--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: When we try to pick out anything by…" description: "\"When we try to pick out anything by itself, we find it hitched to everything else in the universe. One fancies a heart like our own must be beating in ..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/668/john-muir-678_animal_when-we-try-to-pick-out-anything-by-itse_3015225.png" --- # When we try to pick out anything by itself, we find it… ![“When we try to pick out anything by itself, we find it hitched to everything else in the universe. One fancies a heart like our own must be beating in every crystal and cell, and we feel like stopping to speak to the plants and animals as friendly fellow-mountaineers. Nature as a poet, an…” quote by John Muir](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/668/john-muir-678_animal_when-we-try-to-pick-out-anything-by-itse_3015225.png) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/668/john-muir-678_animal_when-we-try-to-pick-out-anything-by-itse_3015225.png) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/668/john-muir-678_animal_when-we-try-to-pick-out-anything-by-itse_3015225.png) > “When we try to pick out anything by itself, we find it hitched to everything else in the universe. One fancies a heart like our own must be beating in every crystal and cell, and we feel like stopping to speak to the plants and animals as friendly fellow-mountaineers. Nature as a poet, an enthusiastic workingman, becomes more and more visible the farther and higher we go...” [John Muir](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-muir/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Everything is interconnected; recognizing this unity reveals nature as a living, poetic presence. **In simple terms:** All things are linked; nature feels alive. Key Takeaway Notice and honor the web of life. Themes interconnectedness nature spirituality Mood awe inspired reflective Type philosophical inspirational When to use this quote - hiking - environmental activism - mindfulness - conservation - education Key Concepts Ecology holism panpsychism Questions to Reflect On - How does seeing interdependence change your actions? - What responsibilities arise from this view? A Different Perspective Human perception often isolates, missing the broader web. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Animal](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/animal/) [Cells](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/cells/) [Crystals](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/crystals/) [Enthusiastic](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/enthusiastic/) [Environment](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/environment/) [Fancy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/fancy/) [Feels](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/feels/) [Fellows](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/fellows/) [Friendly](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/friendly/) [Heart](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/heart/) [Higher](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/higher/) [Nature](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/nature/) [Nature Poet](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/nature-poet-2608912/) [Pick Hitched](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/pick-hitched-799975/) [Picks](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/picks/) [Plant](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/plant/) [Plants and animals](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/plants-and-animals/) [Poet](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/poet/) [Poet Enthusiastic](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/poet-enthusiastic-2608913/) [Poetry](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/poetry/) [Speak](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/speak/) [Stopping](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/stopping/) [Trying](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/trying/) [Universe](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/universe/) [Visible](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/visible/) ## Related quotes > [Nature as a poet, an enthusiastic workingman, becomes more and more visible the farther and higher we go; for the mountains are fountains –…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-muir/nature-as-a-poet-an-enthusiastic-workingman-becomes-more-and-more/) [John Muir](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-muir/) > [“When we try to pick out anything by itself, we find it hitched to everything else in the universe. -John Muir, naturalist, explorer, and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-muir/when-we-try-to-pick-out-anything-by-itself-we-find-it-hitched-to-3/) [John Muir](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-muir/) > [When we try to pick out anything by itself, we find it hitched to everything else in the universe.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-muir/when-we-try-to-pick-out-anything-by-itself-we-find-it-hitched-to-2/) [John Muir](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-muir/) > [“When we try to pick out anything by itself, we find it is hitched to everything else in the universe.”70”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/amy-webb/when-we-try-to-pick-out-anything-by-itself-we-find-it-is-hitched-to/) [Amy Webb](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/amy-webb/) > [To walk with nature as a poet is the necessary condition of a perfect artist.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/thomas-cole/to-walk-with-nature-as-a-poet-is-the-necessary-condition-of-a-perfect/) [Thomas Cole](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/thomas-cole/) > [I am not a nature poet. 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Fear not, therefore, to try the mountain passes. They will kill care, save you…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-muir/few-places-in-this-world-are-more-dangerous-than-home-fear-not/) [John Muir](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-muir/) > [...full of God's thoughts, a place of peace and safety amid the most exalted grandeur and enthusiastic action, a new song, a place of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-muir/full-of-god-s-thoughts-a-place-of-peace-and-safety-amid-the-most/) [John Muir](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-muir/) ## More by John Muir > [I will follow my instincts, be myself for good or ill, and see what will be the upshot.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-muir/i-will-follow-my-instincts-be-myself-for-good-or-ill-and-see-what/) [John Muir](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-muir/) > [During my first years in the Sierra, I was ever calling on everybody within reach to admire them, but I found no one half…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-muir/during-my-first-years-in-the-sierra-i-was-ever-calling-on-everybody/) [John Muir](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-muir/) > [While cares will drop off like autumn leaves.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-muir/while-cares-will-drop-off-like-autumn-leaves/) [John Muir](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-muir/) > [...full of God's thoughts, a place of peace and safety amid the most exalted grandeur and enthusiastic action, a new song, a place of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-muir/full-of-god-s-thoughts-a-place-of-peace-and-safety-amid-the-most/) [John Muir](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-muir/) > [“Here are the roots of all the life of the valleys, and here more simply than elsewhere is the eternal flux of nature manifested.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-muir/here-are-the-roots-of-all-the-life-of-the-valleys-and-here-more/) [John Muir](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-muir/) > [Spring work is going on with joyful enthusiasm.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-muir/spring-work-is-going-on-with-joyful-enthusiasm/) [John Muir](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-muir/) > [Our lives are rounded with a sleep.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-muir/our-lives-are-rounded-with-a-sleep/) [John Muir](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-muir/) > [Another glorious day, the air as delicious to the lungs as nectar to the tongue.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-muir/another-glorious-day-the-air-as-delicious-to-the-lungs-as-nectar-to/) [John Muir](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-muir/) > [Long, blue, spiky-edged shadows crept out across the snow-fields, while a rosy glow, at first scarce discernible, gradually deepened and suffused every mountain-top, flushing…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-muir/long-blue-spiky-edged-shadows-crept-out-across-the-snow-fields-while/) [John Muir](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-muir/) > [“This grand show is eternal. 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He becomes uniquely human when he reaches out for the superfluous and extravagant.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/eric-hoffer/when-grubbing-for-necessities-man-is-still-an-animal-he-becomes/) [Eric Hoffer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/eric-hoffer/) > [I'm 38 and I'm single, and I'm having my most intense and gratifying relationship with a dog. But we all learn about love in…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/caroline-knapp/i-m-38-and-i-m-single-and-i-m-having-my-most-intense-and-gratifying/) [Caroline Knapp](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/caroline-knapp/) > [Practically all animals which move fast in a homogeneous medium have found means of giving their body a streamlined shape, thereby reducing friction to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/konrad-lorenz/practically-all-animals-which-move-fast-in-a-homogeneous-medium-have/) [Konrad Lorenz](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/konrad-lorenz/) > [A horse, a horse, my kingdom for a horse!](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-shakespeare/a-horse-a-horse-my-kingdom-for-a-horse/) [William Shakespeare](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-shakespeare/) > [“it is a federal system of sadistic torture, vivisection, and animal genocide, which has been carried on for decades under the fraudulent guise of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-tobias/it-is-a-federal-system-of-sadistic-torture-vivisection-and-animal/) [Michael Tobias](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michael-tobias/) > [“What does it mean to be a self-conscious animal? 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