--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: Cheryl Strayed reminds us, in her lyrical…" description: "\"Cheryl Strayed reminds us, in her lyrical and courageous memoir Wild, of what it means to be fully alive, even in the face of catastrophe, physical and..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/1fa/mira-bartok-30930_alive_cheryl-strayed-reminds-us-in-her-lyrical_3047020.png" --- # Cheryl Strayed reminds us, in her lyrical and courageous… ![“Cheryl Strayed reminds us, in her lyrical and courageous memoir Wild, of what it means to be fully alive, even in the face of catastrophe, physical and psychic hardship, and loss.” quote by Mira Bartok](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/1fa/mira-bartok-30930_alive_cheryl-strayed-reminds-us-in-her-lyrical_3047020.png) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/1fa/mira-bartok-30930_alive_cheryl-strayed-reminds-us-in-her-lyrical_3047020.png) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/1fa/mira-bartok-30930_alive_cheryl-strayed-reminds-us-in-her-lyrical_3047020.png) > “Cheryl Strayed reminds us, in her lyrical and courageous memoir Wild, of what it means to be fully alive, even in the face of catastrophe, physical and psychic hardship, and loss.” [Mira Bartok](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mira-bartok/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Wild illustrates that confronting extreme adversity reveals the essence of living fully. **In simple terms:** Hardship can deepen life’s meaning Key Takeaway Embrace challenges for growth Themes adversity resilience self‑discovery Mood reflective hopeful Type literary psychological When to use this quote - personal loss - physical injury - mental health journeys Key Concepts memoir literature psychology of trauma Questions to Reflect On - What does “fully alive” mean to you? - How can hardship foster personal growth? A Different Perspective Trauma can also cause lasting damage ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Alive](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/alive/) [Catastrophe](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/catastrophe/) [Cheryl Strayed](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/cheryl-strayed-227780/) [Courageous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/courageous/) [Courageous Memoir](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/courageous-memoir-5049617/) [Faces](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/faces/) [Fully Alive](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/fully-alive/) [Hardship](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/hardship/) [Loss](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/loss/) [Lyrical](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/lyrical/) [Lyrical Courageous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/lyrical-courageous-5049618/) [Mean](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/mean/) [Memoir](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/memoir/) [Memoir Wild](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/memoir-wild-5049616/) [Psychics](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/psychics/) [Wild](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/wild/) ## Related quotes > [In language that's lyrical and haunting, Cheryl Strayed writes about bliss and loss, about the kind of grace that startles and transforms us in…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ursula-hegi/in-language-that-s-lyrical-and-haunting-cheryl-strayed-writes-about/) [Ursula Hegi](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ursula-hegi/) > [I always let my husband read the script so he knows what's about to happen to his wife. When I played Cheryl Strayed in…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/reese-witherspoon/i-always-let-my-husband-read-the-script-so-he-knows-what-s-about-to/) [Reese Witherspoon](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/reese-witherspoon/) > [I'm encouraging these women, like Cheryl Strayed, to take the jump to writing for the screen. She is adapting her book Tiny Beautiful Things…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/reese-witherspoon/i-m-encouraging-these-women-like-cheryl-strayed-to-take-the-jump-to/) [Reese Witherspoon](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/reese-witherspoon/) > [No one can write like Cheryl Strayed.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ann-hood/no-one-can-write-like-cheryl-strayed/) [Ann Hood](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ann-hood/) > [Cheryl Strayed is a courageous, gritty, and deceptively elegant writer.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/pam-houston/cheryl-strayed-is-a-courageous-gritty-and-deceptively-elegant-writer/) [Pam Houston](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/pam-houston/) > [It takes courage to say, "I need help" and to be vulnerable and accept advice from people who may be wiser than you are.