mark-nepo-1670_earth_just-opening-quietly-for-moments-everyda_1358714.png) > [We travel so far only to land where we are. We imagine other lives, only to meet who we are. We seek…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mark-nepo/we-travel-so-far-only-to-land-where-we-are-we-imagine-other-lives/) [Mark Nepo](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mark-nepo/) [Image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/521/mark-nepo-1670_imagine_we-travel-so-far-only-to-land-where-we-a_468455.png) > [As nature erodes the earth into magnificent forms, life through endless experience opens us further and further to the essence of what…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mark-nepo/as-nature-erodes-the-earth-into-magnificent-forms-life-through/) [Mark Nepo](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mark-nepo/) [Image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/40b/mark-nepo-1670_changed_as-nature-erodes-the-earth-into-magnific_356821.png) > [Before we can count we are taught to be grateful for what others do. As we are broken open by our experience,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mark-nepo/before-we-can-count-we-are-taught-to-be-grateful-for-what-others-do/) [Mark Nepo](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mark-nepo/) [Image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/bbe/mark-nepo-1670_be-grateful_before-we-can-count-we-are-taught-to-be_233889.png) > [Everything in life opens and closes, sheds and renews. We are no different. Listening in its endless forms is the way we…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mark-nepo/everything-in-life-opens-and-closes-sheds-and-renews-we-are-no/) [Mark Nepo](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mark-nepo/) [Image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/d9d/mark-nepo-1670_different_everything-in-life-opens-and-closes-shed_439337.png) > [I would want to affirm how rare and magnificent and messy it is to be alive, how there is really nothing between…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mark-nepo/i-would-want-to-affirm-how-rare-and-magnificent-and-messy-it-is-to-be/) [Mark Nepo](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mark-nepo/) [Image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/a80/mark-nepo-1670_alive_i-would-want-to-affirm-how-rare-and-magn_330909.png) > [We work so hard to get somewhere, to realize a dream, to arrive at some destination, that we often forget that though…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mark-nepo/we-work-so-hard-to-get-somewhere-to-realize-a-dream-to-arrive-at-some/) [Mark Nepo](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mark-nepo/) [Image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/814/mark-nepo-1670_destination_we-work-so-hard-to-get-somewhere-to-real_96152.png) > [Whatever truth we feel compelled to withhold, no matter how unthinkable it is to imagine ourselves telling it, not to is a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mark-nepo/whatever-truth-we-feel-compelled-to-withhold-no-matter-how/) [Mark Nepo](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mark-nepo/) [Image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/b88/mark-nepo-1670_feels_whatever-truth-we-feel-compelled-to-with_861527.png) > [One of the most challenging ways is to slow down enough to relax our heart and feel what is nearest. It could…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mark-nepo/one-of-the-most-challenging-ways-is-to-slow-down-enough-to-relax-our/) [Mark Nepo](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mark-nepo/) [Image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/16a/mark-nepo-1670_alleys_one-of-the-most-challenging-ways-is-to-s_1695396.jpg) > [Whether you find it through mediation or sighing over tea or just turning all your devices off for five minutes, listening is…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mark-nepo/whether-you-find-it-through-mediation-or-sighing-over-tea-or-just/) [Mark Nepo](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mark-nepo/) [Image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/d22/mark-nepo-1670_ancient_whether-you-find-it-through-mediation-or_1550956.png) > [In the way that I experience life, the physical world is really just the tip of the iceberg of reality. Whether it's…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mark-nepo/in-the-way-that-i-experience-life-the-physical-world-is-really-just/) [Mark Nepo](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mark-nepo/) [Image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/0f3/mark-nepo-1670_animal_in-the-way-that-i-experience-life-the-ph_1223213.png) ## Other authors on Way ## More by Mark Nepo > [“Often we find it easier to think our way around things rather than to feel our way through them:”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mark-nepo/often-we-find-it-easier-to-think-our-way-around-things-rather-than-to/) [Mark Nepo](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mark-nepo/) > [When we don't get what we want, there's a legitimate grieving, and then the spiritual journey truly begins, because not getting what we want…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mark-nepo/when-we-don-t-get-what-we-want-there-s-a-legitimate-grieving-and-then/) [Mark Nepo](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mark-nepo/) > [Each soul on earth is complete unto itself.