--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: Drawing circles through life struck me as…" description: "\"“Drawing circles through life struck me as a kind of reasonable insanity.”\" — John Green" image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/49e/john-green-12_circles_drawing-circles-through-life-struck-me-a_2610420.jpg" --- # Drawing circles through life struck me as a kind of… ![“Drawing circles through life struck me as a kind of reasonable insanity.” quote by John Green](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/49e/john-green-12_circles_drawing-circles-through-life-struck-me-a_2610420.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/49e/john-green-12_circles_drawing-circles-through-life-struck-me-a_2610420.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/49e/john-green-12_circles_drawing-circles-through-life-struck-me-a_2610420.jpg) > ““Drawing circles through life struck me as a kind of reasonable insanity.”” [John Green](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-green/) ## 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 repeating patterns in life feel both logical and absurd, reflecting the paradox of seeking order in chaos. **In simple terms:** Life’s patterns can seem both sensible and crazy. Key Takeaway Embrace the paradox of order and chaos. Themes creativity philosophy life paradox Mood reflective thoughtful Type philosophical inspirational When to use this quote - artistic process - daily routines - creative problem solving Key Concepts existentialism pattern recognition psychology Questions to Reflect On - How do you balance routine with spontaneity? - When does pattern become constraint? A Different Perspective The insight may overlook the value of consistency. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Circles](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/circles/) [Insanity](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/insanity/) [Life](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/life/) [Madness](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/madness/) ## Related quotes > [What happens if you start drawing squares? Well, I'd say the answer to that is, don't get famous for drawing circles.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/trey-anastasio/what-happens-if-you-start-drawing-squares-well-i-d-say-the-answer-to/) [Trey Anastasio](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/trey-anastasio/) > [“CIRCLES OF LIFE Everything Turns, Rotates, Spins, Circles, Loops, Pulsates, Resonates, And Repeats. Circles Of life, Born from Pulses Of light, Vibrate To Breathe,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/suzy-kassem/circles-of-life-everything-turns-rotates-spins-circles-loops-pulsates/) [Suzy Kassem](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/suzy-kassem/) > [As much circles u have in life, u have upgrade u quality life.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/unknow/as-much-circles-u-have-in-life-u-have-upgrade-u-quality-life/) Unknow > [Life is made up of circles ... Life is not a straight line ... And sometimes we circle back to a past time. But…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/patricia-maclachlan/life-is-made-up-of-circles-life-is-not-a-straight-line-and-sometimes/) [Patricia MacLachlan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/patricia-maclachlan/) > [It's horrible getting older. I mean, it's wonderful because you see the circles of life get completed. But it's horrible losing your looks.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/erica-jong/it-s-horrible-getting-older-i-mean-it-s-wonderful-because-you-see-the/) [Erica Jong](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/erica-jong/) > [I always liked routine. I suppose I never found boredom very boring. I doubted I could explain it to someone like Margo but drawing…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-green/i-always-liked-routine-i-suppose-i-never-found-boredom-very-boring-i/) [John Green](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-green/) > [“People who smile while they are alone used to be called insane, until we invented smartphones and social media.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mokokoma-mokhonoana/people-who-smile-while-they-are-alone-used-to-be-called-insane-until/) [Mokokoma Mokhonoana](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mokokoma-mokhonoana/) > [Madness is no madness when shared.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/zygmunt-bauman/madness-is-no-madness-when-shared/) [Zygmunt Bauman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/zygmunt-bauman/) > [“I keep thinking that insanity is a state where a person can’t tell what’s real. 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Every dominant passion generates a dominant fear, the fear…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bertrand-russell/every-isolated-passion-is-in-isolation-insane-sanity-may-be-defined/) [Bertrand Russell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bertrand-russell/) > [There is considerable danger that a man will be crazy between dinner and supper; but it will not directly answer any good purposethat I…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/henry-david-thoreau/there-is-considerable-danger-that-a-man-will-be-crazy-between-dinner/) [Henry David Thoreau](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/henry-david-thoreau/) > [I guess if everybody went crazy together nobody would notice.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/cormac-mccarthy/i-guess-if-everybody-went-crazy-together-nobody-would-notice/) [Cormac McCarthy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/cormac-mccarthy/) > [Everyone is on the verge of insanity ... insanity meaning on the verge of the unknown.