---
title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: ... the spirit, I think, is a stream, a…"
description: "\"... the spirit, I think, is a stream, a fountain, and must be continually poured out, for only if it is poured out will more and clearer streams come.\"..."
image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/57f/brenda-ueland-3836_fountain_the-spirit-i-think-is-a-stream-a-fountai_1408393.png"
---

#  ... the spirit, I think, is a stream, a fountain, and must…

![“... the spirit, I think, is a stream, a fountain, and must be continually poured out, for only if it is poured out will more and clearer streams come.” quote by Brenda Ueland](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/57f/brenda-ueland-3836_fountain_the-spirit-i-think-is-a-stream-a-fountai_1408393.png)   [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/57f/brenda-ueland-3836_fountain_the-spirit-i-think-is-a-stream-a-fountai_1408393.png) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/57f/brenda-ueland-3836_fountain_the-spirit-i-think-is-a-stream-a-fountai_1408393.png)

> “... the spirit, I think, is a stream, a fountain, and must be continually poured out, for only if it is poured out will more and clearer streams come.”

[Brenda Ueland](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/brenda-ueland/)

## About This Quote

This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation.

The spirit must be continuously expressed to generate clearer, stronger flows.

**In simple terms:** Keep expressing to refine ideas.

Key Takeaway

Regularly share your inner voice.

Themes

expression creativity spirituality

Mood

hopeful energetic

Type

philosophical motivational

When to use this quote

- writing
- public speaking
- teaching

Key Concepts

flow continuous output

Questions to Reflect On

- What outlets help you pour out?
- How do you refresh your stream?

A Different Perspective

Constant output can lead to burnout without rest.

★ ★ ★ ★ ★   No ratings yet

[Religion](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/religion/) [Spirit](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/spirit/) [Thinking](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/thinking/)

## Related quotes

> [A river continually fed by a living fountain may as soon end its streams before it come to the ocean, as a stop be…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-owen/a-river-continually-fed-by-a-living-fountain-may-as-soon-end-its/)

[John Owen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-owen/)

> [it is only by expressing all that is inside that purer and purer streams come. ... Pour out the dull things on paper too-you…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/brenda-ueland/it-is-only-by-expressing-all-that-is-inside-that-purer-and-purer-2/)

[Brenda Ueland](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/brenda-ueland/)

> [It is only by expressing all that is inside that purer and purer streams come.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/brenda-ueland/it-is-only-by-expressing-all-that-is-inside-that-purer-and-purer/)

[Brenda Ueland](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/brenda-ueland/)

> [Into the bosom of the one great sea Flow streams that come from the hills on every side, Their names are various as their…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sarvepalli-radhakrishnan/into-the-bosom-of-the-one-great-sea-flow-streams-that-come-from-the/)

[Sarvepalli Radhakrishnan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sarvepalli-radhakrishnan/)

> [The foundation of the Christian's peace is everlasting; it is what no time, no change can destroy. It will remain when the body dies;…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jonathan-edwards/the-foundation-of-the-christian-s-peace-is-everlasting-it-is-what-no/)

[Jonathan Edwards](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jonathan-edwards/)

> [The stream sings a subdued music, a scarcely audible lilt, faint and fluid syllables not quite said. It slips away into its future, where…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-daniel/the-stream-sings-a-subdued-music-a-scarcely-audible-lilt-faint-and/)

[John Daniel](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-daniel/)

> [The fabric of American empire ought to rest on the solid basis of THE CONSENT OF THE PEOPLE. The streams of national power ought…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alexander-hamilton/the-fabric-of-american-empire-ought-to-rest-on-the-solid-basis-of-the/)

[Alexander Hamilton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alexander-hamilton/)

> [There is a river in the ocean. In the severest droughts it never fails, and in the mightiest floods it never overflows. Its banks…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/matthew-fontaine-maury/there-is-a-river-in-the-ocean-in-the-severest-droughts-it-never-fails/)

[Matthew Fontaine Maury](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/matthew-fontaine-maury/)

