--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: The tree is a slow, enduring force…" description: "\"The tree is a slow, enduring force straining to win the sky.\" — Antoine de Saint-Exupery" image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/e1b/antoine-de-saint-exup-ry-174_endure_the-tree-is-a-slow-enduring-force-strain_1245030.png" --- # The tree is a slow, enduring force straining to win the sky. ![“The tree is a slow, enduring force straining to win the sky.” quote by Antoine de Saint-Exupery](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/e1b/antoine-de-saint-exup-ry-174_endure_the-tree-is-a-slow-enduring-force-strain_1245030.png) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/e1b/antoine-de-saint-exup-ry-174_endure_the-tree-is-a-slow-enduring-force-strain_1245030.png) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/e1b/antoine-de-saint-exup-ry-174_endure_the-tree-is-a-slow-enduring-force-strain_1245030.png) > “The tree is a slow, enduring force straining to win the sky.” [Antoine de Saint-Exupery](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/antoine-de-saint-exup-ry/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. The tree metaphor illustrates patient, persistent effort that gradually overcomes obstacles to reach higher aspirations. **In simple terms:** Patience and persistence achieve big goals. Key Takeaway Cultivate steady, long‑term effort. Themes patience growth resilience Mood reflective inspirational Type philosophical motivational When to use this quote - personal development - environmental activism - career advancement - overcoming adversity Key Concepts metaphor nature determination Questions to Reflect On - What long‑term goal require you steady persistence? - How do you stay motivated during slow progress? A Different Perspective Progress can be slow and may be discouraged by setbacks. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Endure](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/endure/) [Flower](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/flower/) [Force](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/force/) [Forests](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/forests/) [Forests and trees](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/forests-and-trees/) [Sky](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/sky/) [Slow](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/slow/) [Slow Enduring](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/slow-enduring-3901420/) [Straining Win](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/straining-win-3901421/) [Tree](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/tree/) [Tree of life](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/tree-of-life/) [Tree Slow](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/tree-slow-1371889/) [Trees](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/trees/) [Winning](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/winning/) ## Related quotes > [The tree is more than first a seed, then a stem, then a living trunk, and then dead timber. The tree is a slow,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/antoine-de-saint-exup-ry/the-tree-is-more-than-first-a-seed-then-a-stem-then-a-living-trunk/) [Antoine de Saint-Exupery](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/antoine-de-saint-exup-ry/) > [I frequently tramped eight or ten miles through the deepest snow to keep an appointment with a beechtree, or a yellow birch, or an…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/henry-david-thoreau/i-frequently-tramped-eight-or-ten-miles-through-the-deepest-snow-to/) [Henry David Thoreau](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/henry-david-thoreau/) > [No wonder the hills and groves were God's first temples, and the more they are cut down and hewn into cathedrals and churches, the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-muir/no-wonder-the-hills-and-groves-were-god-s-first-temples-and-the-more/) [John Muir](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-muir/) > [A few minutes ago every tree was excited, bowing to the roaring storm, waving, swirling, tossing their branches in glorious enthusiasm like worship. But…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-muir/a-few-minutes-ago-every-tree-was-excited-bowing-to-the-roaring-storm-3/) [John Muir](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-muir/) > [No man manages his affairs as well as a tree does](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-bernard-shaw/no-man-manages-his-affairs-as-well-as-a-tree-does/) [George Bernard Shaw](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-bernard-shaw/) > [The great French Marshall Lyautey once asked his gardener to plant a tree. The gardner objected that the tree was slow growing and wouldn't…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-f-kennedy/the-great-french-marshall-lyautey-once-asked-his-gardener-to-plant-a/) [John F. Kennedy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-f-kennedy/) > [Forests are the lungs of our land…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/franklin-d-roosevelt/forests-are-the-lungs-of-our-land/) [Franklin D. Roosevelt](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/franklin-d-roosevelt/) > [Each generation of humanity takes the earth as trustees... We ought to bequeath to posterity as many forests and orchards as we have exhausted…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/julius-sterling-morton/each-generation-of-humanity-takes-the-earth-as-trustees-we-ought-to/) [Julius Sterling Morton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/julius-sterling-morton/) > [To the eyes of the man of imagination, nature is imagination itself.