--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: Whatever I do, however I find a way to…" description: "\"“Whatever I do, however I find a way to live, I will tell these stories. I have spoken to every person I have encountered these last difficult days...I..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/f38/dave-eggers-638_difficult-days_whatever-i-do-however-i-find-a-way-to-li_1350028.jpg" --- # Whatever I do, however I find a way to live, I will tell… ![“Whatever I do, however I find a way to live, I will tell these stories. I have spoken to every person I have encountered these last difficult days...I speak to these people, and I speak to you because I cannot help it. It gives me strength, almost unbelievable strength, to know that you are there…” quote by Dave Eggers](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/f38/dave-eggers-638_difficult-days_whatever-i-do-however-i-find-a-way-to-li_1350028.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/f38/dave-eggers-638_difficult-days_whatever-i-do-however-i-find-a-way-to-li_1350028.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/f38/dave-eggers-638_difficult-days_whatever-i-do-however-i-find-a-way-to-li_1350028.jpg) > ““Whatever I do, however I find a way to live, I will tell these stories. I have spoken to every person I have encountered these last difficult days...I speak to these people, and I speak to you because I cannot help it. It gives me strength, almost unbelievable strength, to know that you are there. I covet your eyes, your ears, the collapsible space between us. How blessed are we to have each other? I am alive and you are alive and so we must fill the air with our words. I will fill today, tomorrow, every day until I am taken back to God. I will tell stories to people who will listen and to people who don't want to listen, to people who seek me out and to those who run. All the while I will know that you are there. How can I pretend that you do not exist? It would be almost as impossible as you pretending that I do not exist.”” [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 speaker feels compelled to share stories, believing that speaking to others provides strength and connection, and that acknowledging each other's existence is essential to humanity. **In simple terms:** Sharing stories creates strength and connection. Key Takeaway Tell your story to stay connected. Themes storytelling human connection existence strength compassion Mood hopeful intimate reflective Type personal inspirational When to use this quote - therapy sessions - community gatherings - online platforms - personal reflections Key Concepts narrative therapy social bonding existential awareness Questions to Reflect On - How does sharing affect your sense of purpose? - What obstacles arise when people refuse to listen? A Different Perspective Storytelling alone may not reach all; some may resist listening. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Difficult days](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/difficult-days/) [Sudan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/sudan/) ## Related quotes > [Days should speak, and multitude of years should teach wisdom (Job 32:7).](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bible/days-should-speak-and-multitude-of-years-should-teach-wisdom-job-32-7/) [Bible](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bible/) > [“So I say this. Speak of them. Speak of those that died. Speak of all those who ever died--in all the world's history, in…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/susan-fletcher/so-i-say-this-speak-of-them-speak-of-those-that-died-speak-of-all/) [Susan Fletcher](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/susan-fletcher/) > [“Or reading poetry. Now there was a job that should exist. To spend one’s days in the company of Blake and Dickinson, Yeats and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anne-d-leclaire/or-reading-poetry-now-there-was-a-job-that-should-exist-to-spend-one/) [Anne D. LeClaire](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anne-d-leclaire/) > [Speak Thou in my words today, think in my thoughts, and work in all my deeds.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-baillie/speak-thou-in-my-words-today-think-in-my-thoughts-and-work-in-all-my/) [John Baillie](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-baillie/) > [Words today are like the shells and rope of seaweed which a child brings home glistening from the beach and which in an hour…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/cyril-connolly/words-today-are-like-the-shells-and-rope-of-seaweed-which-a-child/) [Cyril Connolly](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/cyril-connolly/) > [“Be generous with your words today. It costs you nothing, but may mean everything to someone in need of a little hope.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/germany-kent/be-generous-with-your-words-today-it-costs-you-nothing-but-may-mean/) [Germany Kent](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/germany-kent/) > [Words can hurt or words can heal. How are you using your words today?](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/words-can-hurt-or-words-can-heal-how-are-you-using-your-words-today/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [“Always judge a man by his questions rather than his answers. It’s easy to take his words today at face value but it is…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/think-maverick/always-judge-a-man-by-his-questions-rather-than-his-answers-it-s-easy/) Think Maverick > [“But without William K, I would have forgotten that I had not been born on this journey. That I had lived before this.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dave-eggers/but-without-william-k-i-would-have-forgotten-that-i-had-not-been-born/) [Dave Eggers](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dave-eggers/) > [I had forgotten that, and so many things. How could I put everything down on paper? It seemed impossible. No matter what, the majority…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dave-eggers/i-had-forgotten-that-and-so-many-things-how-could-i-put-everything/) [Dave Eggers](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dave-eggers/) > [“This morning there s first a predictable story about Darfur; an expert on African affairs notes that seven thousand African Union troops patrolling a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dave-eggers/this-morning-there-s-first-a-predictable-story-about-darfur-an-expert/) [Dave Eggers](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dave-eggers/) > [“This war has made racists of too many of the and too many of us, and it is the leadership in Khartoum that has…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dave-eggers/this-war-has-made-racists-of-too-many-of-the-and-too-many-of-us-and/) [Dave Eggers](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dave-eggers/) > [“The issue is complex, but like many matters in Sudan, it is not as complex as Khartoum would want the west to believe.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dave-eggers/the-issue-is-complex-but-like-many-matters-in-sudan-it-is-not-as/) [Dave Eggers](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dave-eggers/) > [I've certainly had some difficult days. But it's OK to be vulnerable.