--- 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 happening...Those long periods when something inside ourselves ..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/f41/alice-walker-347_breaths_some-periods-of-our-growth-are-so-confus_277660.png" --- # 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 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…” quote by Alice Walker](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/f41/alice-walker-347_breaths_some-periods-of-our-growth-are-so-confus_277660.png) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/f41/alice-walker-347_breaths_some-periods-of-our-growth-are-so-confus_277660.png) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/f41/alice-walker-347_breaths_some-periods-of-our-growth-are-so-confus_277660.png) > “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 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 can be hidden in confusing, stagnant periods that later reveal a new level of self-awareness. **In simple terms:** Confusing periods can hide personal growth. Key Takeaway Recognize and trust hidden growth phases. Themes personal development self‑awareness transformation Mood reflective hopeful Type inspirational philosophical When to use this quote - career transitions - relationship changes - creative projects - spiritual practice Key Concepts psychology identity formation growth cycles Questions to Reflect On - What signs indicate hidden growth? - How can you stay patient during unclear periods? A Different Perspective Growth may be slow and unnoticed, risking complacency. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Breaths](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/breaths/) [Confusing](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/confusing/) [Growth](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/growth/) [Growth Confusing](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/growth-confusing-2701190/) [Growth Happening](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/growth-happening-544901/) [Happenings](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/happenings/) [Levels](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/levels/) [Long](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/long/) [Next](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/next/) [Next step](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/next-step/) [Next steps](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/next-steps/) [Our lives](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/our-lives/) [Periods](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/periods/) [Periods Growth](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/periods-growth-2701192/) [Periods Realize](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/periods-realize-2701193/) [Personality](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/personality/) [Phases](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/phases/) [Prepared](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/prepared/) [Probability](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/probability/) [Realizing](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/realizing/) [Recognize Growth](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/recognize-growth-2701191/) [Seems](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/seems/) [Should](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/should/) [Steps](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/steps/) [Unsure](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/unsure/) [Waiting](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/waiting/) ## Related quotes > [“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…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alice-walker/some-periods-of-our-growth-are-so-confusing-that-we-don-t-even-2/) [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/) > [There is too much economic growth not happening that needs to be jump-started. There are too many jobs to be created, and there's too…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rush-limbaugh/there-is-too-much-economic-growth-not-happening-that-needs-to-be-jump/) [Rush Limbaugh](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rush-limbaugh/) > [The reason we invest globally is because we think that's where a lot of the growth is happening: around the world.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dave-mcclure/the-reason-we-invest-globally-is-because-we-think-that-s-where-a-lot/) [Dave McClure](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dave-mcclure/) > [“It doesn’t matter how slow you are growing. What matters most is the fact that your growth is happening.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-bassey-johnson/it-doesn-t-matter-how-slow-you-are-growing-what-matters-most-is-the/) [Michael Bassey Johnson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michael-bassey-johnson/) > [When you've got a economy in which 40 percent of economic growth is happening in the financial sector, that turns out that was all…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/barack-obama/when-you-ve-got-a-economy-in-which-40-percent-of-economic-growth-is/) [Barack Obama](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/barack-obama/) > [It's the honest point of view of an artist: You have to please.I'd like viewers to come away from my films unsure whether they've…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jean-pierre-melville/it-s-the-honest-point-of-view-of-an-artist-you-have-to-please-i-d/) [Jean-Pierre Melville](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jean-pierre-melville/) > [“And then there are days of being lost in the woods, not knowing the fate, but just being a wanderer - That's life”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/and-then-there-are-days-of-being-lost-in-the-woods-not-knowing-the/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [To make it interesting and worth doing, writing a novel has to be a leap into the unknown. I have to be unsure if…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/charles-palliser/to-make-it-interesting-and-worth-doing-writing-a-novel-has-to-be-a/) [Charles