--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: My mind, I know, I can prove, hovers on…" description: "\"My mind, I know, I can prove, hovers on hummingbird wings. It hovers and it churns. And when it's operating at full thrust, the churning does not stop...." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/a9e/dave-eggers-638_color_my-mind-i-know-i-can-prove-hovers-on-hum_2795857.jpg" --- # My mind, I know, I can prove, hovers on hummingbird wings… ![“My mind, I know, I can prove, hovers on hummingbird wings. It hovers and it churns. And when it's operating at full thrust, the churning does not stop. The machines do not rest, the systems rarely cool. And while I can forget anything of any importance--this is why people tell me secrets--my mind…” quote by Dave Eggers](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/a9e/dave-eggers-638_color_my-mind-i-know-i-can-prove-hovers-on-hum_2795857.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/a9e/dave-eggers-638_color_my-mind-i-know-i-can-prove-hovers-on-hum_2795857.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/a9e/dave-eggers-638_color_my-mind-i-know-i-can-prove-hovers-on-hum_2795857.jpg) > “My mind, I know, I can prove, hovers on hummingbird wings. It hovers and it churns. And when it's operating at full thrust, the churning does not stop. The machines do not rest, the systems rarely cool. And while I can forget anything of any importance--this is why people tell me secrets--my mind has an uncanny knack for organization when it comes to pain. Nothing tormenting is ever lost, never even diminished in color or intensity or quality of sound.” [Dave Eggers](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dave-eggers/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. The mind constantly processes pain, never fully resting, turning trauma into organized memory **In simple terms:** Pain is endlessly catalogued, never truly forgotten Key Takeaway Practice mindfulness to balance mental activity and emotional health Themes psychology memory pain organization creativity Mood reflective intense Type literary psychological When to use this quote - creative writing - therapy sessions - mindfulness practice Key Concepts neuroscience trauma studies literary analysis Questions to Reflect On - How can we create mental pauses amid constant processing? - What practices help transform pain into constructive insight? A Different Perspective The relentless mental churn can lead to burnout without relief ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Color](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/color/) [Hummingbird](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/hummingbird/) [Hummingbirds](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/hummingbirds/) [Intensity](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/intensity/) [Machines](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/machines/) [Mind](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/mind/) [Organization](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/organization/) [Pain](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/pain/) [People](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/people/) [Psychology](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/psychology/) [Quality](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/quality/) [Secret](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/secret/) [Sound](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/sound/) [Uncanny](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/uncanny/) ## Related quotes > [I'd like to be like a hummingbird. You see them every now and then. You don't see them everywhere.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/shailene-woodley/i-d-like-to-be-like-a-hummingbird-you-see-them-every-now-and-then-you/) [Shailene Woodley](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/shailene-woodley/) > [As long as the hummingbird had not abandoned the land, somewhere there were still flowers, and they could all go on.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/leslie-marmon-silko/as-long-as-the-hummingbird-had-not-abandoned-the-land-somewhere-there/) [Leslie Marmon Silko](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/leslie-marmon-silko/) > [One day a hummingbird flew in-- It fluttered against the window til I got it down where I could reach it with an open…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/georgia-o-keeffe/one-day-a-hummingbird-flew-in-it-fluttered-against-the-window-til-i/) [Georgia O'Keeffe](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/georgia-o-keeffe/) > [In Mexico people wear hummingbird amulets around their necks to show they are searching for love. Here people pretend that they aren’t. Searching.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/francesca-lia-block/in-mexico-people-wear-hummingbird-amulets-around-their-necks-to-show/) [Francesca Lia Block](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/francesca-lia-block/) > [ Most elegantly finished in all parts, \[the hummingbird\] is a miniature work of our Great Parent, who seems to have formed it the smallest,… ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/j-hector-st-john-de-crevecoeur/most-elegantly-finished-in-all-parts-the-hummingbird-is-a-miniature/) J. Hector St. John de Crevecoeur > [“Wings are of many kinds. Butterfly's wings, vulture's wings, eagle-wings, spread wings of white swans, dragonfly's serene wings, wings of albatross, lovely wings of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/munia-khan/wings-are-of-many-kinds-butterfly-s-wings-vulture-s-wings-eagle-wings/) [Munia Khan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/munia-khan/) > [He has the attention span of a hummingbird.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/christopher-moore/he-has-the-attention-span-of-a-hummingbird/) [Christopher Moore](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/christopher-moore/) > [Much still remains to be learned about his sex life because the Hummingbird is quicker than the eye.