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mark-nepo/each-soul-on-earth-is-complete-unto-itself/) [Mark Nepo](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mark-nepo/) > [“a living symbol that can call into my moment of sadness a deeper sense of plenitude and generosity that is always there, but not…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mark-nepo/a-living-symbol-that-can-call-into-my-moment-of-sadness-a-deeper/) [Mark Nepo](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mark-nepo/) > [“COMING OUT While there is much to do we are not here to do.   Under the want to problem-solve is the need to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mark-nepo/coming-out-while-there-is-much-to-do-we-are-not-here-to-do-under-the/) [Mark Nepo](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mark-nepo/) > [The greatest thing we can do to be closer to our own lives and to the freshness of living is to open up again.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mark-nepo/the-greatest-thing-we-can-do-to-be-closer-to-our-own-lives-and-to-the/) [Mark Nepo](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mark-nepo/) > [For though we stubbornly cling, believing in our moment of hunger that there is no other possibility of love, we only have to let…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mark-nepo/for-though-we-stubbornly-cling-believing-in-our-moment-of-hunger-that/) [Mark Nepo](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mark-nepo/) > [Perhaps the hardest thing I've learned, and still struggle with, is that I don't have to be finished in order to be whole.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mark-nepo/perhaps-the-hardest-thing-i-ve-learned-and-still-struggle-with-is/) [Mark Nepo](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mark-nepo/) > [A successful creative expression is one in which the person who has expressed it was transformed for having encountered it](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mark-nepo/a-successful-creative-expression-is-one-in-which-the-person-who-has/) [Mark Nepo](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mark-nepo/) > [No amount of thinking can stop thinking.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mark-nepo/no-amount-of-thinking-can-stop-thinking/) [Mark Nepo](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mark-nepo/) > [“Yet beneath all the talk of tragedy and grace, I have come to believe that we are destined to be opened by the living…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mark-nepo/yet-beneath-all-the-talk-of-tragedy-and-grace-i-have-come-to-believe/) [Mark Nepo](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mark-nepo/) > [The glassblower knows: while in the heat of beginning, any shape is possible. Once hardened, the only way to change is to break.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mark-nepo/the-glassblower-knows-while-in-the-heat-of-beginning-any-shape-is/) [Mark Nepo](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mark-nepo/) > [We work so hard to get somewhere, to realize a dream, to arrive at some destination, that we often forget that though some satisfaction…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mark-nepo/we-work-so-hard-to-get-somewhere-to-realize-a-dream-to-arrive-at-some/) [Mark Nepo](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mark-nepo/) > [Our job is not to expose the mystery but to participate in it.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mark-nepo/our-job-is-not-to-expose-the-mystery-but-to-participate-in-it/) [Mark Nepo](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mark-nepo/) > [Pursue the obstacle It will set you free](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mark-nepo/pursue-the-obstacle-it-will-set-you-free/) [Mark Nepo](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mark-nepo/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", 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"creator": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization" } } } }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 3, "item": { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "Even if one glimpses God, there are cuts and splinters and burns along the way.", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "Mark Nepo" }, "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mark-nepo/even-if-one-glimpses-god-there-are-cuts-and-splinters-and-burns-along/", "image": { "@type": "ImageObject", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/833/mark-nepo-1670_cutting_even-if-one-glimpses-god-there-are-cuts_2231691.png", "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/833/mark-nepo-1670_cutting_even-if-one-glimpses-god-there-are-cuts_2231691.png", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/833/mark-nepo-1670_cutting_even-if-one-glimpses-god-there-are-cuts_2231691.png", "width": 1080, "height": 1080, "caption": "“Even if one glimpses God, there are cuts and splinters and burns along the way.” — Mark Nepo", "creditText": "SMS4Smile Quotes", "creator": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization" } } } }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 4, "item": { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "The world needs awakened souls the way a body needs healthy cells.", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "Mark Nepo" }, "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mark-nepo/the-world-needs-awakened-souls-the-way-a-body-needs-healthy-cells/", "image": { "@type": "ImageObject", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/57f/mark-nepo-1670_awakened_the-world-needs-awakened-souls-the-way-a_2891575.png", "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/57f/mark-nepo-1670_awakened_the-world-needs-awakened-souls-the-way-a_2891575.png", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/57f/mark-nepo-1670_awakened_the-world-needs-awakened-souls-the-way-a_2891575.png", "width": 