--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: I had been my whole life a bell, and…" description: "\"I had been my whole life a bell, and never knew it until at that moment I was lifted and struck.\" — Annie Dillard" image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/6be/annie-dillard-509_bells_i-had-been-my-whole-life-a-bell-and-neve_3097486.jpg" --- # I had been my whole life a bell, and never knew it until… ![“I had been my whole life a bell, and never knew it until at that moment I was lifted and struck.” quote by Annie Dillard](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/6be/annie-dillard-509_bells_i-had-been-my-whole-life-a-bell-and-neve_3097486.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/6be/annie-dillard-509_bells_i-had-been-my-whole-life-a-bell-and-neve_3097486.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/6be/annie-dillard-509_bells_i-had-been-my-whole-life-a-bell-and-neve_3097486.jpg) > “I had been my whole life a bell, and never knew it until at that moment I was lifted and struck.” [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. A metaphor for realizing one's potential only after being challenged or awakened. **In simple terms:** Self‑discovery often follows a sudden challenge. Key Takeaway Embrace moments that reveal hidden strengths. Themes self‑discovery awakening potential Mood contemplative inspirational Type philosophical motivational When to use this quote - career transitions - creative blocks - personal crises Key Concepts metaphor personal growth Questions to Reflect On - What event has recently revealed a hidden talent? - How can you create “lifting” experiences? A Different Perspective The metaphor may be too abstract for some readers. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Bells](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/bells/) [Inspiring](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/inspiring/) [Life](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/life/) [Moments](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/moments/) [Time](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/time/) ## Related quotes > [“I was still ringing. I had been my whole life a bell, and never knew it until at that moment I was lifted and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/annie-dillard/i-was-still-ringing-i-had-been-my-whole-life-a-bell-and-never-knew-it/) [Annie Dillard](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/annie-dillard/) > [So briefly do we raise our heads, so quick sink back. For a moment we are lifted by a wave of time, are tossed…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/allen-wheelis/so-briefly-do-we-raise-our-heads-so-quick-sink-back-for-a-moment-we/) [Allen Wheelis](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/allen-wheelis/) > [The mountains are great stone bells; they clang together like nuns. Who shushed the stars? There are a thousand million galaxies easily seen in…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/annie-dillard/the-mountains-are-great-stone-bells-they-clang-together-like-nuns-who/) [Annie Dillard](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/annie-dillard/) > [And he knew that at that moment, they understood each other perfectly, and when he told her what he was going to do now,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/and-he-knew-that-at-that-moment-they-understood-each-other-perfectly/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [“I knew that this moment of weakness would allow me to go on — tomorrow, the day after, and on all the days that…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ruslana-pidsadiuk/i-knew-that-this-moment-of-weakness-would-allow-me-to-go-on-tomorrow/) [Ruslana Pidsadiuk](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ruslana-pidsadiuk/) > [I always knew from that moment, from the time I found myself at home in that little segregated library in the South, all the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/maya-angelou/i-always-knew-from-that-moment-from-the-time-i-found-myself-at-home/) [Maya Angelou](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/maya-angelou/) > [“I knew in that moment that everything happens for a reason, but we can’t always know the reason when the journey begins. Some things…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mike-ericksen/i-knew-in-that-moment-that-everything-happens-for-a-reason-but-we-can/) [Mike Ericksen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mike-ericksen/) > [“You're it for me. I knew it the moment I saw you tell of the maitre d' at the restaurant. Do you understand? You're…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nichole-chase/you-re-it-for-me-i-knew-it-the-moment-i-saw-you-tell-of-the-maitre-d/) [Nichole Chase](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nichole-chase/) > [“There were moments in a person's life that they would carry with them until their dying day, and Finely knew the moment Jasper's heart…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kady-cross/there-were-moments-in-a-person-s-life-that-they-would-carry-with-them/) [Kady Cross](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kady-cross/) > [When I first met her I knew in that moment that I would have to spend the next few days re-arranging my mind so…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/when-i-first-met-her-i-knew-in-that-moment-that-i-would-have-to-spend/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [“Of course, dear. I knew the moment I saw you that we are meant for great things. I’m never wrong about these things, you…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/elle-field/of-course-dear-i-knew-the-moment-i-saw-you-that-we-are-meant-for/) [Elle Field](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/elle-field/) > [“He knew, the moment he opened his eyes, that something was wrong but he was not quite sure what it was.