--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: I know I can walk through the world…" description: "\"I know I can walk through the world, along the shore or under the trees, with my mind filled with things of little importance, in full self-attendance...." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/8c8/mary-oliver-570_alive_i-know-i-can-walk-through-the-world-alon_837168.jpg" --- # I know I can walk through the world, along the shore or… ![“I know I can walk through the world, along the shore or under the trees, with my mind filled with things of little importance, in full self-attendance. A condition I can't really call being alive.” quote by Mary Oliver](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/8c8/mary-oliver-570_alive_i-know-i-can-walk-through-the-world-alon_837168.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/8c8/mary-oliver-570_alive_i-know-i-can-walk-through-the-world-alon_837168.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/8c8/mary-oliver-570_alive_i-know-i-can-walk-through-the-world-alon_837168.jpg) > “I know I can walk through the world, along the shore or under the trees, with my mind filled with things of little importance, in full self-attendance. A condition I can't really call being alive.” [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 poet describes wandering with a mind occupied by trivial thoughts, feeling detached from true vitality. **In simple terms:** Trivial thoughts can mask genuine al. Key Takeaway Seek deeper awareness beyond surface thoughts. Themes mindfulness existence detachment Mood contemplative quiet Type poetic philosophical When to use this quote - daily meditation - walking in nature - creative writing Key Concepts consciousness nature immersion Questions to Reflect On - What small thoughts dominate your day? - How can you reconnect with feeling? A Different Perspective May overlook practical responsibilities. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Alive](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/alive/) [Mind](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/mind/) [Psychology](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/psychology/) [Self](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/self/) [Tree](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/tree/) [World](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/world/) ## Related quotes > [The East contemplated the forest the West counted the trees...the mind that knows that trees and the forest is a new mind.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/marilyn-ferguson/the-east-contemplated-the-forest-the-west-counted-the-trees-the-mind/) [Marilyn Ferguson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/marilyn-ferguson/) > [This is the light of the mind, cold and planetary. The trees of the mind are black. 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I participate in various shows and panels and also use…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ananya-birla/i-highlight-the-importance-of-self-care-and-the-need-to-be-there-for/) [Ananya Birla](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ananya-birla/) > [ The early symptoms of the disease \[California Curse\], which break out almost on arrival in Hollywood, are a sense of exaggerated self-importance and self-centeredness… ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/elinor-glyn/the-early-symptoms-of-the-disease-california-curse-which-break-out/) [Elinor Glyn](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/elinor-glyn/) > [“And before we can be clean and ready for Him to control, self-seeking, self-glory, self-interest, self-pity, self-righteousness, self-importance, self-promotion, self-satisfaction—and whatsoever else there be…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/leonard-ravenhill/and-before-we-can-be-clean-and-ready-for-him-to-control-self-seeking/) [Leonard Ravenhill](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/leonard-ravenhill/) > [“In order of importance: 1. Self, 2. Marriage, 3. Child. Of course all are as important as each other, but neglecting the one before…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jemima-kirke/in-order-of-importance-1-self-2-marriage-3-child-of-course-all-are-as/) [Jemima Kirke](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jemima-kirke/) > [Never underestimate the importance of self-belief to transform your own organization, to reassure nervous clients, and to change the future of our business.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ken-kaess/never-underestimate-the-importance-of-self-belief-to-transform-your/) Ken Kaess > [A warrior doesn't know remorse for anything he has done, because to isolate one's acts as being mean, or ugly, or evil is to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/carlos-castaneda/a-warrior-doesn-t-know-remorse-for-anything-he-has-done-because-to/) [Carlos Castaneda](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/carlos-castaneda/) > [I think seriousness is a mask of self-importance and self-importance in turn is a mask for self-pity. 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Friedman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/thomas-l-friedman/) > [I felt ashamed that I wanted to change a part of myself as I am always talking about the importance of self-love.