1080, "height": 1080, "caption": "“The world needs awakened souls the way a body needs healthy cells.” — Mark Nepo", "creditText": "SMS4Smile Quotes", "creator": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization" } } } }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 5, "item": { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "Wakefulness is not a destination but a song the human heart keeps singing, the way birds keep singing at the first sign of light.", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "Mark Nepo" }, "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mark-nepo/wakefulness-is-not-a-destination-but-a-song-the-human-heart-keeps/", "image": { "@type": "ImageObject", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/2b7/mark-nepo-1670_bird_wakefulness-is-not-a-destination-but-a-s_2279381.png", "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/2b7/mark-nepo-1670_bird_wakefulness-is-not-a-destination-but-a-s_2279381.png", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/2b7/mark-nepo-1670_bird_wakefulness-is-not-a-destination-but-a-s_2279381.png", "width": 1080, "height": 1080, "caption": "“Wakefulness is not a destination but a song the human heart keeps singing, the way birds keep singing at the…” — Mark Nepo", "creditText": "SMS4Smile Quotes", "creator": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization" } } } }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 6, "item": { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "We need to give up what no longer works and find new ways of being that keeps us close to what matters.", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "Mark Nepo" }, "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mark-nepo/we-need-to-give-up-what-no-longer-works-and-find-new-ways-of-being/", "image": { "@type": "ImageObject", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/cb8/mark-nepo-1670_giving_we-need-to-give-up-what-no-longer-works_2518447.png", "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/cb8/mark-nepo-1670_giving_we-need-to-give-up-what-no-longer-works_2518447.png", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/cb8/mark-nepo-1670_giving_we-need-to-give-up-what-no-longer-works_2518447.png", "width": 1080, "height": 1080, "caption": "“We need to give up what no longer works and find new ways of being that keeps us close to what matters.” — Mark Nepo", "creditText": "SMS4Smile Quotes", "creator": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization" } } } }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 7, "item": { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "This is the ongoing purpose of full attention: to find a thousand ways to be pierced into wholeness.", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "Mark Nepo" }, "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mark-nepo/this-is-the-ongoing-purpose-of-full-attention-to-find-a-thousand-ways/", "image": { "@type": "ImageObject", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/6ec/mark-nepo-1670_attention_this-is-the-ongoing-purpose-of-full-atte_2973639.png", "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/6ec/mark-nepo-1670_attention_this-is-the-ongoing-purpose-of-full-atte_2973639.png", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/6ec/mark-nepo-1670_attention_this-is-the-ongoing-purpose-of-full-atte_2973639.png", "width": 1080, "height": 1080, "caption": "“This is the ongoing purpose of full attention: to find a thousand ways to be pierced into wholeness.” — Mark Nepo", "creditText": "SMS4Smile Quotes", "creator": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization" } } } }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 8, "item": { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "We can never be prepared for everything. No one person can anticipate all of life. In fact, overpreparation is yet another way to wall ourselves in from life.", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "Mark Nepo" }, "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mark-nepo/we-can-never-be-prepared-for-everything-no-one-person-can-anticipate/", "image": { "@type": "ImageObject", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/6ba/mark-nepo-1670_another-way_we-can-never-be-prepared-for-everything_448469.png", "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/6ba/mark-nepo-1670_another-way_we-can-never-be-prepared-for-everything_448469.png", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/6ba/mark-nepo-1670_another-way_we-can-never-be-prepared-for-everything_448469.png", "width": 1080, "height": 1080, "caption": "“We can never be prepared for everything. No one person can anticipate all of life. In fact, overpreparation…” — Mark Nepo", "creditText": "SMS4Smile Quotes", "creator": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization" } } } }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 9, "item": { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "The glassblower knows: while in the heat of beginning, any shape is possible. Once hardened, the only way to change is to break.", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "Mark Nepo" }, "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mark-nepo/the-glassblower-knows-while-in-the-heat-of-beginning-any-shape-is/", "image": { "@type": "ImageObject", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/9b2/mark-nepo-1670_break_the-glassblower-knows-while-in-the-heat_91345.png", "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/9b2/mark-nepo-1670_break_the-glassblower-knows-while-in-the-heat_91345.png", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/9b2/mark-nepo-1670_break_the-glassblower-knows-while-in-the-heat_91345.png", "width": 