---
title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: A Thousand Mornings All night my heart…"
description: "\"“A Thousand Mornings All night my heart makes its way however it can over the rough ground of uncertainties, but only until night meets and then is ove..."
image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/75b/mary-oliver-570_attention_a-thousand-mornings-all-night-my-heart-m_1035398.jpg"
---

#  A Thousand Mornings All night my heart makes its way…

![“A Thousand Mornings All night my heart makes its way however it can over the rough ground of uncertainties, but only until night meets and then is overwhelmed by morning, the light deepening, the wind easing and just waiting, as I too wait (and when have I ever been disappointed?) for redbird to…” quote by Mary Oliver](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/75b/mary-oliver-570_attention_a-thousand-mornings-all-night-my-heart-m_1035398.jpg)   [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/75b/mary-oliver-570_attention_a-thousand-mornings-all-night-my-heart-m_1035398.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/75b/mary-oliver-570_attention_a-thousand-mornings-all-night-my-heart-m_1035398.jpg)

> ““A Thousand Mornings All night my heart makes its way however it can over the rough ground of uncertainties, but only until night meets and then is overwhelmed by morning, the light deepening, the wind easing and just waiting, as I too wait (and when have I ever been disappointed?) for redbird to sing””

[Mary Oliver](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mary-oliver/)

## About This Quote

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

The speaker end uncertainty with patience, trusting that darkness will give way to light and hope, symbolized by a redbird’s song.

**In simple terms:** Patience turns uncertainty into hope.

Key Takeaway

Trust the process and wait for hope.

Themes

patience hope uncertainty nature trust

Mood

reflective hopeful calm

Type

poetic inspirational

When to use this quote

- grief recovery
- creative writing
- personal growth
- mindfulness
- spiritual practice

Key Concepts

existentialism transcendence nature symbolism

Questions to Reflect On

- How do you stay patient when outcomes are unclear?
- What does the redbird represent for you?

A Different Perspective

The metaphor may feel overly poetic for pragmatic problem‑solving.

★ ★ ★ ★ ★   No ratings yet

[Attention](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/attention/) [Good morning](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/good-morning/) [Meets Overwhelmed](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/meets-overwhelmed-2389490/) [Morning](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/morning/) [Mornings](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/mornings/) [Overwhelmed Morning](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/overwhelmed-morning-2389488/) [Redbird](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/redbird-2389489/) [Redbird Sing](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/redbird-sing-2389486/) [Thousand Mornings](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/thousand-mornings-2389487/)

## Related quotes

> [All night my heart makes its way however it can over the rough ground of uncertainties, but only until night meets and then is…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mary-oliver/all-night-my-heart-makes-its-way-however-it-can-over-the-rough-ground/)

[Mary Oliver](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mary-oliver/)

> [“The woods that I loved as a child are entirely gone. The woods that I loved as a young adult are gone. The woods…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mary-oliver/the-woods-that-i-loved-as-a-child-are-entirely-gone-the-woods-that-i-2/)

[Mary Oliver](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mary-oliver/)

> [Has anyone seen my brain? It ran off flailing and screaming about being overwhelmed this morning. I'd really like it back.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/has-anyone-seen-my-brain-it-ran-off-flailing-and-screaming-about/)

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

> [I train hard Monday to Friday. I'll do weights and cardio in the gym most mornings and do a spinning class, too.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/amy-childs/i-train-hard-monday-to-friday-i-ll-do-weights-and-cardio-in-the-gym/)

[Amy Childs](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/amy-childs/)

> [I'm one too many mornings, and a thousand miles behind.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bob-dylan/i-m-one-too-many-mornings-and-a-thousand-miles-behind/)

[Bob Dylan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bob-dylan/)

> [“When we are young, our mornings are triumphant!” Then”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/guy-de-maupassant/when-we-are-young-our-mornings-are-triumphant-then/)

[Guy de Maupassant](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/guy-de-maupassant/)

