--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: But if I had to choose between where I…" description: "\"“But if I had to choose between where I live and you, I'd rip up everything I own because the only landscape worth looking is the landscape of the huma..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/c00/john-guare-10082_human-body_but-if-i-had-to-choose-between-where-i-l_1827417.jpg" --- # But if I had to choose between where I live and you, I'd… ![“But if I had to choose between where I live and you, I'd rip up everything I own because the only landscape worth looking is the landscape of the human body. I kiss your Blue Ridge Mountains of Virginia. I kiss your Missouri and Monongahela and Susquehanna and Shenandoah and Rio Grande. I kiss the…” quote by John Guare](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/c00/john-guare-10082_human-body_but-if-i-had-to-choose-between-where-i-l_1827417.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/c00/john-guare-10082_human-body_but-if-i-had-to-choose-between-where-i-l_1827417.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/c00/john-guare-10082_human-body_but-if-i-had-to-choose-between-where-i-l_1827417.jpg) > ““But if I had to choose between where I live and you, I'd rip up everything I own because the only landscape worth looking is the landscape of the human body. I kiss your Blue Ridge Mountains of Virginia. I kiss your Missouri and Monongahela and Susquehanna and Shenandoah and Rio Grande. I kiss the confluence of all those rivers. I kiss your amber waves of grain. I kiss your spacious skies, your rocket's red glare, your hand I love, your purple mountain'd majesty. But most of all I kiss your head. I kiss the place where we make our decisions. I kiss the place where we keep our resolves. The place where we do our dreams. I kiss the place behind the eyes where we store up secrets and knowledge to save us if we're caught in a corridor on a dark, wintry evening.”” [John Guare](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-guare/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Love for a country is expressed through intimate, sensory imagery, linking personal identity to national symbols. **In simple terms:** Patriotic love is shown through vivid personal images. Key Takeaway Use concrete details to convey deep affection. Themes patriotism love identity imagery personal narrative Mood nostalgic poetic intimate Type literary inspirational When to use this quote - National holidays - family gatherings - travel writing - artistic performances Key Concepts Literary symbolism emotional geography cultural identity Questions to Reflect On - What personal experiences shape your sense of national identity? - How does vivid imagery affect emotional connection to place? A Different Perspective Focusing only on romanticized imagery may overlook complex political realities. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Human body](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/human-body/) [Landscape](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/landscape/) [Love](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/love/) ## Related quotes > [“Heather narrating her story..."When I was 8 months old (just a baby), we lived in the mountains of Virginia, near West Virginia, in a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/cheryl-bradley/heather-narrating-her-story-when-i-was-8-months-old-just-a-baby-we/) Cheryl Bradley > [“So quietly flows the Seine that one hardly notices its presence. It is always there, quiet and unobtrusive, like a great artery running through…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/henry-miller/so-quietly-flows-the-seine-that-one-hardly-notices-its-presence-it-is/) [Henry Miller](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/henry-miller/) > [“If the landscape of human emotion were to exist in country, it would be in Italy." ~Lisa Fantino/Amalfi Blue”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lisa-fantino/if-the-landscape-of-human-emotion-were-to-exist-in-country-it-would/) [Lisa Fantino](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lisa-fantino/) > [What interests me most is neither still life nor landscape, but the human figure.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/henri-matisse/what-interests-me-most-is-neither-still-life-nor-landscape-but-the/) [Henri Matisse](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/henri-matisse/) > [What interests me most is neither still life nor landscape: it is the human figure.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/henri-matisse/what-interests-me-most-is-neither-still-life-nor-landscape-it-is-the/) [Henri Matisse](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/henri-matisse/) > [When you are with a landscape or a human being where there is no need to speak, but simply to listen, to perceive, to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/terry-tempest-williams/when-you-are-with-a-landscape-or-a-human-being-where-there-is-no-need/) [Terry Tempest Williams](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/terry-tempest-williams/) > [Very early in life, I fell in love with the landscape of the human face, where all the emotional states of life are to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/burton-silverman/very-early-in-life-i-fell-in-love-with-the-landscape-of-the-human/) [Burton Silverman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/burton-silverman/) > [There's nothing more interesting than the landscape of the human face.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/irvin-kershner/there-s-nothing-more-interesting-than-the-landscape-of-the-human-face/) [Irvin Kershner](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/irvin-kershner/) > [The landscape becomes human, becomes a thinking, living being within me. I become one with my picture...we merge in an iridescent chaos.