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/frederick-lenz/everyone-is-on-the-verge-of-insanity-insanity-meaning-on-the-verge-of/) [Frederick Lenz](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/frederick-lenz/) > [“insanity is the inability to communicate your ideas. 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Pause](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-green/issac-i-dislike-living-in-a-world-without-augustus-waters-computer-i/) [John Green](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-green/) > [“I just want to stay away from people and read books and think”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-green/i-just-want-to-stay-away-from-people-and-read-books-and-think/) [John Green](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-green/) > [She smiled with all the delight of a kid on Christmas morning and said, "Y'all smoke to enjoy it. I smoke to die." -…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-green/she-smiled-with-all-the-delight-of-a-kid-on-christmas-morning-and/) [John Green](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-green/) > [A Margo for each of us--and each more mirror than window.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-green/a-margo-for-each-of-us-and-each-more-mirror-than-window/) [John Green](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-green/) > [“No one ever says good-bye unless they want to see you again.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-green/no-one-ever-says-good-bye-unless-they-want-to-see-you-again/) [John Green](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-green/) > [Neither novels or their readers benefit from any attempts to divine whether any facts hide inside a story. Such efforts attack the very idea…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-green/neither-novels-or-their-readers-benefit-from-any-attempts-to-divine/) [John Green](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-green/) > [“Traffic's not too bad on Sheridan, and I'm cornering the car like it's the Indy 500, and we're listening to my favorite NMH song,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-green/traffic-s-not-too-bad-on-sheridan-and-i-m-cornering-the-car-like-it-s/) [John Green](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-green/) > [“Praise God for good nurses.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-green/praise-god-for-good-nurses/) [John Green](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-green/) > [So I was ugly. I was never fat, really, and I never wore headgear or had zits or anything. But I was ugly. I…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-green/so-i-was-ugly-i-was-never-fat-really-and-i-never-wore-headgear-or-had/) [John Green](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-green/) > [Nothing has ever looked like that ever in all of human history.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-green/nothing-has-ever-looked-like-that-ever-in-all-of-human-history/) [John Green](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-green/) > [“said to him quietly, as if I couldn’t hear or something. Dad was about to respond but I interrupted.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-green/said-to-him-quietly-as-if-i-couldn-t-hear-or-something-dad-was-about/) [John Green](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-green/) > [I believe humans have souls, and I believe in the conservation of souls.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-green/i-believe-humans-have-souls-and-i-believe-in-the-conservation-of-souls/) [John Green](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-green/) > [“He was hot. A nonhotboy stares at you relentlessly and it is, at best, awkward and, at worst, a form of assault. But a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-green/he-was-hot-a-nonhotboy-stares-at-you-relentlessly-and-it-is-at-best/) [John Green](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-green/) > [I think if you keep the box closed long enough you do kill the cat, actually.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-green/i-think-if-you-keep-the-box-closed-long-enough-you-do-kill-the-cat/) [John Green](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-green/) > [Imagining the future is a kind of nostalgia. (...) You spend your whole life stuck in the labyrinth, thinking about how you'll escape it…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-green/imagining-the-future-is-a-kind-of-nostalgia-you-spend-your-whole-life/) [John Green](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-green/) [Explore all 3,614 John Green quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-green/) ## More Circles quotes > [In some circles where very heavy people think they have very heavy brains, words like "charming" and "clever" and "pretty" are all put-downs; all…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/andy-warhol/in-some-circles-where-very-heavy-people-think-they-have-very-heavy/) [Andy Warhol](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/andy-warhol/) > [Alone in a world, With millions of souls Walking in circles Trapped in their dreams unhealthy, unclean walking in circles, now do not disturb…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/chester-bennington/alone-in-a-world-with-millions-of-souls-walking-in-circles-trapped-in/) [Chester Bennington](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/chester-bennington/) > [Gambling has held human beings in thrall for millennia. It has been engaged in everywhere, from the dregs of society to the most respectable…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/peter-l-bernstein/gambling-has-held-human-beings-in-thrall-for-millennia-it-has-been/) [Peter L. Bernstein](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/peter-l-bernstein/) > [And the