---
title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: Father Earth thinks in ages, but he…"
description: "\"“Father Earth thinks in ages, but he never, ever sleeps. Nor does he forget.”\" — N.K. Jemisin"
image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/888/n-k-jemisin-1466_earth_father-earth-thinks-in-ages-but-he-never_2909531.png"
---

#  Father Earth thinks in ages, but he never, ever sleeps…

![“Father Earth thinks in ages, but he never, ever sleeps. Nor does he forget.” quote by N.K. Jemisin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/888/n-k-jemisin-1466_earth_father-earth-thinks-in-ages-but-he-never_2909531.png)   [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/888/n-k-jemisin-1466_earth_father-earth-thinks-in-ages-but-he-never_2909531.png) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/888/n-k-jemisin-1466_earth_father-earth-thinks-in-ages-but-he-never_2909531.png)

> ““Father Earth thinks in ages, but he never, ever sleeps. Nor does he forget.””

[N.K. Jemisin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/n-k-jemisin/)

## About This Quote

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

Earth endures vast ages, never resting or forgetting, suggesting timeless continuity and memory

**In simple terms:** Nature is ever‑present and remembering

Key Takeaway

Respect the planet's enduring presence

Themes

nature time memory

Mood

contemplative reverent

Type

philosophical inspirational

When to use this quote

- climate activism
- geology
- philosophical contemplation

Key Concepts

cosmology environmental ethics

Questions to Reflect On

- How can we align actions with Earth's long view?
- What does Earth's memory mean for future generations?

A Different Perspective

Human concerns seem fleeting

★ ★ ★ ★ ★   No ratings yet

[Earth](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/earth/) [Parenting](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/parenting/) [Sleep](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/sleep/)

## Related quotes

> [Naturally, every age thinks that all ages before it were prejudiced, and today we think this more than ever and are just as wrong…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/carl-jung/naturally-every-age-thinks-that-all-ages-before-it-were-prejudiced/)

[Carl Jung](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/carl-jung/)

> [“According to legend, Father Earth did not originally hate life. In fact, as the lorists tell it, once upon a time Earth did everything…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/n-k-jemisin/according-to-legend-father-earth-did-not-originally-hate-life-in-fact/)

[N.K. Jemisin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/n-k-jemisin/)

> [“According to legend, Father Earth did not originally hate life.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/n-k-jemisin/according-to-legend-father-earth-did-not-originally-hate-life/)

[N.K. Jemisin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/n-k-jemisin/)

> [No human walking the earth thinks of himself as a bullshitter.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/emily-gould/no-human-walking-the-earth-thinks-of-himself-as-a-bullshitter/)

[Emily Gould](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/emily-gould/)

> [“Thinking! Thinking! The process should no longer be merely this feeble flurry of hailstones that raises a little dust. It should be something quite…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/j-m-g-le-cl-zio/thinking-thinking-the-process-should-no-longer-be-merely-this-feeble/)

[J.M.G. Le Clézio](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/j-m-g-le-cl-zio/)

> [“Heaven is my father and Earth is my mother and even such a small creature as I finds an intimate place in their midst.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mary-evelyn-tucker/heaven-is-my-father-and-earth-is-my-mother-and-even-such-a-small/)

Mary Evelyn Tucker

> [Kuwait is the mother and father, Earth and it's supplies. She is the past, present and future.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jaber-al-ahmad-al-sabah/kuwait-is-the-mother-and-father-earth-and-it-s-supplies-she-is-the/)

[Jaber Al-Ahmad Al-Sabah](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jaber-al-ahmad-al-sabah/)

> [Call no man your father upon the earth: for one is your Father, which is in heaven.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/matthew-mcconaughey/call-no-man-your-father-upon-the-earth-for-one-is-your-father-which/)

[Matthew McConaughey](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/matthew-mcconaughey/)

> [“The Great Spirit is in all things, he is in the air we breathe. The Great Spirit is our Father, but the Earth is…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/big-thunder-bedagi-wabanaki-algonquin/the-great-spirit-is-in-all-things-he-is-in-the-air-we-breathe-the/)

Big Thunder Bedagi Wabanaki Algonquin

> [Your kid might not have a father on earth that's there for them, but they do have one in heaven.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sonya-parker/your-kid-might-not-have-a-father-on-earth-that-s-there-for-them-but/)

[Sonya Parker](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sonya-parker/)

> [The sun is our father, the earth is our mother. And God is a myth destroying our family.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/steve-fowler/the-sun-is-our-father-the-earth-is-our-mother-and-god-is-a-myth/)

[Steve Fowler](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/steve-fowler/)

> [My father! The sun is my father, and the earth is my mother, and on her bosom I will recline.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tecumseh/my-father-the-sun-is-my-father-and-the-earth-is-my-mother-and-on-her/)

[Tecumseh](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tecumseh/)

> [O maternal earth which rocks the fallen leaf to sleep!](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/edgar-lee-masters/o-maternal-earth-which-rocks-the-fallen-leaf-to-sleep/)

[Edgar Lee Masters](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/edgar-lee-masters/)

