--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: She looked directly up into the northern…" description: "\"“She looked directly up into the northern lights and she wondered if those cold-burning spectres might not draw her breath, her very soul, out of her c..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/bf5/eowyn-ivey-7989_northern-lights_she-looked-directly-up-into-the-northern_429950.jpg" --- # She looked directly up into the northern lights and she… ![“She looked directly up into the northern lights and she wondered if those cold-burning spectres might not draw her breath, her very soul, out of her chest and into the stars.” quote by Eowyn Ivey](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/bf5/eowyn-ivey-7989_northern-lights_she-looked-directly-up-into-the-northern_429950.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/bf5/eowyn-ivey-7989_northern-lights_she-looked-directly-up-into-the-northern_429950.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/bf5/eowyn-ivey-7989_northern-lights_she-looked-directly-up-into-the-northern_429950.jpg) > ““She looked directly up into the northern lights and she wondered if those cold-burning spectres might not draw her breath, her very soul, out of her chest and into the stars.”” [Eowyn Ivey](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/eowyn-ivey/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. A character contemplates the awe-inspiring northern lights, feeling a profound connection to the cosmos. **In simple terms:** Feeling small yet connected under the aurora. Key Takeaway Embrace moments that expand your sense of wonder. Themes nature spirituality existence beauty reflection Mood tranquil inspired poetic Type descriptive reflective When to use this quote - Stargazing - meditation - creative writing - philosophical contemplation - environmental appreciation Key Concepts Cosmos aurora borealis human yearning Questions to Reflect On - How does nature influence personal identity? - What can we learn from feeling both vulnerable and expansive? A Different Perspective The poetic tone may romanticize harsh realities. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Northern lights](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/northern-lights/) ## Related quotes > [Not caring about the gazillions of chips I've just eaten because I had to walk all the way there in the freezing cold, burning…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/not-caring-about-the-gazillions-of-chips-i-ve-just-eaten-because-i/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [“Sometimes at Christmas she would slip into neighborhoods just like this one. She would walk along the streets and peer into windows at family…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/thea-harrison/sometimes-at-christmas-she-would-slip-into-neighborhoods-just-like/) [Thea Harrison](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/thea-harrison/) > [“He glanced up at the sky, but the stars were washed out behind the glare of the stadium lights. 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I had wanted…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nathan-hill/i-saw-the-northern-lights-once-in-upper-alberta-i-booked-a-trip-with/) [Nathan Hill](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nathan-hill/) > [“Like a huge domed tent of some fabulous, golden fabric, the northern lights displayed their splendour in a beautiful, swaying, rhythmic movement that glittered…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mary-j-macleod/like-a-huge-domed-tent-of-some-fabulous-golden-fabric-the-northern/) [Mary J. Macleod](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mary-j-macleod/) > [“One had heard and read a great deal about death, and even seen a little of it, and knew by heart the thousand commonplaces…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/henry-adams/one-had-heard-and-read-a-great-deal-about-death-and-even-seen-a/) [Henry Adams](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/henry-adams/) ## More by Eowyn Ivey > [“It was beautiful, Mabel knew, but it was a beauty that ripped you open and scored you clean so that you were left helpless…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/eowyn-ivey/it-was-beautiful-mabel-knew-but-it-was-a-beauty-that-ripped-you-open/) [Eowyn Ivey](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/eowyn-ivey/) > [“Makes me see that there might be some sense to having children after all, just so your entire life and all your family’s contributions…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/eowyn-ivey/makes-me-see-that-there-might-be-some-sense-to-having-children-after/) [Eowyn Ivey](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/eowyn-ivey/) > [“She and Jack had formed her of snow and birch boughs and frosty wild grass.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/eowyn-ivey/she-and-jack-had-formed-her-of-snow-and-birch-boughs-and-frosty-wild/) [Eowyn Ivey](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/eowyn-ivey/) > [“You’ll drive yourself crazy looking for something that’s not there.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/eowyn-ivey/you-ll-drive-yourself-crazy-looking-for-something-that-s-not-there/) [Eowyn Ivey](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/eowyn-ivey/) > [“She might be curt and ungrateful, but by God she could bake.