--- title: "13 Way Quotes By W. S. Merwin" description: "13 Way quotes by W. S. Merwin. Plus more from W. S. Merwin and more Way sayings from other authors." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/1db/w-s-merwin-10641_mouths_to-say-what-or-where-we-came-from-has-no_3006072.png" --- > [To say what or where we came from has nothing to do with what or where we came from. We do not…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/w-s-merwin/to-say-what-or-where-we-came-from-has-nothing-to-do-with-what-or/) [W. S. Merwin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/w-s-merwin/) [Image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/1db/w-s-merwin-10641_mouths_to-say-what-or-where-we-came-from-has-no_3006072.png) > [Through all of youth I was looking for you without knowing what I was looking for part memory part distance remaining mine…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/w-s-merwin/through-all-of-youth-i-was-looking-for-you-without-knowing-what-i-was-2/) [W. S. Merwin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/w-s-merwin/) [Image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/abb/w-s-merwin-10641_astronomy_through-all-of-youth-i-was-looking-for-y_2931021.png) > [If there'd been a better-balanced society, where there were other ways of making a decent living, I think it might have been…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/w-s-merwin/if-there-d-been-a-better-balanced-society-where-there-were-other-ways/) [W. S. Merwin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/w-s-merwin/) [Image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/1d1/w-s-merwin-10641_balanced_if-there-d-been-a-better-balanced-societ_908347.png) > [The global warming is going on. These are not single cases. These are all part of a general way we've been looking…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/w-s-merwin/the-global-warming-is-going-on-these-are-not-single-cases-these-are/) [W. S. Merwin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/w-s-merwin/) [Image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/8ef/w-s-merwin-10641_cases_the-global-warming-is-going-on-these-are_2940760.png) > [You have to be rather relentless about pushing other things out of the way. This activity of writing, which has no promises…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/w-s-merwin/you-have-to-be-rather-relentless-about-pushing-other-things-out-of/) [W. S. Merwin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/w-s-merwin/) [Image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/d5b/w-s-merwin-10641_kind_you-have-to-be-rather-relentless-about-p_359092.png) > [The Indians seemed to be living in a place and in a way that was of immense importance to me. So I…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/w-s-merwin/the-indians-seemed-to-be-living-in-a-place-and-in-a-way-that-was-of/) [W. S. Merwin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/w-s-merwin/) [Image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/016/w-s-merwin-10641_enough_the-indians-seemed-to-be-living-in-a-pla_1098942.jpg) > [There are aspects of human life that are not purely destructive, and there is a need to pay attention to the things…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/w-s-merwin/there-are-aspects-of-human-life-that-are-not-purely-destructive-and/) [W. S. Merwin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/w-s-merwin/) [Image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/875/w-s-merwin-10641_anger_there-are-aspects-of-human-life-that-are_849825.png) > [The attempt to live that way, the attempt to treat everybody - it fails all the time - but the attempt to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/w-s-merwin/the-attempt-to-live-that-way-the-attempt-to-treat-everybody-it-fails/) [W. S. Merwin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/w-s-merwin/) [Image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/31f/w-s-merwin-10641_attempt_the-attempt-to-live-that-way-the-attempt_3117142.png) > [The moment we turn over the soil we start poisoning it and we go on poisoning it all the way through... and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/w-s-merwin/the-moment-we-turn-over-the-soil-we-start-poisoning-it-and-we-go-on/) [W. S. Merwin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/w-s-merwin/) [Image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/004/w-s-merwin-10641_dying_the-moment-we-turn-over-the-soil-we-star_3036891.png) > [There is part of a structure in which every species is related to every other species. And they're built up on species,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/w-s-merwin/there-is-part-of-a-structure-in-which-every-species-is-related-to/) [W. S. Merwin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/w-s-merwin/) [Image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/d18/w-s-merwin-10641_biology_there-is-part-of-a-structure-in-which-ev_2550012.png) > [I think it's good for anybody to learn languages. Americans are particularly limited in that way. Europeans less so... We're beginning to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/w-s-merwin/i-think-it-s-good-for-anybody-to-learn-languages-americans-are/) [W. S. Merwin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/w-s-merwin/) [Image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/bb4/w-s-merwin-10641_country_i-think-it-s-good-for-anybody-to-learn-l_334386.png) > [Politically it would be terribly repressive to prevent people from having as many children as they want. But something's got to prevent…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/w-s-merwin/politically-it-would-be-terribly-repressive-to-prevent-people-from/) [W. S. Merwin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/w-s-merwin/) [Image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/0eb/w-s-merwin-10641_children_politically-it-would-be-terribly-repress_2092671.jpg) > [If you can't bear what's happening to the natural world, if you can't bear the way we treat each other; if you…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/w-s-merwin/if-you-can-t-bear-what-s-happening-to-the-natural-world-if-you-can-t/) [W. S. Merwin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/w-s-merwin/) [Image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/b1c/w-s-merwin-10641_bears_if-you-can-t-bear-what-s-happening-to-th_2041741.jpg) ## Other authors on Way ## More by W. S. Merwin > [When a poem is really finished, you can't change anything. You can't move words around. You can't say, 'In other words, you mean.' No,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/w-s-merwin/when-a-poem-is-really-finished-you-can-t-change-anything-you-can-t/) [W. S. Merwin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/w-s-merwin/) > [We are not born to survive. Only to live.