--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: Some periods of our growth are so…" description: "\"“Some periods of our growth are so confusing that we don’t even recognize that growth is what is happening. We may feel hostile or angry or weepy and h..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/93d/alice-walker-347_change_some-periods-of-our-growth-are-so-confus_2243165.jpg" --- # Some periods of our growth are so confusing that we don’t… ![“Some periods of our growth are so confusing that we don’t even recognize that growth is what is happening. We may feel hostile or angry or weepy and hysterical, or we may feel depressed. It would never occur to us, unless we stumbled on a book or person who explained it to us, that we were in fact…” quote by Alice Walker](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/93d/alice-walker-347_change_some-periods-of-our-growth-are-so-confus_2243165.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/93d/alice-walker-347_change_some-periods-of-our-growth-are-so-confus_2243165.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/93d/alice-walker-347_change_some-periods-of-our-growth-are-so-confus_2243165.jpg) > ““Some periods of our growth are so confusing that we don’t even recognize that growth is what is happening. We may feel hostile or angry or weepy and hysterical, or we may feel depressed. It would never occur to us, unless we stumbled on a book or person who explained it to us, that we were in fact in the process of change, of actually becoming larger, spiritually, than we were before. Whenever we grow, we tend to feel it, as a young seed must feel the weight and inertia of the earth as it seeks to break out of its shell on its way to becoming a plant. Often the feeling is anything but pleasant. But what is most unpleasant is the not knowing what is happening . . . Those long periods when something inside ourselves seems to be waiting, holding its breath, unsure about what the next step should be, eventually become the periods we wait for, for it is in those periods that we realize that we are being prepared for the next phase of our life and that, in all probability, a new level of the personality is about to be revealed.”” [Alice Walker](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alice-walker/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Growth often feels confusing, uncomfortable, and hidden, making us unaware we are changing until we recognize the process. **In simple terms:** Change can feel strange and painful. Key Takeaway Embrace discomfort as a sign of growth. Themes personal growth spiritual development self-awareness transformation emotional turbulence Mood reflective hopeful introspective Type philosophical motivational inspirational When to use this quote - career transition - relationship changes - grief processing - creative projects - spiritual awakening Key Concepts psychology spirituality developmental stages Questions to Reflect On - What signs of inner change have you ignored? - How can you honor discomfort as part of growth? A Different Perspective Growth may be slow and unclear, leading to frustration and doubt. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Change](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/change/) [Depression](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/depression/) [Growth](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/growth/) [Growth Confusing](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/growth-confusing-2701190/) [Next step](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/next-step/) [Pain](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/pain/) [Periods Growth](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/periods-growth-2701192/) [Personality](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/personality/) [Plant Feeling](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/plant-feeling-5094439/) [Recognize Growth](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/recognize-growth-2701191/) [Spirituality](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/spirituality/) ## Related quotes > [Some periods of our growth are so confusing that we don't even recognize that growth is happening...Those long periods when something inside ourselves seems…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alice-walker/some-periods-of-our-growth-are-so-confusing-that-we-don-t-even/) [Alice Walker](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alice-walker/) > [All human affairs follow nature's great analogue, the growth of vegetation. There are three periods of growth in every plant. The first, and slowest,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/henry-ward-beecher/all-human-affairs-follow-nature-s-great-analogue-the-growth-of/) [Henry Ward Beecher](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/henry-ward-beecher/) > [“Now, whenever she had to leave him, be it for only a few minutes, Caro was seized by an annoying bout of dizziness. Mark…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mircea-luca/now-whenever-she-had-to-leave-him-be-it-for-only-a-few-minutes-caro/) [Mircea Luca](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mircea-luca/) > [“Some people refuse to take the next step. You could refuse to take what you wanted most, because you're afraid someday you might lost…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nora-roberts/some-people-refuse-to-take-the-next-step-you-could-refuse-to-take/) [Nora Roberts](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nora-roberts/) > [But perhaps the next step isn't to, once again, expand the otherwise narrow definition of marriage but to altogether abolish