---
title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: We can't control forces of nature. But we…"
description: "\"We can't control forces of nature. But we can control what comes afterward. We have a chance to start fresh.\" — George W. P. Hunt"
image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/e7b/george-w-p-hunt-239658_chance_we-can-t-control-forces-of-nature-but-we_1849839.png"
---

#  We can't control forces of nature. But we can control what…

![“We can't control forces of nature. But we can control what comes afterward. We have a chance to start fresh.” quote by George W. P. Hunt](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/e7b/george-w-p-hunt-239658_chance_we-can-t-control-forces-of-nature-but-we_1849839.png)   [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/e7b/george-w-p-hunt-239658_chance_we-can-t-control-forces-of-nature-but-we_1849839.png) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/e7b/george-w-p-hunt-239658_chance_we-can-t-control-forces-of-nature-but-we_1849839.png)

> “We can't control forces of nature. But we can control what comes afterward. We have a chance to start fresh.”

George W. P. Hunt

## About This Quote

This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation.

Nature’s forces are beyond control, but we can shape our response and begin anew after events.

**In simple terms:** We cannot control nature, but we can control our aftermath.

Key Takeaway

Focus on post‑event actions.

Themes

control nature planning renewal agency

Mood

pragmatic hopeful

Type

advice philosophical

When to use this quote

- disaster recovery
- personal crisis
- environmental planning

Key Concepts

philosophy psychology risk management

Questions to Reflect On

- What can you prepare now for unexpected forces?
- How does planning after a crisis differ from prevention?

A Different Perspective

Control is limited to aftermath, not the initial event.

★ ★ ★ ★ ★   No ratings yet

[Chance](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/chance/) [Control](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/control/) [Forces of nature](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/forces-of-nature/) [Nature](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/nature/) [Planning](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/planning/) [Start Fresh](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/start-fresh/)

## Related quotes

> [The Gods are but names for the forces of Nature themselves.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/aleister-crowley/the-gods-are-but-names-for-the-forces-of-nature-themselves/)

[Aleister Crowley](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/aleister-crowley/)

> [Other things, like capitalism, free enterprise, the economy, currency, the market, are not forces of nature, we invented them. They are not immutable and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-suzuki/other-things-like-capitalism-free-enterprise-the-economy-currency-the/)

[David Suzuki](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-suzuki/)

> [We're all moving to a world where the forces of nature come closer together to technology.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/shilo-shiv-suleman/we-re-all-moving-to-a-world-where-the-forces-of-nature-come-closer/)

Shilo Shiv Suleman

> [It's amazing the gymnastics you can do when you don't want to do something. How you can force yourself against all the forces of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/elizabeth-taylor/it-s-amazing-the-gymnastics-you-can-do-when-you-don-t-want-to-do/)

[Elizabeth Taylor](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/elizabeth-taylor/)

> [YOU have meddled with the primal forces of nature and YOU! WILL! ATONE!](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/arthur-jensen/you-have-meddled-with-the-primal-forces-of-nature-and-you-will-atone/)

[Arthur Jensen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/arthur-jensen/)

> [Man cannot influence in this respect the atomic forces of Nature.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/frederick-soddy/man-cannot-influence-in-this-respect-the-atomic-forces-of-nature/)

[Frederick Soddy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/frederick-soddy/)

> [Forces of nature act in a mysterious manner. We can but solve the mystery by deducing the unknown result from the known results of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mahatma-gandhi/forces-of-nature-act-in-a-mysterious-manner-we-can-but-solve-the/)

[Mahatma Gandhi](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mahatma-gandhi/)

> [The desire that guides me in all I do is the desire to harness the forces of nature to the service of mankind.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nikola-tesla/the-desire-that-guides-me-in-all-i-do-is-the-desire-to-harness-the/)

[Nikola Tesla](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nikola-tesla/)

> [The imagination is one of the forces of nature.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/wallace-stevens/the-imagination-is-one-of-the-forces-of-nature/)

[Wallace Stevens](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/wallace-stevens/)

> [Men have gained control over the forces of nature to such an extent that with their help they would have no difficulty exterminating one…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sigmund-freud/men-have-gained-control-over-the-forces-of-nature-to-such-an-extent/)

[Sigmund Freud](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sigmund-freud/)

> [It was through the Second World War that most of us suddenlyappreciated for the first time the power of man's concentrated efforts to understand…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/vannevar-bush/it-was-through-the-second-world-war-that-most-of-us/)

[Vannevar Bush](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/vannevar-bush/)

> [The same forces of nature which enable us to fly to the stars, enable us also to destroy our star.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/wernher-von-braun/the-same-forces-of-nature-which-enable-us-to-fly-to-the-stars-enable/)

[Wernher von Braun](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/wernher-von-braun/)

> [The force of nonviolence is infinitely more wonderful and subtle than the material forces of nature, like electricity.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mahatma-gandhi/the-force-of-nonviolence-is-infinitely-more-wonderful-and-subtle-than/)

[Mahatma Gandhi](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mahatma-gandhi/)

> [“Those flawed in their nature have no control over themselves.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/th-ch-nh-t-h-nh/those-flawed-in-their-nature-have-no-control-over-themselves/)

[Thích Nhất Hạnh](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/th-ch-nh-t-h-nh/)

> [The more you try to crush your true nature, the more it will control you. Be what you are. No one who really loves…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/cassandra-clare/the-more-you-try-to-crush-your-true-nature-the-more-it-will-control/)

