--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: Writing is reporting what we saw after…" description: "\"Writing is reporting what we saw after the vision has left us. It is catching the fish which the tide has left far up on our shores in the low and depr..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/bd8/john-burroughs-1157_catching-fish_writing-is-reporting-what-we-saw-after-t_2213542.png" --- # Writing is reporting what we saw after the vision has left… ![“Writing is reporting what we saw after the vision has left us. It is catching the fish which the tide has left far up on our shores in the low and depressed places.” quote by John Burroughs](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/bd8/john-burroughs-1157_catching-fish_writing-is-reporting-what-we-saw-after-t_2213542.png) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/bd8/john-burroughs-1157_catching-fish_writing-is-reporting-what-we-saw-after-t_2213542.png) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/bd8/john-burroughs-1157_catching-fish_writing-is-reporting-what-we-saw-after-t_2213542.png) > “Writing is reporting what we saw after the vision has left us. It is catching the fish which the tide has left far up on our shores in the low and depressed places.” [John Burroughs](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-burroughs/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. The quote suggests that writing captures reality after imagination fades, retrieving overlooked details like fish stranded by a receding tide. **In simple terms:** Writing records reality after imagination fades, retrieving missed details. Key Takeaway Observe and document what is often ignored. Themes observation writing detail Mood reflective contemplative Type literary philosophical When to use this quote - nature journaling - journalistic reporting - creative nonfiction - historical documentation Key Concepts transcendence impermanence Questions to Reflect On - How do you ensure you capture truth, not just what you wish to see? - What details do you overlook in daily life? A Different Perspective It may romanticize the act of writing, ignoring the writer’s bias. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Catching fish](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/catching-fish/) [Dreams](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/dreams/) [Fish](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/fish/) [River](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/river/) [Vision](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/vision/) [Writing](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/writing/) ## Related quotes > [The vision of the left, full of envy and resentment, takes its worst toll on those at the bottom - whether black or white…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/thomas-sowell/the-vision-of-the-left-full-of-envy-and-resentment-takes-its-worst/) [Thomas Sowell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/thomas-sowell/) > [We should be active leaders in the fight for civil liberties which adequately reflect present social realities. Furthermore the left as a movement must…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joseph-muscat/we-should-be-active-leaders-in-the-fight-for-civil-liberties-which/) [Joseph Muscat](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joseph-muscat/) > [Contrary to the vision of the left, it was the free market which produced affordable housing - before government intervention made housing unaffordable.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/thomas-sowell/contrary-to-the-vision-of-the-left-it-was-the-free-market-which/) [Thomas Sowell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/thomas-sowell/) > [Those parts of history that would undermine the vision of the Left - which prevails in our education system from elementary school to postgraduate…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/thomas-sowell/those-parts-of-history-that-would-undermine-the-vision-of-the-left/) [Thomas Sowell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/thomas-sowell/) > [I have better peripheral vision in my left. It is quite hard to remain optimistic, but I have found the Macular Society, of whom…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/denis-norden/i-have-better-peripheral-vision-in-my-left-it-is-quite-hard-to-remain/) [Denis Norden](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/denis-norden/) > [My life has been a fortunate one; I was born under a lucky star. It seems as if both wind and tide had favoured…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-burroughs/my-life-has-been-a-fortunate-one-i-was-born-under-a-lucky-star-it/) [John Burroughs](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-burroughs/) > [The Cruise missiles do not frighten anyone. We are catching them like fish in a river.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mohammed-saeed-al-sahaf/the-cruise-missiles-do-not-frighten-anyone-we-are-catching-them-like/) [Mohammed Saeed al-Sahaf](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mohammed-saeed-al-sahaf/) > [The fact that we're catching more fish per person than we've ever done before doesn't mean that there are not particular places where we've…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bjorn-lomborg/the-fact-that-we-re-catching-more-fish-per-person-than-we-ve-ever/) [Bjorn Lomborg](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bjorn-lomborg/) > [The finest gift you can give to any fisherman is to put a good fish back, and who knows if the fish that you…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lee-wulff/the-finest-gift-you-can-give-to-any-fisherman-is-to-put-a-good-fish/) [Lee Wulff](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lee-wulff/) > [“Catching fish is secondary to the immeasurable joys of the watery world.