--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: we must help ourselves. That after…" description: "\"“we must help ourselves. That after destiny has delivered what it delivers, we are responsible for our lives. We can choose to fling our kids into the ..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/41e/cheryl-strayed-605_destiny_we-must-help-ourselves-that-after-destin_3135692.png" --- # we must help ourselves. That after destiny has delivered… ![“we must help ourselves. That after destiny has delivered what it delivers, we are responsible for our lives. We can choose to fling our kids into the grass or we can take deep breaths and walk up and down the hall.” quote by Cheryl Strayed](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/41e/cheryl-strayed-605_destiny_we-must-help-ourselves-that-after-destin_3135692.png) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/41e/cheryl-strayed-605_destiny_we-must-help-ourselves-that-after-destin_3135692.png) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/41e/cheryl-strayed-605_destiny_we-must-help-ourselves-that-after-destin_3135692.png) > ““we must help ourselves. That after destiny has delivered what it delivers, we are responsible for our lives. We can choose to fling our kids into the grass or we can take deep breaths and walk up and down the hall.”” [Cheryl Strayed](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/cheryl-strayed/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. We must take personal responsibility for our lives after fate’s events, choosing calm action over reckless decisions. **In simple terms:** Take charge after fate, act calmly. Key Takeaway Own your choices, breathe, act wisely. Themes responsibility choice mindfulness Mood reflective determined Type advice motivational When to use this quote - parenting - career setbacks - health crises - relationship conflicts Key Concepts agency destiny self‑efficacy Questions to Reflect On - How do you respond when fate seems unfair? - What calm practices help you make better choices? A Different Perspective Calm action may be hard when emotions run high. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Destiny](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/destiny/) ## Related quotes > [Everything that happens to us is the result of what we ourselves have thought, said, or done.We alone are responsible for our lives.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gautama-buddha/everything-that-happens-to-us-is-the-result-of-what-we-ourselves-have/) [Gautama Buddha](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gautama-buddha/) > [“we, individually, are responsible for everything in our lives, no matter the external circumstances”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mark-manson/we-individually-are-responsible-for-everything-in-our-lives-no-matter/) [Mark Manson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mark-manson/) > [My own interest is the responsibility of people to be responsible for their own lives and, with their neighbors, for their public space and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/karl-hess/my-own-interest-is-the-responsibility-of-people-to-be-responsible-for/) [Karl Hess](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/karl-hess/) > [When we all depart from this Earth and meet our Maker, hopefully, we're going to be responsible for the lives that we lead while…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jonathan-roumie/when-we-all-depart-from-this-earth-and-meet-our-maker-hopefully-we-re/) [Jonathan Roumie](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jonathan-roumie/) > [We need to teach the next generation of children from day one that they are responsible for their lives.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/elisabeth-kubler-ross/we-need-to-teach-the-next-generation-of-children-from-day-one-that-2/) [Elisabeth Kubler-Ross](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/elisabeth-kubler-ross/) > [we're responsible for our own lives.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/we-re-responsible-for-our-own-lives/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [“Instead of letting others the power to decide our failures or our success, every decision that we take will impact the life of someone,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/diogo-fino/instead-of-letting-others-the-power-to-decide-our-failures-or-our/) [Diogo Fino](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/diogo-fino/) > [At the end of the day, we are responsible for our own lives. If anything happens to us, don't blame somebody else. Backtrack and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/isaac-hayes/at-the-end-of-the-day-we-are-responsible-for-our-own-lives-if/) [Isaac Hayes](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/isaac-hayes/) > [A poet is a combination of an instrument and a human being in one person, with the former gradually taking over the latter. The…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joseph-brodsky/a-poet-is-a-combination-of-an-instrument-and-a-human-being-in-one/) [Joseph Brodsky](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joseph-brodsky/) > [Taxpayers would likely be responsible for treating addicts](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-warren-kindt/taxpayers-would-likely-be-responsible-for-treating-addicts/) [John Warren Kindt](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-warren-kindt/) > [Actions have consequences... first rule of life. And the second rule is this - you are the only one responsible for your own actions.