> [That grief is the most durable which flows inward, and buries its streams with its fountain, in the depths of the heart.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jane-porter/that-grief-is-the-most-durable-which-flows-inward-and-buries-its/)

[Jane Porter](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jane-porter/)

> [The blood, the fountain whence the spirits flow The generous stream that waters every part, And motion, vigor, and warm life conveys To every…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-armstrong/the-blood-the-fountain-whence-the-spirits-flow-the-generous-stream/)

[John Armstrong](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-armstrong/)

> [February... Bending from Heaven, in azure mirth, It kissed the forehead of the Earth, And smiled upon the silent sea, And bade the frozen…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/percy-bysshe-shelley/february-bending-from-heaven-in-azure-mirth-it-kissed-the-forehead-of/)

[Percy Bysshe Shelley](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/percy-bysshe-shelley/)

> [Some men make gain a fountain, whence proceeds A stream of liberal and heroic deeds; The swell of pity, not to be confined Within…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-cowper/some-men-make-gain-a-fountain-whence-proceeds-a-stream-of-liberal-and/)

[William Cowper](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-cowper/)

> [God is the highest good of the reasonable creature. The enjoyment of him is our proper; and is the only happiness with which our…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jonathan-edwards/god-is-the-highest-good-of-the-reasonable-creature-the-enjoyment-of/)

[Jonathan Edwards](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jonathan-edwards/)

> [You Do Not Know Is in You— an Inexhaustible Fountain of Ideas. Another reason for writing a diary is to discover that the ideas…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/brenda-ueland/you-do-not-know-is-in-you-an-inexhaustible-fountain-of-ideas-another/)

[Brenda Ueland](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/brenda-ueland/)

> [You do not know what is in you - an inexhaustible fountain of ideas.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/brenda-ueland/you-do-not-know-what-is-in-you-an-inexhaustible-fountain-of-ideas/)

[Brenda Ueland](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/brenda-ueland/)

## More by Brenda Ueland

> [“At least I understood that writing was this: an impulse to share with other people a feeling or truth that I myself had. Not…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/brenda-ueland/at-least-i-understood-that-writing-was-this-an-impulse-to-share-with/)

[Brenda Ueland](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/brenda-ueland/)

> [If I did not wear torn pants, orthopedic shoes, frantic disheveled hair, that is to say, if I did not tone down my beauty,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/brenda-ueland/if-i-did-not-wear-torn-pants-orthopedic-shoes-frantic-disheveled-hair/)

[Brenda Ueland](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/brenda-ueland/)

> [“\[4It is hard to be carefree when you have many anxieties. But the more you have, the more necessary it is to feel carefree…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/brenda-ueland/4it-is-hard-to-be-carefree-when-you-have-many-anxieties-but-the-more/)

[Brenda Ueland](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/brenda-ueland/)

> [“I will tell you what I have learned myself. For me, a long five- or six-mile walk helps. And one must go alone and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/brenda-ueland/i-will-tell-you-what-i-have-learned-myself-for-me-a-long-five-or-six/)

[Brenda Ueland](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/brenda-ueland/)

> [Self-trust is so important. When you launch on a story, make your neck loose, feel free, good-natured. And be lazy. Feel that you are…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/brenda-ueland/self-trust-is-so-important-when-you-launch-on-a-story-make-your-neck/)

[Brenda Ueland](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/brenda-ueland/)

> [We start out in our lives as little children, full of light and the clearest vision.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/brenda-ueland/we-start-out-in-our-lives-as-little-children-full-of-light-and-the/)

[Brenda Ueland](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/brenda-ueland/)

> [Inspiration comes to us slowly and quietly . prime it with a little solitude.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/brenda-ueland/inspiration-comes-to-us-slowly-and-quietly-prime-it-with-a-little/)

[Brenda Ueland](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/brenda-ueland/)

> [... to paint with oil paints for the first time ... is like trying to make something exquisitely accurate and microscopically clear out of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/brenda-ueland/to-paint-with-oil-paints-for-the-first-time-is-like-trying-to-make/)