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/fennel-hudson/catching-fish-is-secondary-to-the-immeasurable-joys-of-the-watery/) [Fennel Hudson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/fennel-hudson/) > [Fly fishing is not about catching the fish. It is about enjoying the water, the breeze, the fish swimming all around. If you catch…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/clare-vanderpool/fly-fishing-is-not-about-catching-the-fish-it-is-about-enjoying-the/) [Clare Vanderpool](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/clare-vanderpool/) > [I have never cared about setting world records, or filling my boat with fish, or, for that matter, even catching fish. I go for…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jimmy-buffett/i-have-never-cared-about-setting-world-records-or-filling-my-boat/) [Jimmy Buffett](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jimmy-buffett/) > [There's more to fishing than catching fish. It's being lost in a timeless world, away from all the chaos outside, doing something that's elemental.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/paul-whitehouse/there-s-more-to-fishing-than-catching-fish-it-s-being-lost-in-a/) [Paul Whitehouse](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/paul-whitehouse/) > [Only those become weary of angling who bring nothing to it but the idea of catching fish.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rafael-sabatini/only-those-become-weary-of-angling-who-bring-nothing-to-it-but-the/) [Rafael Sabatini](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rafael-sabatini/) > [I was 3-years-old - to this day it is a vivid memory. My family and I were on a boat, catching fish. As one…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joaquin-phoenix/i-was-3-years-old-to-this-day-it-is-a-vivid-memory-my-family-and-i/) [Joaquin Phoenix](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joaquin-phoenix/) ## More by John Burroughs > [As life nears its end with me, I find myself meditating more and more upon the mystery of its nature and origin, yet without…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-burroughs/as-life-nears-its-end-with-me-i-find-myself-meditating-more-and-more/) [John Burroughs](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-burroughs/) > [Certainly in the United States, you have a constituency in the form of the weapons laboratories, and you also have the branches of the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-burroughs/certainly-in-the-united-states-you-have-a-constituency-in-the-form-of/) [John Burroughs](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-burroughs/) > [When Darwin published his conclusion that man was descended from an apelike ancestor who was again descended from a still lower type, most people…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-burroughs/when-darwin-published-his-conclusion-that-man-was-descended-from-an/) [John Burroughs](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-burroughs/) > [Science sees the process of evolution from the outside, as one might a train of cars going by, and resolves it into the physical…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-burroughs/science-sees-the-process-of-evolution-from-the-outside-as-one-might-a/) [John Burroughs](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-burroughs/) > [Maybe that will happen with other countries as well. And so, that's why one of the things that groups like mine that work for…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-burroughs/maybe-that-will-happen-with-other-countries-as-well-and-so-that-s-why/) [John Burroughs](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-burroughs/) > [One can only learn his powers of action by action, and his powers of thought by thinking](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-burroughs/one-can-only-learn-his-powers-of-action-by-action-and-his-powers-of/) [John Burroughs](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-burroughs/) > [I was born with a chronic anxiety about the weather.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-burroughs/i-was-born-with-a-chronic-anxiety-about-the-weather/) [John Burroughs](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-burroughs/) > [When the woodpecker is searching for food, or laying siege to some hidden grub, the sound of his hammer is dead or muffled and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-burroughs/when-the-woodpecker-is-searching-for-food-or-laying-siege-to-some/) [John Burroughs](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-burroughs/) > [In what bold relief stand out the lives of all walkers of the snow! The snow is a great tell-tale, and blabs as effectually…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-burroughs/in-what-bold-relief-stand-out-the-lives-of-all-walkers-of-the-snow/) [John Burroughs](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-burroughs/) > [In October, a maple tree before your window lights up your room like a great lamp. Even on cloudy days, its presence helps to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-burroughs/in-october-a-maple-tree-before-your-window-lights-up-your-room-like-a/) [John Burroughs](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-burroughs/) > [One can return to their place of birth, but one cannot go back to your youth.