--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: We do not, after all, simply have…" description: "\"We do not, after all, simply have experience; we are entrusted with it. We must do something--make something--with it. A story, we sense is the only po..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/19b/patricia-hampl-12061_burden_we-do-not-after-all-simply-have-experien_1490892.png" --- # We do not, after all, simply have experience; we are… ![“We do not, after all, simply have experience; we are entrusted with it. We must do something--make something--with it. A story, we sense is the only possible habitation for the burden of our witnessing.” quote by Patricia Hampl](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/19b/patricia-hampl-12061_burden_we-do-not-after-all-simply-have-experien_1490892.png) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/19b/patricia-hampl-12061_burden_we-do-not-after-all-simply-have-experien_1490892.png) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/19b/patricia-hampl-12061_burden_we-do-not-after-all-simply-have-experien_1490892.png) > “We do not, after all, simply have experience; we are entrusted with it. We must do something--make something--with it. A story, we sense is the only possible habitation for the burden of our witnessing.” [Patricia Hampl](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/patricia-hampl/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Experience is not merely passive; we must actively shape it into stories that give meaning to our observations. **In simple terms:** We must turn experience into stories. Key Takeaway Create narratives that give purpose to what you witness. Themes responsibility storytelling meaning-making Mood thoughtful inspirational Type philosophical creative When to use this quote - write memoirs - share testimonies - teach through stories Key Concepts narrative construction ethical witness creative expression Questions to Reflect On - How does storytelling shape perception? - What responsibilities come with bearing witness? A Different Perspective Stories may oversimplify complex realities. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Burden](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/burden/) [Burden Witnessing](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/burden-witnessing-5448921/) [Experience](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/experience/) [Experience Entrusted](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/experience-entrusted-5448922/) [Inspirational](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/inspirational/) [Love](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/love/) [Make Story](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/make-story/) [Stories](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/stories/) [Witnessing](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/witnessing/) ## Related quotes > [“Witnessing a selfless act brings tears to remind us how we should be treating others.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bryant-mcgill/witnessing-a-selfless-act-brings-tears-to-remind-us-how-we-should-be/) [Bryant McGill](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bryant-mcgill/) > [“What we have become accustomed to witnessing is a social illusion that takes precedence due to the fact that the process is so intrusive…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lujan-matus/what-we-have-become-accustomed-to-witnessing-is-a-social-illusion/) [Lujan Matus](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lujan-matus/) > [“I once expected to spend seven years walking around the world on foot. I walked from Mexico to Panama where the road ended before…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-whitman/i-once-expected-to-spend-seven-years-walking-around-the-world-on-foot/) [George Whitman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-whitman/) > [“Yes, if the stones that we walked on could talk, they would surely tell our story.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nico-j-genes/yes-if-the-stones-that-we-walked-on-could-talk-they-would-surely-tell/) [Nico J. Genes](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nico-j-genes/) > [Successful witnessing is taking the initiative to share Christ in the power of the Holy Spirit and leaving the results to God.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bill-bright/successful-witnessing-is-taking-the-initiative-to-share-christ-in-the/) [Bill Bright](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bill-bright/) > [For every Christian, the proclamation and witnessing of the Gospel are never an isolated act. This is important. For every Christian the proclamation and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/pope-francis/for-every-christian-the-proclamation-and-witnessing-of-the-gospel-are/) [Pope Francis](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/pope-francis/) > [“become so mechanical in his witness that he can go through all the motions of witnessing without actually looking and praying for the response…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/richard-d-phillips/become-so-mechanical-in-his-witness-that-he-can-go-through-all-the/) [Richard D. Phillips](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/richard-d-phillips/) > [Basically, we are witnessing the twilight of democracy.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tariq-ali/basically-we-are-witnessing-the-twilight-of-democracy/) [Tariq Ali](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tariq-ali/) > [“You are not your thoughts; you are the observer of your thoughts.