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/will-cuppy/much-still-remains-to-be-learned-about-his-sex-life-because-the/) [Will Cuppy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/will-cuppy/) > [I'd written a lot of songs with hummingbirds in them. 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There's a magical quality to them. I finally put one… ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/leonard-cohen/i-always-loved-those-little-creatures-hummingbird-always-feel-blessed/) [Leonard Cohen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/leonard-cohen/) ## More by Dave Eggers > [“4. THE CRUMBLING WALL (Hamburger, prepared medium well, with bacon and barbecue sauce. Courtesy of that place on Solano, where, it should be mentioned,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dave-eggers/4-the-crumbling-wall-hamburger-prepared-medium-well-with-bacon-and/) [Dave Eggers](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dave-eggers/) > [“LOW-FLYING, QUICK-MOVING CLOUDS: I haven't long to live. TREETOPS, ROUNDED AND ROUGH: That's probably true. LOW-FLYING, QUICK-MOVING CLOUDS: I won't even make it to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dave-eggers/low-flying-quick-moving-clouds-i-haven-t-long-to-live-treetops/) [Dave Eggers](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dave-eggers/) > [But the grind has begun. 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That's something I got from my mum.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dave-eggers/i-think-i-m-far-too-hopeful-and-trusting-that-s-something-i-got-from/) [Dave Eggers](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dave-eggers/) > [“Overnight, all comment boards became civil, all posters held accountable. The trolls, who had more or less overtaken the internet, were driven back into…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dave-eggers/overnight-all-comment-boards-became-civil-all-posters-held/) [Dave Eggers](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dave-eggers/) > [“Have we wasted precious space dust on you?”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dave-eggers/have-we-wasted-precious-space-dust-on-you/) [Dave Eggers](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dave-eggers/) > [“What can one do with one's hands when the camera is interested in other things?”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dave-eggers/what-can-one-do-with-one-s-hands-when-the-camera-is-interested-in/) [Dave Eggers](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dave-eggers/) > [“The money that could have saved the Shuttle, and the money we send to random countries, that we use to remake unchangeable countries ten…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dave-eggers/the-money-that-could-have-saved-the-shuttle-and-the-money-we-send-to/) [Dave Eggers](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dave-eggers/) > [Write your goddamned book now. The world awaits.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dave-eggers/write-your-goddamned-book-now-the-world-awaits/) [Dave Eggers](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dave-eggers/) > [The only infallible truth of our lives is that everything we love in life will be taken from us.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dave-eggers/the-only-infallible-truth-of-our-lives-is-that-everything-we-love-in/) [Dave Eggers](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dave-eggers/) > [“First of all: I am tired. I am true of heart! And Also: You are tired. You are true of heart!”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dave-eggers/first-of-all-i-am-tired-i-am-true-of-heart-and-also-you-are-tired-you/) [Dave Eggers](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dave-eggers/) > [And what we were trying to offer every day was one-on-one attention. The goal was to have a one-to-one ratio with every one of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dave-eggers/and-what-we-were-trying-to-offer-every-day-was-one-on-one-attention/) [Dave Eggers](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dave-eggers/) > [Suffering is only suffering if it’s done in silence, in solitude. 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But is it…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/carl-sagan/it-is-sometimes-said-that-scientists-are-unromantic-that-their/) [Carl Sagan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/carl-sagan/) > [If you're white and you're wrong, then you're wrong; if you're black and you're wrong, you're wrong. People are people. Black, blue, pink, green…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bob-marley/if-you-re-white-and-you-re-wrong-then-you-re-wrong-if-you-re-black/) [Bob Marley](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bob-marley/) > [Today, at Harvard, any student with the currently fashionable color of skin is given rights denied to students of the currently unfashionable color.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/al-capp/today-at-harvard-any-student-with-the-currently-fashionable-color-of/) [Al Capp](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/al-capp/) > [Orange is my favorite color overall.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dale-earnhardt-jr/orange-is-my-favorite-color-overall/) [Dale Earnhardt Jr](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dale-earnhardt-jr/) > [To evoke in oneself a feeling one has once experienced, and having evoked it in oneself, then by means of movements, lines, colors, sounds,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/leo-tolstoy/to-evoke-in-oneself-a-feeling-one-has-once-experienced-and-having/) [Leo Tolstoy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/leo-tolstoy/) > [We have to keep in practice like musicians. 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