--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: I walk lighter, stumble less, with more…" description: "\"“I walk lighter, stumble less, with more spring in leg and lung, keeping my center of gravity deep in the belly, and letting that center 'see.' At thes..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/cc4/peter-matthiessen-5795_ancient-egyptian_i-walk-lighter-stumble-less-with-more-sp_760816.jpg" --- # I walk lighter, stumble less, with more spring in leg and… ![“I walk lighter, stumble less, with more spring in leg and lung, keeping my center of gravity deep in the belly, and letting that center 'see.' At these times, I am free of vertigo, even in dangerous places; my feet move naturally to firm footholds, and I flow. But sometimes for a day or more, I…” quote by Peter Matthiessen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/cc4/peter-matthiessen-5795_ancient-egyptian_i-walk-lighter-stumble-less-with-more-sp_760816.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/cc4/peter-matthiessen-5795_ancient-egyptian_i-walk-lighter-stumble-less-with-more-sp_760816.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/cc4/peter-matthiessen-5795_ancient-egyptian_i-walk-lighter-stumble-less-with-more-sp_760816.jpg) > ““I walk lighter, stumble less, with more spring in leg and lung, keeping my center of gravity deep in the belly, and letting that center 'see.' At these times, I am free of vertigo, even in dangerous places; my feet move naturally to firm footholds, and I flow. But sometimes for a day or more, I lose this feel of things, my breath is high up in my chest, and then I cling to the cliff edge as to life itself. And of course it is this clinging, the tightness of panic, that gets people killed: 'to clutch,' in ancient Egyptian, 'to clutch the mountain,' in Assyrian, were euphemisms that signified 'to die'" (125).”” [Peter Matthiessen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/peter-matthiessen/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Balancing body and mind reduces panic and improves natural movement, while anxiety raises breath and creates a clinging, dangerous state. **In simple terms:** Calm body, calm mind prevents panic. Key Takeaway Practice deep breathing and centered posture. Themes mindfulness balance panic movement survival Mood alert focused steady Type advice inspirational When to use this quote - mountain climbing - public speaking - high‑stress work - athletic training Key Concepts embodiment physiology psychology Questions to Reflect On - How can you maintain center in sudden stress? - What practices help you notice breath depth? A Different Perspective Anxiety can still overwhelm despite techniques. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Ancient egyptian](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/ancient-egyptian/) [Breath](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/breath/) [Clinging Tightness](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/clinging-tightness-5900210/) [Free Vertigo](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/free-vertigo-5900209/) [Life itself](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/life-itself/) [Vertigo](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/vertigo/) [Vertigo Dangerous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/vertigo-dangerous-5900208/) ## Related quotes > [“Whenever I think about ancient cultures nostalgia seizes me. Perhaps this is nothing but envy of the sweet slowness of the history of that…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/milan-kundera/whenever-i-think-about-ancient-cultures-nostalgia-seizes-me-perhaps/) [Milan Kundera](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/milan-kundera/) > [Ancient Egyptian culture was so enduring. 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Like, in 1890 somebody sold off thousands of mummified Ancient Egyptian sacred cats - \_for fertilizer\_. Get the point? Constancy isn't.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jonathan-gash/even-gods-decay-like-in-1890-somebody-sold-off-thousands-of-mummified/) [Jonathan Gash](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jonathan-gash/) > [I've visited the future and I've seen the Heavenly City standing upon this Earth!-Beautiful, gorgeous, incomparable, almost indescribable, the most gorgeous sight you'll ever…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-berg/i-ve-visited-the-future-and-i-ve-seen-the-heavenly-city-standing-upon/) [David Berg](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-berg/) > [“Save for the ancient Egyptians, he found, virtually no one kept cats as pets until the latter part of the 1700s. 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James](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-g-m-james/) ## More by Peter Matthiessen > [Alec Wilkinson is a spare, clear, and lucid writer who works in stylistic simplicity with material that is not simple at all.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/peter-matthiessen/alec-wilkinson-is-a-spare-clear-and-lucid-writer-who-works-in/) [Peter Matthiessen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/peter-matthiessen/) > [Figures dark beneath their loads pass down the far bank of the river, rendered immortal by the streak of sunset upon their shoulders](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/peter-matthiessen/figures-dark-beneath-their-loads-pass-down-the-far-bank-of-the-river/) [Peter Matthiessen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/peter-matthiessen/) > [I think in any writing you're paying attention to detail.