--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: Today is one of those excellent January…" description: "\"Today is one of those excellent January partly cloudies in which light chooses an unexpected part of the landscape to trick out in gilt, and then the s..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/a5a/annie-dillard-509_alive_today-is-one-of-those-excellent-january_3076301.jpg" --- # Today is one of those excellent January partly cloudies in… ![“Today is one of those excellent January partly cloudies in which light chooses an unexpected part of the landscape to trick out in gilt, and then the shadow sweeps it away. You know you're alive. You take huge steps, trying to feel the planet's roundness arc between your feet.” quote by Annie Dillard](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/a5a/annie-dillard-509_alive_today-is-one-of-those-excellent-january_3076301.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/a5a/annie-dillard-509_alive_today-is-one-of-those-excellent-january_3076301.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/a5a/annie-dillard-509_alive_today-is-one-of-those-excellent-january_3076301.jpg) > “Today is one of those excellent January partly cloudies in which light chooses an unexpected part of the landscape to trick out in gilt, and then the shadow sweeps it away. You know you're alive. You take huge steps, trying to feel the planet's roundness arc between your feet.” [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. Unexpected moments of beauty reveal life's vibrancy, reminding us we are alive and part of a larger whole. **In simple terms:** Surprise beauty shows we’re alive. Key Takeaway Notice and cherish fleeting wonders. Themes nature awareness transience existence Mood contemplative hopeful Type poetic philosophical When to use this quote - morning walks - creative work - meditation Key Concepts phenomenology mindfulness cosmology Questions to Reflect On - What small wonder did you miss today? - How does noticing change your mood? A Different Perspective Beauty can be fleeting and overlooked. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Alive](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/alive/) [Arcs](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/arcs/) [Cloudies Light](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/cloudies-light-5227558/) [Excellent](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/excellent/) [Excellent January](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/excellent-january-5227561/) [Feels](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/feels/) [Feet](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/feet/) [Gilt Shadow](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/gilt-shadow-5227560/) [January](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/january/) [Landscape](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/landscape/) [Light](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/light/) [Partly Cloudies](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/partly-cloudies-5227557/) [Planets](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/planets/) [Shadow](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/shadow/) [Steps](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/steps/) [Today](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/today/) [Tricks](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/tricks/) [Trying](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/trying/) [Unexpected](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/unexpected/) [Unexpected Landscape](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/unexpected-landscape-5227559/) [Walking](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/walking/) ## Related quotes > [“Nothing seems more inevitable than the status quo, and yet nothing is more certain than that it will—eventually—end suddenly and that we will need…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/frederic-c-rich/nothing-seems-more-inevitable-than-the-status-quo-and-yet-nothing-is/) [Frederic C. Rich](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/frederic-c-rich/) > [Out of a human population on earth of four and a half billion, perhaps twenty people can write a book in a year. Some…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/annie-dillard/out-of-a-human-population-on-earth-of-four-and-a-half-billion-perhaps/) [Annie Dillard](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/annie-dillard/) > [We must move forward in the days ahead with audacious faith. The moral arc of the universe is long but it bends toward justice.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/martin-luther-king-jr/we-must-move-forward-in-the-days-ahead-with-audacious-faith-the-moral/) [Martin Luther King, Jr](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/martin-luther-king-jr/) > [I am committed now to one thing: lyric sequences. I want the intensity of lyric, but the scope and arc of narrative. so, I…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gregory-orr/i-am-committed-now-to-one-thing-lyric-sequences-i-want-the-intensity/) [Gregory Orr](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gregory-orr/) > [I think every woman character, every female character, has her own arc.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/katheryn-winnick/i-think-every-woman-character-every-female-character-has-her-own-arc/) [Katheryn Winnick](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/katheryn-winnick/) > [I do not pretend to understand the moral universe; the arc is a long one. . . . But from what I see I…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/theodore-parker/i-do-not-pretend-to-understand-the-moral-universe-the-arc-is-a-long/) [Theodore Parker](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/theodore-parker/) > [We've got this arc of instability from North Africa to South Asia, and we have to pay close attention to it. And we have…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/hillary-clinton/we-ve-got-this-arc-of-instability-from-north-africa-to-south-asia-and/) [Hillary Clinton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/hillary-clinton/) > [I suppose that, for me at least, the biggest difference betweenThe Gunslinger Born and the next two story arcs (The Long Road Home and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robin-furth/i-suppose-that-for-me-at-least-the-biggest-difference-betweenthe/) [Robin Furth](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robin-furth/) > [When we are young, we spend much time and pains in filling our note-books with all definitions of Religion, Love, Poetry, Politics, Art, in…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ralph-waldo-emerson/when-we-are-young-we-spend-much-time-and-pains-in-filling-our-note/) [Ralph Waldo Emerson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ralph-waldo-emerson/) > [Sanchez looked at me and we locked eyes a second too long. There was nothing I could do about it. The signal went out.