--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: Everyone has left me except my muse, that…" description: "\"Everyone has left me except my muse, that good nurse. She stays in my hand, a mild white mouse.\" — Anne Sexton" image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/482/anne-sexton-645_hands_everyone-has-left-me-except-my-muse-that_850504.png" --- # Everyone has left me except my muse, that good nurse. She… ![“Everyone has left me except my muse, that good nurse. She stays in my hand, a mild white mouse.” quote by Anne Sexton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/482/anne-sexton-645_hands_everyone-has-left-me-except-my-muse-that_850504.png) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/482/anne-sexton-645_hands_everyone-has-left-me-except-my-muse-that_850504.png) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/482/anne-sexton-645_hands_everyone-has-left-me-except-my-muse-that_850504.png) > “Everyone has left me except my muse, that good nurse. She stays in my hand, a mild white mouse.” [Anne Sexton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anne-sexton/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. The poet feels isolated, finding only her creative inspiration, likened to a gentle, harmless mouse, as a companion in solitude. **In simple terms:** Only my muse remains, a gentle presence. Key Takeaway Cherish and trust your creative companion. Themes isolation creativity comfort Mood contemplative melancholic Type literary personal When to use this quote - writing sessions - lonely nights - creative blocks - self‑reflection Key Concepts Poetry personification solitude Questions to Reflect On - What does your muse provide you that others cannot? - How can you nurture this inner voice? A Different Perspective The muse may not solve practical problems, only offers emotional support. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Inspirational](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/inspirational/) [Muse](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/muse/) [Nurse](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/nurse/) ## Related quotes > [If Christian scientists had more science and doctors more Christianity, it wouldn't make any difference which you called in - if you had a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/finley-peter-dunne/if-christian-scientists-had-more-science-and-doctors-more/) [Finley Peter Dunne](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/finley-peter-dunne/) > [“Qualities of a Good Nurse: Go," I said. "1.Doesn't put on your disabilities," Isaac said. "2.Gets blood on the first try." I said. "Seriosly,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-green/qualities-of-a-good-nurse-go-i-said-1-doesn-t-put-on-your/) [John Green](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-green/) > [“It seems a commonly received idea among men and even among women themselves that it requires nothing but a disappointment in love, the want…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/florence-nightingale/it-seems-a-commonly-received-idea-among-men-and-even-among-women/) [Florence Nightingale](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/florence-nightingale/) > [“NO MUSE IS GOOD MUSE To be an Artist you need talent, as well as a wife who washes the socks and the children,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rochelle-distelheim/no-muse-is-good-muse-to-be-an-artist-you-need-talent-as-well-as-a/) Rochelle Distelheim > [“Qualities of a Good Nurse: Go," I said. "1. Doesn't pun on your disability," Isaac said. "2. Gets blood on the first try," I…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-green/qualities-of-a-good-nurse-go-i-said-1-doesn-t-pun-on-your-disability/) [John Green](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-green/) > [“I nodded. Everyone at the hospital wanted to think that their case was special, and if you were a good nurse, you helped them…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/cassie-alexander/i-nodded-everyone-at-the-hospital-wanted-to-think-that-their-case-was/) [Cassie Alexander](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/cassie-alexander/) > [Constant attention by a good nurse may be just as important as a major operation by a surgeon.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dag-hammarskj-ld/constant-attention-by-a-good-nurse-may-be-just-as-important-as-a/) [Dag Hammarskjold](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dag-hammarskj-ld/) > [I was a very good nurse, but I burned out after eight years or so because it wasn't what I truly wanted to do.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sue-monk-kidd/i-was-a-very-good-nurse-but-i-burned-out-after-eight-years-or-so/) [Sue Monk Kidd](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sue-monk-kidd/) > [“She'd been a good nurse, and now she'd never be a nurse again. 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But they are unaware of their surroundings, so to derive humour from it would be exploitative.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bill-bailey/three-blind-mice-walk-into-a-pub-but-they-are-unaware-of-their/) [Bill Bailey](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bill-bailey/) > [With Your great schemes, You ruin our happiness like a harvester ruins a mouse's nest: I hate You, God, I hate You as though…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/graham-greene/with-your-great-schemes-you-ruin-our-happiness-like-a-harvester-ruins/) [Graham Greene](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/graham-greene/) > [When his highness sends a ship to Egypt, does he trouble his head whether the mice on board are at their ease or not?](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/voltaire/when-his-highness-sends-a-ship-to-egypt-does-he-trouble-his-head/) [Voltaire](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/voltaire/) > [There's a mouse in here with me. He's sitting there in the light of the lamp, looking up at me. He seems as surprised…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-morpurgo/there-s-a-mouse-in-here-with-me-he-s-sitting-there-in-the-light-of/) [Michael Morpurgo](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michael-morpurgo/) > [“Curiosity killed the cat, but not before teaching her that honey bees are not sweet, tweeting birds are slow to react, mice can serve…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/richelle-e-goodrich/curiosity-killed-the-cat-but-not-before-teaching-her-that-honey-bees/) [Richelle E. Goodrich](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/richelle-e-goodrich/) > [The youth of India has the strength to move the entire World with a click of a mouse, we have generated that ability!](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/narendra-modi/the-youth-of-india-has-the-strength-to-move-the-entire-world-with-a/) [Narendra Modi](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/narendra-modi/) ## More by Anne Sexton > [Blind with love, my daughter has cried nightly for horses, those long-necked marchers and churners that she has mastered, any and all, reigning them…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anne-sexton/blind-with-love-my-daughter-has-cried-nightly-for-horses-those-long/) [Anne Sexton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anne-sexton/) > [I am crazy as hell, but I know it. And knowing it is a kind of sanity that makes the sickness worse.