--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: What has puzzled us before seems less…" description: "\"What has puzzled us before seems less mysterious, and the crooked paths look straighter as we approach the end\" — Jean Paul Richter" image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/df6/jean-paul-richter-36813_mystery_what-has-puzzled-us-before-seems-less-my_2109048.jpg" --- # What has puzzled us before seems less mysterious, and the… ![“What has puzzled us before seems less mysterious, and the crooked paths look straighter as we approach the end” quote by Jean Paul Richter](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/df6/jean-paul-richter-36813_mystery_what-has-puzzled-us-before-seems-less-my_2109048.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/df6/jean-paul-richter-36813_mystery_what-has-puzzled-us-before-seems-less-my_2109048.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/df6/jean-paul-richter-36813_mystery_what-has-puzzled-us-before-seems-less-my_2109048.jpg) > “What has puzzled us before seems less mysterious, and the crooked paths look straighter as we approach the end” [Jean Paul Richter](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jean-paul-richter/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. When we near a goal, uncertainty fades and obstacles appear simpler. **In simple terms:** Near the end, things seem clearer. Key Takeaway Embrace progress, trust the process. Themes clarity perspective goal‑completion Mood reflective optimistic Type advice philosophical When to use this quote - project completion - long‑term planning - personal milestones Key Concepts psychology cognitive bias goal‑setting Questions to Reflect On - What assumptions change as you near completion? - How can you prepare for hidden difficulties? A Different Perspective The clarity may be illusionary; challenges can still arise. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Crooked Paths](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/crooked-paths-3243029/) [Mysterious](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/mysterious/) [Mysterious Crooked](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/mysterious-crooked-4249265/) [Mystery](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/mystery/) [Paths Look](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/paths-look-4249266/) [Puzzled Mysterious](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/puzzled-mysterious-4249267/) ## Related quotes > [“My son, you've seen the temporary fire and the eternal fire; you have reached the place past which my powers cannot see. I've brought…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dante-alighieri/my-son-you-ve-seen-the-temporary-fire-and-the-eternal-fire-you-have/) [Dante Alighieri](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dante-alighieri/) > [Though a hundred crooked paths may conduct to a temporary success, the one plain and straight path of public and private virtue can alone…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/though-a-hundred-crooked-paths-may-conduct-to-a-temporary-success-the/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [Whoever believes in a God at all, believes in an infinite mystery; and if the existence of God is such an infinite mystery, we…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ichabod-spencer/whoever-believes-in-a-god-at-all-believes-in-an-infinite-mystery-and/) [Ichabod Spencer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ichabod-spencer/) > [“And when I’d settled down, I considered the possibility that I wasn’t yet ready to ask for the love of anyone because I had…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/steven-decker/and-when-i-d-settled-down-i-considered-the-possibility-that-i-wasn-t/) [Steven Decker](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/steven-decker/) > [A blue eye is a true eye; Mysterious is a dark one, Which flashes like a spark sun! A black eye is the best…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-rounseville-alger/a-blue-eye-is-a-true-eye-mysterious-is-a-dark-one-which-flashes-like/) [William Rounseville Alger](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-rounseville-alger/) > [Talking to other people about a part is not helpful for me. It's such an internal and complicated and still kind of mysterious process.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/casey-affleck/talking-to-other-people-about-a-part-is-not-helpful-for-me-it-s-such/) [Casey Affleck](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/casey-affleck/) > [I have thought that wild flowers might be the alphabet of angels, — whereby they write on hills and fields mysterious truths, which it…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/benjamin-franklin/i-have-thought-that-wild-flowers-might-be-the-alphabet-of-angels/) [Benjamin Franklin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/benjamin-franklin/) > [Like a morning dream, life becomes more and more bright the longer we live, and the reason of everything appears more clear. What has…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jean-paul/like-a-morning-dream-life-becomes-more-and-more-bright-the-longer-we/) [Jean Paul](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jean-paul/) > [Translation is entirely mysterious. Increasingly I have felt that the art of writing is itself translating, or more like translating than it is like…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ursula-k-le-guin/translation-is-entirely-mysterious-increasingly-i-have-felt-that-the/) [Ursula K. Le Guin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ursula-k-le-guin/) > [Flowers are the alphabet of angels, whereby they write on the hills and fields mysterious truths.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/benjamin-franklin/flowers-are-the-alphabet-of-angels-whereby-they-write-on-the-hills/) [Benjamin Franklin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/benjamin-franklin/) > [I find the family the most mysterious and fascinating institution in the world.