--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: Sleeping on the Ceiling\" It is so…" description: "\"“Sleeping on the Ceiling\" It is so peaceful on the ceiling! It is the Place de la Concorde. The little crystal chandelier is off, the fountain is in th..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/57d/elizabeth-bishop-9054_ceiling_sleeping-on-the-ceiling-it-is-so-peacefu_2426185.jpg" --- # Sleeping on the Ceiling" It is so peaceful on the ceiling!… ![“Sleeping on the Ceiling" It is so peaceful on the ceiling! It is the Place de la Concorde. The little crystal chandelier is off, the fountain is in the dark. Not a soul is in the park. Below, where the wallpaper is peeling, the Jardin des Plantes has locked its gates. Those photographs are…” quote by Elizabeth Bishop](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/57d/elizabeth-bishop-9054_ceiling_sleeping-on-the-ceiling-it-is-so-peacefu_2426185.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/57d/elizabeth-bishop-9054_ceiling_sleeping-on-the-ceiling-it-is-so-peacefu_2426185.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/57d/elizabeth-bishop-9054_ceiling_sleeping-on-the-ceiling-it-is-so-peacefu_2426185.jpg) > ““Sleeping on the Ceiling" It is so peaceful on the ceiling! It is the Place de la Concorde. The little crystal chandelier is off, the fountain is in the dark. Not a soul is in the park. Below, where the wallpaper is peeling, the Jardin des Plantes has locked its gates. Those photographs are animals. The mighty flowers and foliage rustle; under the leaves the insects tunnel. We must go under the wallpaper to meet the insect-gladiator, to battle with a net and trident, and leave the fountain and the square. But oh, that we could sleep up there…”” [Elizabeth Bishop](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/elizabeth-bishop/) ## 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 imagines a tranquil, deserted cityscape from a high perch, contrasting the quiet above with the hidden, bustling life below, and longs for escape into that serene height. **In simple terms:** A desire to find peace above a chaotic world. Key Takeaway Seek quiet perspectives above the noise. Themes peace escape urban solitude imagination contrast Mood contemplative melancholic hopeful Type poetic reflective inspirational When to use this quote - city park at night - personal meditation - creative writing - urban exploration - dreamlike escape Key Concepts perception environment inner conflict Questions to Reflect On - What does the ceiling symbolize for you? - How can you find peace amid daily chaos? A Different Perspective The imagined serenity may be an illusion, ignoring real-world issues below. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet ## Related quotes > [The first thing I hear when I wake up is the sea, which is so close to our house that its reflections from the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/craig-brown/the-first-thing-i-hear-when-i-wake-up-is-the-sea-which-is-so-close-to/) [Craig Brown](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/craig-brown/) > [In design-speak, 'a library' means a room lined with books, floor-to ceiling, but it all depends on the space you have. You may have…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nate-berkus/in-design-speak-a-library-means-a-room-lined-with-books-floor-to/) [Nate Berkus](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nate-berkus/) > [If your ceiling should fall down, then you have lost a room, but gained a courtyard. Think of it that way.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alexander-mccall-smith/if-your-ceiling-should-fall-down-then-you-have-lost-a-room-but-gained/) [Alexander McCall Smith](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alexander-mccall-smith/) > [We've removed the ceiling above our dreams. There are no more impossible dreams.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jesse-jackson/we-ve-removed-the-ceiling-above-our-dreams-there-are-no-more/) [Jesse Jackson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jesse-jackson/) > [There are people who say that if you are told that your house has fallen you don't ask what about the ceiling or what…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/chinua-achebe/there-are-people-who-say-that-if-you-are-told-that-your-house-has/) [Chinua Achebe](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/chinua-achebe/) > [I really like ceilings...I guess you could call me a Ceiling fan.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/i-really-like-ceilings-i-guess-you-could-call-me-a-ceiling-fan/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [We are unlimited beings. We have no ceiling.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-beckwith/we-are-unlimited-beings-we-have-no-ceiling/) [Michael Beckwith](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michael-beckwith/) > [I can write, He floated up to the ceiling, and a baby rabbit came out of his pocket, grew wings, and flew away. And…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/humphrey-carpenter/i-can-write-he-floated-up-to-the-ceiling-and-a-baby-rabbit-came-out/) [Humphrey Carpenter](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/humphrey-carpenter/) > [“A chair, a table, a lamp. Above, on the white ceiling, a relief ornament in the shape of a wreath, and in the center…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/margaret-atwood/a-chair-a-table-a-lamp-above-on-the-white-ceiling-a-relief-ornament/) [Margaret Atwood](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/margaret-atwood/) > [Work hard, earn a great living, get whatever you want out of life, have all the stuff you want. But there should be a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sandy-duncan/work-hard-earn-a-great-living-get-whatever-you-want-out-of-life-have/) [Sandy Duncan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sandy-duncan/) > [“There's no such thing as a glass ceiling for women. It's just a thick layer of men.