Palliser](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/charles-palliser/) > [My mother has always been the point I calibrated myself against. In knowing where she was, I could always locate myself, as well. These…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sarah-dessen/my-mother-has-always-been-the-point-i-calibrated-myself-against-in/) [Sarah Dessen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sarah-dessen/) > [I can imagine the writers of China, England and France, crippled and unsure of themselves when they feel that the ghosts of Confucius, Mencius,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/f-sionil-jos/i-can-imagine-the-writers-of-china-england-and-france-crippled-and/) [F. Sionil Jose](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/f-sionil-jos/) > [But sometimes stuff happens and we find ourselves lost, and suddenly we're standing in a place we don't recognize and can't remember walking-or falling-there,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jessica-sorensen/but-sometimes-stuff-happens-and-we-find-ourselves-lost-and-suddenly/) [Jessica Sorensen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jessica-sorensen/) > [Don't mess with someone's feelings just because you're unsure of yours..](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/don-t-mess-with-someone-s-feelings-just-because-you-re-unsure-of-yours/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [“I was unsure about many things in my life, but I was fairly certain God did not intend bacon to be made from a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/suzanne-johnson/i-was-unsure-about-many-things-in-my-life-but-i-was-fairly-certain/) [Suzanne Johnson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/suzanne-johnson/) > [“But the secret of good writing is to strip every sentence to its cleanest components. Every words that serves no function, every long word…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-zinsser/but-the-secret-of-good-writing-is-to-strip-every-sentence-to-its/) [William Zinsser](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-zinsser/) ## 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. 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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 Breaths quotes > [Don't let a breath escape from your body without Krishna's name. That should be our determination throughout our life.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/radhanath-swami/don-t-let-a-breath-escape-from-your-body-without-krishna-s-name-that/) [Radhanath Swami](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/radhanath-swami/) > [Jazz is the music of the body. The breath comes through brass. It is the body's breath, and the strings' wails and moans are…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anais-nin/jazz-is-the-music-of-the-body-the-breath-comes-through-brass-it-is/) [Anais Nin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anais-nin/) > [Many years ago I was fishing, and as I was reeling in the poor fish, I realised, 'I am killing him - all for…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/paul-mccartney/many-years-ago-i-was-fishing-and-as-i-was-reeling-in-the-poor-fish-i/) [Paul McCartney](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/paul-mccartney/) > [Aging is like enlightenment at gunpoint. Before I had cancer, I lived my life for my art. After I had cancer, I lived my…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anna-halprin/aging-is-like-enlightenment-at-gunpoint-before-i-had-cancer-i-lived/) [Anna Halprin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anna-halprin/) > [God is greater than anything that man can do or has done. He is not undone by just a train of powder. "Our God…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/errol-morris/god-is-greater-than-anything-that-man-can-do-or-has-done-he-is-not/) [Errol Morris](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/errol-morris/) > [One day I was running around playing with my son Connor when afterwards I was sweating, tired and out of breath. I was embarrassed…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/drew-carey/one-day-i-was-running-around-playing-with-my-son-connor-when/) [Drew Carey](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/drew-carey/) > [Dave Wann's recipes from his own experience in Simple Prosperity are a breath of fresh air, and just what we need for a saner…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/hazel-henderson/dave-wann-s-recipes-from-his-own-experience-in-simple-prosperity-are/) [Hazel Henderson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/hazel-henderson/) > [Poetry should be vital--either stirring our blood by its divine movements or snatching our breath by its divine perfection. 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But…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/marlee-matlin/we-had-a-dog-apples-he-was-13-years-old-toothless-blind-and-had-the/) [Marlee Matlin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/marlee-matlin/) [Browse all 1,609 Breaths quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/breaths/) ```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 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/", "about": { "@type": "Thing", "name": "Breaths" }, "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alice-walker/some-periods-of-our-growth-are-so-confusing-that-we-don-t-even/#quotation", "image": { "@type": "ImageObject", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/f41/alice-walker-347_breaths_some-periods-of-our-growth-are-so-confus_277660.png", "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/f41/alice-walker-347_breaths_some-periods-of-our-growth-are-so-confus_277660.png", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/f41/alice-walker-347_breaths_some-periods-of-our-growth-are-so-confus_277660.png", "width": 1080, "height": 1080, "caption": "“Some periods of our growth are so confusing that we don't even recognize that growth is happening...Those…” — 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/" } ], "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alice-walker/some-periods-of-our-growth-are-so-confusing-that-we-don-t-even/#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 } } ] } ```