the false distinction between…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sally-kohn/but-perhaps-the-next-step-isn-t-to-once-again-expand-the-otherwise/) [Sally Kohn](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sally-kohn/) > [Focus on what you're doing. Focus on the phases in front of them. Do everything you can to get the best at that phase…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/donovin-darius/focus-on-what-you-re-doing-focus-on-the-phases-in-front-of-them-do/) [Donovin Darius](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/donovin-darius/) > [“On behalf of the deference under the Administrative Procedure Act, it is said that Congress is not constitutionally barred from authorizing deference—as if Congress…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/philip-hamburger/on-behalf-of-the-deference-under-the-administrative-procedure-act-it/) [Philip Hamburger](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/philip-hamburger/) > [Poetry is like walking along a little, tiny, narrow ridge up on a precipice. You never know the next step, whether there's going to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/josephine-jacobsen/poetry-is-like-walking-along-a-little-tiny-narrow-ridge-up-on-a/) [Josephine Jacobsen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/josephine-jacobsen/) > [Sometimes it wasn't even when we were knocking on doors, it would be, the phone would ring and somebody would say, "God told me…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stephen-kendrick/sometimes-it-wasn-t-even-when-we-were-knocking-on-doors-it-would-be/) [Stephen Kendrick](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stephen-kendrick/) > [I played United's reserves for a few years and I wanted to take that next step, which was a loan move.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/danny-drinkwater/i-played-united-s-reserves-for-a-few-years-and-i-wanted-to-take-that/) [Danny Drinkwater](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/danny-drinkwater/) > [Usually when you're playing with other people in not such a reverberant room, you have to be quick on your feet and think about…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jherek-bischoff/usually-when-you-re-playing-with-other-people-in-not-such-a/) [Jherek Bischoff](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jherek-bischoff/) > [Russia may soon get another chance to move closer to the West, to make a step - I do believe the first step toward…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/vladimir-voinovich/russia-may-soon-get-another-chance-to-move-closer-to-the-west-to-make/) [Vladimir Voinovich](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/vladimir-voinovich/) > [“We all have the same holes in our hearts Everything falls apart at the exact same time It all comes together perfectly for the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/listener/we-all-have-the-same-holes-in-our-hearts-everything-falls-apart-at/) [Listener](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/listener/) > [In the dim background of our mind we know meanwhile what we ought to be doing: getting up, dressing ourselves, answering the person who…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-james/in-the-dim-background-of-our-mind-we-know-meanwhile-what-we-ought-to/) [William James](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-james/) > [Every day brings new lessons and new possibilities. There is always a way to take the next step forward on the path you've chosen.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/melchor-lim/every-day-brings-new-lessons-and-new-possibilities-there-is-always-a/) [Melchor Lim](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/melchor-lim/) ## More by Alice Walker > [I gave my archive to Emory University because there's a really dear friend who teaches there, Rudolph Byrd, and he's the editor.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alice-walker/i-gave-my-archive-to-emory-university-because-there-s-a-really-dear/) [Alice Walker](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alice-walker/) > [Just be what it is that you are, and that is just fine. You don't have to be what you're not in any way.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alice-walker/just-be-what-it-is-that-you-are-and-that-is-just-fine-you-don-t-have/) [Alice Walker](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alice-walker/) > [“Remember this-- say it & know it is true: Alice loves me Alice loves me and I am not blamed for this. ... she…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alice-walker/remember-this-say-it-know-it-is-true-alice-loves-me-alice-loves-me/) [Alice Walker](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alice-walker/) > [“Only the sky above us do we hold in common.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alice-walker/only-the-sky-above-us-do-we-hold-in-common/) [Alice Walker](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alice-walker/) > [“Why aren't you happy in America, if everyone there drives motorcars?”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alice-walker/why-aren-t-you-happy-in-america-if-everyone-there-drives-motorcars/) [Alice Walker](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alice-walker/) > [“She saw poetry where other writers merely saw failure to cope with English.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alice-walker/she-saw-poetry-where-other-writers-merely-saw-failure-to-cope-with/) [Alice Walker](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alice-walker/) > [My mother had handed down respect for the possibilities...and the will to grasp them.