--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: And on the sidewalks, after they've…" description: "\"“And on the sidewalks, after they've emerged from the stations, after being sandpapered by the jostling and scraping that a city like this does, all th..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/c02/dionne-brand-28185_quote_and-on-the-sidewalks-after-they-ve-emerg_974179.jpg" --- # And on the sidewalks, after they've emerged from the… ![“And on the sidewalks, after they've emerged from the stations, after being sandpapered by the jostling and scraping that a city like this does, all the lives they've hoarded, all the ghosts they've carried, all the inversions they've made for protection, all the scars and marks and records for…” quote by Dionne Brand](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/c02/dionne-brand-28185_quote_and-on-the-sidewalks-after-they-ve-emerg_974179.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/c02/dionne-brand-28185_quote_and-on-the-sidewalks-after-they-ve-emerg_974179.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/c02/dionne-brand-28185_quote_and-on-the-sidewalks-after-they-ve-emerg_974179.jpg) > ““And on the sidewalks, after they've emerged from the stations, after being sandpapered by the jostling and scraping that a city like this does, all the lives they've hoarded, all the ghosts they've carried, all the inversions they've made for protection, all the scars and marks and records for recognition - the whole heterogeneous baggage falls out with each step on the pavement. There's so much spillage.”” [Dionne Brand](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dionne-brand/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Urban life forces people to shed burdens, revealing hidden stories and scars. **In simple terms:** City life reveals hidden scars. Key Takeaway Observe and honor the stories beneath everyday surfaces. Themes urban life identity memory Mood reflective poetic Type literary social commentary When to use this quote - community work - urban planning - mental health outreach - public art projects Key Concepts social anthropology psychology storytelling Questions to Reflect On - How can we support individuals carrying hidden burdens? - What does each step reveal about societal pressures? A Different Perspective May overlook individual agency in favor of collective narrative. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Baggage](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/baggage/) [Baggage Falls](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/baggage-falls-1892361/) [Pavement Spillage](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/pavement-spillage-1892362/) [Sidewalks](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/sidewalks/) [Stations Sandpapered](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/stations-sandpapered-1892363/) ## Related quotes > [“The sidewalks flash silver with mica. Skyline smeared with geese. By way of recognition I lost the sound of your voice.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ryan-murphy/the-sidewalks-flash-silver-with-mica-skyline-smeared-with-geese-by/) [Ryan Murphy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ryan-murphy/) > [“She was in her element walking the concrete sidewalks, listening to the buzz of traffic and the hum of city life. One reason was…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/richard-e-riegel/she-was-in-her-element-walking-the-concrete-sidewalks-listening-to/) [Richard E. Riegel](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/richard-e-riegel/) > [Life can be a bore if you're constantly walking sidewalks instead of a tightrope once in a while.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/larry-wilcox/life-can-be-a-bore-if-you-re-constantly-walking-sidewalks-instead-of/) [Larry Wilcox](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/larry-wilcox/) > [“I wonder through the days like a whore in a world with no sidewalks.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/emil-cioran/i-wonder-through-the-days-like-a-whore-in-a-world-with-no-sidewalks/) [Emil Cioran](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/emil-cioran/) > [Any town that doesn't have sidewalks doesn't love its children.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/margaret-mead/any-town-that-doesn-t-have-sidewalks-doesn-t-love-its-children/) [Margaret Mead](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/margaret-mead/) > [“Sidewalks help the blind see.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dr-kalyan-c-kankanala/sidewalks-help-the-blind-see/) [Dr. Kalyan C. Kankanala](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dr-kalyan-c-kankanala/) > [There can be no reasonable right to live on sidewalks. Society needs order, and hence has a right to a minimally civilized ambience in…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-will/there-can-be-no-reasonable-right-to-live-on-sidewalks-society-needs/) [George Will](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-will/) > [I've sucked way too much cement for this year. Bad juju rising off them city sidewalks. I need to babble with a brook or…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tom-robbins/i-ve-sucked-way-too-much-cement-for-this-year-bad-juju-rising-off/) [Tom Robbins](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tom-robbins/) > [The political ramifications of our festering financial and economic crisis have reached the sidewalks of New York, as well as other large and small…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jerry-a-webman/the-political-ramifications-of-our-festering-financial-and-economic/) [Jerry A. Webman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jerry-a-webman/) > [I had a mother who walked to the library with me, and you can't walk to a lot of libraries in San Antonio because…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sandra-cisneros/i-had-a-mother-who-walked-to-the-library-with-me-and-you-can-t-walk/) [Sandra Cisneros](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sandra-cisneros/) > [“When fall comes to town, lovers, letters, and leaves reunite on the sidewalks, broken, burnt, and brown.