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-blake/to-the-eyes-of-the-man-of-imagination-nature-is-imagination-itself/) [William Blake](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-blake/) > [For me, trees have always been the most penetrating preachers.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/hermann-hesse/for-me-trees-have-always-been-the-most-penetrating-preachers/) [Hermann Hesse](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/hermann-hesse/) > [Man has been endowed with reason, with the power to create, so that he can add to what he's been given. But up to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anton-chekhov/man-has-been-endowed-with-reason-with-the-power-to-create-so-that-he/) [Anton Chekhov](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anton-chekhov/) > [Any fool can destroy trees. They cannot run away; and if they could, they would still be destroyed-chased and hunted down as long as…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-muir/any-fool-can-destroy-trees-they-cannot-run-away-and-if-they-could/) [John Muir](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-muir/) > [The forests are the flag's of Nature. They appeal to all and awaken inspiring universal feelings. Enter the forest and the boundaries of nations…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/enos-mills/the-forests-are-the-flag-s-of-nature-they-appeal-to-all-and-awaken/) [Enos Mills](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/enos-mills/) > [Let soldiers on manoeuvres plant trees. Give police and criminals a shovel and a thousand seedlings.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-wright/let-soldiers-on-manoeuvres-plant-trees-give-police-and-criminals-a/) [John Wright](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-wright/) > [Sometimes you can't see the wood for the trees as an artist.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/elton-john/sometimes-you-can-t-see-the-wood-for-the-trees-as-an-artist/) [Elton John](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/elton-john/) ## More by Antoine de Saint-Exupery > [“If you want to build a ship, don’t drum up the men to gather wood, divide the work, and give orders. Instead, teach them…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/antoine-de-saint-exup-ry/if-you-want-to-build-a-ship-don-t-drum-up-the-men-to-gather-wood/) [Antoine de Saint-Exupéry](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/antoine-de-saint-exup-ry/) > [A rock pile ceases to be a rock pile the moment a single man contemplates it, bearing within him the image of a cathedral.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/antoine-de-saint-exup-ry/a-rock-pile-ceases-to-be-a-rock-pile-the-moment-a-single-man/) [Antoine de Saint-Exupery](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/antoine-de-saint-exup-ry/) > [Treason implies responsibility for something, control over something, influence upon something, knowledge of something. Treason in our time is a proof of genius. Why,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/antoine-de-saint-exup-ry/treason-implies-responsibility-for-something-control-over-something/) [Antoine de Saint-Exupery](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/antoine-de-saint-exup-ry/) > [“perfection is finally attained not when there is no longer anything to add, but when there is no longer anything to take away”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/antoine-de-saint-exup-ry/perfection-is-finally-attained-not-when-there-is-no-longer-anything/) [Antoine de Saint-Exupéry](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/antoine-de-saint-exup-ry/) > [“But for fear of disheartening them, we also spoke to them of disappointments and the bitter taste that rest has after a useless action.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/antoine-de-saint-exup-ry/but-for-fear-of-disheartening-them-we-also-spoke-to-them-of/) [Antoine de Saint-Exupéry](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/antoine-de-saint-exup-ry/) > [“If you come at four in the afternoon, I'll begin to be happy by three.