> [I'd like mornings better if they started later.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/i-d-like-mornings-better-if-they-started-later/)

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

> [My mornings start with mom coming into my bedroom and waking me up, or trying to wake me up, and then I go back…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alex-wolff/my-mornings-start-with-mom-coming-into-my-bedroom-and-waking-me-up-or/)

[Alex Wolff](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alex-wolff/)

> [This terrifying world is not devoid of charms, of the mornings that make waking up worthwhile.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/wislawa-szymborska/this-terrifying-world-is-not-devoid-of-charms-of-the-mornings-that/)

[Wislawa Szymborska](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/wislawa-szymborska/)

> [If you can live the beauty of the misty mornings, you are the king, you are the queen!](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mehmet-murat-ildan/if-you-can-live-the-beauty-of-the-misty-mornings-you-are-the-king-you/)

[Mehmet Murat Ildan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mehmet-murat-ildan/)

> [We all have those mornings where you want to through a rock at the sun and yell Go back to bed you jackass!](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/theresa-d/we-all-have-those-mornings-where-you-want-to-through-a-rock-at-the/)

[Theresa D](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/theresa-d/)

> [I don't really like mornings, so I try to keep it as low-key as possible.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ariana-madix/i-don-t-really-like-mornings-so-i-try-to-keep-it-as-low-key-as/)

[Ariana Madix](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ariana-madix/)

> [I like beating the Bay Area traffic by getting into the office early, plus I get at least an hour most mornings to work…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/baiju-bhatt/i-like-beating-the-bay-area-traffic-by-getting-into-the-office-early/)

[Baiju Bhatt](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/baiju-bhatt/)

> [In the mornings, I try to wash my face - especially if I'm going to set.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/peyton-list/in-the-mornings-i-try-to-wash-my-face-especially-if-i-m-going-to-set/)

[Peyton List](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/peyton-list/)

> [I grew up in Harlem. My grandmother was one of the best cooks around, but the first thing she did on Sunday mornings when…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/richard-carmona/i-grew-up-in-harlem-my-grandmother-was-one-of-the-best-cooks-around/)

[Richard Carmona](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/richard-carmona/)

## More by Mary Oliver

> [Belief isn't always easy. But this much I have learned--- if not enough else--- to live with my eyes open.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mary-oliver/belief-isn-t-always-easy-but-this-much-i-have-learned-if-not-enough/)

[Mary Oliver](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mary-oliver/)

> [In this universe we are given two gifts: the ability to love and the ability to question. Which are, at the same time, the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mary-oliver/in-this-universe-we-are-given-two-gifts-the-ability-to-love-and-the/)

[Mary Oliver](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mary-oliver/)

> [Poetry is one of the original arts, and it began, as did all the fine arts, within the original wilderness of the earth.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mary-oliver/poetry-is-one-of-the-original-arts-and-it-began-as-did-all-the-fine/)

[Mary Oliver](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mary-oliver/)

> [The dream of my life is to lie down by a slow river and stare at the light in the trees - to learn…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mary-oliver/the-dream-of-my-life-is-to-lie-down-by-a-slow-river-and-stare-at-the/)

[Mary Oliver](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mary-oliver/)

> [Tell me, what is it you plan to do with your one wild and precious life?](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mary-oliver/tell-me-what-is-it-you-plan-to-do-with-your-one-wild-and-precious-life/)

[Mary Oliver](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mary-oliver/)

> [“All important ideas must include the trees, the mountains, and the rivers. • To understand many things you must reach out of your own condition.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mary-oliver/all-important-ideas-must-include-the-trees-the-mountains-and-the/)

[Mary Oliver](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mary-oliver/)

> [“Sometimes I think, were I just a little rougher made, I would go altogether to the woods—to my work entirely, and solitude, a few…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mary-oliver/sometimes-i-think-were-i-just-a-little-rougher-made-i-would-go/)

[Mary Oliver](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mary-oliver/)