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/w-s-merwin/we-are-not-born-to-survive-only-to-live/) [W. S. Merwin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/w-s-merwin/) > [What you remember saves you.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/w-s-merwin/what-you-remember-saves-you/) [W. S. Merwin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/w-s-merwin/) > [I also think that life itself is both indifferent to us and the source of all of our joys and everything that we love.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/w-s-merwin/i-also-think-that-life-itself-is-both-indifferent-to-us-and-the/) [W. S. Merwin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/w-s-merwin/) > [I think it's good for anybody to learn languages. Americans are particularly limited in that way. Europeans less so... We're beginning to have Spanish…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/w-s-merwin/i-think-it-s-good-for-anybody-to-learn-languages-americans-are/) [W. S. Merwin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/w-s-merwin/) > [You have to be rather relentless about pushing other things out of the way. This activity of writing, which has no promises attached to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/w-s-merwin/you-have-to-be-rather-relentless-about-pushing-other-things-out-of/) [W. S. Merwin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/w-s-merwin/) > [Laughter was the shape the darkness took around the first appearance of the light.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/w-s-merwin/laughter-was-the-shape-the-darkness-took-around-the-first-appearance/) [W. S. Merwin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/w-s-merwin/) > [In a sense, much that is learned is bound to be bad habits. You're always beginning again.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/w-s-merwin/in-a-sense-much-that-is-learned-is-bound-to-be-bad-habits-you-re/) [W. S. Merwin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/w-s-merwin/) > [I go five steps in the garden, and I immediately lose track of time... it is a kind of joy in being alive in…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/w-s-merwin/i-go-five-steps-in-the-garden-and-i-immediately-lose-track-of-time-it/) [W. S. Merwin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/w-s-merwin/) > [What I really believe is the only hopeful relation between our life and the whole of life is one of reverence and respect and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/w-s-merwin/what-i-really-believe-is-the-only-hopeful-relation-between-our-life/) [W. S. Merwin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/w-s-merwin/) > [As soon as I could write with a little pencil, I was writing these little hymns and illustrating them, and I thought they should…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/w-s-merwin/as-soon-as-i-could-write-with-a-little-pencil-i-was-writing-these/) [W. S. Merwin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/w-s-merwin/) > [There are aspects of human life that are not purely destructive, and there is a need to pay attention to the things around us…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/w-s-merwin/there-are-aspects-of-human-life-that-are-not-purely-destructive-and/) [W. S. Merwin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/w-s-merwin/) > [If there'd been a better-balanced society, where there were other ways of making a decent living, I think it might have been different. That's…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/w-s-merwin/if-there-d-been-a-better-balanced-society-where-there-were-other-ways/) [W. S. Merwin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/w-s-merwin/) > [We are the shadow of Sirius. There is the other side of - as we talk to each other, we see the light, and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/w-s-merwin/we-are-the-shadow-of-sirius-there-is-the-other-side-of-as-we-talk-to/) [W. S. Merwin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/w-s-merwin/) > [Any work of art makes one very simple demand on anyone who genuinely wants to get in touch with it. And that is to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/w-s-merwin/any-work-of-art-makes-one-very-simple-demand-on-anyone-who-genuinely/) [W. S. Merwin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/w-s-merwin/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "ItemList", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/way/w-s-merwin/#itemlist", "name": "13 Way Quotes By W. S. Merwin", "numberOfItems": 13, "itemListElement": [ { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 1, "item": { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "To say what or where we came from has nothing to do with what or where we came from. We do not come from there any more, but only from each word that proceeds out of the mouth of the unnamed. And yet sometimes it is our only way of pointing to who we are.", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "W. S. 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These are all part of a general way we've been looking at the world. As long as we look at the world that way it's going to go on. Because the idea that the important thing is for some people get rich while the rest of the people work for them is very deeply dug in...", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "W. S. Merwin" }, "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/w-s-merwin/the-global-warming-is-going-on-these-are-not-single-cases-these-are/", "image": { "@type": "ImageObject", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/8ef/w-s-merwin-10641_cases_the-global-warming-is-going-on-these-are_2940760.png", "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/8ef/w-s-merwin-10641_cases_the-global-warming-is-going-on-these-are_2940760.png", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/8ef/w-s-merwin-10641_cases_the-global-warming-is-going-on-these-are_2940760.png", "width": 1080, "height": 1080, "caption": "“The global warming is going on. These are not single cases. 