[Brenda Ueland](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/brenda-ueland/)

> [running is the right thing to do! I am free, healthy with a good complexion. It is that automobile addict who should be ashamed:…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/brenda-ueland/running-is-the-right-thing-to-do-i-am-free-healthy-with-a-good/)

[Brenda Ueland](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/brenda-ueland/)

> [The only good teachers for you are those friends who love you, who think you are interesting, or very important, or wonderfully funny; whose…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/brenda-ueland/the-only-good-teachers-for-you-are-those-friends-who-love-you-who/)

[Brenda Ueland](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/brenda-ueland/)

> [... when I am really alone some power seems to grow in me. ... Conjugality made me think of a three-legged race, where two…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/brenda-ueland/when-i-am-really-alone-some-power-seems-to-grow-in-me-conjugality/)

[Brenda Ueland](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/brenda-ueland/)

> [“In the same way there is much, much in all of us, but we do not know it. No one ever calls it out…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/brenda-ueland/in-the-same-way-there-is-much-much-in-all-of-us-but-we-do-not-know-it/)

[Brenda Ueland](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/brenda-ueland/)

> [When we are listened to, it creates us, makes us unfold and expand. Ideas actually begin to grow within us and come to life.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/brenda-ueland/when-we-are-listened-to-it-creates-us-makes-us-unfold-and-expand/)

[Brenda Ueland](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/brenda-ueland/)

> [“...the best way to know the Truth or Beauty is to try to express it. And what is the purpose of existence Here or…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/brenda-ueland/the-best-way-to-know-the-truth-or-beauty-is-to-try-to-express-it-and/)

[Brenda Ueland](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/brenda-ueland/)

> [Sometimes I think of life as a process where everybody is discouraging and taking everybody else down a peg or two.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/brenda-ueland/sometimes-i-think-of-life-as-a-process-where-everybody-is/)

[Brenda Ueland](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/brenda-ueland/)

[Explore all 121 Brenda Ueland quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/brenda-ueland/)

## More Fountain quotes

> [ When the fountains of government \[borrowing\] abundance began to dry up, when through lack of funds and the impossibility of negotiating fresh loans the… ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-t-flynn/when-the-fountains-of-government-borrowing-abundance-began-to-dry-up/)

[John T. Flynn](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-t-flynn/)

> [May God bless each of us in our calls to serve. May our faith strengthen as we serve in righteousness, faithfully keeping the commandments.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/l-tom-perry/may-god-bless-each-of-us-in-our-calls-to-serve-may-our-faith/)

[L. Tom Perry](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/l-tom-perry/)

> [The foundation of the Christian's peace is everlasting; it is what no time, no change can destroy. It will remain when the body dies;…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jonathan-edwards/the-foundation-of-the-christian-s-peace-is-everlasting-it-is-what-no/)

[Jonathan Edwards](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jonathan-edwards/)

> [...O my heart! Love God as the chatrik loves the rain drops, Who even when fountains are full and the land green, Is not…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/guru-nanak/o-my-heart-love-god-as-the-chatrik-loves-the-rain-drops-who-even-when/)

[Guru Nanak](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/guru-nanak/)

> [The thing that awakens the deepest fountain of gratitude in a human being is that God has forgiven his sin.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/oswald-chambers/the-thing-that-awakens-the-deepest-fountain-of-gratitude-in-a-human/)

[Oswald Chambers](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/oswald-chambers/)

> [The fountain of youth is like the monkey's paw in the W. W. Jacobs story. It never ends well.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sarah-monette/the-fountain-of-youth-is-like-the-monkey-s-paw-in-the-w-w-jacobs/)

[Sarah Monette](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sarah-monette/)

> [It is the property of things seen for the first time, or for the first time after long, like the flowers in spring, to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robert-louis-stevenson/it-is-the-property-of-things-seen-for-the-first-time-or-for-the-first/)

[Robert Louis Stevenson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robert-louis-stevenson/)