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/actions-have-consequences-first-rule-of-life-and-the-second-rule-is/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [I tried to just do things like make some money, be responsible, help out other artists who I see have had a similar path.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ariel-pink/i-tried-to-just-do-things-like-make-some-money-be-responsible-help/) [Ariel Pink](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ariel-pink/) > [“Responsibility to yourself means refusing to let others do your thinking, talking, and naming for you...it means that you do not treat your body…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/adrienne-rich/responsibility-to-yourself-means-refusing-to-let-others-do-your/) [Adrienne Rich](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/adrienne-rich/) > [You play a part, and as soon as a movie is over and the camera stops, you go home and you're not really responsible…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nastassja-kinski/you-play-a-part-and-as-soon-as-a-movie-is-over-and-the-camera-stops/) [Nastassja Kinski](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nastassja-kinski/) > [We can only be responsible for what we ourselves do.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/diana-peterfreund/we-can-only-be-responsible-for-what-we-ourselves-do/) [Diana Peterfreund](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/diana-peterfreund/) ## More by Cheryl Strayed > [“She understands that attention is the first and final act of love, and that the ultimate dwindling resource in the human arrangement isn’t cheap…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/cheryl-strayed/she-understands-that-attention-is-the-first-and-final-act-of-love-and/) [Cheryl Strayed](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/cheryl-strayed/) > [“The most terrible and beautiful and interesting things happen in life. For some of you, those things have already happened. Whatever happens to you…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/cheryl-strayed/the-most-terrible-and-beautiful-and-interesting-things-happen-in-life/) [Cheryl Strayed](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/cheryl-strayed/) > [Of course you want someone special to love you. A majority of the people who write to me inquire about how they can get…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/cheryl-strayed/of-course-you-want-someone-special-to-love-you-a-majority-of-the/) [Cheryl Strayed](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/cheryl-strayed/) > [It's still true that literary works by women, gays, and writers of color are often framed as specific, rather than universal, small rather than…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/cheryl-strayed/it-s-still-true-that-literary-works-by-women-gays-and-writers-of/) [Cheryl Strayed](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/cheryl-strayed/) > [My whole life sort of ended when my mom died.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/cheryl-strayed/my-whole-life-sort-of-ended-when-my-mom-died/) [Cheryl Strayed](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/cheryl-strayed/) > [“And you have to do it no matter what is true. No matter what is hard.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/cheryl-strayed/and-you-have-to-do-it-no-matter-what-is-true-no-matter-what-is-hard/) [Cheryl Strayed](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/cheryl-strayed/) > [“Don’t listen to those people who suggest you should be “over” your daughter’s death by now. The people who squawk the loudest about such…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/cheryl-strayed/don-t-listen-to-those-people-who-suggest-you-should-be-over-your/) [Cheryl Strayed](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/cheryl-strayed/) > [“. . . there was the actual doing it, quickly followed by the grim realization of what it meant to do it, followed by…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/cheryl-strayed/there-was-the-actual-doing-it-quickly-followed-by-the-grim/) [Cheryl Strayed](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/cheryl-strayed/) > [“The sky didn't wonder where it was.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/cheryl-strayed/the-sky-didn-t-wonder-where-it-was/) [Cheryl Strayed](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/cheryl-strayed/) > [He was the most ordinary man in all the world, and yet in her memory he'd become luminous, like the prince in a fairy…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/cheryl-strayed/he-was-the-most-ordinary-man-in-all-the-world-and-yet-in-her-memory/) [Cheryl Strayed](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/cheryl-strayed/) > [Love is our essential nutrient. Without it, life has little meaning. It's the best thing we have to give and the most valuable thing…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/cheryl-strayed/love-is-our-essential-nutrient-without-it-life-has-little-meaning-it/) [Cheryl Strayed](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/cheryl-strayed/) > [“I never believed the boys were angry. I believed they were hurt and anger was the safest manifestation of their sorrow. It was the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/cheryl-strayed/i-never-believed-the-boys-were-angry-i-believed-they-were-hurt-and/) [Cheryl Strayed](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/cheryl-strayed/) > [“It’s wrong that this is required of you. It’s wrong that your son died. It will always be wrong.