--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: We pulled the seeds out and scattered…" description: "\"We pulled the seeds out and scattered them on their flossy parachutes, leaving only the leathery brownish yellow tongue, soft as the inside of an elbow..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/6c4/margaret-atwood-40_elbows_we-pulled-the-seeds-out-and-scattered-th_574522.jpg" --- # We pulled the seeds out and scattered them on their flossy… ![“We pulled the seeds out and scattered them on their flossy parachutes, leaving only the leathery brownish yellow tongue, soft as the inside of an elbow.” quote by Margaret Atwood](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/6c4/margaret-atwood-40_elbows_we-pulled-the-seeds-out-and-scattered-th_574522.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/6c4/margaret-atwood-40_elbows_we-pulled-the-seeds-out-and-scattered-th_574522.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/6c4/margaret-atwood-40_elbows_we-pulled-the-seeds-out-and-scattered-th_574522.jpg) > “We pulled the seeds out and scattered them on their flossy parachutes, leaving only the leathery brownish yellow tongue, soft as the inside of an elbow.” [Margaret Atwood](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/margaret-atwood/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. A vivid, grotesque image of destruction, emphasizing how something once vital can be reduced to a hollow, useless remnant. **In simple terms:** Destruction leaves only a hollow shell. Key Takeaway Recognize and avoid wasteful loss. Themes destruction decay environment humanity loss Mood somber reflective Type literary poetic When to use this quote - environmental collapse - personal betrayal - resource depletion - industrial waste Key Concepts post‑apocalyptic ecocriticism symbolism Questions to Reflect On - What does the “tongue” symbolize in your life? - How can we prevent vital things from becoming waste? A Different Perspective The metaphor may over‑dramatize, obscuring practical solutions. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Yellow](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/yellow/) ## Related quotes > [“A brick could be licked, like a cat’s asshole. But obviously inversed, because your tongue is soft and the brick is rough. ”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jarod-kintz/a-brick-could-be-licked-like-a-cat-s-asshole-but-obviously-inversed/) [Jarod Kintz](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jarod-kintz/) > [“The tongue is the soft weapon that kills subtly.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jaime-tenorio-valenzuela/the-tongue-is-the-soft-weapon-that-kills-subtly/) Jaime Tenorio Valenzuela > [“Dandelion seeds were scattered across the glass, and as a light breeze blew, the fluffy ends were caught in the moving air and danced…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mia-sheridan/dandelion-seeds-were-scattered-across-the-glass-and-as-a-light-breeze/) [Mia Sheridan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mia-sheridan/) > [“In scattering the seed, scattering your 'charity,' your kind deeds, you are giving away, in one form or antoher, part of your personality, and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/fyodor-dostoyevsky/in-scattering-the-seed-scattering-your-charity-your-kind-deeds-you/) [Fyodor Dostoyevsky](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/fyodor-dostoyevsky/) > [Because life goes on, L. The birds do their thing, and the bees do theirs. Seeds get scattered, and everything grows back.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kami-garcia/because-life-goes-on-l-the-birds-do-their-thing-and-the-bees-do/) [Kami Garcia](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kami-garcia/) > [Each of us as he receives his private trouncings at the hands of fate is kept in good heart by hearing of the moth…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/n-f-simpson/each-of-us-as-he-receives-his-private-trouncings-at-the-hands-of-fate/) [N. F. Simpson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/n-f-simpson/) > [If I did not love what is present, if I could not cling to this enormous, safe parachute, I would long since have fallen…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/christian-morgenstern/if-i-did-not-love-what-is-present-if-i-could-not-cling-to-this/) [Christian Morgenstern](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/christian-morgenstern/) > [I was a pilot and flying hang gliders, paragliders, aerobatics airplanes, and then I discovered skydiving. Free fall. Free. With nothing around you, just…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/yves-rossy/i-was-a-pilot-and-flying-hang-gliders-paragliders-aerobatics/) [Yves Rossy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/yves-rossy/) > [Mind are like a parachutes they only function when open.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/innah-delos-angeles/mind-are-like-a-parachutes-they-only-function-when-open/) [Innah Delos Angeles](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/innah-delos-angeles/) > [What you look like on the outside is not what makes you cool at all. I mean, I had a mullet and wore parachute…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ellen-degeneres/what-you-look-like-on-the-outside-is-not-what-makes-you-cool-at-all-i/) [Ellen DeGeneres](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ellen-degeneres/) > [ I said \[to my mom\], "I want to go to the parachute regiment." She said, "Whew, that's tough. But okay, I understand." ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/scott-raab/i-said-to-my-mom-i-want-to-go-to-the-parachute-regiment-she-said-whew/) [Scott Raab](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/scott-raab/) > [If skydiving were safe, the parachute center would not require you to sign a waiver.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dan-poynter/if-skydiving-were-safe-the-parachute-center-would-not-require-you-to/) [Dan Poynter](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dan-poynter/) > [The mind is like a parachute. In order to function, it first has to open.