> [With the broad and powerful swing of the hand which Zola in The Earth gave to his ploughman, L'Auto, journal of ideas and action,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/henri-desgrange/with-the-broad-and-powerful-swing-of-the-hand-which-zola-in-the-earth/)

Henri Desgrange

> [she, with her affection and her gaiety, had been largely responsible for him having rediscovered the meaning of life, her love had driven him…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/paulo-coelho/she-with-her-affection-and-her-gaiety-had-been-largely-responsible/)

[Paulo Coelho](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/paulo-coelho/)

## More by N.K. Jemisin

> [“Some say the Earth is angry Because he wants no company; I say the Earth is angry Because he lives alone.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/n-k-jemisin/some-say-the-earth-is-angry-because-he-wants-no-company-i-say-the/)

[N.K. Jemisin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/n-k-jemisin/)

> [You are Insignificant. One of millions, neither special nor unique. I did not ask for this ignominy, and I resent the comparison. Fine. I…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/n-k-jemisin/you-are-insignificant-one-of-millions-neither-special-nor-unique-i/)

[N.K. Jemisin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/n-k-jemisin/)

> [“She feels closer than ever to her father in this moment of utter broken rage.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/n-k-jemisin/she-feels-closer-than-ever-to-her-father-in-this-moment-of-utter/)

[N.K. Jemisin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/n-k-jemisin/)

> [“When a comm builds atop a fault line, do you blame its walls when they inevitably crush the people inside? No; you blame whoever…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/n-k-jemisin/when-a-comm-builds-atop-a-fault-line-do-you-blame-its-walls-when-they/)

[N.K. Jemisin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/n-k-jemisin/)

> [“I don’t know how I feel about a canon anymore ... The sheer volume of books that exist out there means that a canon…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/n-k-jemisin/i-don-t-know-how-i-feel-about-a-canon-anymore-the-sheer-volume-of/)

[N.K. Jemisin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/n-k-jemisin/)

> [ “\[...\] the kind of healer who knows that sometimes one must inflict terrible agony - rebreak a bone, carve off a limb, kill the… ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/n-k-jemisin/the-kind-of-healer-who-knows-that-sometimes-one-must-inflict-terrible/)

[N.K. Jemisin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/n-k-jemisin/)

> [So here is why I write what I do: We all have futures. We all have pasts. We all have stories. And we all,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/n-k-jemisin/so-here-is-why-i-write-what-i-do-we-all-have-futures-we-all-have/)

[N.K. Jemisin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/n-k-jemisin/)

> [“How can we prepare for the future if we won’t acknowledge the past?”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/n-k-jemisin/how-can-we-prepare-for-the-future-if-we-won-t-acknowledge-the-past/)

[N.K. Jemisin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/n-k-jemisin/)

> [“You waver, because you don’t really want to know … but you haven’t been a coward for some years now. So you steel yourself…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/n-k-jemisin/you-waver-because-you-don-t-really-want-to-know-but-you-haven-t-been/)

[N.K. Jemisin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/n-k-jemisin/)

> [“What can orogeny do against something like that? Keep her breathing, maybe. But breathing doesn't always mean living, and maybe... maybe genocide doesn't always…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/n-k-jemisin/what-can-orogeny-do-against-something-like-that-keep-her-breathing/)

[N.K. Jemisin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/n-k-jemisin/)

> [“What the rust do you matter? Who cares about you? Well, that’s the thing, isn’t it? Once, you did have people who cared about…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/n-k-jemisin/what-the-rust-do-you-matter-who-cares-about-you-well-that-s-the-thing/)

[N.K. Jemisin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/n-k-jemisin/)

> [“Let me say only that these vehicles float a few inches off the ground. No animals draw them. No steam or chemical fuels them.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/n-k-jemisin/let-me-say-only-that-these-vehicles-float-a-few-inches-off-the-ground/)

[N.K. Jemisin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/n-k-jemisin/)

> [We can never be gods, after all--but we can become something less than human with frightening ease.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/n-k-jemisin/we-can-never-be-gods-after-all-but-we-can-become-something-less-than/)

[N.K. Jemisin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/n-k-jemisin/)

> [“(This is not a digression.)”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/n-k-jemisin/this-is-not-a-digression/)

[N.K. Jemisin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/n-k-jemisin/)

> [“He's not a parasite if she needs him, too, and if she gives what he will not take. (One day soon, she will learn…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/n-k-jemisin/he-s-not-a-parasite-if-she-needs-him-too-and-if-she-gives-what-he/)

[N.K. Jemisin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/n-k-jemisin/)

[Explore all 225 N.K. Jemisin quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/n-k-jemisin/)

## More Earth quotes

> [There is something more important than any ultimate weapon. That is the ultimate position-the position of total control over Earth that lies somewhere out…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lyndon-b-johnson/there-is-something-more-important-than-any-ultimate-weapon-that-is/)

[Lyndon B. Johnson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lyndon-b-johnson/)

> [Well, The Day the Earth Caught Fire was a story... I don't if anybody knows what it is but it was about... in the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/val-guest/well-the-day-the-earth-caught-fire-was-a-story-i-don-t-if-anybody/)

