--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: Of the six million species on the planet…" description: "\"“Of the six million species on the planet, only man makes language. Words. What's more--in evidence of the Divine--we string those symbols together and..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/ece/charles-martin-4510_language_of-the-six-million-species-on-the-planet_230709.jpg" --- # Of the six million species on the planet, only man makes… ![“Of the six million species on the planet, only man makes language. Words. What's more--in evidence of the Divine--we string those symbols together and then write them down, where they take on a life of their own and breathe outside of us. Story is the bandage of the broken. Sutures of the…” quote by Charles Martin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/ece/charles-martin-4510_language_of-the-six-million-species-on-the-planet_230709.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/ece/charles-martin-4510_language_of-the-six-million-species-on-the-planet_230709.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/ece/charles-martin-4510_language_of-the-six-million-species-on-the-planet_230709.jpg) > ““Of the six million species on the planet, only man makes language. Words. What's more--in evidence of the Divine--we string those symbols together and then write them down, where they take on a life of their own and breathe outside of us. Story is the bandage of the broken. Sutures of the shattered. The tappestry upon which we write our lives. Upon which we lay the bodies of our dying and the about-to-come-to-life. And if it's honest, true, hind nothing, revealing all, then it is a raging river and those who ride it find they have something to give--that they are not yet empty.”” [Charles Martin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/charles-martin/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Human language creates stories that heal, bind, and give meaning, becoming a living force beyond the storyteller. **In simple terms:** Stories heal and give meaning beyond us. Key Takeaway Use storytelling to connect and heal. Themes storytelling language healing meaning creativity Mood reflective inspirational Type philosophical literary When to use this quote - Therapy sessions - creative writing - public speaking - memorial services - personal reflection Key Concepts Symbolic communication Narrative therapy Cultural myth Questions to Reflect On - How do your personal stories shape your identity? - When can storytelling become harmful? A Different Perspective Stories can be misused to manipulate or obscure truth. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Language](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/language/) [Life](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/life/) [Words](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/words/) ## Related quotes > [“Story is the bandage of the broken. Sutures of the shattered. The tapestry upon which we write our lives. 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They do.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/erica-jong/we-write-as-if-our-lives-depended-upon-it-they-do/) [Erica Jong](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/erica-jong/) > [“If I could sum up the lives of people like me—people whose parents don’t write books, whose aunties and cousins don’t step onto college…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/daisy-hernandez/if-i-could-sum-up-the-lives-of-people-like-me-people-whose-parents/) [Daisy Hernandez](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/daisy-hernandez/) > [“Julian curses his fixation: Ultimately, he should have his time writing down the conversations that floated up from the bar beneath the apartment he…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alejandro-zambra/julian-curses-his-fixation-ultimately-he-should-have-his-time-writing/) [Alejandro Zambra](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alejandro-zambra/) > [I travel, I read, I write, I have other lives. But when I have a camera, I know that's my country, my island.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/leos-carax/i-travel-i-read-i-write-i-have-other-lives-but-when-i-have-a-camera-i/) [Leos Carax](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/leos-carax/) > [“There’s always an end. But the end is always the beginning of something else. The periods we write into our lives are always provisional,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/henning-mankell/there-s-always-an-end-but-the-end-is-always-the-beginning-of/) [Henning Mankell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/henning-mankell/) > [Taking the time to write in our lives gives us the time of our lives. As we describe our environments, we begin to savor…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/julia-cameron/taking-the-time-to-write-in-our-lives-gives-us-the-time-of-our-lives/) [Julia Cameron](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/julia-cameron/) > [“And then I realize I am the writer. I don't mean because I write. I mean because we all write our own lives. Scheherazade's…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/samantha-ellis/and-then-i-realize-i-am-the-writer-i-don-t-mean-because-i-write-i/) Samantha Ellis > [We write our lives indeed, But in a cipher none can read, Except the author](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/frances-ridley-havergal/we-write-our-lives-indeed-but-in-a-cipher-none-can-read-except-the/) [Frances Ridley Havergal](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/frances-ridley-havergal/) > [I write because the lives of all of us are stories. If enough of those stories are told, then perhaps we will begin to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/julius-lester/i-write-because-the-lives-of-all-of-us-are-stories-if-enough-of-those/) [Julius Lester](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/julius-lester/) > [When we write about our lives we respond to them. 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You can't control life, at least you can control your version.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/chuck-palahniuk/that-s-why-i-write-because-life-never-works-except-in-retrospect-you/) [Chuck Palahniuk](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/chuck-palahniuk/) > [I write about my life and the lives of people around me and situations, and the idea's for each record to try to make…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joshua-homme/i-write-about-my-life-and-the-lives-of-people-around-me-and/) [Joshua Homme](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joshua-homme/) > [The best time to write is when your life is in the toilet. Writing offers an escape from your problems, so if you force…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sabrina-jeffries/the-best-time-to-write-is-when-your-life-is-in-the-toilet-writing/) [Sabrina Jeffries](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sabrina-jeffries/) ## More by Charles Martin > [“Scientists say that these things evolved this way over millions of years." He shook his head. "That's a bunch of bunk. I don't think…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/charles-martin/scientists-say-that-these-things-evolved-this-way-over-millions-of/) [Charles Martin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/charles-martin/) > [“They say God made man, but Sam Colt made them equal.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/charles-martin/they-say-god-made-man-but-sam-colt-made-them-equal/) [Charles Martin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/charles-martin/) > [“That’s life. You take the bad with the good. Rise up through it. Live in the midst of it. It’s the bad that lets…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/charles-martin/that-s-life-you-take-the-bad-with-the-good-rise-up-through-it-live-in/) [Charles Martin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/charles-martin/) > [“In my experience, it’s those words on the tip of the tongue that we most need to hear. They are the key. 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Maybe it's his first time around.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/paul-simon/a-man-walks-down-the-street-it-s-a-street-in-a-strange-world-maybe-it/) [Paul Simon](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/paul-simon/) > [“I only have two words to say More or Less”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/timbur/i-only-have-two-words-to-say-more-or-less/) TimBur > [It's like saying French shouldn't be taught because you don't understand it because it's new. Shakespeare is just like learning a new, exciting language.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/samuel-barnett/it-s-like-saying-french-shouldn-t-be-taught-because-you-don-t/) [Samuel Barnett](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/samuel-barnett/) > [I am attracted to looking at the different things language can mean even in one sometimes quite ordinary utterance. 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(To action little, less to words inclinded.)”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/horace/finxerunt-animi-raro-et-perpauca-loquentis-to-action-little-less-to/) [Horace](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/horace/) > [For comedy action, I must know the language.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sammo-hung/for-comedy-action-i-must-know-the-language/) [Sammo Hung](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sammo-hung/) [Browse all 21,951 Language quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/language/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "“Of the six million species on the planet, only man makes language. Words. What's more--in evidence of the Divine--we string those symbols together and then write them down, where they take on a life of their own and breathe outside of us. Story is the bandage of the broken. Sutures of the shattered. The tappestry upon which we write our lives. Upon which we lay the bodies of our dying and the about-to-come-to-life. 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