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/amos-oz/i-find-the-family-the-most-mysterious-and-fascinating-institution-in/) [Amos Oz](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/amos-oz/) > [Every wife ought to answer for her man. If the husband be engaged in a seditious club, or drinks mysterious healths, or be frugal…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joseph-addison/every-wife-ought-to-answer-for-her-man-if-the-husband-be-engaged-in-a/) [Joseph Addison](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joseph-addison/) > [In recent years my understanding of God had evolved into increasingly remote abstractions. I'd come to think of God in terms like Divine Reality,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sue-monk-kidd/in-recent-years-my-understanding-of-god-had-evolved-into-increasingly/) [Sue Monk Kidd](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sue-monk-kidd/) > [I've come to believe that whoever I am didn't start on December 14, 1946, and isn't going to end on whatever that mysterious date…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/patty-duke/i-ve-come-to-believe-that-whoever-i-am-didn-t-start-on-december-14/) [Patty Duke](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/patty-duke/) > [The creator of the universe works in mysterious ways. But he uses a base ten counting system and likes round numbers.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/scott-adams/the-creator-of-the-universe-works-in-mysterious-ways-but-he-uses-a/) [Scott Adams](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/scott-adams/) ## More by Jean Paul Richter > [“A man never discloses his character so clearly as when he descibes another's”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jean-paul-richter/a-man-never-discloses-his-character-so-clearly-as-when-he-descibes/) [Jean Paul Richter](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jean-paul-richter/) > [Spring makes everything young again, save man](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jean-paul-richter/spring-makes-everything-young-again-save-man/) [Jean Paul Richter](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jean-paul-richter/) > [Birthdays are feathers in the broad wing of time](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jean-paul-richter/birthdays-are-feathers-in-the-broad-wing-of-time/) [Jean Paul Richter](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jean-paul-richter/) > [Anger wishes all mankind had only one neck; love, that it had only one heart](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jean-paul-richter/anger-wishes-all-mankind-had-only-one-neck-love-that-it-had-only-one/) [Jean Paul Richter](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jean-paul-richter/) > [The miracles of earth are the laws of heaven](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jean-paul-richter/the-miracles-of-earth-are-the-laws-of-heaven/) [Jean Paul Richter](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jean-paul-richter/) > [Do not wait for extraordinary situations to do good; try to use ordinary situations](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jean-paul-richter/do-not-wait-for-extraordinary-situations-to-do-good-try-to-use/) [Jean Paul Richter](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jean-paul-richter/) > [A timid person is frightened before a danger, a coward during the time, and a courageous person afterwards.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jean-paul-richter/a-timid-person-is-frightened-before-a-danger-a-coward-during-the-time-2/) [Jean Paul Richter](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jean-paul-richter/) > [As a rule, for no one does life drag more disagreeably than for him who tries to speed it up](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jean-paul-richter/as-a-rule-for-no-one-does-life-drag-more-disagreeably-than-for-him/) [Jean Paul Richter](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jean-paul-richter/) > [There are so many tender and holy emotions, flying about in out inward world, which, like angels, can never assume the body of an…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jean-paul-richter/there-are-so-many-tender-and-holy-emotions-flying-about-in-out-inward/) [Jean Paul Richter](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jean-paul-richter/) > [Cheerfulness is the atmosphere in which all things thrive](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jean-paul-richter/cheerfulness-is-the-atmosphere-in-which-all-things-thrive/) [Jean Paul Richter](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jean-paul-richter/) > [Our memories are the only paradise from which we can never be expelled.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jean-paul-richter/our-memories-are-the-only-paradise-from-which-we-can-never-be-expelled/) [Jean Paul Richter](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jean-paul-richter/) [Explore all 12 Jean Paul Richter quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jean-paul-richter/) ## More Mysterious quotes > [The creator of the universe works in mysterious ways. But he uses a base ten counting system and likes round numbers.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/scott-adams/the-creator-of-the-universe-works-in-mysterious-ways-but-he-uses-a/) [Scott Adams](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/scott-adams/) > [I've come to believe that whoever I am didn't start on December 14, 1946, and isn't going to end on whatever that mysterious date…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/patty-duke/i-ve-come-to-believe-that-whoever-i-am-didn-t-start-on-december-14/) [Patty Duke](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/patty-duke/) > [In recent years my understanding of God had evolved into increasingly remote abstractions. I'd come to think of God in terms like Divine Reality,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sue-monk-kidd/in-recent-years-my-understanding-of-god-had-evolved-into-increasingly/) [Sue Monk Kidd](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sue-monk-kidd/) > [Every wife ought to answer for her man. If the husband be engaged in a seditious club, or drinks mysterious healths, or be frugal…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joseph-addison/every-wife-ought-to-answer-for-her-man-if-the-husband-be-engaged-in-a/) [Joseph Addison](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joseph-addison/) > [I find the family the most mysterious and fascinating institution in the world.