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/thomas-dewar-1st-baron-dewar/the-mind-is-like-a-parachute-in-order-to-function-it-first-has-to-open/) [Thomas Dewar, 1st Baron Dewar](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/thomas-dewar-1st-baron-dewar/) > [I often say if men were meant to fly we would have been born with either feathers and wings or at the very least…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-zakour/i-often-say-if-men-were-meant-to-fly-we-would-have-been-born-with/) [John Zakour](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-zakour/) > [Man has been thrown into the world. It had always made him think of Icarus and those other great tumblers, Ixion, Phaeton, Tantalus -…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/cees-nooteboom/man-has-been-thrown-into-the-world-it-had-always-made-him-think-of/) [Cees Nooteboom](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/cees-nooteboom/) ## More by Margaret Atwood > [“I'm fine," said Pilar, "for the moment. And the moment is the only time we can be fine in.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/margaret-atwood/i-m-fine-said-pilar-for-the-moment-and-the-moment-is-the-only-time-we/) [Margaret Atwood](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/margaret-atwood/) > [And yet it disturbs me to learn I have hurt someone unintentionally. I want all my hurts to be intentional.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/margaret-atwood/and-yet-it-disturbs-me-to-learn-i-have-hurt-someone-unintentionally-i/) [Margaret Atwood](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/margaret-atwood/) > [“Mary: Some call this "Eve's curse," but I think that is stupid because the real curse of Eve was having to put up with…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/margaret-atwood/mary-some-call-this-eve-s-curse-but-i-think-that-is-stupid-because/) [Margaret Atwood](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/margaret-atwood/) > [“The birds were singing around me, but I reflected that the very birds were strangers to me, for I did not even know their…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/margaret-atwood/the-birds-were-singing-around-me-but-i-reflected-that-the-very-birds/) [Margaret Atwood](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/margaret-atwood/) > [“Strange how we decorate pain. These ribbons, for instance, and the small hard teardrops of blood. Who are they for? Do we think the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/margaret-atwood/strange-how-we-decorate-pain-these-ribbons-for-instance-and-the-small/) [margaret atwood](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/margaret-atwood/) > [I wanted to forget the past, but it refused to forget me; it waited for sleep, then cornered me.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/margaret-atwood/i-wanted-to-forget-the-past-but-it-refused-to-forget-me-it-waited-for/) [Margaret Atwood](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/margaret-atwood/) > [“Back at home they drew the curtains and read, with disapproval, with relish, with avidity and glee - even the ones who'd never thought…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/margaret-atwood/back-at-home-they-drew-the-curtains-and-read-with-disapproval-with/) [Margaret Atwood](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/margaret-atwood/) > [“It's my fault. I am forgetting too much.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/margaret-atwood/it-s-my-fault-i-am-forgetting-too-much/) [Margaret Atwood](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/margaret-atwood/) > [All fiction is about people, unless it's about rabbits pretending to be people. It's all essentially characters in action, which means characters moving through…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/margaret-atwood/all-fiction-is-about-people-unless-it-s-about-rabbits-pretending-to/) [Margaret Atwood](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/margaret-atwood/) > [“Simon walks back to the house alone. The night is clear and warm, with a moon, almost full, enclosed in a nimbus of mist;…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/margaret-atwood/simon-walks-back-to-the-house-alone-the-night-is-clear-and-warm-with/) [Margaret Atwood](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/margaret-atwood/) > [“There is indeed something delightful about being able to combine obedience and disobedience in the same act.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/margaret-atwood/there-is-indeed-something-delightful-about-being-able-to-combine/) [Margaret Atwood](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/margaret-atwood/) > [“Every time the women appear, Snowman is astonished all over again. They're every known colour from the deepest black to whitest white, they're various…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/margaret-atwood/every-time-the-women-appear-snowman-is-astonished-all-over-again-they/) [Margaret Atwood](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/margaret-atwood/) > [Once you publish a book, it is out of your control. You cannot dictate how people read it.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/margaret-atwood/once-you-publish-a-book-it-is-out-of-your-control-you-cannot-dictate/) [Margaret Atwood](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/margaret-atwood/) > [“The more difficult it was to love the particular man beside us, the more we believed in Love, abstract and total. We were waiting,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/margaret-atwood/the-more-difficult-it-was-to-love-the-particular-man-beside-us-the/) [Margaret Atwood](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/margaret-atwood/) > [“She knows she's deceiving herself about that, but she prefers to deceive herself. She desperately needs to believe such pure joy is still possible.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/margaret-atwood/she-knows-she-s-deceiving-herself-about-that-but-she-prefers-to/) [Margaret Atwood](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/margaret-atwood/) [Explore all 2,072 Margaret Atwood quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/margaret-atwood/) ## More Elbows quotes > [Who says I'm not Superman?" You were looking at me with one eye closed against the sun. I shrugged "You would have recued me…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lucy-christopher/who-says-i-m-not-superman-you-were-looking-at-me-with-one-eye-closed/) [Lucy Christopher](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lucy-christopher/) > [I've been afraid of being Cansrel,' she said aloud to her reflection. 'But I'm not Cansrel.' 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