--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: At first, he only continues walking. Only…" description: "\"“At first, he only continues walking. Only when I look down on our feet do I realize that we're actually going nowhere. It's the world that moves - the..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/1f0/markus-zusak-165_walking_at-first-he-only-continues-walking-only_403718.png" --- # At first, he only continues walking. Only when I look down… ![“At first, he only continues walking. Only when I look down on our feet do I realize that we're actually going nowhere. It's the world that moves - the streets, the air, and the dark patches of inner sky.” quote by Markus Zusak](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/1f0/markus-zusak-165_walking_at-first-he-only-continues-walking-only_403718.png) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/1f0/markus-zusak-165_walking_at-first-he-only-continues-walking-only_403718.png) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/1f0/markus-zusak-165_walking_at-first-he-only-continues-walking-only_403718.png) > ““At first, he only continues walking. Only when I look down on our feet do I realize that we're actually going nowhere. It's the world that moves - the streets, the air, and the dark patches of inner sky.”” [Markus Zusak](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/markus-zusak/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Walking feels futile because the world moves around us, but we remain stationary; the environment continues regardless of our actions. **In simple terms:** We often feel stuck while the world changes. Key Takeaway Accept change and find purpose beyond motion. Themes existential movement perception Mood thoughtful melancholic Type philosophical inspirational When to use this quote - travel - career change - personal growth - creative projects Key Concepts impermanence mindfulness psychology Questions to Reflect On - How can you act meaningfully amid constant change? - What steps can you take to feel less stationary? A Different Perspective It may imply passivity rather than agency. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet ## Related quotes > [“Believe me, Rook,” he says with a serious expression. “If I was coming on to you, you’d have no trouble recognizing it.” He turns…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/j-a-huss/believe-me-rook-he-says-with-a-serious-expression-if-i-was-coming-on/) [J.A. Huss](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/j-a-huss/) > [Once I'm on my feet I realize escape might not be so easy.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/suzanne-collins/once-i-m-on-my-feet-i-realize-escape-might-not-be-so-easy/) [Suzanne Collins](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/suzanne-collins/) > [Looking, Walking, Being, I look and look. Looking's a way of being: one becomes, sometimes, a pair of eyes walking. Walking wherever looking takes…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/denise-levertov/looking-walking-being-i-look-and-look-looking-s-a-way-of-being-one/) [Denise Levertov](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/denise-levertov/) > [“Keep walking. If I look back I am lost.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-r-r-martin/keep-walking-if-i-look-back-i-am-lost/) [George R.R. Martin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-r-r-martin/) > [“Once you walked away, you had to keep walking and never look back.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/karen-marie-moning/once-you-walked-away-you-had-to-keep-walking-and-never-look-back/) [Karen Marie Moning](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/karen-marie-moning/) > [I think there is a part of me that's always a little bit like, "Why would I torture myself? Just in case you forgot…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/charlize-theron/i-think-there-is-a-part-of-me-that-s-always-a-little-bit-like-why-2/) [Charlize Theron](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/charlize-theron/) > [And so everything I see in this world, it all moves backward and forward at the same time, like a black-smith's bellows, like everything…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bohumil-hrabal/and-so-everything-i-see-in-this-world-it-all-moves-backward-and/) [Bohumil Hrabal](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bohumil-hrabal/) > [But the world moves on, even when you don't want it to, even when change feels like the end of everything. It never stops.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ann-aguirre/but-the-world-moves-on-even-when-you-don-t-want-it-to-even-when-2/) [Ann Aguirre](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ann-aguirre/) > [“Have you noticed," she asked him, "how standing still can sometimes be no different from moving backward? For the whole world moves on and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mary-balogh/have-you-noticed-she-asked-him-how-standing-still-can-sometimes-be-no/) [Mary Balogh](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mary-balogh/) > [The world moves into the future as a result of decisions, not as a result of plans. Plans are significant only insofar as they…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kenneth-e-boulding/the-world-moves-into-the-future-as-a-result-of-decisions-not-as-a/) [Kenneth E. Boulding](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kenneth-e-boulding/) > [Ka works and the world moves on.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stephen-king/ka-works-and-the-world-moves-on/) [Stephen King](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stephen-king/) > [Lifes hard, but you don't become the person that you are by playing with feathers and silly foam (ha ha, silly) it's hard because…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/j-r-howe/lifes-hard-but-you-don-t-become-the-person-that-you-are-by-playing/) J R Howe > [The world moves, but we seem to move with it. When I studied physiology beforethere were two hundred and eight bones in the body.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ellen-swallow-richards/the-world-moves-but-we-seem-to-move-with-it-when-i-studied-physiology/) [Ellen Swallow Richards](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ellen-swallow-richards/) > [But the world moves on, even when you don’t want it to, even when change feels like the end of everything. It never stops.