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/akash-mandal/when-fall-comes-to-town-lovers-letters-and-leaves-reunite-on-the/) [Akash Mandal](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/akash-mandal/) > [“As children get older, this incidental outdoor activity--say, while waiting to be called to eat--becomes less bumptious, physically and entails more loitering with others,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jane-jacobs/as-children-get-older-this-incidental-outdoor-activity-say-while/) [Jane Jacobs](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jane-jacobs/) > [Its 2013. We should have heated sidewalks.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/its-2013-we-should-have-heated-sidewalks/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [Growing up in New York City, I'd flirted with the idea of driving, but between the subway and the sidewalks, I'd never needed to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lynn-nottage/growing-up-in-new-york-city-i-d-flirted-with-the-idea-of-driving-but/) [Lynn Nottage](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lynn-nottage/) > [“Some part of me remembers what snow is, but this is the first time my new mind has seen it. It softens the crumbled…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/isaac-marion/some-part-of-me-remembers-what-snow-is-but-this-is-the-first-time-my/) [Isaac Marion](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/isaac-marion/) ## More by Dionne Brand > [If I see someone I see the ghost of them, the air around them, and where they’ve been. If I see a city I…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dionne-brand/if-i-see-someone-i-see-the-ghost-of-them-the-air-around-them-and/) [Dionne Brand](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dionne-brand/) > [“The sea sounded like a thousand secrets, all whispered at the same time.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dionne-brand/the-sea-sounded-like-a-thousand-secrets-all-whispered-at-the-same-time/) [Dionne Brand](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dionne-brand/) > [I felt the unordinary romance of / women who love women for the first time.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dionne-brand/i-felt-the-unordinary-romance-of-women-who-love-women-for-the-first/) [Dionne Brand](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dionne-brand/) > [People here believe in uncontrollable passion, in mad rages, and in the brusque inevitability of death.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dionne-brand/people-here-believe-in-uncontrollable-passion-in-mad-rages-and-in-the/) [Dionne Brand](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dionne-brand/) > [“She could assassinate streets with her eyes”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dionne-brand/she-could-assassinate-streets-with-her-eyes/) [Dionne Brand](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dionne-brand/) > [“..would I have had a different life failing this embrace with broken things, iridescent veins, ecstatic bullets, small cracks in the brain, would I…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dionne-brand/would-i-have-had-a-different-life-failing-this-embrace-with-broken/) [Dionne Brand](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dionne-brand/) > [“Angie was a border crosser, a wetback, a worker in the immigrant sweatshop they call this city. On days like this I understand her…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dionne-brand/angie-was-a-border-crosser-a-wetback-a-worker-in-the-immigrant/) [Dionne Brand](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dionne-brand/) > [“There were Italian neighbourhood and Vietnamese neighbourhoods in this city; there are Chinese ones and Ukrainian ones and Pakistani ones and Korean ones and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dionne-brand/there-were-italian-neighbourhood-and-vietnamese-neighbourhoods-in/) [Dionne Brand](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dionne-brand/) > [“I run each morning, two, three, sometimes four kilometers. Part of March, all of April, all of May. I can’t run five. I am…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dionne-brand/i-run-each-morning-two-three-sometimes-four-kilometers-part-of-march/) [Dionne Brand](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dionne-brand/) > [Cities collect people, stray and lost and deliberate arrivants.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dionne-brand/cities-collect-people-stray-and-lost-and-deliberate-arrivants/) [Dionne Brand](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dionne-brand/) > [“It is not the job of writers to life our spirits. Books simply do what they do. They sometimes confirm the capricious drama of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dionne-brand/it-is-not-the-job-of-writers-to-life-our-spirits-books-simply-do-what/) [Dionne Brand](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dionne-brand/) > [“They were born in the city from people born elsewhere.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dionne-brand/they-were-born-in-the-city-from-people-born-elsewhere/) [Dionne Brand](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dionne-brand/) > [“dance floors would bleed from the knife of her dress”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dionne-brand/dance-floors-would-bleed-from-the-knife-of-her-dress/) [Dionne Brand](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dionne-brand/) > [“a boat, even a wrecked and wretched boat still has all the possibilities of moving”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dionne-brand/a-boat-even-a-wrecked-and-wretched-boat-still-has-all-the/) [Dionne Brand](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dionne-brand/) > [Books leave gestures in the body; a certain way of moving, of turning, a certain closing of the eyes, a way of leaving, hesitations.