--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: As you proceed through life, following…" description: "\"“As you proceed through life, following your own path, birds will shit on you. Don't bother to brush it off. Getting a comedic view of your situation g..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/caf/joseph-campbell-300_comedy_as-you-proceed-through-life-following-yo_675722.png" --- # As you proceed through life, following your own path… ![“As you proceed through life, following your own path, birds will shit on you. Don't bother to brush it off. Getting a comedic view of your situation gives you spiritual distance. Having a sense of humor saves you.” quote by Joseph Campbell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/caf/joseph-campbell-300_comedy_as-you-proceed-through-life-following-yo_675722.png) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/caf/joseph-campbell-300_comedy_as-you-proceed-through-life-following-yo_675722.png) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/caf/joseph-campbell-300_comedy_as-you-proceed-through-life-following-yo_675722.png) > ““As you proceed through life, following your own path, birds will shit on you. Don't bother to brush it off. Getting a comedic view of your situation gives you spiritual distance. Having a sense of humor saves you.”” [Joseph Campbell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joseph-campbell/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Life’s path is messy; humor creates distance, allowing spiritual perspective and resilience. **In simple terms:** Humor helps you cope with life's messes. Key Takeaway Use humor to gain perspective. Themes humor spirituality resilience life perspective growth Mood lighthearted reflective inspirational Type philosophical motivational When to use this quote - Everyday setbacks - public speaking mishaps - travel delays - personal failures Key Concepts Existential distance cognitive reframing psychology of humor Questions to Reflect On - What situations benefit from humor? - When is seriousness more appropriate? A Different Perspective Humor may downplay serious issues needing direct action. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Comedic View](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/comedic-view-5355877/) [Comedy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/comedy/) [Following your own path](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/following-your-own-path/) [Funny](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/funny/) [Getting Comedic](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/getting-comedic-5355878/) [Humor](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/humor/) [Humor Saves](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/humor-saves-452385/) [Inspirational success failure](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/inspirational-success-failure/) [Life](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/life/) [Sense Humor](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/sense-humor/) [Sense of humor](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/sense-of-humor/) ## Related quotes > [A sense of humor saves your life, and being able to make friends wherever you go.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jason-o-mara/a-sense-of-humor-saves-your-life-and-being-able-to-make-friends/) [Jason O'Mara](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jason-o-mara/) > [Your own path you make with every step you take. That's why it's your path.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joseph-campbell/your-own-path-you-make-with-every-step-you-take-that-s-why-it-s-your/) [Joseph Campbell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joseph-campbell/) > [Among animals, one has a sense of humor. Humor saves a few steps, it saves years.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/marianne-moore/among-animals-one-has-a-sense-of-humor-humor-saves-a-few-steps-it/) [Marianne Moore](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/marianne-moore/) > [But, through the shift of mood and mood, Mine ancient humor saves him whole The cynic devil in his blood That bids him mock…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rudyard-kipling/but-through-the-shift-of-mood-and-mood-mine-ancient-humor-saves-him/) [Rudyard Kipling](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rudyard-kipling/) > [I think that humor is part of what saves us from despair.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-perry-barlow/i-think-that-humor-is-part-of-what-saves-us-from-despair/) [John Perry Barlow](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-perry-barlow/) > [If the horse you're drawing looks more like a dog, make it a dog.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/cynthia-lewis/if-the-horse-you-re-drawing-looks-more-like-a-dog-make-it-a-dog/) [Cynthia Lewis](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/cynthia-lewis/) > [An artist is a person who has invented an artist.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/harold-rosenberg/an-artist-is-a-person-who-has-invented-an-artist/) [Harold Rosenberg](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/harold-rosenberg/) > [ \[T\]here is very little difference between one person and another, but what little difference ther eis, is very important. ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-james/t-here-is-very-little-difference-between-one-person-and-another-but/) [William James](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-james/) > [“Returning to one’s roots is healthy and admirable. However, if it’s at the expense of following your own path in the world, or of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/camron-wright/returning-to-one-s-roots-is-healthy-and-admirable-however-if-it-s-at/) [Camron Wright](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/camron-wright/) > [While "cute" is hopelessly anchored to the Teletubby ideal, "ugly" is free to take infinite varieties. In this way, ugly is beautiful...](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jim-toomey/while-cute-is-hopelessly-anchored-to-the-teletubby-ideal-ugly-is-free/) [Jim Toomey](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jim-toomey/) > [Life is not a multiple choice test, it's an open-book essay exam.