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ava-michelle/i-felt-ashamed-that-i-wanted-to-change-a-part-of-myself-as-i-am/) [Ava Michelle](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ava-michelle/) > [“A beautiful mind is filled with ideas and inventions”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/martellis-thurmand/a-beautiful-mind-is-filled-with-ideas-and-inventions/) [Martellis Thurmand](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/martellis-thurmand/) > [“My mind is filled with one thought and it runs through over and over and over.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/james-frey/my-mind-is-filled-with-one-thought-and-it-runs-through-over-and-over/) [James Frey](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/james-frey/) > [“The corridors of the mind are filled with the memories of the heart.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/felix-alexander/the-corridors-of-the-mind-are-filled-with-the-memories-of-the-heart/) [Felix Alexander](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/felix-alexander/) ## 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 Alive quotes > [I understand that it's the music that keeps me alive... That's my lifeblood. And to give that up for, like, the TV, the cars,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bruce-springsteen/i-understand-that-it-s-the-music-that-keeps-me-alive-that-s-my/) [Bruce Springsteen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bruce-springsteen/) > [I feel very grateful to be alive and well enough to make music.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/adam-ant/i-feel-very-grateful-to-be-alive-and-well-enough-to-make-music/) Adam Ant > [I don't crave applause. I'm not one of those guys who comes alive on stage. I'm much more alive at home, I think.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-bowie/i-don-t-crave-applause-i-m-not-one-of-those-guys-who-comes-alive-on/) [David Bowie](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-bowie/) > [We must master our egoism, and through this mastery, step outside ourselves and educate ourselves in giving. Fasting requires that we rediscover all that…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tariq-ramadan/we-must-master-our-egoism-and-through-this-mastery-step-outside/) [Tariq Ramadan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tariq-ramadan/) > [I can't say that there are 'things' that make me come alive. There are thoughts that make me come alive.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/marianne-williamson/i-can-t-say-that-there-are-things-that-make-me-come-alive-there-are/) [Marianne Williamson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/marianne-williamson/) > [We're like the wicked witch. We promise gingerbread, then eat the little brats alive.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/orson-scott-card/we-re-like-the-wicked-witch-we-promise-gingerbread-then-eat-the/) [Orson Scott Card](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/orson-scott-card/) > [If Jovan Belcher didn't possess a gun, he and Kasandra Perkins would both be alive today.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bob-costas/if-jovan-belcher-didn-t-possess-a-gun-he-and-kasandra-perkins-would/) [Bob Costas](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bob-costas/) > [Peace is an ongoing process. It begins with the first step and it does not end. We, all of us alive today, are the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-krieger/peace-is-an-ongoing-process-it-begins-with-the-first-step-and-it-does/) [David Krieger](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-krieger/) > [I think adoption becomes complicated whenever the biological parents are alive.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/james-haven/i-think-adoption-becomes-complicated-whenever-the-biological-parents/) [James Haven](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/james-haven/) > [The pain of love is the pain of being alive. It is a perpetual wound.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/maureen-duffy/the-pain-of-love-is-the-pain-of-being-alive-it-is-a-perpetual-wound/) [Maureen Duffy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/maureen-duffy/) > [I have tried to resign myself, and to console myself; and that, I hope, I may have done imperfectly; but what I cannot firmly…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/charles-dickens/i-have-tried-to-resign-myself-and-to-console-myself-and-that-i-hope-i/) [Charles Dickens](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/charles-dickens/) > [If Melanchthon were alive today, he might not weep because of controversies that surround the Lord's Supper, but he might well sorrow because of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/erwin-w-lutzer/if-melanchthon-were-alive-today-he-might-not-weep-because-of/) [Erwin W. 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"That is perhaps the most childishly…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-goldman/you-re-alive-fezzik-cried-the-man-in-black-sat-immobile-like-a/) [William Goldman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-goldman/) [Browse all 7,282 Alive quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/alive/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "I know I can walk through the world, along the shore or under the trees, with my mind filled with things of little importance, in full self-attendance. 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