--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: For myself, solitude is rather like a…" description: "\"For myself, solitude is rather like a folded-up forest that I carry with me everywhere and unfurl around myself when I have need.\" — Clarissa Pinkola E..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/02d/clarissa-pinkola-estes-1461_folded_for-myself-solitude-is-rather-like-a-fol_2434033.png" --- # For myself, solitude is rather like a folded-up forest… ![“For myself, solitude is rather like a folded-up forest that I carry with me everywhere and unfurl around myself when I have need.” quote by Clarissa Pinkola Estes](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/02d/clarissa-pinkola-estes-1461_folded_for-myself-solitude-is-rather-like-a-fol_2434033.png) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/02d/clarissa-pinkola-estes-1461_folded_for-myself-solitude-is-rather-like-a-fol_2434033.png) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/02d/clarissa-pinkola-estes-1461_folded_for-myself-solitude-is-rather-like-a-fol_2434033.png) > “For myself, solitude is rather like a folded-up forest that I carry with me everywhere and unfurl around myself when I have need.” [Clarissa Pinkola Estes](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/clarissa-pinkola-estes/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Solitude is an inner forest that can be accessed and expanded as needed, offering personal space and growth. **In simple terms:** Solitude is an inner forest you can open when needed. Key Takeaway Cultivate inner space for reflection. Themes solitude inner life personal growth Mood contemplative calm Type reflective inspirational When to use this quote - creative work - stress relief - personal reflection - emotional regulation Key Concepts psychology metaphor self‑care Questions to Reflect On - How do you invite solitude without withdrawing? - When does solitude become harmful? A Different Perspective Too much isolation can lead to loneliness if not balanced. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Folded](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/folded/) [Folded Forest](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/folded-forest-317318/) [Forests](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/forests/) [Like Folded](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/like-folded-317319/) [Needs](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/needs/) [Solitude](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/solitude/) [Solitude Like](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/solitude-like-317317/) ## Related quotes > [I admired that stride; it was like he folded space in two with it.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/aimee-bender/i-admired-that-stride-it-was-like-he-folded-space-in-two-with-it/) [Aimee Bender](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/aimee-bender/) > [“Stranger, think long before you enter, For these corridors amuse not passing travellers. But if you enter, keep your voice to yourself. Nor should…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/g-a-kulkarni/stranger-think-long-before-you-enter-for-these-corridors-amuse-not/) [G.A. Kulkarni](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/g-a-kulkarni/) > [“...the Sierra, a region so quiet and pristine that we have the sense of being the first human beings ever to set foot in…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jim-fergus/the-sierra-a-region-so-quiet-and-pristine-that-we-have-the-sense-of/) [Jim Fergus](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jim-fergus/) > [“Even the sky a hybrid — here clean and black and starred, there roiling with a brusque signature of cloud or piled in strata…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stanley-elkin/even-the-sky-a-hybrid-here-clean-and-black-and-starred-there-roiling/) [Stanley Elkin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stanley-elkin/) > [Books are carefully folded forests/void of autumn/bound from the sun](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/saul-williams/books-are-carefully-folded-forests-void-of-autumn-bound-from-the-sun/) [Saul Williams](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/saul-williams/) > [I like solitude. I like the anomalous life. I like a quiet life.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/eric-clapton/i-like-solitude-i-like-the-anomalous-life-i-like-a-quiet-life/) [Eric Clapton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/eric-clapton/) > [“She was stubborn. She was evolving. She needed SOLITUDE like normal people needed exercise.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jake-vander-ark-2/she-was-stubborn-she-was-evolving-she-needed-solitude-like-normal/) [Jake Vander-Ark](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jake-vander-ark-2/) > [I have an immense appetite for solitude, like an infant for sleep, and if I don't get enough for this year, I shall cry…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/henry-david-thoreau/i-have-an-immense-appetite-for-solitude-like-an-infant-for-sleep-and/) [Henry David Thoreau](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/henry-david-thoreau/) > [Those beings only are fit for solitude who are like nobody, and are liked by nobody.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/johann-georg-ritter-von-zimmermann/those-beings-only-are-fit-for-solitude-who-are-like-nobody-and-are/) [Johann Georg Ritter von Zimmermann](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/johann-georg-ritter-von-zimmermann/) > [To seek solitude like a wild animal. That is my only ambition.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dalai-lama/to-seek-solitude-like-a-wild-animal-that-is-my-only-ambition/) [Dalai Lama](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dalai-lama/) > [“I was a man who thrived on solitude; without it I was like another man without food or water. Each day without solitude weakened…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/charles-bukowski/i-was-a-man-who-thrived-on-solitude-without-it-i-was-like-another-man-2/) [Charles Bukowski](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/charles-bukowski/) > [“Everywhere I am folded, there I am a lie.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rainer-maria-rilke/everywhere-i-am-folded-there-i-am-a-lie/) [Rainer Maria Rilke](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rainer-maria-rilke/) > [“Folded arms can’t fly.