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/paul-cezanne/the-landscape-becomes-human-becomes-a-thinking-living-being-within-me/) [Paul Cezanne](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/paul-cezanne/) > [“I always felt like that myself, that I didn’t marry into the landscape of the human world like others did,”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tiffanie-debartolo/i-always-felt-like-that-myself-that-i-didn-t-marry-into-the-landscape/) [Tiffanie DeBartolo](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tiffanie-debartolo/) > [What we're dealt with hopefully is two arms, two eyes, two legs, a head, a heart. The variations, the extensions, the possibilities of the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-guare/what-we-re-dealt-with-hopefully-is-two-arms-two-eyes-two-legs-a-head/) [John Guare](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-guare/) > [...seen from above, landscapes are made up of mountains and watercourses. Just as a transparent model of the human body consists of a framework…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/reinhold-messner/seen-from-above-landscapes-are-made-up-of-mountains-and-watercourses/) [Reinhold Messner](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/reinhold-messner/) > [The New York City Ballet is always about the realm of possibilities, the realm of what the human body can do, what the human…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-guare/the-new-york-city-ballet-is-always-about-the-realm-of-possibilities/) [John Guare](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-guare/) > [An office is a place to... live life to the fullest. To the max. To... an office is a place where dreams come true.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/an-office-is-a-place-to-live-life-to-the-fullest-to-the-max-to-an/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [The future is a convenient place for dreams.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anatole-france/the-future-is-a-convenient-place-for-dreams/) [Anatole France](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anatole-france/) ## More by John Guare > [You can't kind of take away, you either do or you don't. If you kind of take away something you're a failure.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-guare/you-can-t-kind-of-take-away-you-either-do-or-you-don-t-if-you-kind-of/) [John Guare](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-guare/) > [The Atlantic Ocean was something then.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-guare/the-atlantic-ocean-was-something-then/) [John Guare](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-guare/) > [The New York City Ballet is always about the realm of possibilities, the realm of what the human body can do, what the human…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-guare/the-new-york-city-ballet-is-always-about-the-realm-of-possibilities/) [John Guare](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-guare/) > [The imagination says listen to me. I am your darkest voice. I am your 4 a.m. voice. I am the voice that wakes you…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-guare/the-imagination-says-listen-to-me-i-am-your-darkest-voice-i-am-your-4/) [John Guare](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-guare/) > [How much of your life can you account for? My life is a collage of unaccounted for brush strokes; I am all random”.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-guare/how-much-of-your-life-can-you-account-for-my-life-is-a-collage-of/) [John Guare](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-guare/) > [To stay around any place you love, you have to have a job. In college at Georgetown in the fifties, I got my first…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-guare/to-stay-around-any-place-you-love-you-have-to-have-a-job-in-college/) [John Guare](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-guare/) > [You can read ten books and finally come across one detail, and it's like, "now everything else makes sense. Now I know where I…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-guare/you-can-read-ten-books-and-finally-come-across-one-detail-and-it-s/) [John Guare](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-guare/) > [The only riots were the people trying to get tickets.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-guare/the-only-riots-were-the-people-trying-to-get-tickets/) [John Guare](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-guare/) > [I think of the New York City Ballet as the Yankees without George Steinbrenner.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-guare/i-think-of-the-new-york-city-ballet-as-the-yankees-without-george/) [John Guare](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-guare/) > [There's no such thing as a perfect play. Sometimes you have to protect the life of the play.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-guare/there-s-no-such-thing-as-a-perfect-play-sometimes-you-have-to-protect/) [John Guare](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-guare/) > [Feydeau's one rule of playwriting: Character A: My life is perfect as long as I don't see Character B. Knock Knock. Enter Character B.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-guare/feydeau-s-one-rule-of-playwriting-character-a-my-life-is-perfect-as/) [John Guare](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-guare/) > [I wanted to be a Bride of Christ but I guess now I'm a young divorcee.