--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: It would be nice if our lives were a…" description: "\"It would be nice if our lives were a canvas and all our decisions were based by painting by the numbers. You see the color blue for the right job. You ..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/161/eugene-nathaniel-butler-4034_artist_it-would-be-nice-if-our-lives-were-a-can_322478.jpg" --- # It would be nice if our lives were a canvas and all our… ![“It would be nice if our lives were a canvas and all our decisions were based by painting by the numbers. You see the color blue for the right job. You see red for the right relationship. You see green for the right friends. Every decision, color-coded, can be put in its proper place on your…” quote by Eugene Nathaniel Butler](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/161/eugene-nathaniel-butler-4034_artist_it-would-be-nice-if-our-lives-were-a-can_322478.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/161/eugene-nathaniel-butler-4034_artist_it-would-be-nice-if-our-lives-were-a-can_322478.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/161/eugene-nathaniel-butler-4034_artist_it-would-be-nice-if-our-lives-were-a-can_322478.jpg) > “It would be nice if our lives were a canvas and all our decisions were based by painting by the numbers. You see the color blue for the right job. You see red for the right relationship. You see green for the right friends. Every decision, color-coded, can be put in its proper place on your canvas. Unfortunately, while our lives may be a canvas, there are no numbers to paint by, so we must paint by faith that each color, each decision is the right one.” [Eugene Nathaniel Butler](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/eugene-nathaniel-butler/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Life lacks a simple decision guide; we must trust intuition and faith in choices. **In simple terms:** Life has no clear guide; trust your instincts. Key Takeaway Embrace uncertainty and act with confidence. Themes decisionmaking uncertainty faith Mood reflective thoughtful Type philosophical inspirational When to use this quote - career choice - relationship selection - friendship building - personal development Key Concepts intuition color metaphor personal growth Questions to Reflect On - How do you navigate decisions without clear signs? - What role does intuition play in your life? A Different Perspective No universal method guarantees right choices. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Artist](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/artist/) [Color blue](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/color-blue/) [Decision](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/decision/) [Decision making](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/decision-making/) [Faith](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/faith/) [Friends](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/friends/) [Jobs](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/jobs/) [Life](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/life/) [Life lesson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/life-lesson/) [Making decisions](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/making-decisions/) [Painting](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/painting/) [Relationship advice](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/relationship-advice/) ## Related quotes > [I want to find myself a girl who can show me what laughter means, and we'll fill in the missing numbers in each others…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jackson-browne/i-want-to-find-myself-a-girl-who-can-show-me-what-laughter-means-and/) [Jackson Browne](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jackson-browne/) > [Pink is the color of strength, a color of conviction, a color of decision making.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/angad-bedi/pink-is-the-color-of-strength-a-color-of-conviction-a-color-of/) [Angad Bedi](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/angad-bedi/) > [Blue color is everlastingly appointed by the deity to be a source of delight.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-ruskin/blue-color-is-everlastingly-appointed-by-the-deity-to-be-a-source-of/) [John Ruskin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-ruskin/) > [Only female mosquitos bite and most are attracted to the color blue twice as much as to any other color](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/only-female-mosquitos-bite-and-most-are-attracted-to-the-color-blue/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [“I lean back into your body - memory is a shade of the color blue. Painted the walls white, the clocks went back an…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/eric-shaw/i-lean-back-into-your-body-memory-is-a-shade-of-the-color-blue/) Eric Shaw > [Each band or level, being a particular manifestation of the electromagnetic spectrum, is what it is only by virtue of the other bands. The…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ken-wilber/each-band-or-level-being-a-particular-manifestation-of-the/) [Ken Wilber](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ken-wilber/) > [“It's just like any relationship," Raelin told him with a grin, while Aldri practiced over and over again. "You need to coax her, persuade…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alexis-steinhauer/it-s-just-like-any-relationship-raelin-told-him-with-a-grin-while/) Alexis Steinhauer > [My favorite color is blue, and my secret favorite color is pink.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/paul-dano/my-favorite-color-is-blue-and-my-secret-favorite-color-is-pink/) [Paul Dano](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/paul-dano/) > [“Anna watched as Abel walked across the empty schoolyard, she wondered whether there was a limit to desolation or whether it grew endlessly, infinitely.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/antonia-michaelis/anna-watched-as-abel-walked-across-the-empty-schoolyard-she-wondered/) [Antonia Michaelis](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/antonia-michaelis/) > [You know harmony only exists in music-isn't that amazing? I think that if you see earth from very far away, the color is blue.