--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: Water never waits. It changes shape and…" description: "\"“Water never waits. It changes shape and floes around things, and finds the secret paths no one else thought about __ the tiny hole through the roof or..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/5d0/arthur-golden-1813_elements_water-never-waits-it-changes-shape-and-f_851681.png" --- # Water never waits. It changes shape and floes around… ![“Water never waits. It changes shape and floes around things, and finds the secret paths no one else thought about __ the tiny hole through the roof or the bottom of a box. There's no doubt it's the most versatile of the five elements. It can wash away earth, it can put out fire; it can wear a…” quote by Arthur Golden](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/5d0/arthur-golden-1813_elements_water-never-waits-it-changes-shape-and-f_851681.png) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/5d0/arthur-golden-1813_elements_water-never-waits-it-changes-shape-and-f_851681.png) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/5d0/arthur-golden-1813_elements_water-never-waits-it-changes-shape-and-f_851681.png) > ““Water never waits. It changes shape and floes around things, and finds the secret paths no one else thought about \_\_ the tiny hole through the roof or the bottom of a box. There's no doubt it's the most versatile of the five elements. It can wash away earth, it can put out fire; it can wear a piece of metal down and can sweep it away. Even wood, which is its natural complement, can'survive without being nurtured by water.”” [Arthur Golden](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/arthur-golden/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Water adapts, finds hidden routes, and can erode or extinguish obstacles, showing its versatility among elements. **In simple terms:** Water changes shape, finds hidden paths, and can wear away obstacles. Key Takeaway Embrace flexibility and seek unseen opportunities. Themes adaptability versatility perseverance Mood reflective inspirational Type philosophical metaphorical When to use this quote - problem solving - environmental design - personal growth Key Concepts fluid dynamics elemental metaphor resilience Questions to Reflect On - How can you become more adaptable? - What hidden paths can you explore? A Different Perspective Water alone cannot solve problems without human intention. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Elements](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/elements/) [Five elements](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/five-elements/) [Nature](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/nature/) [River](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/river/) [Water](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/water/) ## Related quotes > [I can see you have a great deal of water in your personality. Water never waits. It changes shape and flows around things, and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/arthur-golden/i-can-see-you-have-a-great-deal-of-water-in-your-personality-water/) [Arthur Golden](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/arthur-golden/) > [“Waiting patiently doesn't suit you.I can see you have a great deal of water in your personality. Water never waits. 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Psychic people can see them and their geometric…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stefan-emunds/the-five-elements-are-energies-not-things-in-hinduism-they-are-known/) [Stefan Emunds](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stefan-emunds/) > [“...the relationships between the five elements. What are the five elements? They are wood, fire, earth, metal, water. These create, and also destroy, each…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/pearl-s-buck/the-relationships-between-the-five-elements-what-are-the-five/) [Pearl S. Buck](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/pearl-s-buck/) > [P is positive emotion, E is engagement, R is relationships, M is meaning and A is accomplishment. Those are the five elements of what…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/martin-seligman/p-is-positive-emotion-e-is-engagement-r-is-relationships-m-is-meaning/) [Martin Seligman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/martin-seligman/) > [“Our goal is to reach the perfection of all the noble and wholesome qualities latent in our subconscious mind. This goal has five elements…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/henepola-gunaratana/our-goal-is-to-reach-the-perfection-of-all-the-noble-and-wholesome/) [Henepola Gunaratana](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/henepola-gunaratana/) > [The gross elements are earth, water, air and fire, with the fifth being space. Each particle of the body is made up of these…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tulku-thondup/the-gross-elements-are-earth-water-air-and-fire-with-the-fifth-being/) [Tulku Thondup](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tulku-thondup/) > [“6-30. “I will now tell you the truth of the objective world, as it is. 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If you have four elements use three.