--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: I discovered myself and the world, and…" description: "\"“I discovered myself and the world, and forgot them, and discovered them again”\" — Annie Dillard" image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/a66/annie-dillard-509_quote_i-discovered-myself-and-the-world-and-fo_1418661.jpg" --- # I discovered myself and the world, and forgot them, and… ![“I discovered myself and the world, and forgot them, and discovered them again” quote by Annie Dillard](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/a66/annie-dillard-509_quote_i-discovered-myself-and-the-world-and-fo_1418661.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/a66/annie-dillard-509_quote_i-discovered-myself-and-the-world-and-fo_1418661.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/a66/annie-dillard-509_quote_i-discovered-myself-and-the-world-and-fo_1418661.jpg) > ““I discovered myself and the world, and forgot them, and discovered them again”” [Annie Dillard](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/annie-dillard/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Self‑discovery is cyclical: we lose and regain awareness of ourselves and the world. **In simple terms:** We repeatedly find and lose ourselves. Key Takeaway Embrace the cycles of rediscovery. Themes self‑discovery mindfulness growth philosophy Mood contemplative hopeful Type philosophical inspirational When to use this quote - journaling - travel - creative projects - therapy Key Concepts existentialism personal development reflection Questions to Reflect On - What have you forgotten and relearned? - How does loss lead to new insight? A Different Perspective The process can be unsettling and confusing. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet ## Related quotes > [I woke in bits, like all children, piecemeal over the years. I discovered myself and the world, and forgot them, and discovered them again.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/annie-dillard/i-woke-in-bits-like-all-children-piecemeal-over-the-years-i/) [Annie Dillard](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/annie-dillard/) > [You leave home, you move on and you do the best you can. I got lost in this whole world and forgot who I…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/miranda-lambert/you-leave-home-you-move-on-and-you-do-the-best-you-can-i-got-lost-in/) [Miranda Lambert](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/miranda-lambert/) > [The world forgetting, by the world forgot.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alexander-pope/the-world-forgetting-by-the-world-forgot/) [Alexander Pope](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alexander-pope/) > [A broken heart that the world forgot…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/martina-mcbride/a-broken-heart-that-the-world-forgot/) [Martina McBride](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/martina-mcbride/) > [“Somehow, somewhere along the line, I forgot who I am, what I like and what I don’t. I’ve been so focused on pleasing my…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mia-asher/somehow-somewhere-along-the-line-i-forgot-who-i-am-what-i-like-and/) [Mia Asher](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mia-asher/) > [Hey God I know I'm just a dot in this world but have you forgot about me?](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/james-merrow/hey-god-i-know-i-m-just-a-dot-in-this-world-but-have-you-forgot-about/) [James Merrow](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/james-merrow/) > [Once, there was a girl who vowed she would save everyone in the world, but forgot herself.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/holly-black/once-there-was-a-girl-who-vowed-she-would-save-everyone-in-the-world/) [Holly Black](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/holly-black/) > [The world forgetting, by the world forgot. Eternal sunshine of the spotless mind! Each pray'r accepted, and each wish resign'd](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alexander-pope/the-world-forgetting-by-the-world-forgot-eternal-sunshine-of-the-2/) [Alexander Pope](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alexander-pope/) > [A statue stands in a shaded place An angel girl with an upturned face A name is written on a polished rock A broken…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/martina-mcbride/a-statue-stands-in-a-shaded-place-an-angel-girl-with-an-upturned-face/) [Martina McBride](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/martina-mcbride/) > [“How happy is the blameless vestal’s lot! The world forgetting, by the world forgot. Eternal sunshine of the spotless mind! Each pray’r accepted, and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alexander-pope/how-happy-is-the-blameless-vestal-s-lot-the-world-forgetting-by-the/) [Alexander Pope](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alexander-pope/) > [“I kept on hoping while the world forgot our love.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/laura-chouette/i-kept-on-hoping-while-the-world-forgot-our-love/) [Laura Chouette](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/laura-chouette/) > [“The world forgetting, by the world forgot. Eternal sunshine of the spotless mind!”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alexander-pope/the-world-forgetting-by-the-world-forgot-eternal-sunshine-of-the-3/) [Alexander Pope](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alexander-pope/) > [I've spent so much time fixing the world around me , I forgot just how broken mine is.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/frank-naimoli/i-ve-spent-so-much-time-fixing-the-world-around-me-i-forgot-just-how/) Frank Naimoli > [“Happy be the reader plunged into her book who forgot the world and whom world forgot.