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/seth-barnes-sr/folded-arms-can-t-fly/) [Seth Barnes, Sr](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/seth-barnes-sr/) > [“It may have been just another night to all the people I saw rushing past my left and my right... but my hand was…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alfa-h/it-may-have-been-just-another-night-to-all-the-people-i-saw-rushing/) [Alfa H](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alfa-h/) > [I do not want to be folded for where I am folded, there I am a lie.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rainer-maria-rilke/i-do-not-want-to-be-folded-for-where-i-am-folded-there-i-am-a-lie/) [Rainer Maria Rilke](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rainer-maria-rilke/) ## More by Clarissa Pinkola Estes > [Tell the truth about your wound, and then you will get a truthful picture of the remedy to apply to it. Don't pack whatever…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/clarissa-pinkola-estes/tell-the-truth-about-your-wound-and-then-you-will-get-a-truthful/) [Clarissa Pinkola Estes](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/clarissa-pinkola-estes/) > [“Whether you are possessed of a simple heart or the ambitions of an Amazon, whether you are trying to make it to the top…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/clarissa-pinkola-estes/whether-you-are-possessed-of-a-simple-heart-or-the-ambitions-of-an/) [Clarissa Pinkola Estés](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/clarissa-pinkola-estes/) > [The doors to the world of the wild Self are few but precious. If you have a deep scar, that is a door, if…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/clarissa-pinkola-estes/the-doors-to-the-world-of-the-wild-self-are-few-but-precious-if-you/) [Clarissa Pinkola Estes](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/clarissa-pinkola-estes/) > [Friends who love you and have warmth for your creative life are the very best suns in the world.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/clarissa-pinkola-estes/friends-who-love-you-and-have-warmth-for-your-creative-life-are-the/) [Clarissa Pinkola Estes](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/clarissa-pinkola-estes/) > [Creativity is not a solitary movement. That is its power. Whatever is touched by it, whoever hears it, sees it, senses it, knows it,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/clarissa-pinkola-estes/creativity-is-not-a-solitary-movement-that-is-its-power-whatever-is/) [Clarissa Pinkola Estes](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/clarissa-pinkola-estes/) > [A healthy woman is much like a wolf: robust, chock-full, strong life force, life-giving, territorially aware, inventive, loyal, roving.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/clarissa-pinkola-estes/a-healthy-woman-is-much-like-a-wolf-robust-chock-full-strong-life/) [Clarissa Pinkola Estes](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/clarissa-pinkola-estes/) > [Do not cringe and make yourself small if you are called the black sheep, the maverick, the lone wolf. Those with slow seeing say…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/clarissa-pinkola-estes/do-not-cringe-and-make-yourself-small-if-you-are-called-the-black/) [Clarissa Pinkola Estes](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/clarissa-pinkola-estes/) > [Dogs are the magicians of the universe.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/clarissa-pinkola-estes/dogs-are-the-magicians-of-the-universe/) [Clarissa Pinkola Estes](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/clarissa-pinkola-estes/) > [Ours is not the task of fixing the entire world all at once, but of stretching out to mend the part of the world…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/clarissa-pinkola-estes/ours-is-not-the-task-of-fixing-the-entire-world-all-at-once-but-of/) [Clarissa Pinkola Estes](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/clarissa-pinkola-estes/) > [“Being real doesn't mean being reckless, it means allowing La Voz Mitologica, The Mythological Voice, to speak. One does that by shutting off the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/clarissa-pinkola-estes/being-real-doesn-t-mean-being-reckless-it-means-allowing-la-voz/) [Clarissa Pinkola Estés](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/clarissa-pinkola-estes/) > [Without art we live under the illusion that there is only time, and not eternity.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/clarissa-pinkola-estes/without-art-we-live-under-the-illusion-that-there-is-only-time-and/) [Clarissa Pinkola Estes](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/clarissa-pinkola-estes/) > [“Some psychological thinkers, including Freud and Bettelheim, have interpreted episodes such as those found in the Bluebeard tale as psychological punishments for women’s sexual…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/clarissa-pinkola-estes/some-psychological-thinkers-including-freud-and-bettelheim-have/) [Clarissa Pinkola Estés](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/clarissa-pinkola-estes/) > [If you have never been called a defiant, incorrigible, impossible woman… have faith. There is yet time.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/clarissa-pinkola-estes/if-you-have-never-been-called-a-defiant-incorrigible-impossible-woman/) [Clarissa Pinkola Estes](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/clarissa-pinkola-estes/) > [we all begin the process before we are ready, before we are strong enough, before we know enough; we begin a dialogue with thoughts…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/clarissa-pinkola-estes/we-all-begin-the-process-before-we-are-ready-before-we-are-strong/) [Clarissa Pinkola Estes](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/clarissa-pinkola-estes/) > [“To love a woman, the mate must also love her wildish nature.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/clarissa-pinkola-estes/to-love-a-woman-the-mate-must-also-love-her-wildish-nature/) [Clarissa Pinkola Estés](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/clarissa-pinkola-estes/) [Explore all 223 Clarissa Pinkola Estes quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/clarissa-pinkola-estes/) ## More Folded quotes > [I do not want to be folded for where I am folded, there I am a lie.