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/yoko-ono/you-know-harmony-only-exists-in-music-isn-t-that-amazing-i-think-that/) [Yoko Ono](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/yoko-ono/) > [“How do you know, when you think blue — when you say blue — that you are talking about the same blue as anyone else? You…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/christopher-moore/how-do-you-know-when-you-think-blue-when-you-say-blue-that-you-are/) [Christopher Moore](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/christopher-moore/) > [We all have one idea of what the color blue is, but pressed to describe it specifically, there are so many ways: the ocean,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sarah-dessen/we-all-have-one-idea-of-what-the-color-blue-is-but-pressed-to/) [Sarah Dessen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sarah-dessen/) > [“Somewhere in the cosmos, he said, along with all the planets inhabited by humanoids, reptiloids, fishoids, walking treeoids and superintelligent shades of the color…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/douglas-adams/somewhere-in-the-cosmos-he-said-along-with-all-the-planets-inhabited/) [Douglas Adams](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/douglas-adams/) > [Blue has no dimensions, it is beyond dimensions.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/yves-klein/blue-has-no-dimensions-it-is-beyond-dimensions/) [Yves Klein](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/yves-klein/) > [“love ice cream, I love pancakes, I love the color blue — bullshit. Because when I said love — I meant I bled for…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rachel-van-dyken/love-ice-cream-i-love-pancakes-i-love-the-color-blue-bullshit-because/) [Rachel Van Dyken](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rachel-van-dyken/) ## More by Eugene Nathaniel Butler > [True love or the lack thereof, sometimes works in mysterious ways. One minute your world is spinning in one direction, you meet someone and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/eugene-nathaniel-butler/true-love-or-the-lack-thereof-sometimes-works-in-mysterious-ways-one/) [Eugene Nathaniel Butler](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/eugene-nathaniel-butler/) > [If God gives you wisdom in sunshine to know the difference between Mr. Right or Mr. Wrong, don't blame Him when the storms roll…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/eugene-nathaniel-butler/if-god-gives-you-wisdom-in-sunshine-to-know-the-difference-between-mr/) [Eugene Nathaniel Butler](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/eugene-nathaniel-butler/) > [God gifts us this one life and it amazes me that so many neglect their own lives because they are consumed with the lives…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/eugene-nathaniel-butler/god-gifts-us-this-one-life-and-it-amazes-me-that-so-many-neglect/) [Eugene Nathaniel Butler](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/eugene-nathaniel-butler/) > [Every good girl in her life has thought she had chemistry with a bad boy at one point or another. After a while, roles…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/eugene-nathaniel-butler/every-good-girl-in-her-life-has-thought-she-had-chemistry-with-a-bad/) [Eugene Nathaniel Butler](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/eugene-nathaniel-butler/) > [Sometimes it's better to die happy and alone, than to wish your we're dead in a bad relationship.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/eugene-nathaniel-butler/sometimes-it-s-better-to-die-happy-and-alone-than-to-wish-your-we-re/) [Eugene Nathaniel Butler](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/eugene-nathaniel-butler/) > [Just because you cry doesn't mean you are weak, it's one way your heart expresses itself through your eyes. Just because you give up…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/eugene-nathaniel-butler/just-because-you-cry-doesn-t-mean-you-are-weak-it-s-one-way-your/) [Eugene Nathaniel Butler](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/eugene-nathaniel-butler/) > [I've been trying to avoid my problems, and I don't know what to do. I get high, but when I come down, my problems…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/eugene-nathaniel-butler/i-ve-been-trying-to-avoid-my-problems-and-i-don-t-know-what-to-do-i/) [Eugene Nathaniel Butler](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/eugene-nathaniel-butler/) > [Change in a person happens not because YOU want it to happen, it happens when the person who needs to change, wants to change.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/eugene-nathaniel-butler/change-in-a-person-happens-not-because-you-want-it-to-happen-it/) [Eugene Nathaniel Butler](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/eugene-nathaniel-butler/) > [Before You pull a man's card when he makes you mad (AKA, Be a Man!), how bout first checking his card (AKA, Are you…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/eugene-nathaniel-butler/before-you-pull-a-man-s-card-when-he-makes-you-mad-aka-be-a-man-how/) [Eugene Nathaniel Butler](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/eugene-nathaniel-butler/) > [That moment when someone reiterates something for the zillion time and you are thinking, she just beat the horse to death, resurrected the horse,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/eugene-nathaniel-butler/that-moment-when-someone-reiterates-something-for-the-zillion-time/) [Eugene Nathaniel Butler](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/eugene-nathaniel-butler/) > [What is a legacy to a child? Is it about the money or property you leave to them? Is it all about how many…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/eugene-nathaniel-butler/what-is-a-legacy-to-a-child-is-it-about-the-money-or-property-you/) [Eugene Nathaniel Butler](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/eugene-nathaniel-butler/) > [Sometimes you have to ride over the bumps in the road to avoid running off a cliff. Other times you may have to fall…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/eugene-nathaniel-butler/sometimes-you-have-to-ride-over-the-bumps-in-the-road-to-avoid/) [Eugene Nathaniel Butler](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/eugene-nathaniel-butler/) > [A Word about Players: Ladies, what makes a player is that his ego is fed by the ability to be with multiple women. So,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/eugene-nathaniel-butler/a-word-about-players-ladies-what-makes-a-player-is-that-his-ego-is/) [Eugene Nathaniel Butler](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/eugene-nathaniel-butler/) > [If most folks had to produce facts before they could utter a word...they would be rended silent.