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anne-marie-miller/it-takes-courage-to-say-i-need-help-and-to-be-vulnerable-and-accept/) [Anne Marie Miller](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anne-marie-miller/) > [We are going to die, as is everyone we adore - I hate this! But the question is, how do we live as women…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anne-lamott/we-are-going-to-die-as-is-everyone-we-adore-i-hate-this-but-the/) [Anne Lamott](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anne-lamott/) > [“The small Japanese immortal sat cross-legged, his two swords resting flat on the ground before him. He folded his hands in his lap, closed…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-scott/the-small-japanese-immortal-sat-cross-legged-his-two-swords-resting/) [Michael Scott](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michael-scott/) > [But unless we are creators, we are not fully alive.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/madeleine-l-engle/but-unless-we-are-creators-we-are-not-fully-alive/) [Madeleine L'Engle](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/madeleine-l-engle/) > [God is life. God is life in action. The best way to say, "I love you, God," is to live your life doing your…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/god-is-life-god-is-life-in-action-the-best-way-to-say-i-love-you-god/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [But unless we are creators we are not fully alive. What do I mean by creators? Not only artists, whose acts of creation are…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/madeleine-l-engle/but-unless-we-are-creators-we-are-not-fully-alive-what-do-i-mean-by/) [Madeleine L'Engle](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/madeleine-l-engle/) > [“To be creative is only to have health: to keep oneself fully alive in the Creation, to keep the Creation fully alive in oneself,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/wendell-berry/to-be-creative-is-only-to-have-health-to-keep-oneself-fully-alive-in/) [Wendell Berry](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/wendell-berry/) > [Good questions work on us, we don't work on them. They are not a project to be completed but a doorway opening onto greater…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/peter-block/good-questions-work-on-us-we-don-t-work-on-them-they-are-not-a/) [Peter Block](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/peter-block/) > [The modern world has created airports and hospitals and put 10,000 songs in our pocket. It has built gleaming buildings and computers and advances…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rob-bell/the-modern-world-has-created-airports-and-hospitals-and-put-10-000/) [Rob Bell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rob-bell/) > [“One's best work comes when we are fully alive, happy, and inspired.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/eric-schiffer/one-s-best-work-comes-when-we-are-fully-alive-happy-and-inspired/) [Eric Schiffer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/eric-schiffer/) ## More by Mira Bartok > [Who am I, then, if my memory is impaired?](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mira-bartok/who-am-i-then-if-my-memory-is-impaired/) [Mira Bartok](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mira-bartok/) > [Some of my old memories feel trapped in amber in my brain, lucid and burning, while others are like the wing beat of a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mira-bartok/some-of-my-old-memories-feel-trapped-in-amber-in-my-brain-lucid-and/) [Mira Bartok](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mira-bartok/) > [“What will life be like without her? I am dreadfully sad she is leaving. What if she just disappears; gets tired of all this…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mira-bartok/what-will-life-be-like-without-her-i-am-dreadfully-sad-she-is-leaving/) [Mira Bartok](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mira-bartok/) > [We humans are different - our brains are built not to fix memories in stone but rather to transform them, our recollections in their…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mira-bartok/we-humans-are-different-our-brains-are-built-not-to-fix-memories-in/) [Mira Bartok](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mira-bartok/) > [Eloquent and moving... an extraordinary testament to the enduring power of love - beyond faith and dogma. It reminds us of why we are…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mira-bartok/eloquent-and-moving-an-extraordinary-testament-to-the-enduring-power/) [Mira Bartok](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mira-bartok/) > [Children of the mentally ill learn early on how not to be a bother, especially if they grew up with neglect. As my sister…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mira-bartok/children-of-the-mentally-ill-learn-early-on-how-not-to-be-a-bother/) [Mira Bartok](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mira-bartok/) > [“At the bottom of the box were two big fairy-tale collections our father had sent us sometime after our parents divorced in 1963. I…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mira-bartok/at-the-bottom-of-the-box-were-two-big-fairy-tale-collections-our/) [Mira Bartok](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mira-bartok/) > [ “He \[Nicolaus Steno\] told the audience, "Beautiful is what we see. More beautiful is what we understand. Most beautiful is what we do not… ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mira-bartok/he-nicolaus-steno-told-the-audience-beautiful-is-what-we-see-more/) [Mira Bartok](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mira-bartok/) > [“Beautiful is what we see. More beautiful is what we understand. Most beautiful is what we do comprehend.