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/antoine-de-saint-exup-ry/if-you-come-at-four-in-the-afternoon-i-ll-begin-to-be-happy-by-three/) [Antoine de Saint-Exupéry](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/antoine-de-saint-exup-ry/) > [Once we are bound together to our brothers by a common good that is outside us, then we can breathe. Experience teaches us that…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/antoine-de-saint-exup-ry/once-we-are-bound-together-to-our-brothers-by-a-common-good-that-is/) [Antoine de Saint-Exupery](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/antoine-de-saint-exup-ry/) > [“The stars are beautiful, because of a flower that cannot be seen.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/antoine-de-saint-exup-ry/the-stars-are-beautiful-because-of-a-flower-that-cannot-be-seen/) [Antoine de Saint-Exupéry](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/antoine-de-saint-exup-ry/) > [“You are beautiful but you are empty. One could not die for you”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/antoine-de-saint-exup-ry/you-are-beautiful-but-you-are-empty-one-could-not-die-for-you/) [Antoine de Saint-Exupéry](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/antoine-de-saint-exup-ry/) > [“And the fox said to the little prince: men have forgotten this truth, but you must not forget it. You become responsible, forever, for…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/antoine-de-saint-exup-ry/and-the-fox-said-to-the-little-prince-men-have-forgotten-this-truth/) [Antoine de Saint-Exupery](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/antoine-de-saint-exup-ry/) > [And now here is my secret, a very simple secret; it is only with the heart that one can see rightly, what is essential…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/antoine-de-saint-exup-ry/and-now-here-is-my-secret-a-very-simple-secret-it-is-only-with-the/) [Antoine de Saint-Exupery](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/antoine-de-saint-exup-ry/) > [Flying is a man's job and its worries are a man's worries.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/antoine-de-saint-exup-ry/flying-is-a-man-s-job-and-its-worries-are-a-man-s-worries/) [Antoine de Saint-Exupery](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/antoine-de-saint-exup-ry/) > [“You are not at all like my rose," he said. "As yet you are nothing. No one has tamed you, and you have tamed…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/antoine-de-saint-exup-ry/you-are-not-at-all-like-my-rose-he-said-as-yet-you-are-nothing-no-one/) [Antoine de Saint-Exupéry](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/antoine-de-saint-exup-ry/) > [Loneliness is bred of a mind that has grown earth-bound.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/antoine-de-saint-exup-ry/loneliness-is-bred-of-a-mind-that-has-grown-earth-bound/) [Antoine de Saint-Exupery](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/antoine-de-saint-exup-ry/) > [“Stretched out before the fire I looked at the glowing fruit and said to myself that men did not know what an orange was.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/antoine-de-saint-exup-ry/stretched-out-before-the-fire-i-looked-at-the-glowing-fruit-and-said/) [Antoine de Saint-Exupéry](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/antoine-de-saint-exup-ry/) [Explore all 719 Antoine de Saint-Exupery quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/antoine-de-saint-exup-ry/) ## More Endure quotes > [So many things beat upon us in a lifetime that simply enduring may seem almost beyond us… But the test a loving God has…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/henry-b-eyring/so-many-things-beat-upon-us-in-a-lifetime-that-simply-enduring-may/) [Henry B. Eyring](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/henry-b-eyring/) > [This is no time for ease and comfort. It is time to dare and endure.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/winston-churchill/this-is-no-time-for-ease-and-comfort-it-is-time-to-dare-and-endure/) [Winston Churchill](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/winston-churchill/) > [When the first Superman movie came out I was frequently asked "What is a hero?" ...My answer was that a hero is someone who…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/christopher-reeve/when-the-first-superman-movie-came-out-i-was-frequently-asked-what-is/) [Christopher Reeve](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/christopher-reeve/) > [There is a spirit which I feel that delights to do no evil, nor to revenge any wrong, but delights to endure all things,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/james-nayler/there-is-a-spirit-which-i-feel-that-delights-to-do-no-evil-nor-to/) [James Nayler](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/james-nayler/) > [A great read; an exciting, frightening account of organized crime today. But like all important works of nonfiction, it goes further… This book is…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/le-ly-hayslip/a-great-read-an-exciting-frightening-account-of-organized-crime-today/) [Le Ly Hayslip](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/le-ly-hayslip/) > [It is easy enough to say that man is immortal simply because he will endure: that when the last ding-dong of doom has clanged…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-faulkner/it-is-easy-enough-to-say-that-man-is-immortal-simply-because-he-will/) [William Faulkner](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-faulkner/) > [It is well for a man when he has learned to endure what he cannot change, and to give up with dignity what he…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/friedrich-schiller/it-is-well-for-a-man-when-he-has-learned-to-endure-what-he-cannot/) [Friedrich Schiller](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/friedrich-schiller/) > [The art of life is to know how to enjoy a little and to endure very much.