~ENB](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/eugene-nathaniel-butler/if-most-folks-had-to-produce-facts-before-they-could-utter-a-word/) [Eugene Nathaniel Butler](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/eugene-nathaniel-butler/) > [Please don't blame or scapegoat love for being stupid. You look in your man's wallet and see his license has him ten years older…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/eugene-nathaniel-butler/please-don-t-blame-or-scapegoat-love-for-being-stupid-you-look-in/) [Eugene Nathaniel Butler](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/eugene-nathaniel-butler/) [Explore all 117 Eugene Nathaniel Butler quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/eugene-nathaniel-butler/) ## More Artist quotes > [One is a painter because one wants so-called freedom; one doesn't want to go to the office every morning.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/marcel-duchamp/one-is-a-painter-because-one-wants-so-called-freedom-one-doesn-t-want/) [Marcel Duchamp](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/marcel-duchamp/) > [True works of art contain their own theory and give us the measurement according to which we should judge them.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/johann-wolfgang-von-goethe/true-works-of-art-contain-their-own-theory-and-give-us-the/) [Johann Wolfgang von Goethe](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/johann-wolfgang-von-goethe/) > [I think most artists feel like they're outside society - no matter how many accolades they receive, or how much money is in your…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/aaron-rose/i-think-most-artists-feel-like-they-re-outside-society-no-matter-how/) [Aaron Rose](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/aaron-rose/) > [“People in coats and ties were milling around the Talley gallery, and on the wall were the minimally rendered still lifes by Giorgio Morandi,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/steve-martin/people-in-coats-and-ties-were-milling-around-the-talley-gallery-and/) [Steve Martin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/steve-martin/) > [The prophet who fails to present a bearable alternative and yet preaches doom is part of the trap that he postulates. Not only does…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/margaret-mead/the-prophet-who-fails-to-present-a-bearable-alternative-and-yet/) [Margaret Mead](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/margaret-mead/) > [“So, really," continued Jacob as if this were perfectly normal to expound on art in these circumstances, "when you think about it, the artists…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/justina-chen-headley/so-really-continued-jacob-as-if-this-were-perfectly-normal-to-expound/) [Justina Chen Headley](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/justina-chen-headley/) > [“There are two options in art; either to adopt philosophical life by dissecting art, or to write your own philosophical life and claim it…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/taf-teh/there-are-two-options-in-art-either-to-adopt-philosophical-life-by/) Taf Teh > [From as long as I can remember, I was always fond of drawing.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/st-lucia/from-as-long-as-i-can-remember-i-was-always-fond-of-drawing/) [St. Lucia](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/st-lucia/) > [I think a business guy is different from an artist. They walk different paths. Artists create the best outputs when they're having fun. And…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/g-dragon/i-think-a-business-guy-is-different-from-an-artist-they-walk/) [G-Dragon](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/g-dragon/) > [The sublime in art is the attempt to express the infinite without finding in the realm of phenomena any object which proves itself fitting…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/georg-wilhelm-friedrich-hegel/the-sublime-in-art-is-the-attempt-to-express-the-infinite-without/) [Georg Wilhelm Friedrich Hegel](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/georg-wilhelm-friedrich-hegel/) > [Art isn't done to decorate apartments, but to wage war against the enemy.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/pablo-picasso/art-isn-t-done-to-decorate-apartments-but-to-wage-war-against-the/) [Pablo Picasso](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/pablo-picasso/) > [Designers shouldn’t design for museums any more than mummies should die for them.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ralph-caplan/designers-shouldn-t-design-for-museums-any-more-than-mummies-should/) [Ralph Caplan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ralph-caplan/) > [I don't believe in competitions between artists. This is insane. Who has the authority to say someone is better?](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alan-arkin/i-don-t-believe-in-competitions-between-artists-this-is-insane-who/) [Alan Arkin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alan-arkin/) > [I am not the avant-garde. I am the artist who comes after the advancing guard. I am more concerned with continuity of ideas and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nathan-oliveira/i-am-not-the-avant-garde-i-am-the-artist-who-comes-after-the/) [Nathan Oliveira](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nathan-oliveira/) > [I am a horrible visual artist. I can't fix a car, sew, knit, cook, etc. Statistically, there is more I don't do than do.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/carrie-brownstein/i-am-a-horrible-visual-artist-i-can-t-fix-a-car-sew-knit-cook-etc/) [Carrie Brownstein](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/carrie-brownstein/) [Browse all 32,600 Artist quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/artist/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "It would be nice if our lives were a canvas and all our decisions were based by painting by the numbers. You see the color blue for the right job. You see red for the right relationship. You see green for the right friends. Every decision, color-coded, can be put in its proper place on your canvas. 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