--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: Night and day the river flows. If time is…" description: "\"Night and day the river flows. If time is the mind of space, the River is the soul of the desert. Brave boatmen come, they go, they die, the voyage flo..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/84a/edward-abbey-254_brave_night-and-day-the-river-flows-if-time-is_330975.png" --- # Night and day the river flows. If time is the mind of… ![“Night and day the river flows. If time is the mind of space, the River is the soul of the desert. Brave boatmen come, they go, they die, the voyage flows on forever. We are all canyoneers. We are all passengers on this little mossy ship, this delicate dory sailing round the sun that humans call…” quote by Edward Abbey](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/84a/edward-abbey-254_brave_night-and-day-the-river-flows-if-time-is_330975.png) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/84a/edward-abbey-254_brave_night-and-day-the-river-flows-if-time-is_330975.png) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/84a/edward-abbey-254_brave_night-and-day-the-river-flows-if-time-is_330975.png) > “Night and day the river flows. If time is the mind of space, the River is the soul of the desert. Brave boatmen come, they go, they die, the voyage flows on forever. We are all canyoneers. We are all passengers on this little mossy ship, this delicate dory sailing round the sun that humans call the earth. Joy, shipmates, joy.” [Edward Abbey](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/edward-abbey/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. The river symbolizes life's endless flow; humanity drifts together, sharing a fragile journey on Earth. **In simple terms:** Life is a shared, fleeting journey. Key Takeaway Embrace the moment and fellow travelers. Themes nature existence transience Mood contemplative hopeful Type poetic philosophical When to use this quote - hiking - environmental activism - creative writing Key Concepts metaphor ecology human connection Questions to Reflect On - What does the river teach about resilience? - How can we honor our shared journey? A Different Perspective the river’s permanence may mask ecological threats. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Brave](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/brave/) [Desert](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/desert/) [Earth](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/earth/) [Environmental](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/environmental/) [Flow](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/flow/) [Flowing river](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/flowing-river/) [Humans](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/humans/) [Joy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/joy/) [Mind](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/mind/) [Night](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/night/) [Psychology](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/psychology/) [Rafting](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/rafting/) [River](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/river/) [Rivers](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/rivers/) [Rounds](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/rounds/) [Sailing](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/sailing/) [Soul](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/soul/) [Space](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/space/) [Sun](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/sun/) [Time](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/time/) [Travel](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/travel/) [Voyages](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/voyages/) ## Related quotes > [When you put your hand in a flowing stream, you touch the last that has gone before and the first of what is still…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/leonardo-da-vinci/when-you-put-your-hand-in-a-flowing-stream-you-touch-the-last-that/) [Leonardo da Vinci](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/leonardo-da-vinci/) > [. . . the time has also come to identify and preserve free-flowing stretches of our great rivers before growth and development make the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lyndon-b-johnson/the-time-has-also-come-to-identify-and-preserve-free-flowing/) [Lyndon B. Johnson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lyndon-b-johnson/) > [What is the use trying to describe the flowing of a river at any one moment, and then at the next moment, and then…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ursula-k-le-guin/what-is-the-use-trying-to-describe-the-flowing-of-a-river-at-any-one/) [Ursula K. Le Guin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ursula-k-le-guin/) > [“Let's have some precision in language here: terrorism means deadly violence -- for a political and/or economical purpose -- carried out against people and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/edward-abbey/let-s-have-some-precision-in-language-here-terrorism-means-deadly/) [Edward Abbey](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/edward-abbey/) > [“You'll skydive, and hang into ravines by thin ropes, and go rafting in the rapids, but you won't... what? 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Roosevelt](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/franklin-d-roosevelt/) > [You feel mighty free and easy and comfortable on a raft.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mark-twain/you-feel-mighty-free-and-easy-and-comfortable-on-a-raft/) [Mark Twain](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mark-twain/) > [I've done plenty of daredeviling - from white-water rafting to bungee jumping. But I think the most fearless was hosting the Emmy Awards. It…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/neil-patrick-harris/i-ve-done-plenty-of-daredeviling-from-white-water-rafting-to-bungee/) [Neil Patrick Harris](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/neil-patrick-harris/) > [I used to do things like white-water rafting, trekking and horse-riding safaris. 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Why this cult of wilderness? Why the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/edward-abbey/but-why-the-questioner-insists-why-do-people-like-you-pretend-to-love/) [Edward Abbey](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/edward-abbey/) > [Civilization is a youth with a molotov cocktail in his hand. Culture is the Soviet tank or L.A. cop that guns him down.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/edward-abbey/civilization-is-a-youth-with-a-molotov-cocktail-in-his-hand-culture/) [Edward Abbey](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/edward-abbey/) > [All revolutions have failed? Perhaps. But rebellion for good cause is self- justifying -- a good in itself. Rebellion transforms slaves into human beings,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/edward-abbey/all-revolutions-have-failed-perhaps-but-rebellion-for-good-cause-is/) [Edward Abbey](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/edward-abbey/) > [“Me, I'm living under a sword too, as Jack may have told you. 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Part Two: Say it well.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/edward-abbey/what-is-the-essence-of-the-art-of-writing-part-one-have-something-to/) [Edward Abbey](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/edward-abbey/) [Explore all 807 Edward Abbey quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/edward-abbey/) ## More Brave quotes > [In the current climate, things that are true, brave human stories become political.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/cate-blanchett/in-the-current-climate-things-that-are-true-brave-human-stories/) [Cate Blanchett](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/cate-blanchett/) > [If You Love Someone, Be Brave Enough To Tell Them., Otherwise Be Brave Enough To Watch Them To Be Loved By Someone Else.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bilal-zahoor/if-you-love-someone-be-brave-enough-to-tell-them-otherwise-be-brave/) [Bilal Zahoor](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bilal-zahoor/) > [Be convinced that to be happy means to be free and that to be free means to be brave. Therefore do not take lightly…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/thucydides/be-convinced-that-to-be-happy-means-to-be-free-and-that-to-be-free/) [Thucydides](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/thucydides/) > [It's always brave to be yourself.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/liu-yifei/it-s-always-brave-to-be-yourself/) [Liu Yifei](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/liu-yifei/) > [“Victory is for the fucking brave, not the timid and excuse-riddled weak.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/zakk-wylde/victory-is-for-the-fucking-brave-not-the-timid-and-excuse-riddled-weak/) [Zakk Wylde](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/zakk-wylde/) > [I'm very proud of 'Every Girl's a Super Girl.' 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