[Cassandra Clare](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/cassandra-clare/)

## More Chance quotes

> [Before I debuted, it was my goal to make my debut, and afterwards, I aimed at winning champion titles on television music shows, and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/hyuna/before-i-debuted-it-was-my-goal-to-make-my-debut-and-afterwards-i/)

[Hyuna](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/hyuna/)

> [I understand it's promotion, but no one ever gave me a chance. No one ever thought I'd be the champ, and look where I'm…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stipe-miocic/i-understand-it-s-promotion-but-no-one-ever-gave-me-a-chance-no-one/)

[Stipe Miocic](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stipe-miocic/)

> [I might, by chance, write something just as shoddy; But then I wouldn't show it to everybody.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/moliere/i-might-by-chance-write-something-just-as-shoddy-but-then-i-wouldn-t/)

[Moliere](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/moliere/)

> [When I get a chance to play golf or go on a boat with good people, take the boat out and put some lobsters…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bernie-mac/when-i-get-a-chance-to-play-golf-or-go-on-a-boat-with-good-people/)

[Bernie Mac](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bernie-mac/)

> [The happy medium is television. And if you find a good suitor, you can do it for years. With movies, you roll the dice.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bruce-campbell/the-happy-medium-is-television-and-if-you-find-a-good-suitor-you-can/)

[Bruce Campbell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bruce-campbell/)

> [I get afraid of the dark if I'm in a great deal of dark, and I have to move around inside of that fear...…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/emil-ferris/i-get-afraid-of-the-dark-if-i-m-in-a-great-deal-of-dark-and-i-have-to/)

[Emil Ferris](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/emil-ferris/)

> [I have heard that if you pull a bent breath through the second hole of a harmonica tuned to the key of Georgia while…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/buddy-wakefield/i-have-heard-that-if-you-pull-a-bent-breath-through-the-second-hole/)

[Buddy Wakefield](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/buddy-wakefield/)

> [There are times when we can feel destiny close around us like a fist around a doorknob. Sure, we can resist. But a knob…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tom-robbins/there-are-times-when-we-can-feel-destiny-close-around-us-like-a-fist/)

[Tom Robbins](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tom-robbins/)

> [Pain held no terror for him. Pain was, if not friend, then family, something he had grown up with in his crèche, learning to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/paolo-bacigalupi/pain-held-no-terror-for-him-pain-was-if-not-friend-then-family/)

[Paolo Bacigalupi](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/paolo-bacigalupi/)

> [Love changes people, for better or for worse. You could look at it as a chance for you to change. The best kind of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/love-changes-people-for-better-or-for-worse-you-could-look-at-it-as-a/)

[Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/)

> [“It's not who, it's when”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alejandro-taubas/it-s-not-who-it-s-when/)

Alejandro Taubas

> [Childhood is Last Chance Gulch for happiness. After that, you know too much.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tom-stoppard/childhood-is-last-chance-gulch-for-happiness-after-that-you-know-too/)

[Tom Stoppard](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tom-stoppard/)

> [I thought my first few jobs would just be off, off, off, off, off broadway. And by chance and how the world works, I…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tommy-dorfman/i-thought-my-first-few-jobs-would-just-be-off-off-off-off-off/)

[Tommy Dorfman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tommy-dorfman/)

> [If you’re worrying about the past, you’ve got a good chance of screwing up the future.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/howard-a-tullman/if-you-re-worrying-about-the-past-you-ve-got-a-good-chance-of/)

[Howard A. Tullman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/howard-a-tullman/)

> [To be successful, one must take chances.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/willie-stargell/to-be-successful-one-must-take-chances/)

[Willie Stargell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/willie-stargell/)

[Browse all 12,460 Chance quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/chance/)

```json
{
    "@context": "https://schema.org",
    "@graph": [
        {
            "@type": "Quotation",
            "text": "We can't control forces of nature. But we can control what comes afterward. We have a chance to start fresh.",
            "creator": {
                "@type": "Person",
                "name": "George W. P. Hunt"
            },
            "isPartOf": {
                "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website"
            },
            "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-w-p-hunt/we-can-t-control-forces-of-nature-but-we-can-control-what-comes/",
            "about": {
                "@type": "Thing",
                "name": "Chance"
            },
            "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-w-p-hunt/we-can-t-control-forces-of-nature-but-we-can-control-what-comes/#quotation",
            "image": {
                "@type": "ImageObject",
                "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/e7b/george-w-p-hunt-239658_chance_we-can-t-control-forces-of-nature-but-we_1849839.png",
                "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/e7b/george-w-p-hunt-239658_chance_we-can-t-control-forces-of-nature-but-we_1849839.png",
                "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/e7b/george-w-p-hunt-239658_chance_we-can-t-control-forces-of-nature-but-we_1849839.png",
                "width": 1080,
                "height": 1080,
                "caption": "“We can't control forces of nature. But we can control what comes afterward. We have a chance to start fresh.” — George W. P. Hunt",
                "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": "George W. P. Hunt",
                    "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-w-p-hunt/"
                },
                {
                    "@type": "ListItem",
                    "position": 4,
                    "name": "We can't control forces of nature....",
                    "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-w-p-hunt/we-can-t-control-forces-of-nature-but-we-can-control-what-comes/"
                }
            ],
            "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-w-p-hunt/we-can-t-control-forces-of-nature-but-we-can-control-what-comes/#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
            }
        }
    ]
}
```