1080, "height": 1080, "caption": "“The glassblower knows: while in the heat of beginning, any shape is possible. Once hardened, the only way to…” — Mark Nepo", "creditText": "SMS4Smile Quotes", "creator": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization" } } } }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 10, "item": { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "In daily terms, the work of listening is to be constantly worn free of our preconceptions and preferences so that nothing stands in the way of our direct experience of life.", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "Mark Nepo" }, "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mark-nepo/in-daily-terms-the-work-of-listening-is-to-be-constantly-worn-free-of/", "image": { "@type": "ImageObject", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/882/mark-nepo-1670_communication_in-daily-terms-the-work-of-listening-is_2795428.png", "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/882/mark-nepo-1670_communication_in-daily-terms-the-work-of-listening-is_2795428.png", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/882/mark-nepo-1670_communication_in-daily-terms-the-work-of-listening-is_2795428.png", "width": 1080, "height": 1080, "caption": "“In daily terms, the work of listening is to be constantly worn free of our preconceptions and preferences so…” — Mark Nepo", "creditText": "SMS4Smile Quotes", "creator": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization" } } } }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 11, "item": { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "The simplest and bravest way to counter the plight of disheartenment is to move toward what is precious.", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "Mark Nepo" }, "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mark-nepo/the-simplest-and-bravest-way-to-counter-the-plight-of-disheartenment/", "image": { "@type": "ImageObject", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/d0f/mark-nepo-1670_moving_the-simplest-and-bravest-way-to-counter_1421165.png", "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/d0f/mark-nepo-1670_moving_the-simplest-and-bravest-way-to-counter_1421165.png", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/d0f/mark-nepo-1670_moving_the-simplest-and-bravest-way-to-counter_1421165.png", "width": 1080, "height": 1080, "caption": "“The simplest and bravest way to counter the plight of disheartenment is to move toward what is precious.” — Mark Nepo", "creditText": "SMS4Smile Quotes", "creator": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization" } } } }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 12, "item": { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "Living is the original art. As a young man I wanted to be a poet and I learned along the way that I already was a poet.", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "Mark Nepo" }, "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mark-nepo/living-is-the-original-art-as-a-young-man-i-wanted-to-be-a-poet-and-i/", "image": { "@type": "ImageObject", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/2ac/mark-nepo-1670_art_living-is-the-original-art-as-a-young-ma_329119.png", "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/2ac/mark-nepo-1670_art_living-is-the-original-art-as-a-young-ma_329119.png", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/2ac/mark-nepo-1670_art_living-is-the-original-art-as-a-young-ma_329119.png", "width": 1080, "height": 1080, "caption": "“Living is the original art. As a young man I wanted to be a poet and I learned along the way that I already…” — Mark Nepo", "creditText": "SMS4Smile Quotes", "creator": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization" } } } }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 13, "item": { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "As the seed buried in the earth cannot imagine itself as an orchid or hyacinth, neither can a heart packed with hurt imagine itself loved or at peace. The courage of the seed is that once cracking, it cracks all the way.", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "Mark Nepo" }, "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mark-nepo/as-the-seed-buried-in-the-earth-cannot-imagine-itself-as-an-orchid-or/", "image": { "@type": "ImageObject", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/100/mark-nepo-1670_buried_as-the-seed-buried-in-the-earth-cannot-i_577517.png", "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/100/mark-nepo-1670_buried_as-the-seed-buried-in-the-earth-cannot-i_577517.png", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/100/mark-nepo-1670_buried_as-the-seed-buried-in-the-earth-cannot-i_577517.png", "width": 1080, "height": 1080, "caption": "“As the seed buried in the earth cannot imagine itself as an orchid or hyacinth, neither can a heart packed…” — Mark Nepo", "creditText": "SMS4Smile Quotes", "creator": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization" } } } }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 14, "item": { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "It is the courage to be authentic that keeps us strong enough to withstand the heartbreak through which enlightenment can occur. And it is by honoring how life comes through us that we get the most out of living, not by keeping ourselves out of the way. The goal is to mix our hands in the earth, not to stay clean.", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "Mark