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/p-l-travers-2/he-knew-the-moment-he-opened-his-eyes-that-something-was-wrong-but-he/) [P.L. Travers](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/p-l-travers-2/) > [“I knew the moment I held you in the theater, that you were the reason for everything. Every single turn my life has made…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sylvia-day/i-knew-the-moment-i-held-you-in-the-theater-that-you-were-the-reason/) [Sylvia Day](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sylvia-day/) > [So many times it seemed like there were chances to stop things before they started. Or even stop them in midstream. But it was…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sarah-dessen/so-many-times-it-seemed-like-there-were-chances-to-stop-things-before/) [Sarah Dessen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sarah-dessen/) > [“I knew in that moment, I would never love anyone in my life the way I loved Evan Mathews.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rebecca-donovan/i-knew-in-that-moment-i-would-never-love-anyone-in-my-life-the-way-i/) [Rebecca Donovan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rebecca-donovan/) ## 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 Bells quotes > [You’re crazy,” said her best friend, Angela, as the bell rang to signal five minutes before the first class on the first day back…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sarah-rees-brennan/you-re-crazy-said-her-best-friend-angela-as-the-bell-rang-to-signal/) [Sarah Rees Brennan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sarah-rees-brennan/) > [Your name is a golden bell hung in my heart. I would break my body to pieces to call you once by your name.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/peter-s-beagle/your-name-is-a-golden-bell-hung-in-my-heart-i-would-break-my-body-to/) [Peter S. Beagle](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/peter-s-beagle/) > [“Suddenly the air was full of that deep clangor of bells which periodically covers Rome with a roof of silver.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/edith-wharton/suddenly-the-air-was-full-of-that-deep-clangor-of-bells-which/) [Edith Wharton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/edith-wharton/) > [Hercules used noise! Brass bells! He scared them away with the most horrible sound he could-" said Percy "Percy... Chiron's collection!](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rick-riordan/hercules-used-noise-brass-bells-he-scared-them-away-with-the-most/) [Rick Riordan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rick-riordan/) > [Above the clouds I lift my wing To hear the bells of Heaven ring; Some of their music, though my fights be wild, To…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/edmund-clarence-stedman/above-the-clouds-i-lift-my-wing-to-hear-the-bells-of-heaven-ring-some/) [Edmund Clarence Stedman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/edmund-clarence-stedman/) > [“But it’s bells at twenty-seven thousand feet as the plane breaks into the clear again, as its motion steadies again; it is bells; it…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stephen-king/but-it-s-bells-at-twenty-seven-thousand-feet-as-the-plane-breaks-into/) [Stephen King](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stephen-king/) > [You run the football for toughness. You run the ball to tell your opponent that you're as tough as they are. But you throw…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jerry-glanville/you-run-the-football-for-toughness-you-run-the-ball-to-tell-your/) Jerry Glanville > [In cloths cheap handsomeness, doth bear the bell.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-herbert/in-cloths-cheap-handsomeness-doth-bear-the-bell/) [George Herbert](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-herbert/) > [Man preys on man; and you mourn for the idle tapestry that decorated a gothic pillar, and the dronish bell that summoned the fat…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mary-wollstonecraft/man-preys-on-man-and-you-mourn-for-the-idle-tapestry-that-decorated-a/) [Mary Wollstonecraft](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mary-wollstonecraft/) > [The Bell curve is a fact of life. The blacks on average score 85 per cent on IQ and it is accurate, nothing to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lee-kuan-yew/the-bell-curve-is-a-fact-of-life-the-blacks-on-average-score-85-per/) [Lee Kuan Yew](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lee-kuan-yew/) > [There is nothing better for me than to bring the bells in, in Scotland.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sharleen-spiteri/there-is-nothing-better-for-me-than-to-bring-the-bells-in-in-scotland/) [Sharleen Spiteri](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sharleen-spiteri/) > [Now see that noble and most sovereign reason, Like sweet bells jangled, out of tune and harsh.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-shakespeare/now-see-that-noble-and-most-sovereign-reason-like-sweet-bells-jangled/) [William Shakespeare](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-shakespeare/) > [ I became an instant fan of the show \[Underground\] seconds into the opening frames of the pilot. When that drone shot carried us through… ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/aisha-hinds/i-became-an-instant-fan-of-the-show-underground-seconds-into-the/) [Aisha Hinds](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/aisha-hinds/) > [This world o' God's is brighter Than we ever dream or know; Its burdens growin' lighter- An' it's Love that makes 'em so! 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