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/steve-smith/i-ve-certainly-had-some-difficult-days-but-it-s-ok-to-be-vulnerable/) [Steve Smith](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/steve-smith/) > [I started skating because I loved it. I started when I was three and I didn't know all the sacrifices and all the hardships…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sarah-hughes/i-started-skating-because-i-loved-it-i-started-when-i-was-three-and-i/) [Sarah Hughes](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sarah-hughes/) ## 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. The windows don’t open, and even the availability of near-constant jokes about Jews and Mormons fails to stem the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dave-eggers/but-the-grind-has-begun-the-windows-don-t-open-and-even-the/) [Dave Eggers](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dave-eggers/) > [“One button for the rest of your life online.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dave-eggers/one-button-for-the-rest-of-your-life-online/) [Dave Eggers](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dave-eggers/) > [We feel that to reveal embarrassing or private things, we have given someone something, that, like a primitive person fearing that a photographer will…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dave-eggers/we-feel-that-to-reveal-embarrassing-or-private-things-we-have-given/) [Dave Eggers](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dave-eggers/) > [I think I'm far too hopeful and trusting. 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. Pain experienced in public, in view of loving millions, was no longer pain.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dave-eggers/suffering-is-only-suffering-if-it-s-done-in-silence-in-solitude-pain/) [Dave Eggers](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dave-eggers/) [Explore all 428 Dave Eggers quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dave-eggers/) ## More Difficult days quotes > [I started skating because I loved it. I started when I was three and I didn't know all the sacrifices and all the hardships…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sarah-hughes/i-started-skating-because-i-loved-it-i-started-when-i-was-three-and-i/) [Sarah Hughes](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sarah-hughes/) > [I've certainly had some difficult days. But it's OK to be vulnerable.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/steve-smith/i-ve-certainly-had-some-difficult-days-but-it-s-ok-to-be-vulnerable/) [Steve Smith](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/steve-smith/) > [It was difficult every ten days having a new director. I'm a real collaborator and, as an actor, I want to be directed. It's…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jeanne-tripplehorn/it-was-difficult-every-ten-days-having-a-new-director-i-m-a-real/) [Jeanne Tripplehorn](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jeanne-tripplehorn/) > [You can't have genius without patience.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/margaret-deland/you-can-t-have-genius-without-patience/) [Margaret Deland](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/margaret-deland/) > [“There are days when I just want to throw in the towel. Those are the difficult days, the days where I take many showers.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jarod-kintz/there-are-days-when-i-just-want-to-throw-in-the-towel-those-are-the/) [Jarod Kintz](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jarod-kintz/) > [“I believe that there are dark and difficult days ahead, and you won't be playing for an increase in company dividens - you will…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/wilbur-smith/i-believe-that-there-are-dark-and-difficult-days-ahead-and-you-won-t/) [Wilbur Smith](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/wilbur-smith/) > [I have the deepest regret about 9/11. Sept. 11, 2001, was one of the most difficult days I've ever had. I was in Lima,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/colin-powell/i-have-the-deepest-regret-about-9-11-sept-11-2001-was-one-of-the-most/) [Colin Powell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/colin-powell/) > [ARMYs are the ones who've stood by our side since our difficult days, who've shared our joy and sadness, who know us best.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kim-tae-hyung/armys-are-the-ones-who-ve-stood-by-our-side-since-our-difficult-days/) [Kim Tae-hyung](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kim-tae-hyung/) > [May a thread of comfort be woven through your difficult days.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mary-anne-radmacher/may-a-thread-of-comfort-be-woven-through-your-difficult-days/) [Mary Anne Radmacher](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mary-anne-radmacher/) > [That's the advantage of having lived sixty-five years. You don't feel the need to be impatient any longer.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/thornton-wilder/that-s-the-advantage-of-having-lived-sixty-five-years-you-don-t-feel/) [Thornton Wilder](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/thornton-wilder/) > [The lights were off so that his heads could avoid looking at each other because neither of them was currently a particular engaging sight,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/douglas-adams/the-lights-were-off-so-that-his-heads-could-avoid-looking-at-each/) [Douglas Adams](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/douglas-adams/) > [“On my more difficult days, I’m not sure what’s more of a pain in my ass—being black or being a woman. I’m happy to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/roxane-gay/on-my-more-difficult-days-i-m-not-sure-what-s-more-of-a-pain-in-my/) [Roxane Gay](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/roxane-gay/) > [The most difficult days have been the ones I've had to spend correcting a mistake. We're all human, and we make errors in spite…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mark-mason/the-most-difficult-days-have-been-the-ones-i-ve-had-to-spend/) [Mark Mason](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mark-mason/) > [Of course, there are days when you're not feeling your best and you still have to stand up there and it can be difficult.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/daria-werbowy/of-course-there-are-days-when-you-re-not-feeling-your-best-and-you/) [Daria Werbowy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/daria-werbowy/) > [To choose what is difficult all one's days, as if it were easy, that is faith](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/w-h-auden/to-choose-what-is-difficult-all-one-s-days-as-if-it-were-easy-that-is/) [W. H. Auden](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/w-h-auden/) [Browse all 44 Difficult days quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/difficult-days/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "“Whatever I do, however I find a way to live, I will tell these stories. I have spoken to every person I have encountered these last difficult days...I speak to these people, and I speak to you because I cannot help it. It gives me strength, almost unbelievable strength, to know that you are there. I covet your eyes, your ears, the collapsible space between us. How blessed are we to have each other? I am alive and you are alive and so we must fill the air with our words. I will fill today, tomorrow, every day until I am taken back to God. I will tell stories to people who will listen and to people who don't want to listen, to people who seek me out and to those who run. All the while I will know that you are there. 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