[Val Guest](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/val-guest/)

> [“The global population of Earth are involved in the following corporate government experiments: The long term effects of - 1. Nuclear bomb fallout radiation.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/steven-magee/the-global-population-of-earth-are-involved-in-the-following/)

[Steven Magee](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/steven-magee/)

> [When you're scared - and I mean really scared, not just hearing a noise in the night, or standing toe to toe with someone…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alexander-gordon-smith/when-you-re-scared-and-i-mean-really-scared-not-just-hearing-a-noise/)

[Alexander Gordon Smith](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alexander-gordon-smith/)

> [Mythology is something that always has opportunities to explore. 'It' has been on Earth for millions of years. He's been in contact with humans…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/andy-muschietti/mythology-is-something-that-always-has-opportunities-to-explore-it/)

[Andy Muschietti](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/andy-muschietti/)

> [Give me strength to walk the soft earth, a relative to all that is.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/black-elk/give-me-strength-to-walk-the-soft-earth-a-relative-to-all-that-is/)

[Black Elk](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/black-elk/)

> [I have lifted my plane . . . for perhaps a thousand flights and I have never felt her wheels glide from the Earth…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/beryl-markham/i-have-lifted-my-plane-for-perhaps-a-thousand-flights-and-i-have/)

[Beryl Markham](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/beryl-markham/)

> [Set NOT your hearts on the flowers of this world. They shall fade and die. Prize the Rose of Sharon and the Lily of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/set-not-your-hearts-on-the-flowers-of-this-world-they-shall-fade-and/)

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

> [Then all this earth shines like one house.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ramana-maharshi/then-all-this-earth-shines-like-one-house/)

[Ramana Maharshi](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ramana-maharshi/)

> [When I get a chance to play golf or go on a boat with good people, take the boat out and put some lobsters…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bernie-mac/when-i-get-a-chance-to-play-golf-or-go-on-a-boat-with-good-people/)

[Bernie Mac](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bernie-mac/)

> [When man of slender visits you / Nothing on earth that one can do / In well he’ll hide, or watery hole / And…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jack-goldstein/when-man-of-slender-visits-you-nothing-on-earth-that-one-can-do-in/)

[Jack Goldstein](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jack-goldstein/)

> [Cities are 2% of the earth's crust, but they are 50% of the world's population.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/carlo-ratti/cities-are-2-of-the-earth-s-crust-but-they-are-50-of-the-world-s/)

[Carlo Ratti](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/carlo-ratti/)

> [This, at last, was where things were as they ought to be. Everything was in its place -- the tree, the earth underneath, the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jean-liedloff/this-at-last-was-where-things-were-as-they-ought-to-be-everything-was/)

[Jean Liedloff](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jean-liedloff/)

> [Bring into captivity every thought to the obedience of Christ. Take what I cannot give: my heart, body, thoughts, time, abilities, money, health, strength,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/elizabeth-prentiss/bring-into-captivity-every-thought-to-the-obedience-of-christ-take/)

[Elizabeth Prentiss](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/elizabeth-prentiss/)

> [What did you do to save the world today?](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/richie/what-did-you-do-to-save-the-world-today/)

[Richie](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/richie/)

[Browse all 15,455 Earth quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/earth/)

```json
{
    "@context": "https://schema.org",
    "@graph": [
        {
            "@type": "Quotation",
            "text": "“Father Earth thinks in ages, but he never, ever sleeps. Nor does he forget.”",
            "creator": {
                "@type": "Person",
                "name": "N.K. Jemisin"
            },
            "isPartOf": {
                "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website"
            },
            "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/n-k-jemisin/father-earth-thinks-in-ages-but-he-never-ever-sleeps-nor-does-he/",
            "about": {
                "@type": "Thing",
                "name": "Earth"
            },
            "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/n-k-jemisin/father-earth-thinks-in-ages-but-he-never-ever-sleeps-nor-does-he/#quotation",
            "image": {
                "@type": "ImageObject",
                "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/888/n-k-jemisin-1466_earth_father-earth-thinks-in-ages-but-he-never_2909531.png",
                "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/888/n-k-jemisin-1466_earth_father-earth-thinks-in-ages-but-he-never_2909531.png",
                "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/888/n-k-jemisin-1466_earth_father-earth-thinks-in-ages-but-he-never_2909531.png",
                "width": 1080,
                "height": 1080,
                "caption": "“Father Earth thinks in ages, but he never, ever sleeps. Nor does he forget.” — N.K. Jemisin",
                "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": "N.K. Jemisin",
                    "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/n-k-jemisin/"
                },
                {
                    "@type": "ListItem",
                    "position": 4,
                    "name": "“Father Earth thinks in ages, but...",
                    "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/n-k-jemisin/father-earth-thinks-in-ages-but-he-never-ever-sleeps-nor-does-he/"
                }
            ],
            "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/n-k-jemisin/father-earth-thinks-in-ages-but-he-never-ever-sleeps-nor-does-he/#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
            }
        }
    ]
}
```
