--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: As Thoreau famously sead, it doesn't…" description: "\"As Thoreau famously sead, it doesn't matter where or how far you go - the farther commonly the worse - the important thing is how alive you are. Writin..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/61c/pico-iyer-1252_alive_as-thoreau-famously-sead-it-doesn-t-matt_1626720.png" --- # As Thoreau famously sead, it doesn't matter where or how… ![“As Thoreau famously sead, it doesn't matter where or how far you go - the farther commonly the worse - the important thing is how alive you are. Writing of every kind is a way to wake oneself up and keep as alive as when one has just fallen in love.” quote by Pico Iyer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/61c/pico-iyer-1252_alive_as-thoreau-famously-sead-it-doesn-t-matt_1626720.png) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/61c/pico-iyer-1252_alive_as-thoreau-famously-sead-it-doesn-t-matt_1626720.png) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/61c/pico-iyer-1252_alive_as-thoreau-famously-sead-it-doesn-t-matt_1626720.png) > “As Thoreau famously sead, it doesn't matter where or how far you go - the farther commonly the worse - the important thing is how alive you are. Writing of every kind is a way to wake oneself up and keep as alive as when one has just fallen in love.” [Pico Iyer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/pico-iyer/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Writing awakens us, keeping us vibrant and engaged, similar to the feeling of falling in love. **In simple terms:** Writing keeps you alive. Key Takeaway Write regularly to stay mentally vibrant. Themes creativity self‑awareness vitality Mood reflective inspirational Type essay philosophical When to use this quote - personal journaling - creative projects - travel reflections - daily practice Key Concepts mindfulness expressive art Questions to Reflect On - How does writing change your self‑perception? - What writing habits sustain your enthusiasm? A Different Perspective Writing alone may not address deeper emotional needs. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Alive](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/alive/) [Important things](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/important-things/) [Love](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/love/) [Writer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/writer/) [Writing](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/writing/) ## Related quotes > [“It doesn't matter where or how far you go - the farther commonly the worse - the important thing is how alive you are.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/pico-iyer/it-doesn-t-matter-where-or-how-far-you-go-the-farther-commonly-the/) [Pico Iyer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/pico-iyer/) > [Writing of every kind is a way to wake oneself up and keep as alive as when one has just fallen in love.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/pico-iyer/writing-of-every-kind-is-a-way-to-wake-oneself-up-and-keep-as-alive/) [Pico Iyer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/pico-iyer/) > [“As I wandered around the room, with Sachiko by my side, I began to think how much we need space in those we love,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/pico-iyer/as-i-wandered-around-the-room-with-sachiko-by-my-side-i-began-to/) [Pico Iyer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/pico-iyer/) > [We have more and more ways to communicate, as Thoreau noted, but less and less to say.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/pico-iyer/we-have-more-and-more-ways-to-communicate-as-thoreau-noted-but-less/) [Pico Iyer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/pico-iyer/) > [I have tried my best to keep my country alive by writing about it.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nuruddin-farah/i-have-tried-my-best-to-keep-my-country-alive-by-writing-about-it/) [Nuruddin Farah](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nuruddin-farah/) > [When I stop working the rest of the day is posthumous. I'm only really alive when I'm writing.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tennessee-williams/when-i-stop-working-the-rest-of-the-day-is-posthumous-i-m-only-really/) [Tennessee Williams](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tennessee-williams/) > [I feel more alive when I'm writing than I do at any other time--except maybe when I'm making love.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/may-sarton/i-feel-more-alive-when-i-m-writing-than-i-do-at-any-other-time-except-2/) [May Sarton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/may-sarton/) > [I am interested in my music lasting only while I'm alive. I'm not writing for the future.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sonny-rollins/i-am-interested-in-my-music-lasting-only-while-i-m-alive-i-m-not/) [Sonny Rollins](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sonny-rollins/) > [“But I liked the writing better. I could make it look beautiful. I could keep it. The spoken words just went out like the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ursula-k-le-guin/but-i-liked-the-writing-better-i-could-make-it-look-beautiful-i-could/) [Ursula K. Le Guin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ursula-k-le-guin/) > [“How alive was her writing though, how full of force. Those curious, sloping letters.