---
title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: But all that was as automatic as her…"
description: "\"“But all that was as automatic as her beating heart, as subconscious as breathing - what she felt above all was the fierce tingling certainty of being ..."
image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/807/lisa-verge-higgins-47404_beating-heart_but-all-that-was-as-automatic-as-her-bea_2104737.jpg"
---

#  But all that was as automatic as her beating heart, as…

![“But all that was as automatic as her beating heart, as subconscious as breathing - what she felt above all was the fierce tingling certainty of being alive.” quote by Lisa Verge Higgins](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/807/lisa-verge-higgins-47404_beating-heart_but-all-that-was-as-automatic-as-her-bea_2104737.jpg)   [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/807/lisa-verge-higgins-47404_beating-heart_but-all-that-was-as-automatic-as-her-bea_2104737.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/807/lisa-verge-higgins-47404_beating-heart_but-all-that-was-as-automatic-as-her-bea_2104737.jpg)

> ““But all that was as automatic as her beating heart, as subconscious as breathing - what she felt above all was the fierce tingling certainty of being alive.””

[Lisa Verge Higgins](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lisa-verge-higgins/)

## About This Quote

This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation.

Describes an instinctual, visceral feeling of being alive, likened to involuntary bodily functions, underscoring deep self‑awareness.

**In simple terms:** Feeling alive is an instinctual, intense certainty.

Key Takeaway

Trust your body’s signals of vitality.

Themes

existence intuition emotion self‑awareness

Mood

introspective hopeful

Type

literary inspirational

When to use this quote

- creative writing
- mindfulness practice
- artistic inspiration
- personal growth

Key Concepts

embodiment consciousness psychology

Questions to Reflect On

- How do you recognize authentic vitality?
- When does this feeling guide decisions?

A Different Perspective

May romanticize feeling over rational analysis.

★ ★ ★ ★ ★   No ratings yet

[Beating Heart](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/beating-heart/)

## Related quotes

> [“Kaneta said, “What determined life or death? No Buddhist priest knows, no Christian pastor—not even the Pope in Rome. So I would say, ‘There’s…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/richard-lloyd-parry/kaneta-said-what-determined-life-or-death-no-buddhist-priest-knows-no/)

[Richard Lloyd Parry](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/richard-lloyd-parry/)

> [I heard a sigh, as though the books were breathing. I felt that this was where I belonged. This was where I lived.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alice-hoffman/i-heard-a-sigh-as-though-the-books-were-breathing-i-felt-that-this/)

[Alice Hoffman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alice-hoffman/)

> [“My heart beat fast, and I had a little trouble breathing. It felt like lust, but then again it might have been fear.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/marshall-thornton/my-heart-beat-fast-and-i-had-a-little-trouble-breathing-it-felt-like/)

[Marshall Thornton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/marshall-thornton/)

> [“She did not feel anything so boring as beautiful. She felt fierce.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/meredith-duran/she-did-not-feel-anything-so-boring-as-beautiful-she-felt-fierce/)

[Meredith Duran](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/meredith-duran/)

> [“I was entering. I was leaving. California streamed behind me like a long silk veil. I didn't feel like a big fat idiot anymore.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/cherly-strayed/i-was-entering-i-was-leaving-california-streamed-behind-me-like-a/)

Cherly Strayed

> [“I felt fierce and humble and gathered up inside, like I was safe in this world too.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/cheryl-strayed/i-felt-fierce-and-humble-and-gathered-up-inside-like-i-was-safe-in/)

[Cheryl Strayed](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/cheryl-strayed/)

> [“I didn’t feel like a big fat idiot anymore. And I didn’t feel like a hard-ass motherfucking Amazonian queen. I felt fierce and humble…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/cheryl-strayed/i-didn-t-feel-like-a-big-fat-idiot-anymore-and-i-didn-t-feel-like-a/)

[Cheryl Strayed](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/cheryl-strayed/)

> [And darling I will be loving you 'til we're 70 And baby my heart could still fall as hard at 23 And I'm thinking…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ed-sheeran/and-darling-i-will-be-loving-you-til-we-re-70-and-baby-my-heart-could/)

[Ed Sheeran](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ed-sheeran/)

> [“I saw on the pad not an operator's number from my home town, but one which seemed to interrupt the beating of my heart.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-knowles/i-saw-on-the-pad-not-an-operator-s-number-from-my-home-town-but-one/)

[John Knowles](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-knowles/)

> [“Every end is a beginning. Every stop a fresh start. All in order, as its nature, like the beating of my heart.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/f-t-moore/every-end-is-a-beginning-every-stop-a-fresh-start-all-in-order-as-its/)