Nepo" }, "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mark-nepo/it-is-the-courage-to-be-authentic-that-keeps-us-strong-enough-to/", "image": { "@type": "ImageObject", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/ad8/mark-nepo-1670_buddhism_it-is-the-courage-to-be-authentic-that-k_2485615.jpg", "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/ad8/mark-nepo-1670_buddhism_it-is-the-courage-to-be-authentic-that-k_2485615.jpg", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/ad8/mark-nepo-1670_buddhism_it-is-the-courage-to-be-authentic-that-k_2485615.jpg", "width": 1080, "height": 1080, "caption": "“It is the courage to be authentic that keeps us strong enough to withstand the heartbreak through which…” — Mark Nepo", "creditText": "SMS4Smile Quotes", "creator": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization" } } } }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 15, "item": { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "In the same way that we have to clean wax from our ears and dirt from our eyes, we're all asked to clean out our conclusions and judgments, which block our heart from meeting the world.", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "Mark Nepo" }, "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mark-nepo/in-the-same-way-that-we-have-to-clean-wax-from-our-ears-and-dirt-from/", "image": { "@type": "ImageObject", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/ac5/mark-nepo-1670_block_in-the-same-way-that-we-have-to-clean-wa_2938531.png", "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/ac5/mark-nepo-1670_block_in-the-same-way-that-we-have-to-clean-wa_2938531.png", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/ac5/mark-nepo-1670_block_in-the-same-way-that-we-have-to-clean-wa_2938531.png", "width": 1080, "height": 1080, "caption": "“In the same way that we have to clean wax from our ears and dirt from our eyes, we're all asked to clean out…” — Mark Nepo", "creditText": "SMS4Smile Quotes", "creator": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization" } } } }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 16, "item": { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "Through the opened heart, the world comes rushing in, the way oceans fill the smallest hole along the shore. It is the quietest sort of miracle: by simply being who we are, the world will come to fill us, to cleanse us, to baptize us, again and again.", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "Mark Nepo" }, "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mark-nepo/through-the-opened-heart-the-world-comes-rushing-in-the-way-oceans/", "image": { "@type": "ImageObject", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/156/mark-nepo-1670_again-and-again_through-the-opened-heart-the-world-comes_2235072.png", "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/156/mark-nepo-1670_again-and-again_through-the-opened-heart-the-world-comes_2235072.png", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/156/mark-nepo-1670_again-and-again_through-the-opened-heart-the-world-comes_2235072.png", "width": 1080, "height": 1080, "caption": "“Through the opened heart, the world comes rushing in, the way oceans fill the smallest hole along the shore…” — Mark Nepo", "creditText": "SMS4Smile Quotes", "creator": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization" } } } }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 17, "item": { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "The many ways to listen have been reaching into me for years. To enter deep listening, I've had to learn how to keep emptying and opening, how to keep beginning. I've had to lean into all I don't understand, accepting that I am changed by what I hear.", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "Mark Nepo" }, "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mark-nepo/the-many-ways-to-listen-have-been-reaching-into-me-for-years-to-enter/", "image": { "@type": "ImageObject", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/a89/mark-nepo-1670_accepting_the-many-ways-to-listen-have-been-reachi_2153865.jpg", "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/a89/mark-nepo-1670_accepting_the-many-ways-to-listen-have-been-reachi_2153865.jpg", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/a89/mark-nepo-1670_accepting_the-many-ways-to-listen-have-been-reachi_2153865.jpg", "width": 1080, "height": 1080, "caption": "“The many ways to listen have been reaching into me for years. To enter deep listening, I've had to learn how…” — Mark Nepo", "creditText": "SMS4Smile Quotes", "creator": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization" } } } }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 18, "item": { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "I was a very driven person, wanting to help and to do good, hopefully to write and teach in a meaningful way - wanting to make change. And I discovered humbly that life was changing me.", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "Mark Nepo" }, "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mark-nepo/i-was-a-very-driven-person-wanting-to-help-and-to-do-good-hopefully/", "image": { "@type": "ImageObject", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/ef3/mark-nepo-1670_change_i-was-a-very-driven-person-wanting-to-he_475525.png", "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/ef3/mark-nepo-1670_change_i-was-a-very-driven-person-wanting-to-he_475525.png", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/ef3/mark-nepo-1670_change_i-was-a-very-driven-person-wanting-to-he_475525.png", "width": 1080, "height": 1080, "caption": "“I was a very driven person, wanting to help and to do good, hopefully to write and teach in a meaningful way…” — Mark Nepo", "creditText": "SMS4Smile