seasons they go 'round and 'round And the painted ponies go up and down We're captive on the carousel of time We…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joni-mitchell/and-the-seasons-they-go-round-and-round-and-the-painted-ponies-go-up/) [Joni Mitchell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joni-mitchell/) > [If, for instance, they have heard something from the postman, they attribute it to a semi-official statement; if they have fallen into conversation with…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/evelyn-waugh/if-for-instance-they-have-heard-something-from-the-postman-they/) [Evelyn Waugh](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/evelyn-waugh/) > [Maybe this is a way of gaslighting myself, but I think of it this way: In certain circles, my grandpa was considered to be…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/zoe-kazan/maybe-this-is-a-way-of-gaslighting-myself-but-i-think-of-it-this-way/) [Zoe Kazan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/zoe-kazan/) > [All my life's a circle; But I can't tell you why; Season's spinning round again; The years keep rollin' by.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/harry-chapin/all-my-life-s-a-circle-but-i-can-t-tell-you-why-season-s-spinning/) [Harry Chapin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/harry-chapin/) > [There's when a phrase circles in my head in a number of ways for any number of days, weeks, or months, and then that…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dan-mangan/there-s-when-a-phrase-circles-in-my-head-in-a-number-of-ways-for-any/) [Dan Mangan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dan-mangan/) > [I have no name for what circles so perfectly.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rumi/i-have-no-name-for-what-circles-so-perfectly/) [Rumi](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rumi/) > [It's important to recognize that expanding the circle of opportunity and increasing the democratic potential of our own society, as well as those across…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/hillary-clinton/it-s-important-to-recognize-that-expanding-the-circle-of-opportunity/) [Hillary Clinton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/hillary-clinton/) > [The fight against syphilis demands a fight against prostitution, against prejudices, old habits, against previous conceptions, general views among them not least the false…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/adolf-hitler/the-fight-against-syphilis-demands-a-fight-against-prostitution/) [Adolf Hitler](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/adolf-hitler/) > [Tell them you came, and saw, and looked into my eyes and saw the shadow of the guard receding. Thoughts in time and out…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jim-morrison/tell-them-you-came-and-saw-and-looked-into-my-eyes-and-saw-the-shadow/) [Jim Morrison](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jim-morrison/) > [ \[Wise men\] have tried to understand our state of being, by grasping at its stars, or its arts, or its economics. But, if there… ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/charles-fort/wise-men-have-tried-to-understand-our-state-of-being-by-grasping-at/) [Charles Fort](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/charles-fort/) > [You know Kim Jong Un, the evil dictator of North Korea? Apparently, a guy in his inner circle used his ashtray while smoking and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-letterman/you-know-kim-jong-un-the-evil-dictator-of-north-korea-apparently-a/) [David Letterman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-letterman/) > [The Brick House was one of the toughest joints I ever played in ... Guys would drink and fight one another like circle saws.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/louis-armstrong/the-brick-house-was-one-of-the-toughest-joints-i-ever-played-in-guys/) [Louis Armstrong](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/louis-armstrong/) [Browse all 1,860 Circles quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/circles/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "“Drawing circles through life struck me as a kind of reasonable insanity.”", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "John Green" }, "isPartOf": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website" }, "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-green/drawing-circles-through-life-struck-me-as-a-kind-of-reasonable/", "about": { "@type": "Thing", "name": "Circles" }, "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-green/drawing-circles-through-life-struck-me-as-a-kind-of-reasonable/#quotation", "image": { "@type": "ImageObject", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/49e/john-green-12_circles_drawing-circles-through-life-struck-me-a_2610420.jpg", "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/49e/john-green-12_circles_drawing-circles-through-life-struck-me-a_2610420.jpg", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/49e/john-green-12_circles_drawing-circles-through-life-struck-me-a_2610420.jpg", "width": 1080, "height": 1080, "caption": "“Drawing circles through life struck me as a kind of reasonable insanity.” — John Green", "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": "John Green", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-green/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 4, "name": "“Drawing circles through life struck me...", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-green/drawing-circles-through-life-struck-me-as-a-kind-of-reasonable/" } ], "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-green/drawing-circles-through-life-struck-me-as-a-kind-of-reasonable/#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 } } ] } ```