--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: Poems are made by fools like me, But only…" description: "\"Poems are made by fools like me, But only God can make a tree\" — Joyce Kilmer" image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/d97/joyce-kilmer-25268_fool_poems-are-made-by-fools-like-me-but-only_56388.jpg" --- # Poems are made by fools like me, But only God can make a… ![“Poems are made by fools like me, But only God can make a tree” quote by Joyce Kilmer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/d97/joyce-kilmer-25268_fool_poems-are-made-by-fools-like-me-but-only_56388.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/d97/joyce-kilmer-25268_fool_poems-are-made-by-fools-like-me-but-only_56388.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/d97/joyce-kilmer-25268_fool_poems-are-made-by-fools-like-me-but-only_56388.jpg) > “Poems are made by fools like me, But only God can make a tree” [Joyce Kilmer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joyce-kilmer/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. The poet admits his own limited skill in crafting verses, while attributing true creation of nature to a higher power. **In simple terms:** Human art is humble; divine creation is supreme. Key Takeaway Art is modest, nature is divine. Themes humility creativity spirituality nature human limitation Mood reflective humble awe Type aphorism poetic When to use this quote - writing poetry - reflecting on artistic ability - contemplating the natural world - discussing the role of inspiration Key Concepts poetry divine agency nature Practical Applications - literary analysis - theological discussion Questions to Reflect On - What does this say about the relationship between human creativity and the divine? - How does acknowledging limits affect artistic expression? ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Fool](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/fool/) [Fools](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/fools/) [Poems](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/poems/) [Poetry](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/poetry/) [Tree](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/tree/) [Trees](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/trees/) ## Related quotes > [“Poems are made by fools like me, But only God can make a tree; And only God who makes the tree Also makes the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/yip-harburg/poems-are-made-by-fools-like-me-but-only-god-can-make-a-tree-and-only/) [Yip Harburg](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/yip-harburg/) > [Fools are as like husbands as pilchards are to herrings, the husband's the bigger.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-shakespeare/fools-are-as-like-husbands-as-pilchards-are-to-herrings-the-husband-s/) [William Shakespeare](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-shakespeare/) > [You cannot imagine what sorrow and anger seize one's whole soul when a great idea, which one has long and piously revered, is picked…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/fyodor-dostoevsky/you-cannot-imagine-what-sorrow-and-anger-seize-one-s-whole-soul-when/) [Fyodor Dostoevsky](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/fyodor-dostoevsky/) > [I don't suffer fools, and I like to see fools suffer.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/florence-king/i-don-t-suffer-fools-and-i-like-to-see-fools-suffer/) [Florence King](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/florence-king/) > [Some people never change and it's fools like me who believe this time will be different.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/some-people-never-change-and-it-s-fools-like-me-who-believe-this-time/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [“If you never see a fool You'll always be happy. The one who keeps company with fools Will be sorry for a long time.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/if-you-never-see-a-fool-you-ll-always-be-happy-the-one-who-keeps/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [But only God can make a tree.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joyce-kilmer/but-only-god-can-make-a-tree/) [Joyce Kilmer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joyce-kilmer/) > [“this then will be my destiny: scrabbling for pennies in dark tiny halls reading poems I have long since become tired of. and I…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/charles-bukowski/this-then-will-be-my-destiny-scrabbling-for-pennies-in-dark-tiny/) [Charles Bukowski](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/charles-bukowski/) > [If you correspond to the designs of God, He will make a saint of you.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/paul-of-the-cross/if-you-correspond-to-the-designs-of-god-he-will-make-a-saint-of-you/) [Paul of the Cross](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/paul-of-the-cross/) > [“Let God make you fully you. Rejoice in your God-given temperament and use it for God's purposes. This point cannot be emphasized enough. We…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/adam-s-mchugh/let-god-make-you-fully-you-rejoice-in-your-god-given-temperament-and/) [Adam S. McHugh](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/adam-s-mchugh/) > [One thing alone not even God can do,To make undone whatever hath been done.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/aristotle/one-thing-alone-not-even-god-can-do-to-make-undone-whatever-hath-been/) [Aristotle](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/aristotle/) > [Christmas day is a day of joy and charity. May God make you very rich in both.