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/eowyn-ivey/she-might-be-curt-and-ungrateful-but-by-god-she-could-bake/) [Eowyn Ivey](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/eowyn-ivey/) > [“And if it is true...that we are each inhabited by some bit of divine light, then upon death, how long before those particles dissipate…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/eowyn-ivey/and-if-it-is-true-that-we-are-each-inhabited-by-some-bit-of-divine/) [Eowyn Ivey](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/eowyn-ivey/) > [“Carry me on and on to the edge of the earth, with children's laughter like a wind - full sail, then carry me beyond”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/eowyn-ivey/carry-me-on-and-on-to-the-edge-of-the-earth-with-children-s-laughter/) [Eowyn Ivey](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/eowyn-ivey/) > [“When she first fell in love with Jack, she had dreamed she could fly, that on a warm, inky black night she had pushed…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/eowyn-ivey/when-she-first-fell-in-love-with-jack-she-had-dreamed-she-could-fly/) [Eowyn Ivey](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/eowyn-ivey/) > [“But what makes the question of cultural loss the most uncomfortable, and difficult for me to address, are the inherent definitions built into it.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/eowyn-ivey/but-what-makes-the-question-of-cultural-loss-the-most-uncomfortable/) [Eowyn Ivey](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/eowyn-ivey/) > [“Sewing was different. Mabel knew if she was patient and meticulous, if she carefully followed the lines, took each step as it came, and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/eowyn-ivey/sewing-was-different-mabel-knew-if-she-was-patient-and-meticulous-if/) [Eowyn Ivey](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/eowyn-ivey/) > [“As Jack's eyes grew accustomed to the darkness, he saw the ground covered in white and, in the light of Garrett"s lantern, snowflakes spinning…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/eowyn-ivey/as-jack-s-eyes-grew-accustomed-to-the-darkness-he-saw-the-ground/) [Eowyn Ivey](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/eowyn-ivey/) > [“Doubt crouched over his shoulder, ready to take him by the throat, whispering in his ear, You are an old man. An old, old…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/eowyn-ivey/doubt-crouched-over-his-shoulder-ready-to-take-him-by-the-throat/) [Eowyn Ivey](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/eowyn-ivey/) > [“All her life she had believed in something more, in the mystery that shape-shifted at the edge of her senses. It was the flutter…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/eowyn-ivey/all-her-life-she-had-believed-in-something-more-in-the-mystery-that/) [Eowyn Ivey](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/eowyn-ivey/) > [“In my old age, I see that life itself is often more fantastic and terrible than the stories we believed as children, and that…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/eowyn-ivey/in-my-old-age-i-see-that-life-itself-is-often-more-fantastic-and/) [Eowyn Ivey](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/eowyn-ivey/) > [“I see that life itself is often more fantastic and terrible than the stories we believed as children, and that perhaps there is no…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/eowyn-ivey/i-see-that-life-itself-is-often-more-fantastic-and-terrible-than-the/) [Eowyn Ivey](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/eowyn-ivey/) [Explore all 84 Eowyn Ivey quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/eowyn-ivey/) ## More Northern lights quotes > [“One had heard and read a great deal about death, and even seen a little of it, and knew by heart the thousand commonplaces…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/henry-adams/one-had-heard-and-read-a-great-deal-about-death-and-even-seen-a/) [Henry Adams](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/henry-adams/) > [“Like a huge domed tent of some fabulous, golden fabric, the northern lights displayed their splendour in a beautiful, swaying, rhythmic movement that glittered…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mary-j-macleod/like-a-huge-domed-tent-of-some-fabulous-golden-fabric-the-northern/) [Mary J. Macleod](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mary-j-macleod/) > [“I saw the northern lights once. In upper Alberta. I booked a trip with this outfit called See the Northern Lights! I had wanted…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nathan-hill/i-saw-the-northern-lights-once-in-upper-alberta-i-booked-a-trip-with/) [Nathan Hill](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nathan-hill/) > [In fact, in the far North one sees the northern lights facing south!](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/vincent-massey/in-fact-in-the-far-north-one-sees-the-northern-lights-facing-south/) [Vincent Massey](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/vincent-massey/) > [“The predicted USA aurora was a bust! The solar radiation definitely arrived, as people had strange fatigue and pains in Oregon, USA on the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/steven-magee/the-predicted-usa-aurora-was-a-bust-the-solar-radiation-definitely/) [Steven Magee](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/steven-magee/) > [“No sky Leila had seen before could compare to the beauty she was seeing above her. It didn't feel like some accident of nature…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/adi-alsaid/no-sky-leila-had-seen-before-could-compare-to-the-beauty-she-was/) [Adi Alsaid](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/adi-alsaid/) > [“Villages that had been groaning beneath the iron weight of Stalin’s hand breathed a sigh of relief. And the many millions confined in the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/vasily-grossman/villages-that-had-been-groaning-beneath-the-iron-weight-of-stalin-s/) [Vasily