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-hazlitt/the-art-of-life-is-to-know-how-to-enjoy-a-little-and-to-endure-very/) [William Hazlitt](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-hazlitt/) > [Life is not a PG feel-good movie. Real life often ends badly. Literature tries to document this reality, while showing us it is still…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/matthew-quick/life-is-not-a-pg-feel-good-movie-real-life-often-ends-badly/) [Matthew Quick](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/matthew-quick/) > [It is impossible to build enduring institutions without solid values. For us, the fundamental value is that associated with democracy.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/fernando-henrique-cardoso/it-is-impossible-to-build-enduring-institutions-without-solid-values/) [Fernando Henrique Cardoso](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/fernando-henrique-cardoso/) > [I will love the light for it shows me the way, yet I will endure the darkness because it shows me the stars.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/og-mandino/i-will-love-the-light-for-it-shows-me-the-way-yet-i-will-endure-the/) [Og Mandino](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/og-mandino/) > [“This is how they are able to continue and endure.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lao-tzu/this-is-how-they-are-able-to-continue-and-endure/) [Lao Tzu](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lao-tzu/) > [There are many who say they want to be victorious Christians, but few are willing to endure the discipline necessary to make one a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/vance-havner/there-are-many-who-say-they-want-to-be-victorious-christians-but-few/) [Vance Havner](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/vance-havner/) > [“Whatever befalls us, we will endure it together. I clutch my longbow and dagger close to my side. My last thoughts linger on my…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mark-noce/whatever-befalls-us-we-will-endure-it-together-i-clutch-my-longbow/) [Mark Noce](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mark-noce/) > [“One by one, I'll face the tasks before me and complete them as best I can. Focusing on each stride forward, but at the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/haruki-murakami/one-by-one-i-ll-face-the-tasks-before-me-and-complete-them-as-best-i/) [Haruki Murakami](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/haruki-murakami/) [Browse all 2,549 Endure quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/endure/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "The tree is a slow, enduring force straining to win the sky.", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "Antoine de Saint-Exupery" }, "isPartOf": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website" }, "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/antoine-de-saint-exup-ry/the-tree-is-a-slow-enduring-force-straining-to-win-the-sky/", "about": { "@type": "Thing", "name": "Endure" }, "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/antoine-de-saint-exup-ry/the-tree-is-a-slow-enduring-force-straining-to-win-the-sky/#quotation", "image": { "@type": "ImageObject", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/e1b/antoine-de-saint-exup-ry-174_endure_the-tree-is-a-slow-enduring-force-strain_1245030.png", "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/e1b/antoine-de-saint-exup-ry-174_endure_the-tree-is-a-slow-enduring-force-strain_1245030.png", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/e1b/antoine-de-saint-exup-ry-174_endure_the-tree-is-a-slow-enduring-force-strain_1245030.png", "width": 1080, "height": 1080, "caption": "“The tree is a slow, enduring force straining to win the sky.” — Antoine de Saint-Exupery", "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": "Antoine de Saint-Exupery", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/antoine-de-saint-exup-ry/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 4, "name": "The tree is a slow, enduring...", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/antoine-de-saint-exup-ry/the-tree-is-a-slow-enduring-force-straining-to-win-the-sky/" } ], "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/antoine-de-saint-exup-ry/the-tree-is-a-slow-enduring-force-straining-to-win-the-sky/#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 } } ] } ```