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/peter-matthiessen/i-think-in-any-writing-you-re-paying-attention-to-detail/) [Peter Matthiessen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/peter-matthiessen/) > [The great stillness in these landscapes that once made me restless seeps into me day by day, and with it the unreasonable feeling that…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/peter-matthiessen/the-great-stillness-in-these-landscapes-that-once-made-me-restless/) [Peter Matthiessen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/peter-matthiessen/) > [“...experience was static in the valley; it was older than time itself, for time was a thing of but two generations, dated by moons…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/peter-matthiessen/experience-was-static-in-the-valley-it-was-older-than-time-itself-for/) [Peter Matthiessen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/peter-matthiessen/) > [“The central feature of the practice of meditation and hard work known as Zen is that, as Matthiessen says, it “has no patience with…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/peter-matthiessen/the-central-feature-of-the-practice-of-meditation-and-hard-work-known/) [Peter Matthiessen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/peter-matthiessen/) > [Be light, light, light - full of light!](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/peter-matthiessen/be-light-light-light-full-of-light/) [Peter Matthiessen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/peter-matthiessen/) > [For some time I watch the coming of the night? 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Constancy isn't.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jonathan-gash/even-gods-decay-like-in-1890-somebody-sold-off-thousands-of-mummified/) [Jonathan Gash](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jonathan-gash/) > [In the imperfect records left of the anatomy of the ancient Egyptians, no trace of any knowledge of the spleen can be ascertained.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/henry-gray/in-the-imperfect-records-left-of-the-anatomy-of-the-ancient-egyptians/) [Henry Gray](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/henry-gray/) > [“The two pillars of Freemasonry are Osirian in origin and none of them corresponds with the Sun; and yes, Freemasonry mistook one of them…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ibrahim-ibrahim/the-two-pillars-of-freemasonry-are-osirian-in-origin-and-none-of-them/) [Ibrahim Ibrahim](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ibrahim-ibrahim/) > [“I am your servant. I shall not be free. You will protect me; you will keep me safe; you will guard me. You will…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ancient-egyptian-slave-contract/i-am-your-servant-i-shall-not-be-free-you-will-protect-me-you-will/) [Ancient Egyptian slave contract](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ancient-egyptian-slave-contract/) > [“What a vapid job title our culture gives to those honorable laborers the ancient Egyptians and Sumerians variously called Learned Men of the Magic…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/miles-harvey/what-a-vapid-job-title-our-culture-gives-to-those-honorable-laborers/) [Miles Harvey](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/miles-harvey/) > [“James Ussher states in The Epistle to the Reader of his treatise The Annals of the World: Moreover, we find that the years of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ken-ham/james-ussher-states-in-the-epistle-to-the-reader-of-his-treatise-the/) [Ken Ham](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ken-ham/) > [Ancient Egyptian women had rights under the law. They could own land. 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It went on for thousands of years.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/josh-gates/ancient-egyptian-culture-was-so-enduring-it-went-on-for-thousands-of/) [Josh Gates](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/josh-gates/) > [“The term Greek philosophy, to begin with is a misnomer, for there is no such philosophy in existence. The ancient Egyptians had developed a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-g-m-james/the-term-greek-philosophy-to-begin-with-is-a-misnomer-for-there-is-no/) [George G.M. James](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-g-m-james/) [Browse all 91 Ancient egyptian quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/ancient-egyptian/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "“I walk lighter, stumble less, with more spring in leg and lung, keeping my center of gravity deep in the belly, and letting that center 'see.' At these times, I am free of vertigo, even in dangerous places; my feet move naturally to firm footholds, and I flow. But sometimes for a day or more, I lose this feel of things, my breath is high up in my chest, and then I cling to the cliff edge as to life itself. 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