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/pablo-picasso/if-you-have-five-elements-available-use-only-four-if-you-have-four/) [Pablo Picasso](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/pablo-picasso/) > [There are five elements: earth, air, fire, water and garlic.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/louis-diat/there-are-five-elements-earth-air-fire-water-and-garlic/) Louis Diat > [“The LSCPA model is a process with five elements: Listen Share Clarify Problem-Solve Ask for Action LSCPA is an effective approach that is recommended…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/the-lscpa-model-is-a-process-with-five-elements-listen-share-clarify/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [When I first started doing my stand-up act, I played the banjo, did comedy, magic tricks, juggled, read poetry. I stuck it all in.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/steve-martin/when-i-first-started-doing-my-stand-up-act-i-played-the-banjo-did/) [Steve Martin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/steve-martin/) ## More by Arthur Golden > [He was like a song I'd heard once in fragments but had been singing in my mind ever since.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/arthur-golden/he-was-like-a-song-i-d-heard-once-in-fragments-but-had-been-singing/) [Arthur Golden](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/arthur-golden/) > [Sometimes we get through adversity only by imagining what the world might be like if our dreams should ever come true.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/arthur-golden/sometimes-we-get-through-adversity-only-by-imagining-what-the-world/) [Arthur Golden](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/arthur-golden/) > [When we fight upstream against a rocky undercurrent, every foothold takes on a kind of urgency.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/arthur-golden/when-we-fight-upstream-against-a-rocky-undercurrent-every-foothold/) [Arthur Golden](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/arthur-golden/) > [Never give up; for even rivers someday wash dams away.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/arthur-golden/never-give-up-for-even-rivers-someday-wash-dams-away/) [Arthur Golden](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/arthur-golden/) > [“Oh I'm sure you're right," Auntie said. "Probably she's just as you say. But she looks to me like a very clever girl, and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/arthur-golden/oh-i-m-sure-you-re-right-auntie-said-probably-she-s-just-as-you-say/) [Arthur Golden](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/arthur-golden/) > [“I'm not sure this will make sense to you, but I felt as though I'd turned around to look in a different direction, so…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/arthur-golden/i-m-not-sure-this-will-make-sense-to-you-but-i-felt-as-though-i-d/) [Arthur Golden](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/arthur-golden/) > [“We human beings are only a part of something very much larger. 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It also tears…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/arthur-golden/adversity-is-like-a-strong-wind-i-don-t-mean-just-that-it-holds-us/) [Arthur Golden](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/arthur-golden/) > [“Most nights I lay on my futon I was sick with anxiety, and felt a pit inside myself as big and empty as if…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/arthur-golden/most-nights-i-lay-on-my-futon-i-was-sick-with-anxiety-and-felt-a-pit/) [Arthur Golden](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/arthur-golden/) > [Of course, a sign doesn't mean anything unless you know how to interpret it.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/arthur-golden/of-course-a-sign-doesn-t-mean-anything-unless-you-know-how-to/) [Arthur Golden](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/arthur-golden/) > [“I knew even then that she was right. An en is a karmic bond lasting a lifetime. Nowadays many people seem to believe their…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/arthur-golden/i-knew-even-then-that-she-was-right-an-en-is-a-karmic-bond-lasting-a/) [Arthur Golden](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/arthur-golden/) > [I didn't say to act dead. I said act helpless.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/arthur-golden/i-didn-t-say-to-act-dead-i-said-act-helpless/) [Arthur Golden](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/arthur-golden/) > [“I'm not sure this will make sense to you but I felt as though I'd turned around to look in a different direction so…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/arthur-golden/i-m-not-sure-this-will-make-sense-to-you-but-i-felt-as-though-i-d-2/) [Arthur Golden](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/arthur-golden/) [Explore all 190 Arthur Golden quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/arthur-golden/) ## More Elements quotes > [My team and I have reunited two elements that coexist with diffiulty: respect and affection, because when they love you they don't respect you…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/shakira/my-team-and-i-have-reunited-two-elements-that-coexist-with-diffiulty/) [Shakira](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/shakira/) > [I was in high school and I had an