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alan-blinder/life-is-not-a-multiple-choice-test-it-s-an-open-book-essay-exam/) [Alan Blinder](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alan-blinder/) > [ The scandal of education is that every time you teach something, you deprive a \[student\] of the pleasure and benefit of discovery. ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/seymour-papert/the-scandal-of-education-is-that-every-time-you-teach-something-you/) [Seymour Papert](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/seymour-papert/) > [It's no exaggeration to say that the undecideds could go one way or another.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-h-w-bush/it-s-no-exaggeration-to-say-that-the-undecideds-could-go-one-way-or/) [George H. W. Bush](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-h-w-bush/) > [A person's wound is where their passion is born.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/marilyn-hamilton/a-person-s-wound-is-where-their-passion-is-born/) [Marilyn Hamilton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/marilyn-hamilton/) > [You are responsible for the world that you live in. It is not government's responsibility. It is not your school's or your social club's…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/august-wilson/you-are-responsible-for-the-world-that-you-live-in-it-is-not/) [August Wilson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/august-wilson/) ## More by Joseph Campbell > [If a person does not listen to the demands of their own spiritual and heart life and insists on a certain program, you're going…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joseph-campbell/if-a-person-does-not-listen-to-the-demands-of-their-own-spiritual-and/) [Joseph Campbell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joseph-campbell/) > [The last act in the biography of the hero is that of the death or departure.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joseph-campbell/the-last-act-in-the-biography-of-the-hero-is-that-of-the-death-or/) [Joseph Campbell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joseph-campbell/) > [The privilege of a lifetime is being who you are.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joseph-campbell/the-privilege-of-a-lifetime-is-being-who-you-are/) [Joseph Campbell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joseph-campbell/) > [The eternal principle, which never was born, never will die: it is in all things: it is in you now. You are the wave…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joseph-campbell/the-eternal-principle-which-never-was-born-never-will-die-it-is-in/) [Joseph Campbell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joseph-campbell/) > [How do you find the divine power in yourself? The word enthusiasm means 'filled with a god,' so what makes you enthusiastic? Follow it.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joseph-campbell/how-do-you-find-the-divine-power-in-yourself-the-word-enthusiasm/) [Joseph Campbell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joseph-campbell/) > [What we're learning in our schools is not the wisdom of life. We're learning technologies, we're getting information. There's a curious reluctance on the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joseph-campbell/what-we-re-learning-in-our-schools-is-not-the-wisdom-of-life-we-re/) [Joseph Campbell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joseph-campbell/) > [ The fall \[of your soul\] from perfection into duality...was naturally followed by the discovery of the duality of good and evil...This is the Biblical… ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joseph-campbell/the-fall-of-your-soul-from-perfection-into-duality-was-naturally/) [Joseph Campbell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joseph-campbell/) > [So that's what destiny is: simply the fulfillment of the potentialites of the energies in your own system.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joseph-campbell/so-that-s-what-destiny-is-simply-the-fulfillment-of-the-potentialites/) [Joseph Campbell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joseph-campbell/) > [Your ego is your embodiment and your self is your potentiality and that's what you listen to when you listen for the voice of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joseph-campbell/your-ego-is-your-embodiment-and-your-self-is-your-potentiality-and/) [Joseph Campbell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joseph-campbell/) > [When you follow your bliss a kind of track opens up, that's always been there, waiting for you. And the life that you should…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joseph-campbell/when-you-follow-your-bliss-a-kind-of-track-opens-up-that-s-always/) [Joseph Campbell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joseph-campbell/) > [The best we can do is lean towards the light.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joseph-campbell/the-best-we-can-do-is-lean-towards-the-light/) [Joseph Campbell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joseph-campbell/) > [I think of mythology as the homeland of the muses, the inspirers of art, the inspirers of poetry. To see life as a poem…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joseph-campbell/i-think-of-mythology-as-the-homeland-of-the-muses-the-inspirers-of/) [Joseph Campbell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joseph-campbell/) > [When you are falling --- Dive!](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joseph-campbell/when-you-are-falling-dive/) [Joseph Campbell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joseph-campbell/) > [We're all seeking...the rapture of being alive.