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alice-walker/my-mother-had-handed-down-respect-for-the-possibilities-and-the-will/) [Alice Walker](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alice-walker/) > [Helped are those who are content to be themselves; they will never lack mystery in their lives and the joys of self-discovery will be…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alice-walker/helped-are-those-who-are-content-to-be-themselves-they-will-never/) [Alice Walker](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alice-walker/) > [“As others might prepare for an exam whose subject matter is unknown to them, so I must study, cram, for every conversation with my…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alice-walker/as-others-might-prepare-for-an-exam-whose-subject-matter-is-unknown/) [Alice Walker](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alice-walker/) > [The original crime of niggers and lesbians is that they prefer themselves.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alice-walker/the-original-crime-of-niggers-and-lesbians-is-that-they-prefer/) [Alice Walker](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alice-walker/) > [My mother was very strong. Once, she picked up a coconut and smashed it against my father's head. It taught me about women defending…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alice-walker/my-mother-was-very-strong-once-she-picked-up-a-coconut-and-smashed-it/) [Alice Walker](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alice-walker/) > [Many readers fail to realize this, but 'The Color Purple' is a theological text. It is about the reclamation of one's original God: the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alice-walker/many-readers-fail-to-realize-this-but-the-color-purple-is-a/) [Alice Walker](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alice-walker/) > [The good news may be that Nature is phasing out the white man, but the bad news is that's who She thinks we all…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alice-walker/the-good-news-may-be-that-nature-is-phasing-out-the-white-man-but-the/) [Alice Walker](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alice-walker/) > [Humans - whatever billions we are - we don't have the control. We are considered expendable, basically.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alice-walker/humans-whatever-billions-we-are-we-don-t-have-the-control-we-are/) [Alice Walker](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alice-walker/) > [All my life I had to fight. I had to fight my daddy. I had to fight my uncles. I had to fight my…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alice-walker/all-my-life-i-had-to-fight-i-had-to-fight-my-daddy-i-had-to-fight-my/) [Alice Walker](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alice-walker/) [Explore all 654 Alice Walker quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alice-walker/) ## More Change quotes > [Only within yourself exists the other reality for which you long. I can give you nothing that has not already its being within yourself.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/hermann-hesse/only-within-yourself-exists-the-other-reality-for-which-you-long-i/) [Hermann Hesse](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/hermann-hesse/) > [Life is full of change. That's how we learn and grow.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/life-is-full-of-change-that-s-how-we-learn-and-grow/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [I can't believe that I'm sitting in meetings with Steven Spielberg, Tom Hanks, and Annette Bening. I want to take on that responsibility to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/roger-ross-williams/i-can-t-believe-that-i-m-sitting-in-meetings-with-steven-spielberg/) [Roger Ross Williams](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/roger-ross-williams/) > [“…progress isn't necessarily about change but about things turning out as we want them to”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/phil-hogan/progress-isn-t-necessarily-about-change-but-about-things-turning-out/) [Phil Hogan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/phil-hogan/) > [Nobody can tell me that no changes are necessary in Washington.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-weld/nobody-can-tell-me-that-no-changes-are-necessary-in-washington/) [William Weld](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-weld/) > [If my campaign is not in the debate, we will not be talking about how we really fix this problem of endless and expanding…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jill-stein/if-my-campaign-is-not-in-the-debate-we-will-not-be-talking-about-how/) [Jill Stein](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jill-stein/) > [When you walk down the street of Kabul your values for life changes, they do change.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/marco-pierre-white/when-you-walk-down-the-street-of-kabul-your-values-for-life-changes/) [Marco Pierre White](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/marco-pierre-white/) > [Your world will change whether or not you choose to change, but you have the power to choose it's direction.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/napoleon-hill/your-world-will-change-whether-or-not-you-choose-to-change-but-you/) [Napoleon Hill](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/napoleon-hill/) > [I hope I continue to evolve.