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rainer-maria-rilke/i-do-not-want-to-be-folded-for-where-i-am-folded-there-i-am-a-lie/) [Rainer Maria Rilke](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rainer-maria-rilke/) > [“It may have been just another night to all the people I saw rushing past my left and my right... but my hand was…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alfa-h/it-may-have-been-just-another-night-to-all-the-people-i-saw-rushing/) [Alfa H](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alfa-h/) > [“Folded arms can’t fly.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/seth-barnes-sr/folded-arms-can-t-fly/) [Seth Barnes, Sr](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/seth-barnes-sr/) > [“Everywhere I am folded, there I am a lie.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rainer-maria-rilke/everywhere-i-am-folded-there-i-am-a-lie/) [Rainer Maria Rilke](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rainer-maria-rilke/) > [My first course came and I put down my book, and I just happened to put up my hand to scratch my head and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/derek-jacobi/my-first-course-came-and-i-put-down-my-book-and-i-just-happened-to/) [Derek Jacobi](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/derek-jacobi/) > [A rose with all its sweetest leaves yet folded.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lord-byron/a-rose-with-all-its-sweetest-leaves-yet-folded/) [Lord Byron](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lord-byron/) > [Books are carefully folded forests/void of autumn/bound from the sun](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/saul-williams/books-are-carefully-folded-forests-void-of-autumn-bound-from-the-sun/) [Saul Williams](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/saul-williams/) > [Nobody pays attention to the way a person's shirt folds around his shoulder when they sit down, but if that shirt folded in an…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-lasseter/nobody-pays-attention-to-the-way-a-person-s-shirt-folds-around-his/) [John Lasseter](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-lasseter/) > [There is something in me maybe someday to be written; now it is folded, and folded, and folded, like a note in school.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sharon-olds/there-is-something-in-me-maybe-someday-to-be-written-now-it-is-folded/) [Sharon Olds](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sharon-olds/) > [“The paper was folded twice without a speck on it and bore a note in his handwriting: I cannot go on any longer. I…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/per-petterson/the-paper-was-folded-twice-without-a-speck-on-it-and-bore-a-note-in/) [Per Petterson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/per-petterson/) > [I remember going to L.A. and doing shows, and people would just stand there with their arms folded.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/pimp-c/i-remember-going-to-l-a-and-doing-shows-and-people-would-just-stand/) [Pimp C](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/pimp-c/) > [Alzheimer's disease starts when a protein that should be folded up properly misfolds into a kind of demented origami.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gregory-petsko/alzheimer-s-disease-starts-when-a-protein-that-should-be-folded-up/) [Gregory Petsko](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gregory-petsko/) > [When I travel, I always take my Winsor & Newton watercolor kit, which is the size of a pack of cigarettes when folded up.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/susan-minot/when-i-travel-i-always-take-my-winsor-newton-watercolor-kit-which-is/) [Susan Minot](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/susan-minot/) > [When I'm looking at shirts in the clothes section of a store, I unfold them. Since I've never known how to fold them as…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/guardian/when-i-m-looking-at-shirts-in-the-clothes-section-of-a-store-i-unfold/) [Guardian](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/guardian/) > [“How could I not be in love with a man who folded something after strangling me with it?”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nicole-castle/how-could-i-not-be-in-love-with-a-man-who-folded-something-after/) [Nicole Castle](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nicole-castle/) [Browse all 53 Folded quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/folded/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "For myself, solitude is rather like a folded-up forest that I carry with me everywhere and unfurl around myself when I have need.", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "Clarissa Pinkola Estes" }, "isPartOf": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website" }, "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/clarissa-pinkola-estes/for-myself-solitude-is-rather-like-a-folded-up-forest-that-i-carry/", "about": { "@type": "Thing", "name": "Folded" }, "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/clarissa-pinkola-estes/for-myself-solitude-is-rather-like-a-folded-up-forest-that-i-carry/#quotation", "image": { "@type": "ImageObject", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/02d/clarissa-pinkola-estes-1461_folded_for-myself-solitude-is-rather-like-a-fol_2434033.png", "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/02d/clarissa-pinkola-estes-1461_folded_for-myself-solitude-is-rather-like-a-fol_2434033.png", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/02d/clarissa-pinkola-estes-1461_folded_for-myself-solitude-is-rather-like-a-fol_2434033.png", "width": 1080, "height": 1080, "caption": "“For myself, solitude is rather like a folded-up forest that I carry with me everywhere and unfurl around…” — Clarissa Pinkola Estes", "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": "Clarissa Pinkola Estes", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/clarissa-pinkola-estes/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 4, "name": "For myself, solitude is rather like...", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/clarissa-pinkola-estes/for-myself-solitude-is-rather-like-a-folded-up-forest-that-i-carry/" } ], "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/clarissa-pinkola-estes/for-myself-solitude-is-rather-like-a-folded-up-forest-that-i-carry/#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 } } ] } ```