--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: I'd like to invoke the Native American…" description: "\"I'd like to invoke the Native American Navajo because their word for road is used as a verb. Their whole relationship to road has to do with how you tr..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/2c1/anne-waldman-4046_environment_i-d-like-to-invoke-the-native-american-n_1444059.jpg" --- # I'd like to invoke the Native American Navajo because… ![“I'd like to invoke the Native American Navajo because their word for road is used as a verb. Their whole relationship to road has to do with how you travel it, who you are traveling it with, what the environment might be, where you're headed, in what direction, the weather and so on.” quote by Anne Waldman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/2c1/anne-waldman-4046_environment_i-d-like-to-invoke-the-native-american-n_1444059.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/2c1/anne-waldman-4046_environment_i-d-like-to-invoke-the-native-american-n_1444059.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/2c1/anne-waldman-4046_environment_i-d-like-to-invoke-the-native-american-n_1444059.jpg) > “I'd like to invoke the Native American Navajo because their word for road is used as a verb. Their whole relationship to road has to do with how you travel it, who you are traveling it with, what the environment might be, where you're headed, in what direction, the weather and so on.” [Anne Waldman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anne-waldman/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. She highlights the Navajo concept of road as a verb, emphasizing that travel is an active, relational process shaped by companions, environment, direction, and conditions. **In simple terms:** Travel is an active, relational act defined by many factors. Key Takeaway Approach journeys as collaborative, mindful experiences. Themes travel relationship environment direction mindfulness Mood contemplative inspirational thoughtful Type poetic philosophical When to use this quote - road trips - commutes - pilgrimages - team projects - urban planning Key Concepts indigenous wisdom language philosophy Questions to Reflect On - How does your travel reflect your relationships? - What can you change to travel more mindfully? A Different Perspective Modern travel often ignores relational aspects, focusing on efficiency. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Environment](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/environment/) [Journey](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/journey/) [Native american](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/native-american/) [Navajo](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/navajo/) [Road Travel](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/road-travel/) [Weather](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/weather/) ## Related quotes > [I invoke that sense of the particulars of that kind of literal travel and what that has meant historically in terms of diasporas, in…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anne-waldman/i-invoke-that-sense-of-the-particulars-of-that-kind-of-literal-travel/) [Anne Waldman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anne-waldman/) > [In my teen years and early twenties I was really interested in this fellaheen worlds that, of course, Kerouac invokes and wanting to go…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anne-waldman/in-my-teen-years-and-early-twenties-i-was-really-interested-in-this/) [Anne Waldman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anne-waldman/) > [As Navajo Nation President, Albert Hale worked to provide a greater voice for Chapters in Tribal government.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ben-ray-lujan/as-navajo-nation-president-albert-hale-worked-to-provide-a-greater/) [Ben Ray Lujan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ben-ray-lujan/) > [“The United States Navy, during the war, used Navajos as "code-talkers" who relayed messages from ship to ship, talking in Navajo (a language not…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-lesk/the-united-states-navy-during-the-war-used-navajos-as-code-talkers/) Michael Lesk > [You don't sing with harmony cause you want to hear it, you sing with harmony because you feel it. That's tradition.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/you-don-t-sing-with-harmony-cause-you-want-to-hear-it-you-sing-with/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [“When you turn around, you'll see something I bet you've never seen before. If it takes your breath away, then you'll fit in nicely.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/veronica-randolph-batterson/when-you-turn-around-you-ll-see-something-i-bet-you-ve-never-seen/) Veronica Randolph Batterson > [The Navajo Code Talkers were Marines and heroes who helped secure victory in WWII. We owe them a debt that can never be repaid.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ruben-gallego/the-navajo-code-talkers-were-marines-and-heroes-who-helped-secure/) [Ruben Gallego](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ruben-gallego/) > [My wartime experiences developing a code that utilized the Navajo language taught how important our Navajo culture is to our country. For me that…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/chester-nez/my-wartime-experiences-developing-a-code-that-utilized-the-navajo/) Chester Nez > [“The function of the artist,' the Navajo answered, 'is to provide what life does not.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tom-robbins/the-function-of-the-artist-the-navajo-answered-is-to-provide-what/) [Tom Robbins](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tom-robbins/) > [“George Arthur, a tribal council delegate, spoke on behalf of the tribe. Arthur was a chairman, too, of the Navajo legislature's resources committee. .…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/judy-pasternak/george-arthur-a-tribal-council-delegate-spoke-on-behalf-of-the-tribe/) Judy Pasternak > [“One of the many facets of Navajo culture that appeals to me is the lack of value attached to vengeance. This ‘eye for an…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anne-hillerman/one-of-the-many-facets-of-navajo-culture-that-appeals-to-me-is-the/) [Anne Hillerman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anne-hillerman/) > [We need only look to our Navajo Code Talkers during World War II to see the value that Native languages bring not only to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rick-renzi/we-need-only-look-to-our-navajo-code-talkers-during-world-war-ii-to/) [Rick Renzi](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rick-renzi/) > [I stand with the Navajo Nation and call upon the U.S. Government to do what is right and clean up this mess.