F.T. Moore

> [“Then I rest my head on his chest and I feel the beating of his heart, even though it is not as fast as…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/pet-torres/then-i-rest-my-head-on-his-chest-and-i-feel-the-beating-of-his-heart/)

[Pet TorreS](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/pet-torres/)

> [“Sunday morning came – next day the battalions would leave for the front; the church was filled; the volunteers were there, their young faces…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mark-twain/sunday-morning-came-next-day-the-battalions-would-leave-for-the-front/)

[Mark Twain](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mark-twain/)

> [So we and our elaborately evolving computers may meet each other halfway. Someday a human being, named perhaps Fred White, may shoot a robot…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/philip-k-dick/so-we-and-our-elaborately-evolving-computers-may-meet-each-other/)

[Philip K. Dick](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/philip-k-dick/)

> [How can love be so silent when it speaks in the beating of your heart.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/how-can-love-be-so-silent-when-it-speaks-in-the-beating-of-your-heart/)

[Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/)

> [“Autumn eats its leaf out of my hand: we are friends. From the nuts we shell time and we teach it to walk: then…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/paul-celan/autumn-eats-its-leaf-out-of-my-hand-we-are-friends-from-the-nuts-we/)

[Paul Celan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/paul-celan/)

## More by Lisa Verge Higgins

> [“You're so busy running here and there that you've forgotten that the goal of life is learning.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lisa-verge-higgins/you-re-so-busy-running-here-and-there-that-you-ve-forgotten-that-the/)

[Lisa Verge Higgins](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lisa-verge-higgins/)

> [“you're a terrible liar. sarah never mentioned me, because there's nothing to say. when did that happen. when did the old rock-climbing, mutiple-master's-degree kate…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lisa-verge-higgins/you-re-a-terrible-liar-sarah-never-mentioned-me-because-there-s/)

[Lisa Verge Higgins](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lisa-verge-higgins/)

> [“Any fool could see that you're at the reeling end of a long, strong rope - soon enough, It'll be tugging you back.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lisa-verge-higgins/any-fool-could-see-that-you-re-at-the-reeling-end-of-a-long-strong/)

[lisa verge higgins](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lisa-verge-higgins/)

> [“We rush, rush, rush to get things done, and in the process, our lives rush past us. Life isn't supposed to rush past you…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lisa-verge-higgins/we-rush-rush-rush-to-get-things-done-and-in-the-process-our-lives/)

[Lisa Verge Higgins](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lisa-verge-higgins/)

> [“there's this thing about rainbows. they're perfect from afar. but when you get real close to them, they just disappear.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lisa-verge-higgins/there-s-this-thing-about-rainbows-they-re-perfect-from-afar-but-when/)

[Lisa Verge Higgins](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lisa-verge-higgins/)

> [“Running the house like a well-oiled machine even when she was not there. Running it so well that all anyone noticed was the rare…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lisa-verge-higgins/running-the-house-like-a-well-oiled-machine-even-when-she-was-not/)

[Lisa Verge Higgins](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lisa-verge-higgins/)

> [“Any sharp transition such as this was like birth; the pain was necessary to remind you of its importance.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lisa-verge-higgins/any-sharp-transition-such-as-this-was-like-birth-the-pain-was/)

[Lisa Verge Higgins](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lisa-verge-higgins/)

[Explore all 8 Lisa Verge Higgins quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lisa-verge-higgins/)

## More Beating Heart quotes

> [“Autumn eats its leaf out of my hand: we are friends. From the nuts we shell time and we teach it to walk: then…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/paul-celan/autumn-eats-its-leaf-out-of-my-hand-we-are-friends-from-the-nuts-we/)

[Paul Celan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/paul-celan/)

> [How can love be so silent when it speaks in the beating of your heart.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/how-can-love-be-so-silent-when-it-speaks-in-the-beating-of-your-heart/)

[Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/)

> [So we and our elaborately evolving computers may meet each other halfway. Someday a human being, named perhaps Fred White, may shoot a robot…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/philip-k-dick/so-we-and-our-elaborately-evolving-computers-may-meet-each-other/)

[Philip K. Dick](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/philip-k-dick/)

> [“Sunday morning came – next day the battalions would leave for the front; the church was filled; the volunteers were there, their young faces…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mark-twain/sunday-morning-came-next-day-the-battalions-would-leave-for-the-front/)

[Mark Twain](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mark-twain/)

> [“Then I rest my head on his chest and I feel the beating of his heart, even though it is not as fast as…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/pet-torres/then-i-rest-my-head-on-his-chest-and-i-feel-the-beating-of-his-heart/)