Grossman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/vasily-grossman/) > [There is the myth that writing books for children is easier than writing books for grownups, whereas we know that truly great books for…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-morpurgo/there-is-the-myth-that-writing-books-for-children-is-easier-than/) [Michael Morpurgo](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michael-morpurgo/) > [“Longstreet’s men took up on Marye’s Heights. The Northern soldiers were mowed down again and again. As men lay dying on the field that…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/charles-river-editors/longstreet-s-men-took-up-on-marye-s-heights-the-northern-soldiers/) [Charles River Editors](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/charles-river-editors/) > [Once upon a time, the Reindeer took a running leap and jumped over the Northern Lights. But he jumped too low, and the long…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/vera-nazarian/once-upon-a-time-the-reindeer-took-a-running-leap-and-jumped-over-the/) [Vera Nazarian](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/vera-nazarian/) > [“screamed night and day, blotted out the starlit skies and Northern Lights with flashing red strobes, slaughtered thousands of bats and entire flocks of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mike-bond/screamed-night-and-day-blotted-out-the-starlit-skies-and-northern/) [Mike Bond](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mike-bond/) > [“Now here it was after all, preserved by some considerate hand with varnisch and wax. Preserved along with it, like stale air in an…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-knowles/now-here-it-was-after-all-preserved-by-some-considerate-hand-with/) [John Knowles](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-knowles/) > [I try to show everybody Iceland all the time. My people are like, "Don't tell everybody the secret. It's so peaceful and beautiful here!"…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anita-briem/i-try-to-show-everybody-iceland-all-the-time-my-people-are-like-don-t/) Anita Briem > [“My estimate for the northern lights in Oregon being predicted correctly seems to be about 5% accuracy.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/steven-magee/my-estimate-for-the-northern-lights-in-oregon-being-predicted/) [Steven Magee](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/steven-magee/) > [“Directly overhead the Milky Way was as distinct as a highway across the sky. The constellations shown brilliantly, except the north, where they were…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/philip-caputo/directly-overhead-the-milky-way-was-as-distinct-as-a-highway-across/) [Philip Caputo](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/philip-caputo/) [Browse all 34 Northern lights quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/northern-lights/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "“She looked directly up into the northern lights and she wondered if those cold-burning spectres might not draw her breath, her very soul, out of her chest and into the stars.”", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "Eowyn Ivey" }, "isPartOf": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website" }, "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/eowyn-ivey/she-looked-directly-up-into-the-northern-lights-and-she-wondered-if/", "about": { "@type": "Thing", "name": "Northern lights" }, "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/eowyn-ivey/she-looked-directly-up-into-the-northern-lights-and-she-wondered-if/#quotation", "image": { "@type": "ImageObject", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/bf5/eowyn-ivey-7989_northern-lights_she-looked-directly-up-into-the-northern_429950.jpg", "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/bf5/eowyn-ivey-7989_northern-lights_she-looked-directly-up-into-the-northern_429950.jpg", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/bf5/eowyn-ivey-7989_northern-lights_she-looked-directly-up-into-the-northern_429950.jpg", "width": 1080, "height": 1080, "caption": "“She looked directly up into the northern lights and she wondered if those cold-burning spectres might not…” — Eowyn Ivey", "creditText": "SMS4Smile Quotes", "creator": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization" } } }, { "@type": "BreadcrumbList", "itemListElement": [ { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 1, "name": "Home", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 2, "name": "Quotes", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 3, "name": "Eowyn Ivey", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/eowyn-ivey/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 4, "name": "“She looked directly up into the...", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/eowyn-ivey/she-looked-directly-up-into-the-northern-lights-and-she-wondered-if/" } ], "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/eowyn-ivey/she-looked-directly-up-into-the-northern-lights-and-she-wondered-if/#breadcrumb" }, { "@type": "WebSite", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website", "name": "SMS4Smile Quotes", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/", "publisher": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization" } }, { "@type": "Organization", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization", "name": "SMS4Smile Quotes", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/", "logo": { "@type": "ImageObject", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/wp-content/themes/sq/assets/icons/icon-512.png", "width": 512, "height": 512 } } ] } ```