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/charlotte-flair/i-hope-i-continue-to-evolve/) [Charlotte Flair](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/charlotte-flair/) > [“Stay focused on bringing people together and more on positive messaging so that you can be the change you wish to see in the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/germany-kent/stay-focused-on-bringing-people-together-and-more-on-positive/) [Germany Kent](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/germany-kent/) > [The biggest change for me as a mom was realizing I needed to put someone else before me. Now the hardest part about the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kim-alexis/the-biggest-change-for-me-as-a-mom-was-realizing-i-needed-to-put/) [Kim Alexis](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kim-alexis/) > [“After the funeral, my life changed. I felt as if time were suddenly precious, water going down an open drain, and I could not…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mitch-albom/after-the-funeral-my-life-changed-i-felt-as-if-time-were-suddenly/) [Mitch Albom](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mitch-albom/) > [You practice mindfulness, on the one hand, to be calm and peaceful. On the other hand, as you practice mindfulness and live a life…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/you-practice-mindfulness-on-the-one-hand-to-be-calm-and-peaceful-on/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [Irish research will contribute to global progress and have the potential to help all countries realise the potential of their land sectors in addressing…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/enda-kenny/irish-research-will-contribute-to-global-progress-and-have-the/) [Enda Kenny](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/enda-kenny/) > [No man can change himself into anything from sheer reason; he can only change into what he potentially is.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/carl-jung/no-man-can-change-himself-into-anything-from-sheer-reason-he-can-only/) [Carl Jung](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/carl-jung/) [Browse all 33,920 Change quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/change/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "“Some periods of our growth are so confusing that we don’t even recognize that growth is what is happening. We may feel hostile or angry or weepy and hysterical, or we may feel depressed. It would never occur to us, unless we stumbled on a book or person who explained it to us, that we were in fact in the process of change, of actually becoming larger, spiritually, than we were before. Whenever we grow, we tend to feel it, as a young seed must feel the weight and inertia of the earth as it seeks to break out of its shell on its way to becoming a plant. Often the feeling is anything but pleasant. But what is most unpleasant is the not knowing what is happening . . . Those long periods when something inside ourselves seems to be waiting, holding its breath, unsure about what the next step should be, eventually become the periods we wait for, for it is in those periods that we realize that we are being prepared for the next phase of our life and that, in all probability, a new level of the personality is about to be revealed.”", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "Alice Walker" }, "isPartOf": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website" }, "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alice-walker/some-periods-of-our-growth-are-so-confusing-that-we-don-t-even-2/", "about": { "@type": "Thing", "name": "Change" }, "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alice-walker/some-periods-of-our-growth-are-so-confusing-that-we-don-t-even-2/#quotation", "image": { "@type": "ImageObject", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/93d/alice-walker-347_change_some-periods-of-our-growth-are-so-confus_2243165.jpg", "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/93d/alice-walker-347_change_some-periods-of-our-growth-are-so-confus_2243165.jpg", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/93d/alice-walker-347_change_some-periods-of-our-growth-are-so-confus_2243165.jpg", "width": 1080, "height": 1080, "caption": "“Some periods of our growth are so confusing that we don’t even recognize that growth is what is happening…” — Alice Walker", "creditText": "SMS4Smile Quotes", "creator": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization" } } }, { "@type": "BreadcrumbList", "itemListElement": [ { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 1, "name": "Home", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 2, "name": "Quotes", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 3, "name": "Alice Walker", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alice-walker/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 4, "name": "“Some periods of our growth are...", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alice-walker/some-periods-of-our-growth-are-so-confusing-that-we-don-t-even-2/" } ], "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alice-walker/some-periods-of-our-growth-are-so-confusing-that-we-don-t-even-2/#breadcrumb" }, { "@type": "WebSite", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website", "name": "SMS4Smile Quotes", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/", "publisher": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization" } }, { "@type": "Organization", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization", "name": "SMS4Smile Quotes", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/", "logo": { "@type": "ImageObject", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/wp-content/themes/sq/assets/icons/icon-512.png", "width": 512, "height": 512 } } ] } ```