[Pet TorreS](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/pet-torres/)

> [“Every end is a beginning. Every stop a fresh start. All in order, as its nature, like the beating of my heart.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/f-t-moore/every-end-is-a-beginning-every-stop-a-fresh-start-all-in-order-as-its/)

F.T. Moore

> [“I saw on the pad not an operator's number from my home town, but one which seemed to interrupt the beating of my heart.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-knowles/i-saw-on-the-pad-not-an-operator-s-number-from-my-home-town-but-one/)

[John Knowles](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-knowles/)

> [And darling I will be loving you 'til we're 70 And baby my heart could still fall as hard at 23 And I'm thinking…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ed-sheeran/and-darling-i-will-be-loving-you-til-we-re-70-and-baby-my-heart-could/)

[Ed Sheeran](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ed-sheeran/)

> [If you have a beating heart, that's good enough.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ann-druyan/if-you-have-a-beating-heart-that-s-good-enough/)

[Ann Druyan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ann-druyan/)

> [Being tender and open is beautiful. As a woman, I feel continually shhh’ed. Too sensitive. Too mushy. Too wishy washy. Blah blah. Don’t let…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/zooey-deschanel/being-tender-and-open-is-beautiful-as-a-woman-i-feel-continually-shhh/)

[Zooey Deschanel](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/zooey-deschanel/)

> [“In the beginning, everything was alive. The smallest objects were endowed with beating hearts, and even the clouds had names. Scissors could walk, telephones…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/paul-auster/in-the-beginning-everything-was-alive-the-smallest-objects-were/)

[Paul Auster](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/paul-auster/)

> [“He leaned down, lapped at her tears with his tongue. "I won't take you, make you come until you tell me you belong to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/laura-wright/he-leaned-down-lapped-at-her-tears-with-his-tongue-i-won-t-take-you/)

[Laura Wright](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/laura-wright/)

> [“It’s the beating of my heart. The way I lie awake, playing with shadows slowly climbing up my wall. The gentle moonlight slipping through…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/charlotte-eriksson/it-s-the-beating-of-my-heart-the-way-i-lie-awake-playing-with-shadows/)

[Charlotte Eriksson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/charlotte-eriksson/)

> [“Be consoled in knowing the world depends upon the small beating in your heart.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sue-monk-kidd/be-consoled-in-knowing-the-world-depends-upon-the-small-beating-in/)

[Sue Monk Kidd](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sue-monk-kidd/)

> [Have you ever been at sea in a dense fog, when it seemed as if a tangible white darkness shut you in and the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/helen-keller/have-you-ever-been-at-sea-in-a-dense-fog-when-it-seemed-as-if-a/)

[Helen Keller](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/helen-keller/)

[Browse all 242 Beating Heart quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/beating-heart/)

```json
{
    "@context": "https://schema.org",
    "@graph": [
        {
            "@type": "Quotation",
            "text": "“But all that was as automatic as her beating heart, as subconscious as breathing - what she felt above all was the fierce tingling certainty of being alive.”",
            "creator": {
                "@type": "Person",
                "name": "Lisa Verge Higgins"
            },
            "isPartOf": {
                "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website"
            },
            "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lisa-verge-higgins/but-all-that-was-as-automatic-as-her-beating-heart-as-subconscious-as/",
            "about": {
                "@type": "Thing",
                "name": "Beating Heart"
            },
            "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lisa-verge-higgins/but-all-that-was-as-automatic-as-her-beating-heart-as-subconscious-as/#quotation",
            "image": {
                "@type": "ImageObject",
                "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/807/lisa-verge-higgins-47404_beating-heart_but-all-that-was-as-automatic-as-her-bea_2104737.jpg",
                "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/807/lisa-verge-higgins-47404_beating-heart_but-all-that-was-as-automatic-as-her-bea_2104737.jpg",
                "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/807/lisa-verge-higgins-47404_beating-heart_but-all-that-was-as-automatic-as-her-bea_2104737.jpg",
                "width": 1080,
                "height": 1080,
                "caption": "“But all that was as automatic as her beating heart, as subconscious as breathing - what she felt above all…” — Lisa Verge Higgins",
                "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": "Lisa Verge Higgins",
                    "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lisa-verge-higgins/"
                },
                {
                    "@type": "ListItem",
                    "position": 4,
                    "name": "“But all that was as automatic...",
                    "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lisa-verge-higgins/but-all-that-was-as-automatic-as-her-beating-heart-as-subconscious-as/"
                }
            ],
            "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lisa-verge-higgins/but-all-that-was-as-automatic-as-her-beating-heart-as-subconscious-as/#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
            }
        }
    ]
}
```