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mira-bartok/beautiful-is-what-we-see-more-beautiful-is-what-we-understand-most/) [Mira Bartok](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mira-bartok/) > [We children of schizophrenics are the great secret keepers, the ones who don't want you to think that anything is wrong.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mira-bartok/we-children-of-schizophrenics-are-the-great-secret-keepers-the-ones/) [Mira Bartok](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mira-bartok/) > [Candid and searing, Deborah Jiang Stein’s memoir is a remarkable story about identity, lost and found, and about the author’s journey to reclaim—and celebrate—that…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mira-bartok/candid-and-searing-deborah-jiang-stein-s-memoir-is-a-remarkable-story/) [Mira Bartok](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mira-bartok/) > [“Nobel Prize-winning neuroscientist Eric Kandel says we are who we are because of what we learn and what we remember. Who am I, then,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mira-bartok/nobel-prize-winning-neuroscientist-eric-kandel-says-we-are-who-we-are/) [Mira Bartok](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mira-bartok/) > [I felt held hostage by her illness and by the backward mental health system that once again was incapable of helping our family in…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mira-bartok/i-felt-held-hostage-by-her-illness-and-by-the-backward-mental-health/) [Mira Bartok](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mira-bartok/) > [My dog, Ginger, is jumpy-like me-sensitive to sound and sudden movement. She wasn't that way at first, but not long after we got her,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mira-bartok/my-dog-ginger-is-jumpy-like-me-sensitive-to-sound-and-sudden-movement/) [Mira Bartok](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mira-bartok/) > [“Memory, if it is anything at all, is unreliable.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mira-bartok/memory-if-it-is-anything-at-all-is-unreliable/) [Mira Bartok](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mira-bartok/) [Explore all 17 Mira Bartok quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mira-bartok/) ## 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](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/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. Lutzer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/erwin-w-lutzer/) > [If you’re alive, don’t move, if you’re dead, don’t worry about it.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/laurell-k-hamilton/if-you-re-alive-don-t-move-if-you-re-dead-don-t-worry-about-it/) [Laurell K. Hamilton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/laurell-k-hamilton/) > [Here Greek and Roman find themselves alive along these crowded shelves; and Shakespeare treads again his stage, and Chaucer paints anew his age.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-greenleaf-whittier/here-greek-and-roman-find-themselves-alive-along-these-crowded/) [John Greenleaf Whittier](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-greenleaf-whittier/) > [You're alive!" Fezzik cried. The man in black sat immobile, like a ventriloquist's dummy, just his mouth moving. "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": "Cheryl Strayed reminds us, in her lyrical and courageous memoir Wild, of what it means to be fully alive, even in the face of catastrophe, physical and psychic hardship, and loss.", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "Mira Bartok" }, "isPartOf": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website" }, "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mira-bartok/cheryl-strayed-reminds-us-in-her-lyrical-and-courageous-memoir-wild/", "about": { "@type": "Thing", "name": "Alive" }, "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mira-bartok/cheryl-strayed-reminds-us-in-her-lyrical-and-courageous-memoir-wild/#quotation", "image": { "@type": "ImageObject", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/1fa/mira-bartok-30930_alive_cheryl-strayed-reminds-us-in-her-lyrical_3047020.png", "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/1fa/mira-bartok-30930_alive_cheryl-strayed-reminds-us-in-her-lyrical_3047020.png", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/1fa/mira-bartok-30930_alive_cheryl-strayed-reminds-us-in-her-lyrical_3047020.png", "width": 1080, "height": 1080, "caption": "“Cheryl Strayed reminds us, in her lyrical and courageous memoir Wild, of what it means to be fully alive…” — Mira Bartok", "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": "Mira Bartok", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mira-bartok/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 4, "name": "Cheryl Strayed reminds us, in her...", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mira-bartok/cheryl-strayed-reminds-us-in-her-lyrical-and-courageous-memoir-wild/" } ], "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mira-bartok/cheryl-strayed-reminds-us-in-her-lyrical-and-courageous-memoir-wild/#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 } } ] } ```