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anne-sexton/i-am-crazy-as-hell-but-i-know-it-and-knowing-it-is-a-kind-of-sanity/) [Anne Sexton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anne-sexton/) > [And what of the dead? They lie without shoes in the stone boats. They are more like stone than the sea would be if…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anne-sexton/and-what-of-the-dead-they-lie-without-shoes-in-the-stone-boats-they/) [Anne Sexton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anne-sexton/) > [The Witch's Life" When I was a child there was an old woman in our neighborhood whom we called The Witch. All day she…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anne-sexton/the-witch-s-life-when-i-was-a-child-there-was-an-old-woman-in-our/) [Anne Sexton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anne-sexton/) > [I have forgiven all the old actors for dying. A new one comes on with the same lines, like large white growths, in his…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anne-sexton/i-have-forgiven-all-the-old-actors-for-dying-a-new-one-comes-on-with/) [Anne Sexton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anne-sexton/) > [“From the Garden” Come, my beloved, consider the lilies. We are of little faith. We talk too much. Put your mouthful of words away…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anne-sexton/from-the-garden-come-my-beloved-consider-the-lilies-we-are-of-little/) [Anne Sexton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anne-sexton/) > [Oh thumb, I want a drink it is dark, where are the big people, when will I get there...?](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anne-sexton/oh-thumb-i-want-a-drink-it-is-dark-where-are-the-big-people-when-will/) [Anne Sexton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anne-sexton/) > [I want to kiss God on His nose and watch Him sneeze and so do you. Not out of disrespect. Out of pique. Out…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anne-sexton/i-want-to-kiss-god-on-his-nose-and-watch-him-sneeze-and-so-do-you-not/) [Anne Sexton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anne-sexton/) > [I, in my brand new body, which was not a woman's yet, told the stars my questions and thought God could really see the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anne-sexton/i-in-my-brand-new-body-which-was-not-a-woman-s-yet-told-the-stars-my/) [Anne Sexton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anne-sexton/) > [Father, you died once, salted down at fifty-nine, packed down like a big snow angel, wasn't that enough?](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anne-sexton/father-you-died-once-salted-down-at-fifty-nine-packed-down-like-a-big/) [Anne Sexton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anne-sexton/) > [When I'm writing, I know I'm doing the thing I was born to do.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anne-sexton/when-i-m-writing-i-know-i-m-doing-the-thing-i-was-born-to-do/) [Anne Sexton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anne-sexton/) > [Cinderella and the prince lived, they say, happily ever after, like two dolls in a museum case never bothered by diapers or dust, never…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anne-sexton/cinderella-and-the-prince-lived-they-say-happily-ever-after-like-two/) [Anne Sexton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anne-sexton/) > [“Quite collected at cocktail parties, meanwhile in my head I'm undergoing open-heart surgery.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anne-sexton/quite-collected-at-cocktail-parties-meanwhile-in-my-head-i-m/) [Anne Sexton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anne-sexton/) > [I cannot walk an inch / without trying to walk to God.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anne-sexton/i-cannot-walk-an-inch-without-trying-to-walk-to-god/) [Anne Sexton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anne-sexton/) > [Now that I have written many words, and let out so many loves, for so many, and been altogether what I always was a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anne-sexton/now-that-i-have-written-many-words-and-let-out-so-many-loves-for-so/) [Anne Sexton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anne-sexton/) [Explore all 428 Anne Sexton quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anne-sexton/) ## More Hands quotes > [When I passed the Chancellor he arose, waved his hand at me, and I waved back at him. 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Sure, it may feel like you can't get…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jay-asher/then-come-to-realize-that-you-re-making-mountains-out-of-molehills/) [Jay Asher](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jay-asher/) > [I have inside me the winds, the deserts, the oceans, the stars, and everything created in the universe. We were all made by the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/paulo-coelho/i-have-inside-me-the-winds-the-deserts-the-oceans-the-stars-and/) [Paulo Coelho](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/paulo-coelho/) > [To me, the beauty of a quilt or a dress lies within the stitches and the thought of the person who made them. When…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/natalie/to-me-the-beauty-of-a-quilt-or-a-dress-lies-within-the-stitches-and/) [Natalie](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/natalie/) > [I always step on the plane with my right foot and touch the outside of the plane with my left hand. Sometimes you know…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/hope-davis/i-always-step-on-the-plane-with-my-right-foot-and-touch-the-outside/) [Hope Davis](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/hope-davis/) > [If one truly has lost hope, one would not be on hand to say so.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/eric-bentley/if-one-truly-has-lost-hope-one-would-not-be-on-hand-to-say-so/) [Eric Bentley](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/eric-bentley/) > [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/) > [My folks tried to make a preacher of me and missed by a narrow margin… I would have made a good one if I…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robert-a-heinlein/my-folks-tried-to-make-a-preacher-of-me-and-missed-by-a-narrow-margin/) [Robert A. 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