> [“First Snow The snow began here this morning and all day continued, its white rhetoric everywhere calling us back to why, how, whence such beauty…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mary-oliver/first-snow-the-snow-began-here-this-morning-and-all-day-continued-its/)

[mary oliver](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mary-oliver/)

> [“What can I say that I have not said before? So I’ll say it again. The leaf has a song in it. Stone is…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mary-oliver/what-can-i-say-that-i-have-not-said-before-so-i-ll-say-it-again-the/)

[Mary Oliver](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mary-oliver/)

> [The sea is the most beautiful face in our universe.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mary-oliver/the-sea-is-the-most-beautiful-face-in-our-universe/)

[Mary Oliver](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mary-oliver/)

> [There is nothing better than work. Work is also play; children know that. Children play earnestly as if it were work. But people grow…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mary-oliver/there-is-nothing-better-than-work-work-is-also-play-children-know/)

[Mary Oliver](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mary-oliver/)

> [“What will you do with your one precious, wild life?”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mary-oliver/what-will-you-do-with-your-one-precious-wild-life/)

[Mary Oliver](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mary-oliver/)

> [“Poetry is a life-cherishing force. For poems are not words, after all, but fires for the cold, ropes let down to the lost, something…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mary-oliver/poetry-is-a-life-cherishing-force-for-poems-are-not-words-after-all/)

[Mary Oliver](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mary-oliver/)

> [“I stood like Adam in his lonely garden On that first morning, shaken out of sleep, Rubbing his eyes, listening, parting the leaves, Like…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mary-oliver/i-stood-like-adam-in-his-lonely-garden-on-that-first-morning-shaken/)

[Mary Oliver](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mary-oliver/)

> [We all have a hungry heart, and one of the things we hunger for is happiness. So as much as I possibly could, I…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mary-oliver/we-all-have-a-hungry-heart-and-one-of-the-things-we-hunger-for-is/)

[Mary Oliver](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mary-oliver/)

[Explore all 470 Mary Oliver quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mary-oliver/)

## More Attention quotes

> [It appears to me that one great cause of our difference in opinion on subjects which we often discuss is that you have always…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-ricardo/it-appears-to-me-that-one-great-cause-of-our-difference-in-opinion-on/)

[David Ricardo](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-ricardo/)

> [People pay far too much attention to the television and they're quite literal in some ways. At the beginning, when I was playing very…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ardal-o-hanlon/people-pay-far-too-much-attention-to-the-television-and-they-re-quite/)

[Ardal O'Hanlon](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ardal-o-hanlon/)

> [Television, radio, social media. The 24/7 news cycle plows forward mercilessly on our desks, in our cars and in our pockets. Thousands and thousands…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joseph-prince/television-radio-social-media-the-24-7-news-cycle-plows-forward/)

[Joseph Prince](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joseph-prince/)

> [By making conscious choices in our behavior and where we focus our attention, we can transform our experience of our body, decrease our biological…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/deepak-chopra/by-making-conscious-choices-in-our-behavior-and-where-we-focus-our/)

[Deepak Chopra](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/deepak-chopra/)

> [Our inventions are wont to be pretty toys, which distract our attention from serious things. They are but improved means to an unimproved end.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/henry-david-thoreau/our-inventions-are-wont-to-be-pretty-toys-which-distract-our/)

[Henry David Thoreau](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/henry-david-thoreau/)

> [What people don't normally know about us is the hustle is very real, and it's sorely driven a lot by how we consider ourselves.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lzzy-hale/what-people-don-t-normally-know-about-us-is-the-hustle-is-very-real/)

[Lzzy Hale](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lzzy-hale/)

> [For me, the term "psychotherapy" is limiting. It implies that we work with mind and emotions, but excludes the body and pays scant attention…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jed-diamond/for-me-the-term-psychotherapy-is-limiting-it-implies-that-we-work/)

[Jed Diamond](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jed-diamond/)