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gabrielle-dubois/happy-be-the-reader-plunged-into-her-book-who-forgot-the-world-and/) [Gabrielle Dubois](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gabrielle-dubois/) > [“The world forgetting, by the world forgot. Eternal sunshine of the spotless mind! Each pray'r accepted, and each wish resign'd; Mary: How happy is…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alexander-pope/the-world-forgetting-by-the-world-forgot-eternal-sunshine-of-the/) [Alexander Pope](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alexander-pope/) ## More by Annie Dillard > [Like everyone in his right mind, I feared Santa Claus.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/annie-dillard/like-everyone-in-his-right-mind-i-feared-santa-claus/) [Annie Dillard](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/annie-dillard/) > [“This is a spendthrift economy; though nothing is lost, all is spent.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/annie-dillard/this-is-a-spendthrift-economy-though-nothing-is-lost-all-is-spent/) [Annie Dillard](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/annie-dillard/) > [The creatures I seek do not want to be seen.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/annie-dillard/the-creatures-i-seek-do-not-want-to-be-seen/) [Annie Dillard](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/annie-dillard/) > [Nothing moves a woman so deeply as the boyhood of the man she loves.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/annie-dillard/nothing-moves-a-woman-so-deeply-as-the-boyhood-of-the-man-she-loves/) [Annie Dillard](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/annie-dillard/) > [We live in all we seek. The hidden shows up in too-plain sight. It lives captive on the face of the obvious - the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/annie-dillard/we-live-in-all-we-seek-the-hidden-shows-up-in-too-plain-sight-it/) [Annie Dillard](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/annie-dillard/) > [“...The mockingbird took a single step into the air and dropped. His wings were still folded against his sides as though he were singing…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/annie-dillard/the-mockingbird-took-a-single-step-into-the-air-and-dropped-his-wings/) [Annie Dillard](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/annie-dillard/) > [“Father had stretched out his long legs and was tilting back in his chair. Mother sat with her knees crossed, in blue slacks, smoking…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/annie-dillard/father-had-stretched-out-his-long-legs-and-was-tilting-back-in-his/) [Annie Dillard](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/annie-dillard/) > [I am a frayed and nibbled survivor in a fallen world, and I am getting along. I am aging and eaten and have done…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/annie-dillard/i-am-a-frayed-and-nibbled-survivor-in-a-fallen-world-and-i-am-getting/) [Annie Dillard](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/annie-dillard/) > [It should surprise no one that the life of the writer - such as it is - is colorless to the point of sensory…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/annie-dillard/it-should-surprise-no-one-that-the-life-of-the-writer-such-as-it-is/) [Annie Dillard](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/annie-dillard/) > [It is madness to wear ladies' straw hats and velvet hats to church; we should all be wearing crash helmets. Ushers should issue life…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/annie-dillard/it-is-madness-to-wear-ladies-straw-hats-and-velvet-hats-to-church-we/) [Annie Dillard](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/annie-dillard/) > [The sense impressions of one-celled animals are not edited for the brain. This is philosophically interesting in a rather mournful way, since it means…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/annie-dillard/the-sense-impressions-of-one-celled-animals-are-not-edited-for-the/) [Annie Dillard](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/annie-dillard/) > [“What can we make of the inexpressible joy of children? It is a kind of gratitude, I think—the gratitude of the ten-year-old who wakes…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/annie-dillard/what-can-we-make-of-the-inexpressible-joy-of-children-it-is-a-kind-of/) [Annie Dillard](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/annie-dillard/) > [“If we were to judge nature by its common sense or likelihood, we wouldn't believe the world existed. In nature, improbabilities are the one…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/annie-dillard/if-we-were-to-judge-nature-by-its-common-sense-or-likelihood-we/) [Annie Dillard](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/annie-dillard/) > [For writing a first draft requires from the writer a peculiar internal state which ordinary life does not induce. ... how to set yourself spinning?](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/annie-dillard/for-writing-a-first-draft-requires-from-the-writer-a-peculiar/) [Annie Dillard](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/annie-dillard/) > [I am a fugitive and a vagabond, a sojourner seeking signs.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/annie-dillard/i-am-a-fugitive-and-a-vagabond-a-sojourner-seeking-signs/) [Annie Dillard](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/annie-dillard/) [Explore all 509 Annie Dillard quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/annie-dillard/) ## More Discovered quotes > [When I discovered drama, I felt a connection.