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rick-riordan/sanchez-looked-at-me-and-we-locked-eyes-a-second-too-long-there-was/) [Rick Riordan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rick-riordan/) > [When in doubt, the rule of threes is a rule that plays well with all of storytelling. When describing a thing? No more than…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/chuck-wendig/when-in-doubt-the-rule-of-threes-is-a-rule-that-plays-well-with-all/) [Chuck Wendig](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/chuck-wendig/) > [Joan of Arc should be played as a "pain in the ass" and how do I know she was a "pain in the ass"?…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/harold-clurman/joan-of-arc-should-be-played-as-a-pain-in-the-ass-and-how-do-i-know/) [Harold Clurman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/harold-clurman/) > [Because we grew up surrounded by big dramatic story arcs in books and movies, we think our lives are supposed to be filled with…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kurt-vonnegut/because-we-grew-up-surrounded-by-big-dramatic-story-arcs-in-books-and/) [Kurt Vonnegut](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kurt-vonnegut/) > [Through the music I hope to give it an arc that gives it a greater sense of a journey through the set rather than…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gotye/through-the-music-i-hope-to-give-it-an-arc-that-gives-it-a-greater/) [Gotye](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gotye/) > [It's a challenge to work a character's arc into a format in which you only have a very limited amount of time to grow…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ginnifer-goodwin/it-s-a-challenge-to-work-a-character-s-arc-into-a-format-in-which-you/) [Ginnifer Goodwin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ginnifer-goodwin/) ## 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 Alive quotes > [I understand that it's the music that keeps me alive... That's my lifeblood. And to give that up for, like, the TV, the cars,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bruce-springsteen/i-understand-that-it-s-the-music-that-keeps-me-alive-that-s-my/) [Bruce Springsteen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bruce-springsteen/) > [I feel very grateful to be alive and well enough to make music.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/adam-ant/i-feel-very-grateful-to-be-alive-and-well-enough-to-make-music/) [Adam Ant](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/adam-ant/) > [I don't crave applause. I'm not one of those guys who comes alive on stage. I'm much more alive at home, I think.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-bowie/i-don-t-crave-applause-i-m-not-one-of-those-guys-who-comes-alive-on/) [David Bowie](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-bowie/) > [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/) > [I can't say that there are 'things' that make me come alive. There are thoughts that make me come alive.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/marianne-williamson/i-can-t-say-that-there-are-things-that-make-me-come-alive-there-are/) [Marianne Williamson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/marianne-williamson/) > [We're like the wicked witch. We promise gingerbread, then eat the little brats alive.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/orson-scott-card/we-re-like-the-wicked-witch-we-promise-gingerbread-then-eat-the/) [Orson Scott Card](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/orson-scott-card/) > [If Jovan Belcher didn't possess a gun, he and Kasandra Perkins would both be alive today.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bob-costas/if-jovan-belcher-didn-t-possess-a-gun-he-and-kasandra-perkins-would/) [Bob Costas](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bob-costas/) > [Peace is an ongoing process. It begins with the first step and it does not end. We, all of us alive today, are the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-krieger/peace-is-an-ongoing-process-it-begins-with-the-first-step-and-it-does/) [David Krieger](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-krieger/) > [I think adoption becomes complicated whenever the biological parents are alive.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/james-haven/i-think-adoption-becomes-complicated-whenever-the-biological-parents/) [James Haven](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/james-haven/) > [The pain of love is the pain of being alive. It is a perpetual wound.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/maureen-duffy/the-pain-of-love-is-the-pain-of-being-alive-it-is-a-perpetual-wound/) [Maureen Duffy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/maureen-duffy/) > [I have tried to resign myself, and to console myself; and that, I hope, I may have done imperfectly; but what I cannot firmly…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/charles-dickens/i-have-tried-to-resign-myself-and-to-console-myself-and-that-i-hope-i/) [Charles Dickens](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/charles-dickens/) > [If Melanchthon were alive today, he might not weep because of controversies that surround the Lord's Supper, but he might well sorrow because of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/erwin-w-lutzer/if-melanchthon-were-alive-today-he-might-not-weep-because-of/) [Erwin W. Lutzer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/erwin-w-lutzer/) > [If you’re alive, don’t move, if you’re dead, don’t worry about it.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/laurell-k-hamilton/if-you-re-alive-don-t-move-if-you-re-dead-don-t-worry-about-it/) [Laurell K. Hamilton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/laurell-k-hamilton/) > [Here Greek and Roman find themselves alive along these crowded shelves; and Shakespeare treads again his stage, and Chaucer paints anew his age.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-greenleaf-whittier/here-greek-and-roman-find-themselves-alive-along-these-crowded/) [John Greenleaf Whittier](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-greenleaf-whittier/) > [You're alive!" Fezzik cried. The man in black sat immobile, like a ventriloquist's dummy, just his mouth moving. "That is perhaps the most childishly…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-goldman/you-re-alive-fezzik-cried-the-man-in-black-sat-immobile-like-a/) [William Goldman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-goldman/) [Browse all 7,282 Alive quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/alive/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "Today is one of those excellent January partly cloudies in which light chooses an unexpected part of the landscape to trick out in gilt, and then the shadow sweeps it away. You know you're alive. 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