> [Thus parents, by humouring and cockering them when little, corrupt the principles of nature in their children, and wonder afterwards to taste the bitter…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-locke/thus-parents-by-humouring-and-cockering-them-when-little-corrupt-the/)

[John Locke](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-locke/)

> [Managing our emotions increases intuition and clarity. It helps us self-regulate our brain chemicals and internal hormones. It gives us natural highs, the real…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/doc-childre/managing-our-emotions-increases-intuition-and-clarity-it-helps-us/)

[Doc Childre](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/doc-childre/)

> [The Bible is the fountain of truth.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joseph-franklin-rutherford/the-bible-is-the-fountain-of-truth/)

[Joseph Franklin Rutherford](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joseph-franklin-rutherford/)

> [Men cannot labor on always. They must have intervals of relaxation. They cannot sleep through these intervals. What are they to do? Why, if…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/orville-dewey/men-cannot-labor-on-always-they-must-have-intervals-of-relaxation/)

[Orville Dewey](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/orville-dewey/)

> [The media, of course, loves to make claims about the fountain of youth. Don't believe it. No one has it. But we're getting close.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michio-kaku/the-media-of-course-loves-to-make-claims-about-the-fountain-of-youth/)

[Michio Kaku](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michio-kaku/)

> [The fountain of my heart dried up within me,-- With nought that loved me, and with nought to love, I stood upon the desert…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/charles-robert-maturin/the-fountain-of-my-heart-dried-up-within-me-with-nought-that-loved-me/)

[Charles Robert Maturin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/charles-robert-maturin/)

> [They were dancing around the fountain, arm in arm, in an old Dutch dance, their cheeks touching, their hands entwined. They had no music;…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mark-helprin/they-were-dancing-around-the-fountain-arm-in-arm-in-an-old-dutch/)

[Mark Helprin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mark-helprin/)

> [“But is it such a bad thing to live like this for just a little while? Just for a few months of one’s life,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/elizabeth-gilbert/but-is-it-such-a-bad-thing-to-live-like-this-for-just-a-little-while/)

[Elizabeth Gilbert](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/elizabeth-gilbert/)

Browse all 585 Fountain quotes

```json
{
    "@context": "https://schema.org",
    "@graph": [
        {
            "@type": "Quotation",
            "text": "... the spirit, I think, is a stream, a fountain, and must be continually poured out, for only if it is poured out will more and clearer streams come.",
            "creator": {
                "@type": "Person",
                "name": "Brenda Ueland"
            },
            "isPartOf": {
                "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website"
            },
            "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/brenda-ueland/the-spirit-i-think-is-a-stream-a-fountain-and-must-be-continually/",
            "about": {
                "@type": "Thing",
                "name": "Fountain"
            },
            "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/brenda-ueland/the-spirit-i-think-is-a-stream-a-fountain-and-must-be-continually/#quotation",
            "image": {
                "@type": "ImageObject",
                "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/57f/brenda-ueland-3836_fountain_the-spirit-i-think-is-a-stream-a-fountai_1408393.png",
                "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/57f/brenda-ueland-3836_fountain_the-spirit-i-think-is-a-stream-a-fountai_1408393.png",
                "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/57f/brenda-ueland-3836_fountain_the-spirit-i-think-is-a-stream-a-fountai_1408393.png",
                "width": 1080,
                "height": 1080,
                "caption": "“... the spirit, I think, is a stream, a fountain, and must be continually poured out, for only if it is…” — Brenda Ueland",
                "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": "Brenda Ueland",
                    "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/brenda-ueland/"
                },
                {
                    "@type": "ListItem",
                    "position": 4,
                    "name": "... the spirit, I think, is...",
                    "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/brenda-ueland/the-spirit-i-think-is-a-stream-a-fountain-and-must-be-continually/"
                }
            ],
            "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/brenda-ueland/the-spirit-i-think-is-a-stream-a-fountain-and-must-be-continually/#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
            }
        }
    ]
}
```