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-burroughs/one-can-return-to-their-place-of-birth-but-one-cannot-go-back-to-your/) [John Burroughs](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-burroughs/) > [I still find each day too short..](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-burroughs/i-still-find-each-day-too-short/) [John Burroughs](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-burroughs/) > [What a severe yet master artist old Winter is... No longer the canvas and the pigments, but the marble and the chisel...](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-burroughs/what-a-severe-yet-master-artist-old-winter-is-no-longer-the-canvas/) [John Burroughs](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-burroughs/) > [Following World War II, the U.S. was the architect of the UN system, and the world financial system, and the Human Rights Declaration, and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-burroughs/following-world-war-ii-the-u-s-was-the-architect-of-the-un-system-and/) [John Burroughs](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-burroughs/) > [“Go to the sea or climb the mountain, and with the ruggedest and the savagest you will find likewise the fairest and the most…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-burroughs/go-to-the-sea-or-climb-the-mountain-and-with-the-ruggedest-and-the/) [John Burroughs](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-burroughs/) [Explore all 281 John Burroughs quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-burroughs/) ## More Catching fish quotes > [I was 3-years-old - to this day it is a vivid memory. My family and I were on a boat, catching fish. As one…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joaquin-phoenix/i-was-3-years-old-to-this-day-it-is-a-vivid-memory-my-family-and-i/) [Joaquin Phoenix](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joaquin-phoenix/) > [Only those become weary of angling who bring nothing to it but the idea of catching fish.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rafael-sabatini/only-those-become-weary-of-angling-who-bring-nothing-to-it-but-the/) [Rafael Sabatini](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rafael-sabatini/) > [There's more to fishing than catching fish. It's being lost in a timeless world, away from all the chaos outside, doing something that's elemental.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/paul-whitehouse/there-s-more-to-fishing-than-catching-fish-it-s-being-lost-in-a/) [Paul Whitehouse](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/paul-whitehouse/) > [I have never cared about setting world records, or filling my boat with fish, or, for that matter, even catching fish. I go for…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jimmy-buffett/i-have-never-cared-about-setting-world-records-or-filling-my-boat/) [Jimmy Buffett](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jimmy-buffett/) > [Fly fishing is not about catching the fish. It is about enjoying the water, the breeze, the fish swimming all around. If you catch…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/clare-vanderpool/fly-fishing-is-not-about-catching-the-fish-it-is-about-enjoying-the/) [Clare Vanderpool](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/clare-vanderpool/) > [“Catching fish is secondary to the immeasurable joys of the watery world.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/fennel-hudson/catching-fish-is-secondary-to-the-immeasurable-joys-of-the-watery/) [Fennel Hudson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/fennel-hudson/) > [The finest gift you can give to any fisherman is to put a good fish back, and who knows if the fish that you…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lee-wulff/the-finest-gift-you-can-give-to-any-fisherman-is-to-put-a-good-fish/) [Lee Wulff](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lee-wulff/) > [The fact that we're catching more fish per person than we've ever done before doesn't mean that there are not particular places where we've…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bjorn-lomborg/the-fact-that-we-re-catching-more-fish-per-person-than-we-ve-ever/) [Bjorn Lomborg](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bjorn-lomborg/) > [The Cruise missiles do not frighten anyone. We are catching them like fish in a river.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mohammed-saeed-al-sahaf/the-cruise-missiles-do-not-frighten-anyone-we-are-catching-them-like/) [Mohammed Saeed al-Sahaf](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mohammed-saeed-al-sahaf/) > [“There are a million-and-one ways to enjoy a day’s angling. Catching fish is but one of them.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/fennel-hudson/there-are-a-million-and-one-ways-to-enjoy-a-day-s-angling-catching/) [Fennel Hudson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/fennel-hudson/) > [The sport of digging the bait is nearly equal to that of catching the fish, when one's appetite is not too keen.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/henry-david-thoreau/the-sport-of-digging-the-bait-is-nearly-equal-to-that-of-catching-the/) [Henry David Thoreau](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/henry-david-thoreau/) > [“In the bush he taught the knots I use to tie my blanket to my saddle Ds also the way I stand to use…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/peter-carey/in-the-bush-he-taught-the-knots-i-use-to-tie-my-blanket-to-my-saddle/) [Peter Carey](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/peter-carey/) > [The fishing was good; it was the catching that was bad.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/the-fishing-was-good-it-was-the-catching-that-was-bad/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [“All these anglers who claim that catching fish is secondary, that it’s the trip and being outdoors that counts, they are just liars! If…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/beyond-the-great-indoors-ingvar-ambj-rnsen/all-these-anglers-who-claim-that-catching-fish-is-secondary-that-it-s/) BEYOND THE GREAT INDOORS Ingvar Ambjørnsen > [Street Photography is like fishing. Catching the fish is more exciting than eating it.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/thomas-leuthard/street-photography-is-like-fishing-catching-the-fish-is-more-exciting/) [Thomas Leuthard](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/thomas-leuthard/) [Browse all 32 Catching fish quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/catching-fish/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "Writing is reporting what we saw after the vision has left us. 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