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/erin-brockovich/i-stand-with-the-navajo-nation-and-call-upon-the-u-s-government-to-do/) [Erin Brockovich](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/erin-brockovich/) > [The Navajo have that wonderful image of what they call the pollen path. The Navajo say, 'Oh, beauty before me, beauty behind me, beauty…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joseph-campbell/the-navajo-have-that-wonderful-image-of-what-they-call-the-pollen/) [Joseph Campbell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joseph-campbell/) > [“At Kayenta we were told that the entire Navajo Indian reservation was dry; you couldn't get a drop of alcohol anywhere. Not with dinner,but…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/herman-koch/at-kayenta-we-were-told-that-the-entire-navajo-indian-reservation-was/) [Herman Koch](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/herman-koch/) ## More by Anne Waldman > [I get worked up over an 'idea' or the ethos of an idea. I follow dreams, take notes on travels, and engage in research…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anne-waldman/i-get-worked-up-over-an-idea-or-the-ethos-of-an-idea-i-follow-dreams/) [Anne Waldman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anne-waldman/) > [ We pride ourselves at Natrona - I mean, pride {ironically\] - on developing a noncompetitive community. That's very important. The values that can come… ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anne-waldman/we-pride-ourselves-at-natrona-i-mean-pride-ironically-on-developing-a/) [Anne Waldman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anne-waldman/) > [My father was a frustrated writer. I think he wanted to write the great American novel.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anne-waldman/my-father-was-a-frustrated-writer-i-think-he-wanted-to-write-the/) [Anne Waldman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anne-waldman/) > [No one begs you to be a poet or write a 1000-page poem. You have to be fueled by a drive, a conviction -…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anne-waldman/no-one-begs-you-to-be-a-poet-or-write-a-1000-page-poem-you-have-to-be/) [Anne Waldman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anne-waldman/) > [For me there is a poesis, a poetics, around the trope of the road that is embedded within many life experiences of the people…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anne-waldman/for-me-there-is-a-poesis-a-poetics-around-the-trope-of-the-road-that/) [Anne Waldman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anne-waldman/) > [There's a kind of training, when you are sitting in a session in the Japanese tradition or any of the Buddhist traditions, taking your…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anne-waldman/there-s-a-kind-of-training-when-you-are-sitting-in-a-session-in-the/) [Anne Waldman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anne-waldman/) > [I had parents who were attentive to what was going on politically. There was the Greek connection, a sense of a larger world. People…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anne-waldman/i-had-parents-who-were-attentive-to-what-was-going-on-politically/) [Anne Waldman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anne-waldman/) > [In a way, America's the shadow of everything I do, everywhere I go, everything I carry, no matter if I travel to the ends…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anne-waldman/in-a-way-america-s-the-shadow-of-everything-i-do-everywhere-i-go/) [Anne Waldman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anne-waldman/) > [When I look at my life there are these streams, these things that have continuity from the fifties to now.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anne-waldman/when-i-look-at-my-life-there-are-these-streams-these-things-that-have/) [Anne Waldman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anne-waldman/) > [We humans need to do better with our vast minds and alchemical powers. Future radial poetries might be more symbiotic with the rest of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anne-waldman/we-humans-need-to-do-better-with-our-vast-minds-and-alchemical-powers/) [Anne Waldman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anne-waldman/) > [ I think anything that gets people outside \[is good\] - I'm a big supporter of public parks and public spaces. ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anne-waldman/i-think-anything-that-gets-people-outside-is-good-i-m-a-big-supporter/) [Anne Waldman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anne-waldman/) > [Idea that all the beats are wildly liberal and progressive is ridiculous. You have people thinking for themselves and having certain affinities because of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anne-waldman/idea-that-all-the-beats-are-wildly-liberal-and-progressive-is/) [Anne Waldman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anne-waldman/) > [I think of my father born in this very small, limited situation and then coming out of that. Many people have this story.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anne-waldman/i-think-of-my-father-born-in-this-very-small-limited-situation-and/) [Anne Waldman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anne-waldman/) > [When I attended the Berkeley Poetry Conference in 1965, I was very inspired. The collaboration of many poets from these alternative traditions - though…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anne-waldman/when-i-attended-the-berkeley-poetry-conference-in-1965-i-was-very/) [Anne Waldman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anne-waldman/) > [One has to be cautious and respectful of the power of the "substance" guides. I don't advocate imbibing the "little saint children," as Maria…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anne-waldman/one-has-to-be-cautious-and-respectful-of-the-power-of-the-substance/) [Anne Waldman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anne-waldman/) [Explore all 117 Anne Waldman quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anne-waldman/) ## More Environment quotes > [I feel like the future is unwritten. So many of the things that we write now haven't been about educating people on the environment,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-flansburgh/i-feel-like-the-future-is-unwritten-so-many-of-the-things-that-we/) [John Flansburgh](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-flansburgh/) > [This welfare for wealthy companies wastes taxpayer dollars, harms the environment, and makes a mockery of the recent reductions in federal social spending programs.