independent album out, and we kept sending that out, and I was doing shows. No…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tyler-hilton/i-was-in-high-school-and-i-had-an-independent-album-out-and-we-kept/) [Tyler Hilton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tyler-hilton/) > [I do think that theater is a great venue for science fiction, and not just adaptations but also original work. I also think some…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/edward-einhorn/i-do-think-that-theater-is-a-great-venue-for-science-fiction-and-not/) Edward Einhorn > [I avoided nudity unless a film couldn't be told without those scenes. If you look at my films, few of them have that element,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/greta-scacchi/i-avoided-nudity-unless-a-film-couldn-t-be-told-without-those-scenes/) [Greta Scacchi](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/greta-scacchi/) > [I have always been fascinated by the supernatural elements in stories, whether fairy tales, myths, film or literature.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/trudi-canavan/i-have-always-been-fascinated-by-the-supernatural-elements-in-stories/) [Trudi Canavan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/trudi-canavan/) > [Geometry, which should only obey Physics, when united with it sometimes commands it. If it happens that the question which we wish to examine…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jean-le-rond-d-alembert/geometry-which-should-only-obey-physics-when-united-with-it-sometimes/) [Jean le Rond d'Alembert](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jean-le-rond-d-alembert/) > [I find in working always the disturbing intrusion of elements not a part of my most interested vision, and the inevitable obliteration and replacement…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/edward-hopper/i-find-in-working-always-the-disturbing-intrusion-of-elements-not-a/) [Edward Hopper](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/edward-hopper/) > [Music and language are a vital element. We, as actors and directors, offer it to people who want to experience it. Sometimes the actual…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kenneth-branagh/music-and-language-are-a-vital-element-we-as-actors-and-directors/) [Kenneth Branagh](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kenneth-branagh/) > [Intelligence is a separate gift, for the benefit of students, so that they may think of themselves as intellectual and not very intelligent, or…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/maya-angelou/intelligence-is-a-separate-gift-for-the-benefit-of-students-so-that/) [Maya Angelou](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/maya-angelou/) > [I don't think that writing, real writing, has much to do with affirming belief--if anything it causes rifts and gaps in belief which make…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/brian-evenson/i-don-t-think-that-writing-real-writing-has-much-to-do-with-affirming/) [Brian Evenson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/brian-evenson/) > [The proliferation of right-to-carry laws throughout the states has drawn plaintive complaints from the criminal element. They feel that it makes their profession too…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jeff-cooper/the-proliferation-of-right-to-carry-laws-throughout-the-states-has/) [Jeff Cooper](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jeff-cooper/) > [To me, the most important elements in a theatre are the actors and the texts.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/naseeruddin-shah/to-me-the-most-important-elements-in-a-theatre-are-the-actors-and-the/) [Naseeruddin Shah](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/naseeruddin-shah/) > [Two elements are needed to form a truth - a fact and an abstraction](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/remy-de-gourmont/two-elements-are-needed-to-form-a-truth-a-fact-and-an-abstraction/) [Remy de Gourmont](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/remy-de-gourmont/) > [In America there is not one single element of civilization that is not made to depend, in the end, upon public opinion.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/henry-ward-beecher/in-america-there-is-not-one-single-element-of-civilization-that-is/) [Henry Ward Beecher](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/henry-ward-beecher/) > [Most of us think of pride as self-centeredness, conceit, boastfulness, arrogance, or haughtiness. All of these are elements of the sin, but the heart,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ezra-taft-benson/most-of-us-think-of-pride-as-self-centeredness-conceit-boastfulness/) [Ezra Taft Benson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ezra-taft-benson/) [Browse all 3,647 Elements quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/elements/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "“Water never waits. It changes shape and floes around things, and finds the secret paths no one else thought about __ the tiny hole through the roof or the bottom of a box. There's no doubt it's the most versatile of the five elements. It can wash away earth, it can put out fire; it can wear a piece of metal down and can sweep it away. 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