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/amit-ray/you-are-not-your-thoughts-you-are-the-observer-of-your-thoughts/) [Amit Ray](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/amit-ray/) > [“Witness each moment in astounded jubilation. Take every holy breath in gratitude. Rejoice in life!”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bryant-mcgill/witness-each-moment-in-astounded-jubilation-take-every-holy-breath-in/) [Bryant McGill](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bryant-mcgill/) > [“Do I believe the total perversion that I am witnessing?”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-kennedy-toole/do-i-believe-the-total-perversion-that-i-am-witnessing/) [John Kennedy Toole](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-kennedy-toole/) > [Too many of us hear without heeding, read without responding, confess without changing, profess without practicing, worship without witnessing, and seek without sharing.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-arthur-ward/too-many-of-us-hear-without-heeding-read-without-responding-confess/) [William Arthur Ward](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-arthur-ward/) > [Many are observing Ferguson and witnessing the anger, demonstrations, looting and vandalism and calling for quiet. But quiet isn't enough. The absence of noise…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jesse-jackson/many-are-observing-ferguson-and-witnessing-the-anger-demonstrations/) [Jesse Jackson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jesse-jackson/) > [“The world is witnessing one of the greatest frauds the Florida government has ever engaged in.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/steven-magee/the-world-is-witnessing-one-of-the-greatest-frauds-the-florida/) [Steven Magee](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/steven-magee/) > [“Animals are the lower intelligent of creatures, yet God illustrates man as one of them. Why? To demonstrate to us how careless, how thoughtless,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rosa-pearl-johnson/animals-are-the-lower-intelligent-of-creatures-yet-god-illustrates/) [Rosa Pearl Johnson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rosa-pearl-johnson/) ## More by Patricia Hampl > [Writing was the soul of everything else ... Wanting to be a writer was wanting to be a person.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/patricia-hampl/writing-was-the-soul-of-everything-else-wanting-to-be-a-writer-was/) [Patricia Hampl](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/patricia-hampl/) > [People come and go in life, but they never leave your dreams. Once they're in your subconscious, they are immortal.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/patricia-hampl/people-come-and-go-in-life-but-they-never-leave-your-dreams-once-they/) [Patricia Hampl](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/patricia-hampl/) > [We store in memory only images of value. The value may be lost over the passage of time, but that's the implacable judgment of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/patricia-hampl/we-store-in-memory-only-images-of-value-the-value-may-be-lost-over/) [Patricia Hampl](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/patricia-hampl/) > [Memory is, first, a captivating mystery.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/patricia-hampl/memory-is-first-a-captivating-mystery/) [Patricia Hampl](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/patricia-hampl/) > [“We carry our wounds and perhaps even worse, our capacity to wound, forward with us. 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Psychotherapy, that widespread method for promoting mental health,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/patricia-hampl/our-capacity-to-move-forward-as-developing-beings-rests-on-a-healthy/) [Patricia Hampl](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/patricia-hampl/) > [Prayer as focus is not a way of limiting what can be seen; it is a habit of attention brought to bear on all…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/patricia-hampl/prayer-as-focus-is-not-a-way-of-limiting-what-can-be-seen-it-is-a/) [Patricia Hampl](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/patricia-hampl/) > [The golden light of metaphor, which is the intelligence of poetry, was implicit in alchemical study. To change, magically, one substance into another, more…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/patricia-hampl/the-golden-light-of-metaphor-which-is-the-intelligence-of-poetry-was/) [Patricia Hampl](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/patricia-hampl/) > [poetry is the sung voice of accurate perception.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/patricia-hampl/poetry-is-the-sung-voice-of-accurate-perception/) [Patricia Hampl](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/patricia-hampl/) > [The artist's work, it is sometimes said, is to celebrate. But really that is not so; it is to express wonder. And something terrible…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/patricia-hampl/the-artist-s-work-it-is-sometimes-said-is-to-celebrate-but-really/) [Patricia Hampl](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/patricia-hampl/) > [The future is here, now, and the past is full of actual deeds, real history. 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