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Merwin" }, "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/w-s-merwin/you-have-to-be-rather-relentless-about-pushing-other-things-out-of/", "image": { "@type": "ImageObject", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/d5b/w-s-merwin-10641_kind_you-have-to-be-rather-relentless-about-p_359092.png", "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/d5b/w-s-merwin-10641_kind_you-have-to-be-rather-relentless-about-p_359092.png", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/d5b/w-s-merwin-10641_kind_you-have-to-be-rather-relentless-about-p_359092.png", "width": 1080, "height": 1080, "caption": "“You have to be rather relentless about pushing other things out of the way. This activity of writing, which…” — W. S. Merwin", "creditText": "SMS4Smile Quotes", "creator": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization" } } } }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 6, "item": { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "The Indians seemed to be living in a place and in a way that was of immense importance to me. So I associate learning to read - English, oddly enough - with wanting to know about Indians. I'm still growing into it. I've never outgrown that.", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "W. S. Merwin" }, "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/w-s-merwin/the-indians-seemed-to-be-living-in-a-place-and-in-a-way-that-was-of/", "image": { "@type": "ImageObject", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/016/w-s-merwin-10641_enough_the-indians-seemed-to-be-living-in-a-pla_1098942.jpg", "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/016/w-s-merwin-10641_enough_the-indians-seemed-to-be-living-in-a-pla_1098942.jpg", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/016/w-s-merwin-10641_enough_the-indians-seemed-to-be-living-in-a-pla_1098942.jpg", "width": 1080, "height": 1080, "caption": "“The Indians seemed to be living in a place and in a way that was of immense importance to me. So I associate…” — W. S. Merwin", "creditText": "SMS4Smile Quotes", "creator": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization" } } } }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 7, "item": { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "There are aspects of human life that are not purely destructive, and there is a need to pay attention to the things around us while they are still around us. And you know, in a way, if you don't pay that attention, the anger is just bitterness.", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "W. S. Merwin" }, "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/w-s-merwin/there-are-aspects-of-human-life-that-are-not-purely-destructive-and/", "image": { "@type": "ImageObject", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/875/w-s-merwin-10641_anger_there-are-aspects-of-human-life-that-are_849825.png", "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/875/w-s-merwin-10641_anger_there-are-aspects-of-human-life-that-are_849825.png", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/875/w-s-merwin-10641_anger_there-are-aspects-of-human-life-that-are_849825.png", "width": 1080, "height": 1080, "caption": "“There are aspects of human life that are not purely destructive, and there is a need to pay attention to the…” — W. S. Merwin", "creditText": "SMS4Smile Quotes", "creator": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization" } } } }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 8, "item": { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "The attempt to live that way, the attempt to treat everybody - it fails all the time - but the attempt to treat people as equals is a good attempt. It's a very good attempt. And there have been very few governments that have come anywhere near it in the past. The Greeks began to, the Romans began to - they both failed.", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "W. S. Merwin" }, "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/w-s-merwin/the-attempt-to-live-that-way-the-attempt-to-treat-everybody-it-fails/", "image": { "@type": "ImageObject", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/31f/w-s-merwin-10641_attempt_the-attempt-to-live-that-way-the-attempt_3117142.png", "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/31f/w-s-merwin-10641_attempt_the-attempt-to-live-that-way-the-attempt_3117142.png", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/31f/w-s-merwin-10641_attempt_the-attempt-to-live-that-way-the-attempt_3117142.png", "width": 1080, "height": 1080, "caption": "“The attempt to live that way, the attempt to treat everybody - it fails all the time - but the attempt to…” — W. S. Merwin", "creditText": "SMS4Smile Quotes", "creator": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization" } } } }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 9, "item": { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "The moment we turn over the soil we start poisoning it and we go on poisoning it all the way through... and there's probably not a river in the United States that doesn't have pesticide poisoning in it. The fish are dying. The seas are getting polluted. All of these things are happening. The rain forests are going. That's what the context is.", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "W. S. Merwin" }, "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/w-s-merwin/the-moment-we-turn-over-the-soil-we-start-poisoning-it-and-we-go-on/", "image": { "@type": "ImageObject", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/004/w-s-merwin-10641_dying_the-moment-we-turn-over-the-soil-we-star_3036891.png", "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/004/w-s-merwin-10641_dying_the-moment-we-turn-over-the-soil-we-star_3036891.png", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/004/w-s-merwin-10641_dying_the-moment-we-turn-over-the-soil-we-star_3036891.png", "width": 1080, "height": 1080, "caption": "“The moment we turn over the soil we start poisoning it and we go on poisoning it all the way through... and…” — W. S. Merwin", "creditText": "SMS4Smile Quotes", "creator": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization" } } } }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 