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-guare/i-wanted-to-be-a-bride-of-christ-but-i-guess-now-i-m-a-young-divorcee/) [John Guare](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-guare/) > [I like to ground plays in reality so they can jump higher. So we can account for the trampoline, so we can account for…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-guare/i-like-to-ground-plays-in-reality-so-they-can-jump-higher-so-we-can/) [John Guare](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-guare/) > [People go to see beautiful paintings to see how much they cost. Wow. The practical value is that it shows you what the human…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-guare/people-go-to-see-beautiful-paintings-to-see-how-much-they-cost-wow/) [John Guare](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-guare/) > [And it is always Easter Sunday at the New York City Ballet. It is always coming back to life. Not even coming back to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-guare/and-it-is-always-easter-sunday-at-the-new-york-city-ballet-it-is/) [John Guare](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-guare/) [Explore all 68 John Guare quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-guare/) ## More Human body quotes > [Don't think you can...know you can! You human body is the most impressive tool you'll ever own. Even if you can't control everything, you…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jeff-hardy/don-t-think-you-can-know-you-can-you-human-body-is-the-most/) [Jeff Hardy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jeff-hardy/) > [The human body has been designed to resist an infinite number of changes and attacks brought about by its environment. The secret of good…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/harry-johnson/the-human-body-has-been-designed-to-resist-an-infinite-number-of/) Harry Johnson > [We are beginning to see intimations of this in the implantation of computer devices into the human body.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ray-kurzweil/we-are-beginning-to-see-intimations-of-this-in-the-implantation-of/) [Ray Kurzweil](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ray-kurzweil/) > [Alas, everything that men say to one another is alike; the ideas they exchange are almost always the same, in their conversation. But inside…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alfred-de-musset/alas-everything-that-men-say-to-one-another-is-alike-the-ideas-they/) [Alfred de Musset](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alfred-de-musset/) > [“Can I tell you a boring science fact?" she whispered. "I bet you didn't learn it in Shadowhunter history class." "If you're trying to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/cassandra-clare/can-i-tell-you-a-boring-science-fact-she-whispered-i-bet-you-didn-t/) [Cassandra Clare](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/cassandra-clare/) > [If the estimated age of the cosmos were shortened to seventy-two years, a human life would take about ten seconds. But look at time…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robert-grudin/if-the-estimated-age-of-the-cosmos-were-shortened-to-seventy-two/) [Robert Grudin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robert-grudin/) > [“We are his temple. We do not turn in a certain directlon to pray. We are not bound by having to go into a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ravi-zacharias/we-are-his-temple-we-do-not-turn-in-a-certain-directlon-to-pray-we/) [Ravi Zacharias](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ravi-zacharias/) > [“My holy of holies are the human body, health, intelligence, talent, inspiration, love, and the most absolute freedom - freedom from force and falsity,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anton-chekhov/my-holy-of-holies-are-the-human-body-health-intelligence-talent/) [Anton Chekhov](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anton-chekhov/) > [“artificial intelligence is forcing human endeavor away from simple, algorithmic and repetitive tasks towards solving problems and incubating new ideas. It is the human…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gyan-nagpal/artificial-intelligence-is-forcing-human-endeavor-away-from-simple/) [Gyan Nagpal](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gyan-nagpal/) > [Human ingenuity has given centuries to the goal of ensuring that the human body might move around at an even 68 degrees all year.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lance-morrow/human-ingenuity-has-given-centuries-to-the-goal-of-ensuring-that-the/) [Lance Morrow](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lance-morrow/) > [No lens is quick enough to track the movement of the human body. The molecules are always moving.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/roger-rees/no-lens-is-quick-enough-to-track-the-movement-of-the-human-body-the/) [Roger Rees](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/roger-rees/) > [We are victims of the post-Enlightenment view that the world functions like a sophisticated machine, to be understood like a textbook engineering problem and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nassim-nicholas-taleb/we-are-victims-of-the-post-enlightenment-view-that-the-world/) [Nassim Nicholas Taleb](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nassim-nicholas-taleb/) > [The human body is not an instrument to be used, but a realm of one's being to be experienced, explored, enriched and, thereby, educated.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/thomas-hanna/the-human-body-is-not-an-instrument-to-be-used-but-a-realm-of-one-s/) Thomas Hanna > [“Epsom Salt - Don't underestimate the powerful healing effects of regular Epsom salt.  Soaking in hot water infused with Epsom salts (magnesium sulfate) boosts…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gina-the-veggie-goddess-matthews/epsom-salt-don-t-underestimate-the-powerful-healing-effects-of/) Gina 'The Veggie Goddess' Matthews > [The human body is mostly blood and mystery and sadness.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/charles-bukowski/the-human-body-is-mostly-blood-and-mystery-and-sadness/) [Charles Bukowski](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/charles-bukowski/) [Browse all 832 Human body quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/human-body/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "“But if I had to choose between where I live and you, I'd rip up everything I own because the only landscape worth looking is the landscape of the human body. 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