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/amos-oz/i-find-the-family-the-most-mysterious-and-fascinating-institution-in/) [Amos Oz](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/amos-oz/) > [Flowers are the alphabet of angels, whereby they write on the hills and fields mysterious truths.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/benjamin-franklin/flowers-are-the-alphabet-of-angels-whereby-they-write-on-the-hills/) [Benjamin Franklin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/benjamin-franklin/) > [Translation is entirely mysterious. Increasingly I have felt that the art of writing is itself translating, or more like translating than it is like…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ursula-k-le-guin/translation-is-entirely-mysterious-increasingly-i-have-felt-that-the/) [Ursula K. Le Guin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ursula-k-le-guin/) > [Like a morning dream, life becomes more and more bright the longer we live, and the reason of everything appears more clear. What has…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jean-paul/like-a-morning-dream-life-becomes-more-and-more-bright-the-longer-we/) [Jean Paul](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jean-paul/) > [I have thought that wild flowers might be the alphabet of angels, — whereby they write on hills and fields mysterious truths, which it…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/benjamin-franklin/i-have-thought-that-wild-flowers-might-be-the-alphabet-of-angels/) [Benjamin Franklin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/benjamin-franklin/) > [“And when I’d settled down, I considered the possibility that I wasn’t yet ready to ask for the love of anyone because I had…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/steven-decker/and-when-i-d-settled-down-i-considered-the-possibility-that-i-wasn-t/) [Steven Decker](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/steven-decker/) > [Talking to other people about a part is not helpful for me. It's such an internal and complicated and still kind of mysterious process.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/casey-affleck/talking-to-other-people-about-a-part-is-not-helpful-for-me-it-s-such/) [Casey Affleck](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/casey-affleck/) > [A blue eye is a true eye; Mysterious is a dark one, Which flashes like a spark sun! A black eye is the best…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-rounseville-alger/a-blue-eye-is-a-true-eye-mysterious-is-a-dark-one-which-flashes-like/) [William Rounseville Alger](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-rounseville-alger/) > [Songwriting is such a mysterious thing. Its a magical channel thats a gift to you and you cant really conjure it up when you…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mike-campbell/songwriting-is-such-a-mysterious-thing-its-a-magical-channel-thats-a/) [Mike Campbell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mike-campbell/) > [War is thus divine in itself, since it is a law of the world. War is divine through its consequences of a supernatural nature…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joseph-de-maistre/war-is-thus-divine-in-itself-since-it-is-a-law-of-the-world-war-is/) [Joseph de Maistre](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joseph-de-maistre/) > [I just like guys who have an edge to them. But it could go either way. Like, I have been into the surfer blond…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ashley-tisdale/i-just-like-guys-who-have-an-edge-to-them-but-it-could-go-either-way/) [Ashley Tisdale](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ashley-tisdale/) [Browse all 1,858 Mysterious quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/mysterious/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "What has puzzled us before seems less mysterious, and the crooked paths look straighter as we approach the end", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "Jean Paul Richter" }, "isPartOf": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website" }, "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jean-paul-richter/what-has-puzzled-us-before-seems-less-mysterious-and-the-crooked/", "about": { "@type": "Thing", "name": "Mysterious" }, "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jean-paul-richter/what-has-puzzled-us-before-seems-less-mysterious-and-the-crooked/#quotation", "image": { "@type": "ImageObject", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/df6/jean-paul-richter-36813_mystery_what-has-puzzled-us-before-seems-less-my_2109048.jpg", "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/df6/jean-paul-richter-36813_mystery_what-has-puzzled-us-before-seems-less-my_2109048.jpg", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/df6/jean-paul-richter-36813_mystery_what-has-puzzled-us-before-seems-less-my_2109048.jpg", "width": 1080, "height": 1080, "caption": "“What has puzzled us before seems less mysterious, and the crooked paths look straighter as we approach the end” — Jean Paul Richter", "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": "Jean Paul Richter", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jean-paul-richter/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 4, "name": "What has puzzled us before seems...", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jean-paul-richter/what-has-puzzled-us-before-seems-less-mysterious-and-the-crooked/" } ], "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jean-paul-richter/what-has-puzzled-us-before-seems-less-mysterious-and-the-crooked/#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 } } ] } ```