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ray-fearon/when-i-discovered-drama-i-felt-a-connection/) [Ray Fearon](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ray-fearon/) > [Music is almost like a therapy for me. It helps keep me centered and think straight. Before I discovered it, I was walking around,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/banks/music-is-almost-like-a-therapy-for-me-it-helps-keep-me-centered-and/) [Banks](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/banks/) > [Especially for those of us who lived in single cells, you had the time to sit down and think, and we discovered that sitting…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nelson-mandela/especially-for-those-of-us-who-lived-in-single-cells-you-had-the-time/) [Nelson Mandela](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nelson-mandela/) > [I can't really remember, but I think my life must have been a lot more productive before I discovered Facebook...](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/i-can-t-really-remember-but-i-think-my-life-must-have-been-a-lot-more/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [The first time I went to Abbey Road and put those headphones on, I discovered I had two voices. I no longer had to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/cilla-black/the-first-time-i-went-to-abbey-road-and-put-those-headphones-on-i/) [Cilla Black](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/cilla-black/) > [My singing led into acting, and that is how I discovered acting.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lalaine/my-singing-led-into-acting-and-that-is-how-i-discovered-acting/) [Lalaine](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lalaine/) > [At Ungaro, I discovered the flou and the language of Paris.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/giambattista-valli/at-ungaro-i-discovered-the-flou-and-the-language-of-paris/) [Giambattista Valli](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/giambattista-valli/) > [“I discovered windows one afternoon and after that, nothing was ever the same.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anne-spollen/i-discovered-windows-one-afternoon-and-after-that-nothing-was-ever/) [Anne Spollen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anne-spollen/) > [After years of research, I discovered 25 differences in the work-life choices of men and women. All 25 lead to men earning more money,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/warren-farrell/after-years-of-research-i-discovered-25-differences-in-the-work-life/) [Warren Farrell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/warren-farrell/) > [The big problem is just this kind of gigantic piece, of kids reading less and liking it less and so getting worse at it.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jon-scieszka/the-big-problem-is-just-this-kind-of-gigantic-piece-of-kids-reading/) [Jon Scieszka](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jon-scieszka/) > [“I discovered race in America and it fascinated me.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/chimamanda-ngozi-adichie/i-discovered-race-in-america-and-it-fascinated-me/) [Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/chimamanda-ngozi-adichie/) > [All my words are sort of shaped, all my words, my voice, my gestures, my imagination, are shaped by centuries, really. They are educated…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alice-rohrwacher/all-my-words-are-sort-of-shaped-all-my-words-my-voice-my-gestures-my/) [Alice Rohrwacher](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alice-rohrwacher/) > [I first discovered YouTube while browsing the web, and then I found people just talking into their cameras. I never even knew it was…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tyler-oakley/i-first-discovered-youtube-while-browsing-the-web-and-then-i-found/) [Tyler Oakley](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tyler-oakley/) > [I'm a perceptive person. I know what's good and I don't venture into what's not good. I've discovered my own khazana. Everybody should.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rekha/i-m-a-perceptive-person-i-know-what-s-good-and-i-don-t-venture-into/) [Rekha](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rekha/) > [When I discovered acting, I decided that's what I wanted to do above everything else. It was the first time I was passionate about…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-morrissey/when-i-discovered-acting-i-decided-that-s-what-i-wanted-to-do-above/) [David Morrissey](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-morrissey/) Browse all 653 Discovered quotes ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "“I discovered myself and the world, and forgot them, and discovered them again”", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "Annie Dillard" }, "isPartOf": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website" }, "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/annie-dillard/i-discovered-myself-and-the-world-and-forgot-them-and-discovered-them/", "about": { "@type": "Thing", "name": "Discovered" }, "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/annie-dillard/i-discovered-myself-and-the-world-and-forgot-them-and-discovered-them/#quotation", "image": { "@type": "ImageObject", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/a66/annie-dillard-509_quote_i-discovered-myself-and-the-world-and-fo_1418661.jpg", "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/a66/annie-dillard-509_quote_i-discovered-myself-and-the-world-and-fo_1418661.jpg", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/a66/annie-dillard-509_quote_i-discovered-myself-and-the-world-and-fo_1418661.jpg", "width": 1080, "height": 1080, "caption": "“I discovered myself and the world, and forgot them, and discovered them again” — Annie Dillard", "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": "Annie Dillard", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/annie-dillard/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 4, "name": "“I discovered myself and the world,...", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/annie-dillard/i-discovered-myself-and-the-world-and-forgot-them-and-discovered-them/" } ], "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/annie-dillard/i-discovered-myself-and-the-world-and-forgot-them-and-discovered-them/#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 } } ] } ```