> [When you approach something to photograph it, first be still with yourself until the object of your attention affirms your presence. Then don't leave…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/minor-white/when-you-approach-something-to-photograph-it-first-be-still-with/)

[Minor White](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/minor-white/)

> [I'm writing about real things. Real people. Real characters. You have to believe what I write about is true or you wouldn't pay any…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lou-reed/i-m-writing-about-real-things-real-people-real-characters-you-have-to/)

[Lou Reed](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lou-reed/)

> [ I went to a mosque in Philadelphia with \[my wife\] in December 24, 1999. And we we went to this mosque in Philly, and… ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mahershala-ali/i-went-to-a-mosque-in-philadelphia-with-my-wife-in-december-24-1999/)

[Mahershala Ali](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mahershala-ali/)

> [The Harvard Business Review recently had an article called 'The Human Moment,' about how to make real contact with a person at work: ...…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/daniel-goleman/the-harvard-business-review-recently-had-an-article-called-the-human/)

[Daniel Goleman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/daniel-goleman/)

> [Let us thank God heartily as often as we pray that we have His Spirit in us to teach us to pray. Thanksgiving will…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/andy-murray/let-us-thank-god-heartily-as-often-as-we-pray-that-we-have-his-spirit/)

[Andy Murray](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/andy-murray/)

> [Enlightened people live in very charged states of attention, with a tremendous power circuiting through them.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/frederick-lenz/enlightened-people-live-in-very-charged-states-of-attention-with-a/)

[Frederick Lenz](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/frederick-lenz/)

> [We must have a welfare system that we can afford, which will mean giving greater attention to directing the welfare program toward its primary…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-portillo/we-must-have-a-welfare-system-that-we-can-afford-which-will-mean/)

[Michael Portillo](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michael-portillo/)

> [The director's job should give you a sense of music without drawing attention to itself.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/taylor-hackford/the-director-s-job-should-give-you-a-sense-of-music-without-drawing/)

[Taylor Hackford](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/taylor-hackford/)

[Browse all 10,153 Attention quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/attention/)

```json
{
    "@context": "https://schema.org",
    "@graph": [
        {
            "@type": "Quotation",
            "text": "“A Thousand Mornings All night my heart makes its way however it can over the rough ground of uncertainties, but only until night meets and then is overwhelmed by morning, the light deepening, the wind easing and just waiting, as I too wait (and when have I ever been disappointed?) for redbird to sing”",
            "creator": {
                "@type": "Person",
                "name": "Mary Oliver"
            },
            "isPartOf": {
                "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website"
            },
            "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mary-oliver/a-thousand-mornings-all-night-my-heart-makes-its-way-however-it-can/",
            "about": {
                "@type": "Thing",
                "name": "Attention"
            },
            "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mary-oliver/a-thousand-mornings-all-night-my-heart-makes-its-way-however-it-can/#quotation",
            "image": {
                "@type": "ImageObject",
                "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/75b/mary-oliver-570_attention_a-thousand-mornings-all-night-my-heart-m_1035398.jpg",
                "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/75b/mary-oliver-570_attention_a-thousand-mornings-all-night-my-heart-m_1035398.jpg",
                "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/75b/mary-oliver-570_attention_a-thousand-mornings-all-night-my-heart-m_1035398.jpg",
                "width": 1080,
                "height": 1080,
                "caption": "“A Thousand Mornings All night my heart makes its way however it can over the rough ground of uncertainties…” — Mary Oliver",
                "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": "Mary Oliver",
                    "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mary-oliver/"
                },
                {
                    "@type": "ListItem",
                    "position": 4,
                    "name": "“A Thousand Mornings All night my...",
                    "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mary-oliver/a-thousand-mornings-all-night-my-heart-makes-its-way-however-it-can/"
                }
            ],
            "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mary-oliver/a-thousand-mornings-all-night-my-heart-makes-its-way-however-it-can/#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
            }
        }
    ]
}
```