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/laura-liswood/there-s-no-such-thing-as-a-glass-ceiling-for-women-it-s-just-a-thick/) Laura Liswood > [Dont flatter yourself, honey. The only fan you have is on the ceiling!..](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/dont-flatter-yourself-honey-the-only-fan-you-have-is-on-the-ceiling/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [The message I like to convey to women and girls across the globe is that there is no glass ceiling.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/venus-williams/the-message-i-like-to-convey-to-women-and-girls-across-the-globe-is/) [Venus Williams](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/venus-williams/) > [I'd hit my head on the ceiling, standin on top of my cash.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/chamillionaire/i-d-hit-my-head-on-the-ceiling-standin-on-top-of-my-cash/) [Chamillionaire](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/chamillionaire/) > [The best advice I can give women at all levels is increase training. There are still areas where we have to break through that…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/hilda-solis/the-best-advice-i-can-give-women-at-all-levels-is-increase-training/) [Hilda Solis](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/hilda-solis/) ## More by Elizabeth Bishop > [“Exchanging Hats Unfunny uncles who insist in trying on a lady's hat, --oh, even if the joke falls flat, we share your slight transvestite…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/elizabeth-bishop/exchanging-hats-unfunny-uncles-who-insist-in-trying-on-a-lady-s-hat/) [Elizabeth Bishop](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/elizabeth-bishop/) > [“At the Fishhouses Although it is a cold evening, down by one of the fishhouses an old man sits netting, his net, in the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/elizabeth-bishop/at-the-fishhouses-although-it-is-a-cold-evening-down-by-one-of-the/) [Elizabeth Bishop](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/elizabeth-bishop/) > [I am sorry for people who can't write letters. But I suspect also that you and I ... love to write them because it's…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/elizabeth-bishop/i-am-sorry-for-people-who-can-t-write-letters-but-i-suspect-also-that/) [Elizabeth Bishop](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/elizabeth-bishop/) > [Time to plant tears, says the almanac. The grandmother sings to the marvelous stove and the child draws another inscrutable house.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/elizabeth-bishop/time-to-plant-tears-says-the-almanac-the-grandmother-sings-to-the/) [Elizabeth Bishop](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/elizabeth-bishop/) > [“All the untidy activity continues, awful but cheerful.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/elizabeth-bishop/all-the-untidy-activity-continues-awful-but-cheerful/) [Elizabeth Bishop](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/elizabeth-bishop/) > [“But they made me realize more than I ever had the rarity of true originality, and also the sort of alienation it might involve.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/elizabeth-bishop/but-they-made-me-realize-more-than-i-ever-had-the-rarity-of-true/) [Elizabeth Bishop](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/elizabeth-bishop/) > [“Should we have stayed home and thought of here?”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/elizabeth-bishop/should-we-have-stayed-home-and-thought-of-here/) [Elizabeth Bishop](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/elizabeth-bishop/) > [“The art of losing isn't hard to master; so many things seem filled with the intent to be lost that their loss is no…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/elizabeth-bishop/the-art-of-losing-isn-t-hard-to-master-so-many-things-seem-filled/) [Elizabeth Bishop](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/elizabeth-bishop/) > [The armored cars of dreams, contrived to let us do so many a dangerous thing.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/elizabeth-bishop/the-armored-cars-of-dreams-contrived-to-let-us-do-so-many-a-dangerous/) [Elizabeth Bishop](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/elizabeth-bishop/) > [Hoping to live days of greater happiness, I forget that days of less happiness are passing by.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/elizabeth-bishop/hoping-to-live-days-of-greater-happiness-i-forget-that-days-of-less/) [Elizabeth Bishop](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/elizabeth-bishop/) > [Someone loves us all.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/elizabeth-bishop/someone-loves-us-all/) [Elizabeth Bishop](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/elizabeth-bishop/) > [Open the book. (The gilt rubs off the edges of the pages and pollinates the fingertips.)](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/elizabeth-bishop/open-the-book-the-gilt-rubs-off-the-edges-of-the-pages-and-pollinates/) [Elizabeth Bishop](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/elizabeth-bishop/) > [Democracy in the contemporary world demands, among other things, an educated and informed people.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/elizabeth-bishop/democracy-in-the-contemporary-world-demands-among-other-things-an/) [Elizabeth Bishop](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/elizabeth-bishop/) > [All my life I have lived and behaved very much like the sandpiper - just running down the edges of different countries and continents,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/elizabeth-bishop/all-my-life-i-have-lived-and-behaved-very-much-like-the-sandpiper/) [Elizabeth Bishop](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/elizabeth-bishop/) > [“I leave a lovely opalescent ribbon: I know this.