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ralph-nader/this-welfare-for-wealthy-companies-wastes-taxpayer-dollars-harms-the/) [Ralph Nader](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ralph-nader/) > [We must master our egoism, and through this mastery, step outside ourselves and educate ourselves in giving. Fasting requires that we rediscover all that…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tariq-ramadan/we-must-master-our-egoism-and-through-this-mastery-step-outside/) [Tariq Ramadan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tariq-ramadan/) > [Plainly, the environment must be a living one, directed by a higher intelligence, arranged by an adult who is prepared for his mission.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/maria-montessori/plainly-the-environment-must-be-a-living-one-directed-by-a-higher/) [Maria Montessori](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/maria-montessori/) > [In the current climate, things that are true, brave human stories become political.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/cate-blanchett/in-the-current-climate-things-that-are-true-brave-human-stories/) [Cate Blanchett](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/cate-blanchett/) > [They paved paradise and put up a parkin lot With a pink hotel, a boutique, and a swingin' hot spot Don't it always seem…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joni-mitchell/they-paved-paradise-and-put-up-a-parkin-lot-with-a-pink-hotel-a/) [Joni Mitchell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joni-mitchell/) > [Life as we know it is fundamentally unsatisfying. I think most folks feel this to be true. They know that a life of aimless…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-yates/life-as-we-know-it-is-fundamentally-unsatisfying-i-think-most-folks/) [Michael Yates](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michael-yates/) > [To assist a child we must provide him with an environment which will enable him to develop freely.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/maria-montessori/to-assist-a-child-we-must-provide-him-with-an-environment-which-will/) [Maria Montessori](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/maria-montessori/) > [Daily life is both the subject and environment of the work I am making.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/camille-henrot/daily-life-is-both-the-subject-and-environment-of-the-work-i-am-making/) [Camille Henrot](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/camille-henrot/) > [If, as I anticipate, a wide array of personal, portable information/communication devices becomes increasingly important and widespread for information-intensive users, it will be a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tom-peters/if-as-i-anticipate-a-wide-array-of-personal-portable-information/) [Tom Peters](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tom-peters/) > [Create an environment for people to fail, to learn, and to grow. Their creativity and productivity will increase.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/create-an-environment-for-people-to-fail-to-learn-and-to-grow-their/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [There are many more traits that the climate deniers share with the creationists and Holocaust deniers and others who distort the truth.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/donald-r-prothero/there-are-many-more-traits-that-the-climate-deniers-share-with-the/) [Donald R. Prothero](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/donald-r-prothero/) > [Assuming normal winter weather, we currently anticipate the coal markets to remain difficult through 2015; while we always strive to operate a full capacity…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joe-craft/assuming-normal-winter-weather-we-currently-anticipate-the-coal/) [Joe Craft](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joe-craft/) > [It's the same with this idea of a literate public, and also of a democracy in which people have access to and really read…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robert-hass/it-s-the-same-with-this-idea-of-a-literate-public-and-also-of-a/) [Robert Hass](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robert-hass/) > [Of course, learning is strengthened and solidified when it occurs in a safe, secure and normal environment.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jean-bertrand-aristide/of-course-learning-is-strengthened-and-solidified-when-it-occurs-in-a/) [Jean-Bertrand Aristide](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jean-bertrand-aristide/) [Browse all 8,669 Environment quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/environment/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "I'd like to invoke the Native American Navajo because their word for road is used as a verb. Their whole relationship to road has to do with how you travel it, who you are traveling it with, what the environment might be, where you're headed, in what direction, the weather and so on.", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "Anne Waldman" }, "isPartOf": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website" }, "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anne-waldman/i-d-like-to-invoke-the-native-american-navajo-because-their-word-for/", "about": { "@type": "Thing", "name": "Environment" }, "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anne-waldman/i-d-like-to-invoke-the-native-american-navajo-because-their-word-for/#quotation", "image": { "@type": "ImageObject", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/2c1/anne-waldman-4046_environment_i-d-like-to-invoke-the-native-american-n_1444059.jpg", "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/2c1/anne-waldman-4046_environment_i-d-like-to-invoke-the-native-american-n_1444059.jpg", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/2c1/anne-waldman-4046_environment_i-d-like-to-invoke-the-native-american-n_1444059.jpg", "width": 1080, "height": 1080, "caption": "“I'd like to invoke the Native American Navajo because their word for road is used as a verb. Their whole…” — Anne Waldman", "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": "Anne Waldman", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anne-waldman/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 4, "name": "I'd like to invoke the Native...", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anne-waldman/i-d-like-to-invoke-the-native-american-navajo-because-their-word-for/" } ], "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anne-waldman/i-d-like-to-invoke-the-native-american-navajo-because-their-word-for/#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 } } ] } ```