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ann-aguirre/but-the-world-moves-on-even-when-you-don-t-want-it-to-even-when/) [Ann Aguirre](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ann-aguirre/) > [“In a world that moves in seconds, silence can be the loudest mistake.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/shamail-aijaz/in-a-world-that-moves-in-seconds-silence-can-be-the-loudest-mistake/) [Shamail Aijaz](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/shamail-aijaz/) ## More by Markus Zusak > [Liesel observed the strangeness of her foster father's eyes. They were made of kindness, and silver.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/markus-zusak/liesel-observed-the-strangeness-of-her-foster-father-s-eyes-they-were/) [Markus Zusak](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/markus-zusak/) > [I think that as a writer your responsibility is to search for and stir up the things that are in this world. There is…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/markus-zusak/i-think-that-as-a-writer-your-responsibility-is-to-search-for-and/) [Markus Zusak](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/markus-zusak/) > [“For two days I went about my business. I travelled the globe as always, handing souls to the conveyor belt of eternity.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/markus-zusak/for-two-days-i-went-about-my-business-i-travelled-the-globe-as-always/) [Markus Zusak](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/markus-zusak/) > [It is early, early morning. It's that time when it's still dark but you know the day is coming. Blue is bleeding through black.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/markus-zusak/it-is-early-early-morning-it-s-that-time-when-it-s-still-dark-but-you/) [Markus Zusak](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/markus-zusak/) > [“I'm twenty years old and look at me-- there isn't a thing I want to do”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/markus-zusak/i-m-twenty-years-old-and-look-at-me-there-isn-t-a-thing-i-want-to-do/) [Markus Zusak](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/markus-zusak/) > [You should give it to Max, Liesel. See if you can leave it on the bedside table, like all the other things." Liesel watched…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/markus-zusak/you-should-give-it-to-max-liesel-see-if-you-can-leave-it-on-the/) [Markus Zusak](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/markus-zusak/) > [“When a woman with an iron fist tells you to get out there and clean spit off the door, you do it. Especially when…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/markus-zusak/when-a-woman-with-an-iron-fist-tells-you-to-get-out-there-and-clean/) [Markus Zusak](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/markus-zusak/) > [Is there cowardice with the acknowledgement of fear?](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/markus-zusak/is-there-cowardice-with-the-acknowledgement-of-fear/) [Markus Zusak](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/markus-zusak/) > [In years to come, he would be a giver of bread, not a stealer - proof again of the contradictory human being. So much…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/markus-zusak/in-years-to-come-he-would-be-a-giver-of-bread-not-a-stealer-proof/) [Markus Zusak](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/markus-zusak/) > [“«¿Por qué no puede oírlo el resto del mundo? —me pregunto. En pocos segundos me lo pregunto muchas veces—. Porque no le importa —me…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/markus-zusak/por-qu-no-puede-o-rlo-el-resto-del-mundo-me-pregunto-en-pocos/) [Markus Zusak](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/markus-zusak/) > [Could she smell my breath? Could she hear my cursed circular heart beat revolving like the crime it is in my deathly chest?](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/markus-zusak/could-she-smell-my-breath-could-she-hear-my-cursed-circular-heart/) [Markus Zusak](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/markus-zusak/) > [I see how complicated it is to make a film and how many people are involved and I love the fact that I get…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/markus-zusak/i-see-how-complicated-it-is-to-make-a-film-and-how-many-people-are/) [Markus Zusak](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/markus-zusak/) > [One wild card was yet to be played.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/markus-zusak/one-wild-card-was-yet-to-be-played/) [Markus Zusak](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/markus-zusak/) > [“Može li netko ukrasti sreću? Ili je i to još jedan unutarnji, paklenski ljudski trik?”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/markus-zusak/mo-e-li-netko-ukrasti-sre-u-ili-je-i-to-jo-jedan-unutarnji-paklenski/) [Markus Zusak](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/markus-zusak/) > [I look at my first books and am glad they weren't published… You start writing by imitating your heroes, then you keep the heart…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/markus-zusak/i-look-at-my-first-books-and-am-glad-they-weren-t-published-you-start/) [Markus Zusak](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/markus-zusak/) [Explore all 953 Markus Zusak quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/markus-zusak/) ## More Walking quotes > [“...Often that which most we fear births the resolve that spurs us on to altitudes we could not have achieved, had we continued walking…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/m-t-anderson/often-that-which-most-we-fear-births-the-resolve-that-spurs-us-on-to/) [M.T. Anderson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/m-t-anderson/) > [Our concept of a family holiday was going to a guest house in the Lake district or Wales where walking was part of the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/roger-bannister/our-concept-of-a-family-holiday-was-going-to-a-guest-house-in-the/) [Roger Bannister](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/roger-bannister/) > [Alone in a world, With millions of souls Walking in circles Trapped in their dreams unhealthy, unclean walking in circles, now do not disturb…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/chester-bennington/alone-in-a-world-with-millions-of-souls-walking-in-circles-trapped-in/) [Chester Bennington](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/chester-bennington/) > [Always have the fear of God in your heart, and remember that God is always with you, everywhere, whether you are walking or sitting.