Quotes", "creator": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization" } } } }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 19, "item": { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "Whatever difficulty you face, there are time-tried ways you can listen your way through. Because listening is the doorway to everything that matters. It enlivens the heart the way breathing enlivens the lungs. We listen to awaken our heart. We do this to stay vital and alive.", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "Mark Nepo" }, "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mark-nepo/whatever-difficulty-you-face-there-are-time-tried-ways-you-can-listen/", "image": { "@type": "ImageObject", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/433/mark-nepo-1670_alive_whatever-difficulty-you-face-there-are-t_1120344.jpg", "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/433/mark-nepo-1670_alive_whatever-difficulty-you-face-there-are-t_1120344.jpg", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/433/mark-nepo-1670_alive_whatever-difficulty-you-face-there-are-t_1120344.jpg", "width": 1080, "height": 1080, "caption": "“Whatever difficulty you face, there are time-tried ways you can listen your way through. Because listening…” — Mark Nepo", "creditText": "SMS4Smile Quotes", "creator": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization" } } } }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 20, "item": { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "There are many ways that we grow, but there are two major ways: We shed what no longer works, or we're broken open. If we're unwilling to shed, then we will be broken open. Through shedding, we are worn down, just as nature is eroded to its beauty. I think that through suffering, human beings are eroded to our beauty.", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "Mark Nepo" }, "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mark-nepo/there-are-many-ways-that-we-grow-but-there-are-two-major-ways-we-shed/", "image": { "@type": "ImageObject", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/5d5/mark-nepo-1670_beauty_there-are-many-ways-that-we-grow-but-the_3124894.jpg", "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/5d5/mark-nepo-1670_beauty_there-are-many-ways-that-we-grow-but-the_3124894.jpg", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/5d5/mark-nepo-1670_beauty_there-are-many-ways-that-we-grow-but-the_3124894.jpg", "width": 1080, "height": 1080, "caption": "“There are many ways that we grow, but there are two major ways: We shed what no longer works, or we're…” — Mark Nepo", "creditText": "SMS4Smile Quotes", "creator": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization" } } } }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 21, "item": { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "We often move away from pain, which is helpful only before being hurt. Once in pain, it seems the only way out is through. Like someone falling off a boat, struggling to stay above the water only makes things worse. We must accept we are there and settle enough so we can be carried by the deep. The willingness to do this is the genesis of faith, the giving over to currents larger than us. Even fallen leaves float in lakes, demonstrating how surrender can hold us up.", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "Mark Nepo" }, "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mark-nepo/we-often-move-away-from-pain-which-is-helpful-only-before-being-hurt/", "image": { "@type": "ImageObject", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/3ea/mark-nepo-1670_accepting_we-often-move-away-from-pain-which-is-he_1681200.png", "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/3ea/mark-nepo-1670_accepting_we-often-move-away-from-pain-which-is-he_1681200.png", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/3ea/mark-nepo-1670_accepting_we-often-move-away-from-pain-which-is-he_1681200.png", "width": 1080, "height": 1080, "caption": "“We often move away from pain, which is helpful only before being hurt. Once in pain, it seems the only way…” — Mark Nepo", "creditText": "SMS4Smile Quotes", "creator": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization" } } } }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 22, "item": { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "Just opening quietly for moments everyday can create a path by which life can reach us, the way rain carves a little stream in the earth by which the smallest flowers are watered.", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "Mark Nepo" }, "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mark-nepo/just-opening-quietly-for-moments-everyday-can-create-a-path-by-which/", "image": { "@type": "ImageObject", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/3e2/mark-nepo-1670_earth_just-opening-quietly-for-moments-everyda_1358714.png", "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/3e2/mark-nepo-1670_earth_just-opening-quietly-for-moments-everyda_1358714.png", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/3e2/mark-nepo-1670_earth_just-opening-quietly-for-moments-everyda_1358714.png", "width": 1080, "height": 1080, "caption": "“Just opening quietly for moments everyday can create a path by which life can reach us, the way rain carves…” — Mark Nepo", "creditText": "SMS4Smile Quotes", "creator": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization" } } } }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 23, "item": { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "We travel so far only to land where we are. We imagine other lives, only to meet who we are. We seek out love