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/phillips-brooks/christmas-day-is-a-day-of-joy-and-charity-may-god-make-you-very-rich/) [Phillips Brooks](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/phillips-brooks/) > [“contrite, and in love with God. You can’t make”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alan-w-watts/contrite-and-in-love-with-god-you-can-t-make/) [Alan W. Watts](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alan-w-watts/) > [God will make a way for you, Yes YOU the one reading this, He will give you peace of mind He will get you…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ritu-ghatourey/god-will-make-a-way-for-you-yes-you-the-one-reading-this-he-will-give/) [Ritu Ghatourey](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ritu-ghatourey/) > [Have God make a message out of your mess.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joyce-meyer/have-god-make-a-message-out-of-your-mess/) [Joyce Meyer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joyce-meyer/) ## More by Joyce Kilmer > [The air is like a butterfly With frail blue wings. The happy earth looks at the sky And sings.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joyce-kilmer/the-air-is-like-a-butterfly-with-frail-blue-wings-the-happy-earth/) [Joyce Kilmer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joyce-kilmer/) > [There is no peace to be taken With poets who are young, For they worry about the wars to be fought and the songs…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joyce-kilmer/there-is-no-peace-to-be-taken-with-poets-who-are-young-for-they-worry/) [Joyce Kilmer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joyce-kilmer/) > [In a wood they call the Rouge Bouquet, There is a new-made grave today, Built by never a spade nor pick, Yet covered with…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joyce-kilmer/in-a-wood-they-call-the-rouge-bouquet-there-is-a-new-made-grave-today/) [Joyce Kilmer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joyce-kilmer/) > [Things have a terrible permanence when people die.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joyce-kilmer/things-have-a-terrible-permanence-when-people-die/) [Joyce Kilmer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joyce-kilmer/) > [I suppose I passed it a hundred times, But I always stop for a minute. And look at the house, the tragic house, The…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joyce-kilmer/i-suppose-i-passed-it-a-hundred-times-but-i-always-stop-for-a-minute/) [Joyce Kilmer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joyce-kilmer/) > [At present, I am a poet trying to be a soldier. To tell the truth, I am not interested in writing nowadays, except in…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joyce-kilmer/at-present-i-am-a-poet-trying-to-be-a-soldier-to-tell-the-truth-i-am/) [Joyce Kilmer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joyce-kilmer/) > [The fairy poet takes a sheet Of moonbeam, silver white; His ink is dew from daisies sweet, His pen a point of light.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joyce-kilmer/the-fairy-poet-takes-a-sheet-of-moonbeam-silver-white-his-ink-is-dew/) [Joyce Kilmer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joyce-kilmer/) > [They say that life is a highway and its milestones are the years,And now and then there's a toll-gate where you buy your way…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joyce-kilmer/they-say-that-life-is-a-highway-and-its-milestones-are-the-years-and/) [Joyce Kilmer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joyce-kilmer/) > [I think that I shall never scan A tree as lovely as a man. . . . . A tree depicts divinest plan, But…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joyce-kilmer/i-think-that-i-shall-never-scan-a-tree-as-lovely-as-a-man-a-tree/) [Joyce Kilmer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joyce-kilmer/) > [It is stern work, it is perilous work, to thrust your hand in the sun And pull out a spark of immortal flame to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joyce-kilmer/it-is-stern-work-it-is-perilous-work-to-thrust-your-hand-in-the-sun/) [Joyce Kilmer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joyce-kilmer/) > [There is no place in which to hide when Age comes seeking for his bride.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joyce-kilmer/there-is-no-place-in-which-to-hide-when-age-comes-seeking-for-his/) [Joyce Kilmer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joyce-kilmer/) > [I think that I shall never see a poem lovely as a tree.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joyce-kilmer/i-think-that-i-shall-never-see-a-poem-lovely-as-a-tree/) [Joyce Kilmer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joyce-kilmer/) > [I think that I shall never see A poem lovely as a tree. A tree whose hungry mouth is prest Against the earth's sweet…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joyce-kilmer/i-think-that-i-shall-never-see-a-poem-lovely-as-a-tree-a-tree-whose/) [Joyce Kilmer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joyce-kilmer/) > [For nothing keeps a poet In his high singing mood Like unappeasable hunger For unattainable food.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joyce-kilmer/for-nothing-keeps-a-poet-in-his-high-singing-mood-like-unappeasable/) [Joyce Kilmer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joyce-kilmer/) > [The only reason a road is good as every wanderer knows / Is just because of the homes, the homes, the homes to which…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joyce-kilmer/the-only-reason-a-road-is-good-as-every-wanderer-knows-is-just/) [Joyce Kilmer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joyce-kilmer/) [Explore all 23 Joyce Kilmer quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joyce-kilmer/) ## More Fool quotes > [Do I look like a fool to you](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tamika-leeigh/do-i-look-like-a-fool-to-you/) [Tamika-leeigh](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tamika-leeigh/) > [So the fool, as distinct from the scoundrel, is completely self- satisfied; in fact, he can easily become dangerous, as it does not take…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dietrich-bonhoeffer/so-the-fool-as-distinct-from-the-scoundrel-is-completely-self/) [Dietrich Bonhoeffer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dietrich-bonhoeffer/) > [There are various orders of beauty, causing men to make fools of themselves in various styles.