10, "item": { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "There is part of a structure in which every species is related to every other species. And they're built up on species, like a pyramid. The simpler cell organisms, and then the more complicated ones, all the way up to the mammals and birds and so forth. We call it 'developing upward'... The whole thing depends on every part of it. And we're taking out the stones from the pyramid.", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "W. S. Merwin" }, "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/w-s-merwin/there-is-part-of-a-structure-in-which-every-species-is-related-to/", "image": { "@type": "ImageObject", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/d18/w-s-merwin-10641_biology_there-is-part-of-a-structure-in-which-ev_2550012.png", "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/d18/w-s-merwin-10641_biology_there-is-part-of-a-structure-in-which-ev_2550012.png", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/d18/w-s-merwin-10641_biology_there-is-part-of-a-structure-in-which-ev_2550012.png", "width": 1080, "height": 1080, "caption": "“There is part of a structure in which every species is related to every other species. And they're built up…” — W. S. Merwin", "creditText": "SMS4Smile Quotes", "creator": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization" } } } }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 11, "item": { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "I think it's good for anybody to learn languages. Americans are particularly limited in that way. Europeans less so... We're beginning to have Spanish move in on English in the states because of all the people coming from Hispanic countries... and we're beginning to learn some Spanish. And I think that's a good thing... Only having one language is very limiting... You get to think that's the way the human race is made; there's only one language worth speaking... Well, this isn't good for English.", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "W. S. Merwin" }, "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/w-s-merwin/i-think-it-s-good-for-anybody-to-learn-languages-americans-are/", "image": { "@type": "ImageObject", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/bb4/w-s-merwin-10641_country_i-think-it-s-good-for-anybody-to-learn-l_334386.png", "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/bb4/w-s-merwin-10641_country_i-think-it-s-good-for-anybody-to-learn-l_334386.png", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/bb4/w-s-merwin-10641_country_i-think-it-s-good-for-anybody-to-learn-l_334386.png", "width": 1080, "height": 1080, "caption": "“I think it's good for anybody to learn languages. Americans are particularly limited in that way. Europeans…” — W. S. Merwin", "creditText": "SMS4Smile Quotes", "creator": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization" } } } }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 12, "item": { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "Politically it would be terribly repressive to prevent people from having as many children as they want. But something's got to prevent it; and it won't be pleasant... We're still behaving in ways that have become disastrous... I don't think this helps us to survive... We're very species-centric... and now exist at the expense of every other form of life on Earth.", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "W. S. Merwin" }, "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/w-s-merwin/politically-it-would-be-terribly-repressive-to-prevent-people-from/", "image": { "@type": "ImageObject", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/0eb/w-s-merwin-10641_children_politically-it-would-be-terribly-repress_2092671.jpg", "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/0eb/w-s-merwin-10641_children_politically-it-would-be-terribly-repress_2092671.jpg", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/0eb/w-s-merwin-10641_children_politically-it-would-be-terribly-repress_2092671.jpg", "width": 1080, "height": 1080, "caption": "“Politically it would be terribly repressive to prevent people from having as many children as they want. But…” — W. S. Merwin", "creditText": "SMS4Smile Quotes", "creator": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization" } } } }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 13, "item": { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "If you can't bear what's happening to the natural world, if you can't bear the way we treat each other; if you can't bear wars, you just can't bear the whole idea of war, which is possibly unavoidable. But still, you resist it. Because you just hate our treating each other that way and causing that suffering.", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "W. S. Merwin" }, "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/w-s-merwin/if-you-can-t-bear-what-s-happening-to-the-natural-world-if-you-can-t/", "image": { "@type": "ImageObject", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/b1c/w-s-merwin-10641_bears_if-you-can-t-bear-what-s-happening-to-th_2041741.jpg", "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/b1c/w-s-merwin-10641_bears_if-you-can-t-bear-what-s-happening-to-th_2041741.jpg", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/b1c/w-s-merwin-10641_bears_if-you-can-t-bear-what-s-happening-to-th_2041741.jpg", "width": 1080, "height": 1080, "caption": "“If you can't bear what's happening to the natural world, if you can't bear the way we treat each other; if…” — W. S. Merwin", "creditText": "SMS4Smile Quotes", "creator": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization" } } } } ] }, { "@type": "CollectionPage", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/way/w-s-merwin/#webpage", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/way/w-s-merwin/", "name": "Way Quotes by W. S. Merwin", "isPartOf": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website" }, "mainEntity": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/way/w-s-merwin/#itemlist" }, "primaryImageOfPage": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/1db/w-s-merwin-10641_mouths_to-say-what-or-where-we-came-from-has-no_3006072.png" }, "description": "13 Way quotes by W. S. Merwin. Plus more from W. S. 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