in special ways, only to find everyone is special. Humbly, we can't avoid this journey...", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "Mark Nepo" }, "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mark-nepo/we-travel-so-far-only-to-land-where-we-are-we-imagine-other-lives/", "image": { "@type": "ImageObject", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/521/mark-nepo-1670_imagine_we-travel-so-far-only-to-land-where-we-a_468455.png", "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/521/mark-nepo-1670_imagine_we-travel-so-far-only-to-land-where-we-a_468455.png", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/521/mark-nepo-1670_imagine_we-travel-so-far-only-to-land-where-we-a_468455.png", "width": 1080, "height": 1080, "caption": "“We travel so far only to land where we are. We imagine other lives, only to meet who we are. We seek out…” — Mark Nepo", "creditText": "SMS4Smile Quotes", "creator": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization" } } } }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 24, "item": { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "As nature erodes the earth into magnificent forms, life through endless experience opens us further and further to the essence of what matters. Each time I've been opened further, the way I experience life and receive things has changed.", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "Mark Nepo" }, "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mark-nepo/as-nature-erodes-the-earth-into-magnificent-forms-life-through/", "image": { "@type": "ImageObject", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/40b/mark-nepo-1670_changed_as-nature-erodes-the-earth-into-magnific_356821.png", "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/40b/mark-nepo-1670_changed_as-nature-erodes-the-earth-into-magnific_356821.png", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/40b/mark-nepo-1670_changed_as-nature-erodes-the-earth-into-magnific_356821.png", "width": 1080, "height": 1080, "caption": "“As nature erodes the earth into magnificent forms, life through endless experience opens us further and…” — Mark Nepo", "creditText": "SMS4Smile Quotes", "creator": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization" } } } }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 25, "item": { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "Before we can count we are taught to be grateful for what others do. As we are broken open by our experience, we begin to be grateful for what is, and if we live long enough and deep enough and authentically enough, gratitude becomes a way of life.", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "Mark Nepo" }, "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mark-nepo/before-we-can-count-we-are-taught-to-be-grateful-for-what-others-do/", "image": { "@type": "ImageObject", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/bbe/mark-nepo-1670_be-grateful_before-we-can-count-we-are-taught-to-be_233889.png", "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/bbe/mark-nepo-1670_be-grateful_before-we-can-count-we-are-taught-to-be_233889.png", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/bbe/mark-nepo-1670_be-grateful_before-we-can-count-we-are-taught-to-be_233889.png", "width": 1080, "height": 1080, "caption": "“Before we can count we are taught to be grateful for what others do. As we are broken open by our…” — Mark Nepo", "creditText": "SMS4Smile Quotes", "creator": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization" } } } }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 26, "item": { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "Everything in life opens and closes, sheds and renews. We are no different. Listening in its endless forms is the way we stay open, the way we stay in relationship, the way we refresh who we are and what we're doing here.", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "Mark Nepo" }, "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mark-nepo/everything-in-life-opens-and-closes-sheds-and-renews-we-are-no/", "image": { "@type": "ImageObject", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/d9d/mark-nepo-1670_different_everything-in-life-opens-and-closes-shed_439337.png", "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/d9d/mark-nepo-1670_different_everything-in-life-opens-and-closes-shed_439337.png", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/d9d/mark-nepo-1670_different_everything-in-life-opens-and-closes-shed_439337.png", "width": 1080, "height": 1080, "caption": "“Everything in life opens and closes, sheds and renews. We are no different. Listening in its endless forms…” — Mark Nepo", "creditText": "SMS4Smile Quotes", "creator": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization" } } } }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 27, "item": { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "I would want to affirm how rare and magnificent and messy it is to be alive, how there is really nothing between us and life, though so many things get in the way, and how our heart is the strongest muscle and resource we have.", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "Mark Nepo" }, "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mark-nepo/i-would-want-to-affirm-how-rare-and-magnificent-and-messy-it-is-to-be/", "image": { "@type": "ImageObject", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/a80/mark-nepo-1670_alive_i-would-want-to-affirm-how-rare-and-magn_330909.png", "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/a80/mark-nepo-1670_alive_i-would-want-to-affirm-how-rare-and-magn_330909.png", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/a80/mark-nepo-1670_alive_i-would-want-to-affirm-how-rare-and-magn_330909.png", "width": 