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/elizabeth-bishop/i-leave-a-lovely-opalescent-ribbon-i-know-this/) [Elizabeth Bishop](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/elizabeth-bishop/) [Explore all 75 Elizabeth Bishop quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/elizabeth-bishop/) ## More Ceiling quotes > [The first thing I hear when I wake up is the sea, which is so close to our house that its reflections from the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/craig-brown/the-first-thing-i-hear-when-i-wake-up-is-the-sea-which-is-so-close-to/) [Craig Brown](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/craig-brown/) > [I'd hit my head on the ceiling, standin on top of my cash.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/chamillionaire/i-d-hit-my-head-on-the-ceiling-standin-on-top-of-my-cash/) [Chamillionaire](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/chamillionaire/) > [The message I like to convey to women and girls across the globe is that there is no glass ceiling.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/venus-williams/the-message-i-like-to-convey-to-women-and-girls-across-the-globe-is/) [Venus Williams](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/venus-williams/) > [Dont flatter yourself, honey. The only fan you have is on the ceiling!..](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/dont-flatter-yourself-honey-the-only-fan-you-have-is-on-the-ceiling/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [“There's no such thing as a glass ceiling for women. It's just a thick layer of men.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/laura-liswood/there-s-no-such-thing-as-a-glass-ceiling-for-women-it-s-just-a-thick/) Laura Liswood > [Work hard, earn a great living, get whatever you want out of life, have all the stuff you want. But there should be a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sandy-duncan/work-hard-earn-a-great-living-get-whatever-you-want-out-of-life-have/) [Sandy Duncan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sandy-duncan/) > [“A chair, a table, a lamp. Above, on the white ceiling, a relief ornament in the shape of a wreath, and in the center…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/margaret-atwood/a-chair-a-table-a-lamp-above-on-the-white-ceiling-a-relief-ornament/) [Margaret Atwood](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/margaret-atwood/) > [I can write, He floated up to the ceiling, and a baby rabbit came out of his pocket, grew wings, and flew away. And…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/humphrey-carpenter/i-can-write-he-floated-up-to-the-ceiling-and-a-baby-rabbit-came-out/) [Humphrey Carpenter](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/humphrey-carpenter/) > [We are unlimited beings. We have no ceiling.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-beckwith/we-are-unlimited-beings-we-have-no-ceiling/) [Michael Beckwith](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michael-beckwith/) > [I really like ceilings...I guess you could call me a Ceiling fan.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/i-really-like-ceilings-i-guess-you-could-call-me-a-ceiling-fan/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [There are people who say that if you are told that your house has fallen you don't ask what about the ceiling or what…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/chinua-achebe/there-are-people-who-say-that-if-you-are-told-that-your-house-has/) [Chinua Achebe](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/chinua-achebe/) > [We've removed the ceiling above our dreams. There are no more impossible dreams.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jesse-jackson/we-ve-removed-the-ceiling-above-our-dreams-there-are-no-more/) [Jesse Jackson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jesse-jackson/) > [If your ceiling should fall down, then you have lost a room, but gained a courtyard. Think of it that way.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alexander-mccall-smith/if-your-ceiling-should-fall-down-then-you-have-lost-a-room-but-gained/) [Alexander McCall Smith](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alexander-mccall-smith/) > [In design-speak, 'a library' means a room lined with books, floor-to ceiling, but it all depends on the space you have. You may have…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nate-berkus/in-design-speak-a-library-means-a-room-lined-with-books-floor-to/) [Nate Berkus](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nate-berkus/) > [The best advice I can give women at all levels is increase training. There are still areas where we have to break through that…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/hilda-solis/the-best-advice-i-can-give-women-at-all-levels-is-increase-training/) [Hilda Solis](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/hilda-solis/) Browse all 194 Ceiling quotes ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "“Sleeping on the Ceiling\" It is so peaceful on the ceiling! It is the Place de la Concorde. The little crystal chandelier is off, the fountain is in the dark. Not a soul is in the park. Below, where the wallpaper is peeling, the Jardin des Plantes has locked its gates. Those photographs are animals. The mighty flowers and foliage rustle; under the leaves the insects tunnel. We must go under the wallpaper to meet the insect-gladiator, to battle with a net and trident, and leave the fountain and the square. 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