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/cheryl-strayed/it-s-wrong-that-this-is-required-of-you-it-s-wrong-that-your-son-died/) [Cheryl Strayed](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/cheryl-strayed/) > [“Your ultimatum is simple. It’s fair. And it’s stating your own intentions, not what you hope theirs will be.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/cheryl-strayed/your-ultimatum-is-simple-it-s-fair-and-it-s-stating-your-own/) [Cheryl Strayed](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/cheryl-strayed/) > [“We aren't poor," my mother said, again and again. "Because we're rich in love.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/cheryl-strayed/we-aren-t-poor-my-mother-said-again-and-again-because-we-re-rich-in/) [Cheryl Strayed](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/cheryl-strayed/) [Explore all 450 Cheryl Strayed quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/cheryl-strayed/) ## More Destiny quotes > [... War on the destiny of man! Doom on the sun! Before death takes you, O take back this.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/war-on-the-destiny-of-man-doom-on-the-sun-before-death-takes-you-o/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [Anatomy is destiny.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sigmund-freud/anatomy-is-destiny/) [Sigmund Freud](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sigmund-freud/) > [“You are destiny for greatness. Your future is in the hands of the Lord.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lailah-gifty-akita/you-are-destiny-for-greatness-your-future-is-in-the-hands-of-the-lord/) [Lailah Gifty Akita](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lailah-gifty-akita/) > [“To be a Sufi is to detach from fixed ideas and from preconceptions; and not to try to avoid what is your lot.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/idries-shah/to-be-a-sufi-is-to-detach-from-fixed-ideas-and-from-preconceptions/) [Idries Shah](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/idries-shah/) > [ Man blindly works the will of fate. \[Ger., Blindlings that er blos den Willen des Geschickes.\] ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/christoph-martin-wieland/man-blindly-works-the-will-of-fate-ger-blindlings-that-er-blos-den/) [Christoph Martin Wieland](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/christoph-martin-wieland/) > [There are times when we can feel destiny close around us like a fist around a doorknob. Sure, we can resist. But a knob…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tom-robbins/there-are-times-when-we-can-feel-destiny-close-around-us-like-a-fist/) [Tom Robbins](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tom-robbins/) > [“It's morning now, and I miss the soft rasp of her voice already. Ugh. I'm in trouble, aren't I?”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/pat-shand/it-s-morning-now-and-i-miss-the-soft-rasp-of-her-voice-already-ugh-i/) [Pat Shand](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/pat-shand/) > [You can't choose what stays and what stays away.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/florence-welch/you-can-t-choose-what-stays-and-what-stays-away/) [Florence Welch](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/florence-welch/) > [“Failing to meet your true destiny is a tragic act of free will.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anthon-st-maarten/failing-to-meet-your-true-destiny-is-a-tragic-act-of-free-will/) [Anthon St. Maarten](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anthon-st-maarten/) > [Somehow destiny comes into play. These children end up with you and you end up with them. It's something quite magical.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nicole-kidman/somehow-destiny-comes-into-play-these-children-end-up-with-you-and/) [Nicole Kidman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nicole-kidman/) > [“In that instant it all seemed to come clear to him- it came in a grisly flash of light, and he realized that the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stephen-king/in-that-instant-it-all-seemed-to-come-clear-to-him-it-came-in-a/) [Stephen King](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stephen-king/) > [“Destiny is the ordained intention God has sacredly prepared with your name on it.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-s-lynch/destiny-is-the-ordained-intention-god-has-sacredly-prepared-with-your/) [John S. Lynch](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-s-lynch/) > [“There is no interaction without God with interaction with men”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sunday-adelaja/there-is-no-interaction-without-god-with-interaction-with-men/) [Sunday Adelaja](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sunday-adelaja/) > [We are somehow the children of the planet, we are somehow its finest hour; we bind time, we bind the past, we anticipate the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/terence-mckenna/we-are-somehow-the-children-of-the-planet-we-are-somehow-its-finest/) [Terence McKenna](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/terence-mckenna/) > [“Fate and future both are servant to the determined, for they are nothing but creation of human determination.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/abhijit-naskar/fate-and-future-both-are-servant-to-the-determined-for-they-are/) [Abhijit Naskar](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/abhijit-naskar/) [Browse all 7,925 Destiny quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/destiny/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "“we must help ourselves. 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