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-eliot/there-are-various-orders-of-beauty-causing-men-to-make-fools-of/) [George Eliot](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-eliot/) > [“Not wise, perhaps, to be rude to the Pope's favorite son, but my viper tongue still required a fool now and then on which…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kate-quinn/not-wise-perhaps-to-be-rude-to-the-pope-s-favorite-son-but-my-viper/) [Kate Quinn](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kate-quinn/) > [He's a fool that marries; but he's a greater fool that does not marry a fool.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-wycherley/he-s-a-fool-that-marries-but-he-s-a-greater-fool-that-does-not-marry/) [William Wycherley](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-wycherley/) > [It's very easy to fool yourself that you're working, you know, when you're really not working very hard. I mean, I'm very lazy. So…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robert-caro/it-s-very-easy-to-fool-yourself-that-you-re-working-you-know-when-you/) [Robert Caro](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robert-caro/) > [A fool and his money get a lot of publicity.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/al-bernstein/a-fool-and-his-money-get-a-lot-of-publicity/) [Al Bernstein](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/al-bernstein/) > [There are different kinds of fire; there is false fire. No one knows this better than we do, but we are not such fools…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-booth/there-are-different-kinds-of-fire-there-is-false-fire-no-one-knows/) [William Booth](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-booth/) > [Every man must wear out at least one pair of fools shoes.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/earl-derr-biggers/every-man-must-wear-out-at-least-one-pair-of-fools-shoes/) [Earl Derr Biggers](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/earl-derr-biggers/) > [If at first you don't succeed, try, try again. Then quit. No use being a damn fool about it](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/wc-fields/if-at-first-you-don-t-succeed-try-try-again-then-quit-no-use-being-a/) [WC Fields](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/wc-fields/) > [There is nothing that we can properly call our own but our time, and yet everybody fools us out of it who has a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/seneca-the-younger/there-is-nothing-that-we-can-properly-call-our-own-but-our-time-and/) [Seneca the Younger](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/seneca-the-younger/) > [I'd be a fool to be in this for the money.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/benny-hinn/i-d-be-a-fool-to-be-in-this-for-the-money/) [Benny Hinn](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/benny-hinn/) > [It is a fool of a shepherd who culls his dogs.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jefferson-smith/it-is-a-fool-of-a-shepherd-who-culls-his-dogs/) [Jefferson Smith](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jefferson-smith/) > [Prefer to be defeated in the presence of the wise than to excel among fools.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/prefer-to-be-defeated-in-the-presence-of-the-wise-than-to-excel-among/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [A mistake doesnt make you a fool, but denying it surely makes you one.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/vikrant-parsai/a-mistake-doesnt-make-you-a-fool-but-denying-it-surely-makes-you-one/) [Vikrant Parsai](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/vikrant-parsai/) [Browse all 5,535 Fool quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/fool/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "Poems are made by fools like me, But only God can make a tree", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "Joyce Kilmer" }, "isPartOf": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website" }, "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joyce-kilmer/poems-are-made-by-fools-like-me-but-only-god-can-make-a-tree/", "about": { "@type": "Thing", "name": "Fool" }, "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joyce-kilmer/poems-are-made-by-fools-like-me-but-only-god-can-make-a-tree/#quotation", "image": { "@type": "ImageObject", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/d97/joyce-kilmer-25268_fool_poems-are-made-by-fools-like-me-but-only_56388.jpg", "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/d97/joyce-kilmer-25268_fool_poems-are-made-by-fools-like-me-but-only_56388.jpg", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/d97/joyce-kilmer-25268_fool_poems-are-made-by-fools-like-me-but-only_56388.jpg", "width": 1080, "height": 1080, "caption": "“Poems are made by fools like me, But only God can make a tree” — Joyce Kilmer", "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": "Joyce Kilmer", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joyce-kilmer/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 4, "name": "Poems are made by fools like...", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joyce-kilmer/poems-are-made-by-fools-like-me-but-only-god-can-make-a-tree/" } ], "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joyce-kilmer/poems-are-made-by-fools-like-me-but-only-god-can-make-a-tree/#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 } } ] } ```