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dionne-brand/books-leave-gestures-in-the-body-a-certain-way-of-moving-of-turning-a/) [Dionne Brand](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dionne-brand/) [Explore all 18 Dionne Brand quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dionne-brand/) ## More Baggage quotes > [“logotherapy,” which, in a nutshell, is about searching for the meaning packed in one’s baggage, something”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/elizabeth-lesser/logotherapy-which-in-a-nutshell-is-about-searching-for-the-meaning/) [Elizabeth Lesser](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/elizabeth-lesser/) > [“Forgiveness is the process of dropping off your emotional baggage.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tim-fargo/forgiveness-is-the-process-of-dropping-off-your-emotional-baggage/) [Tim Fargo](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tim-fargo/) > [All the baggage that comes with fame, being an actress. The down side to it is the intrusion into your life and this expectation…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/emma-watson/all-the-baggage-that-comes-with-fame-being-an-actress-the-down-side/) [Emma Watson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/emma-watson/) > [“they accepted any baggage that came with you and made you believe you were more than you actually were”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jodi-picoult/they-accepted-any-baggage-that-came-with-you-and-made-you-believe-you/) [Jodi Picoult](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jodi-picoult/) > [Out, you tallow-face! You baggage!](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-shakespeare/out-you-tallow-face-you-baggage/) [William Shakespeare](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-shakespeare/) > [“The thing about moving," he said, "is it's a good way to shake loose whatever old baggage you have, or the old things that…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tara-schuster/the-thing-about-moving-he-said-is-it-s-a-good-way-to-shake-loose/) [Tara Schuster](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tara-schuster/) > [A lot of people approach their barn or horse like they are going to war, because it's been going badly. So you pick up…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/cindy-meehl/a-lot-of-people-approach-their-barn-or-horse-like-they-are-going-to/) [Cindy Meehl](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/cindy-meehl/) > [I had a great dislike to the annoyances entailed by baggage; and it was always with some feeling of elation that I cut myself…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/herbert-spencer/i-had-a-great-dislike-to-the-annoyances-entailed-by-baggage-and-it/) [Herbert Spencer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/herbert-spencer/) > [My beginnings in the Southwest are clear and palpable. My beginnings here made me pay attention to where the sun is, where the winds…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/antoine-predock/my-beginnings-in-the-southwest-are-clear-and-palpable-my-beginnings/) [Antoine Predock](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/antoine-predock/) > [Carry your baggage towards silence , when you seek the signs of the way.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rumi/carry-your-baggage-towards-silence-when-you-seek-the-signs-of-the-way/) [Rumi](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rumi/) > [I just try to leave my baggage at the door. I don't want to carry my stuff into a working environment with me, and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/eric-dane/i-just-try-to-leave-my-baggage-at-the-door-i-don-t-want-to-carry-my/) [Eric Dane](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/eric-dane/) > [When you're coming off a flight, skip the restroom by the gates and head to the one in baggage claim, which is always cleaner…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/hallie-jackson/when-you-re-coming-off-a-flight-skip-the-restroom-by-the-gates-and/) [Hallie Jackson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/hallie-jackson/) > [“This actually isn't a boohoo entry about my baggage. It is meant to be a 'learn from the mistakes of others'. Hopefully my 'duh'…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jordan-m-alexander/this-actually-isn-t-a-boohoo-entry-about-my-baggage-it-is-meant-to-be/) [Jordan M. Alexander](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jordan-m-alexander/) > [It's very inconvenient being a sculptor. It's like playing the double-bass; one's so handicapped by one's baggage.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dorothy-l-sayers/it-s-very-inconvenient-being-a-sculptor-it-s-like-playing-the-double/) [Dorothy L. Sayers](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dorothy-l-sayers/) > [“We lose the fear of letting go of our baggage, but also the certainty that what is in them belongs to us.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/andr-s-neuman/we-lose-the-fear-of-letting-go-of-our-baggage-but-also-the-certainty/) [Andrés Neuman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/andr-s-neuman/) [Browse all 359 Baggage quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/baggage/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "“And on the sidewalks, after they've emerged from the stations, after being sandpapered by the jostling and scraping that a city like this does, all the lives they've hoarded, all the ghosts they've carried, all the inversions they've made for protection, all the scars and marks and records for recognition - the whole heterogeneous baggage falls out with each step on the pavement. 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