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joseph-campbell/we-re-all-seeking-the-rapture-of-being-alive/) [Joseph Campbell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joseph-campbell/) > [Both the artist and the lover know that perfection is not loveable. It is the clumsiness of a fault that makes a person lovable.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joseph-campbell/both-the-artist-and-the-lover-know-that-perfection-is-not-loveable-it/) [Joseph Campbell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joseph-campbell/) [Explore all 711 Joseph Campbell quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joseph-campbell/) ## More Comedy quotes > ['Mad TV' is one of my most favorite shows of all time and is a huge part of my obsession with sketch comedy.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/shane-dawson/mad-tv-is-one-of-my-most-favorite-shows-of-all-time-and-is-a-huge/) [Shane Dawson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/shane-dawson/) > [You can laugh at me, but I understand show business.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ksenia-sobchak/you-can-laugh-at-me-but-i-understand-show-business/) [Ksenia Sobchak](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ksenia-sobchak/) > [Joking about violence is not funny.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/perez-hilton/joking-about-violence-is-not-funny/) [Perez Hilton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/perez-hilton/) > [I wouldn't want people to laugh at me. That's why I have to give all that I can, and at least produce something that…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/zhao-wei/i-wouldn-t-want-people-to-laugh-at-me-that-s-why-i-have-to-give-all/) [Zhao Wei](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/zhao-wei/) > [“Our world will not die as a result of the bomb, as the papers say, it will die of laughter, of banality, of making a joke…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/carlos-ruiz-zafon/our-world-will-not-die-as-a-result-of-the-bomb-as-the-papers-say-it/) [Carlos Ruiz Zafon](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/carlos-ruiz-zafon/) > [I've been funny my whole life. This is a gift God gave me.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tracy-morgan/i-ve-been-funny-my-whole-life-this-is-a-gift-god-gave-me/) [Tracy Morgan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tracy-morgan/) > [“Laugh and grow strong”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ignatius-of-loyola/laugh-and-grow-strong/) [Ignatius of Loyola](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ignatius-of-loyola/) > [In the future, I would like to do more films with contemporary themes. Perhaps comedy, which is something I have done in theater but…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/luke-evans/in-the-future-i-would-like-to-do-more-films-with-contemporary-themes/) [Luke Evans](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/luke-evans/) > [That's something a lot of folks don't know about me - I'm pretty darn funny.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-jai-white/that-s-something-a-lot-of-folks-don-t-know-about-me-i-m-pretty-darn/) [Michael Jai White](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michael-jai-white/) > [I have that need in me, I want everyone to love me, but I'm embarrassed by that need, so I wanted to cover it…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anthony-jeselnik/i-have-that-need-in-me-i-want-everyone-to-love-me-but-i-m-embarrassed/) [Anthony Jeselnik](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anthony-jeselnik/) > [There's a difference between delivering real funny and just silly funny.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lil-rel-howery/there-s-a-difference-between-delivering-real-funny-and-just-silly/) [Lil Rel Howery](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lil-rel-howery/) > [Oh to that corkscrew, the useful tool to unlock the treasure of wit, the treasury of laughter, the front door of fellowship, and the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/andrew-guzaldo/oh-to-that-corkscrew-the-useful-tool-to-unlock-the-treasure-of-wit/) [Andrew Guzaldo](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/andrew-guzaldo/) > [“Men circle like bees around honey, buzzing to communicate their sexual despair.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/carla-h-krueger/men-circle-like-bees-around-honey-buzzing-to-communicate-their-sexual/) [Carla H Krueger](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/carla-h-krueger/) > [I do love to laugh!](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/teresa-giudice/i-do-love-to-laugh/) [Teresa Giudice](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/teresa-giudice/) > [I really enjoy making people laugh; I've discovered that's a great technique. That's as powerful as stirring their sorrow, stirring their compassion, because that…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/max-lucado/i-really-enjoy-making-people-laugh-i-ve-discovered-that-s-a-great/) [Max Lucado](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/max-lucado/) [Browse all 19,795 Comedy quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/comedy/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "“As you proceed through life, following your own path, birds will shit on you. Don't bother to brush it off. Getting a comedic view of your situation gives you spiritual distance. 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