1080, "height": 1080, "caption": "“I would want to affirm how rare and magnificent and messy it is to be alive, how there is really nothing…” — Mark Nepo", "creditText": "SMS4Smile Quotes", "creator": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization" } } } }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 28, "item": { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "We work so hard to get somewhere, to realize a dream, to arrive at some destination, that we often forget that though some satisfaction may be waiting at the end of our endurance and effort, there is great and irreplaceable aliveness in the steps along the way.", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "Mark Nepo" }, "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mark-nepo/we-work-so-hard-to-get-somewhere-to-realize-a-dream-to-arrive-at-some/", "image": { "@type": "ImageObject", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/814/mark-nepo-1670_destination_we-work-so-hard-to-get-somewhere-to-real_96152.png", "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/814/mark-nepo-1670_destination_we-work-so-hard-to-get-somewhere-to-real_96152.png", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/814/mark-nepo-1670_destination_we-work-so-hard-to-get-somewhere-to-real_96152.png", "width": 1080, "height": 1080, "caption": "“We work so hard to get somewhere, to realize a dream, to arrive at some destination, that we often forget…” — Mark Nepo", "creditText": "SMS4Smile Quotes", "creator": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization" } } } }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 29, "item": { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "Whatever truth we feel compelled to withhold, no matter how unthinkable it is to imagine ourselves telling it, not to is a way of spiritually holding our breath. You can only do it for so long.", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "Mark Nepo" }, "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mark-nepo/whatever-truth-we-feel-compelled-to-withhold-no-matter-how/", "image": { "@type": "ImageObject", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/b88/mark-nepo-1670_feels_whatever-truth-we-feel-compelled-to-with_861527.png", "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/b88/mark-nepo-1670_feels_whatever-truth-we-feel-compelled-to-with_861527.png", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/b88/mark-nepo-1670_feels_whatever-truth-we-feel-compelled-to-with_861527.png", "width": 1080, "height": 1080, "caption": "“Whatever truth we feel compelled to withhold, no matter how unthinkable it is to imagine ourselves telling…” — Mark Nepo", "creditText": "SMS4Smile Quotes", "creator": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization" } } } }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 30, "item": { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "One of the most challenging ways is to slow down enough to relax our heart and feel what is nearest. It could be the sun reflecting off of broken glass in an alley. It could be the shine on a crow. It could be snow on a lamp post.", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "Mark Nepo" }, "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mark-nepo/one-of-the-most-challenging-ways-is-to-slow-down-enough-to-relax-our/", "image": { "@type": "ImageObject", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/16a/mark-nepo-1670_alleys_one-of-the-most-challenging-ways-is-to-s_1695396.jpg", "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/16a/mark-nepo-1670_alleys_one-of-the-most-challenging-ways-is-to-s_1695396.jpg", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/16a/mark-nepo-1670_alleys_one-of-the-most-challenging-ways-is-to-s_1695396.jpg", "width": 1080, "height": 1080, "caption": "“One of the most challenging ways is to slow down enough to relax our heart and feel what is nearest. It…” — Mark Nepo", "creditText": "SMS4Smile Quotes", "creator": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization" } } } }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 31, "item": { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "Whether you find it through mediation or sighing over tea or just turning all your devices off for five minutes, listening is an ancient lifeline by which we are awakened time and again. Once reawakened, we more easily find our way to each other, and so help each other live.", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "Mark Nepo" }, "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mark-nepo/whether-you-find-it-through-mediation-or-sighing-over-tea-or-just/", "image": { "@type": "ImageObject", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/d22/mark-nepo-1670_ancient_whether-you-find-it-through-mediation-or_1550956.png", "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/d22/mark-nepo-1670_ancient_whether-you-find-it-through-mediation-or_1550956.png", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/d22/mark-nepo-1670_ancient_whether-you-find-it-through-mediation-or_1550956.png", "width": 1080, "height": 1080, "caption": "“Whether you find it through mediation or sighing over tea or just turning all your devices off for five…” — Mark Nepo", "creditText": "SMS4Smile Quotes", "creator": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization" } } } }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 32, "item": { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "In the way that I experience life, the physical world is really just the tip of the iceberg of reality. 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