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gennadius-of-constantinople/always-have-the-fear-of-god-in-your-heart-and-remember-that-god-is/) [Gennadius of Constantinople](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gennadius-of-constantinople/) > [It's a really dark, emotionally wrenching world that we've created on 'The Walking Dead.'](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/laurie-holden/it-s-a-really-dark-emotionally-wrenching-world-that-we-ve-created-on/) [Laurie Holden](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/laurie-holden/) > [Mortals are such fragile things. Just tender feelings walking around exposed in their delicate shells...Easy to crush.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/melissa-marr/mortals-are-such-fragile-things-just-tender-feelings-walking-around/) [Melissa Marr](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/melissa-marr/) > [Eat when it is time to eat. And walk when it is time to walk.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/paulo-coelho/eat-when-it-is-time-to-eat-and-walk-when-it-is-time-to-walk/) [Paulo Coelho](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/paulo-coelho/) > [If you don't plan to live the Christian life totally committed to knowing your God and to walking in obedience to Him, then don't…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kay-arthur/if-you-don-t-plan-to-live-the-christian-life-totally-committed-to/) [Kay Arthur](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kay-arthur/) > [These days grief seems like walking on a frozen river; most of the time he feels safe enough, but there is always that danger…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-nicholls/these-days-grief-seems-like-walking-on-a-frozen-river-most-of-the/) [David Nicholls](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-nicholls/) > [Music is almost like a therapy for me. It helps keep me centered and think straight. Before I discovered it, I was walking around,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/banks/music-is-almost-like-a-therapy-for-me-it-helps-keep-me-centered-and/) [Banks](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/banks/) > [Miracles are like candles lit up until the sun rises, and then blown out. Therefore, I am amused when I hear sects and churches…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/henry-ward-beecher/miracles-are-like-candles-lit-up-until-the-sun-rises-and-then-blown/) [Henry Ward Beecher](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/henry-ward-beecher/) > [Weekend planning is a prime time to apply the Deathbed Priority Test: On your deathbed, will you wish you'd spent more prime weekend hours…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/hal-borland/weekend-planning-is-a-prime-time-to-apply-the-deathbed-priority-test/) [Hal Borland](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/hal-borland/) > [Mooner was walking around laying his hands on the cars, divining karma. "this is it", he said, standing by a small khaki-colored jeep."this car…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/janet-evanovich/mooner-was-walking-around-laying-his-hands-on-the-cars-divining-karma/) [Janet Evanovich](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/janet-evanovich/) > [For me, the melancholy of the late XXth Century is walking late at night by the Mont Blanc pen store and seeing these things…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-gibson/for-me-the-melancholy-of-the-late-xxth-century-is-walking-late-at/) [William Gibson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-gibson/) > [To become a philosopher, start by walking very slowly.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nassim-nicholas-taleb/to-become-a-philosopher-start-by-walking-very-slowly/) [Nassim Nicholas Taleb](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nassim-nicholas-taleb/) Browse all 6,029 Walking quotes ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "“At first, he only continues walking. Only when I look down on our feet do I realize that we're actually going nowhere. It's the world that moves - the streets, the air, and the dark patches of inner sky.”", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "Markus Zusak" }, "isPartOf": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website" }, "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/markus-zusak/at-first-he-only-continues-walking-only-when-i-look-down-on-our-feet/", "about": { "@type": "Thing", "name": "Walking" }, "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/markus-zusak/at-first-he-only-continues-walking-only-when-i-look-down-on-our-feet/#quotation", "image": { "@type": "ImageObject", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/1f0/markus-zusak-165_walking_at-first-he-only-continues-walking-only_403718.png", "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/1f0/markus-zusak-165_walking_at-first-he-only-continues-walking-only_403718.png", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/1f0/markus-zusak-165_walking_at-first-he-only-continues-walking-only_403718.png", "width": 1080, "height": 1080, "caption": "“At first, he only continues walking. Only when I look down on our feet do I realize that we're actually…” — Markus Zusak", "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": "Markus Zusak", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/markus-zusak/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 4, "name": "“At first, he only continues walking....", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/markus-zusak/at-first-he-only-continues-walking-only-when-i-look-down-on-our-feet/" } ], "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/markus-zusak/at-first-he-only-continues-walking-only-when-i-look-down-on-our-feet/#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 } } ] } ```