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/daphne-du-maurier/how-alive-was-her-writing-though-how-full-of-force-those-curious/) [Daphne du Maurier](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/daphne-du-maurier/) > [When you use words, you're able to keep your mind alive. Writing is my way of reaffirming my own existence.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gao-xingjian/when-you-use-words-you-re-able-to-keep-your-mind-alive-writing-is-my/) [Gao Xingjian](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gao-xingjian/) > [When I am writing, even though it's hard and I do struggle often, I am happier than when I'm not writing. I feel alive.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/paul-auster/when-i-am-writing-even-though-it-s-hard-and-i-do-struggle-often-i-am/) [Paul Auster](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/paul-auster/) > [I'm only really alive when I'm writing.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tennessee-williams/i-m-only-really-alive-when-i-m-writing/) [Tennessee Williams](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tennessee-williams/) > [I never feel so alive as when I'm writing and the work is going well.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dani-shapiro/i-never-feel-so-alive-as-when-i-m-writing-and-the-work-is-going-well/) [Dani Shapiro](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dani-shapiro/) > [“It’s not publishing that matters; it’s not writing that matters. What matters is feeling alive while writing, washing dishes, driving, etc. Writing just gives…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/barbara-robinette-moss/it-s-not-publishing-that-matters-it-s-not-writing-that-matters-what/) Barbara Robinette Moss ## More by Pico Iyer > [ \[The Dalai Lama\] told me some years ago, "I've made every concession to China, and I've been as open and tolerant as I could,… ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/pico-iyer/the-dalai-lama-told-me-some-years-ago-i-ve-made-every-concession-to/) [Pico Iyer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/pico-iyer/) > [For citizens who think themselves puppets in the hands of their rulers, nothing is more satisfying than having rulers as puppets in their hands.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/pico-iyer/for-citizens-who-think-themselves-puppets-in-the-hands-of-their/) [Pico Iyer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/pico-iyer/) > [The Dalai Lama would say that meditation is something that can help everyone. But he's aware that it can be misused or things can…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/pico-iyer/the-dalai-lama-would-say-that-meditation-is-something-that-can-help/) [Pico Iyer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/pico-iyer/) > [Like any traveler, I'm always looking for those experiences that are almost unique to any place, and watching films around Alaska of the skies…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/pico-iyer/like-any-traveler-i-m-always-looking-for-those-experiences-that-are/) [Pico Iyer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/pico-iyer/) > [“When you're hurrying around too quickly," he had said, "there's a part of the world you can't see. If, for example, you're taking a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/pico-iyer/when-you-re-hurrying-around-too-quickly-he-had-said-there-s-a-part-of/) [Pico Iyer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/pico-iyer/) > [We travel to open our hearts and eyes and learn more about the world than our newspapers will accommodate.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/pico-iyer/we-travel-to-open-our-hearts-and-eyes-and-learn-more-about-the-world/) [Pico Iyer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/pico-iyer/) > [The Dalai Lama, these days, encourages Westerners not to take up Buddhism, partly because he feels that our roots are deep in other traditions,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/pico-iyer/the-dalai-lama-these-days-encourages-westerners-not-to-take-up/) [Pico Iyer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/pico-iyer/) > [And if travel is like love, it is, in the end, mostly because it's a heightened state of awareness, in which we are mindful,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/pico-iyer/and-if-travel-is-like-love-it-is-in-the-end-mostly-because-it-s-a/) [Pico Iyer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/pico-iyer/) > [As soon as I began to talk to Dalai Lama, I realized that Chinese and Tibetans from his point of view are mostly the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/pico-iyer/as-soon-as-i-began-to-talk-to-dalai-lama-i-realized-that-chinese-and/) [Pico Iyer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/pico-iyer/) > [When we are kids, we imagine that to define ourselves or to find ourselves means charting your own individuality, making your own destiny, and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/pico-iyer/when-we-are-kids-we-imagine-that-to-define-ourselves-or-to-find/) [Pico Iyer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/pico-iyer/) > [A writer is a palmist, reading the lines of the planet.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/pico-iyer/a-writer-is-a-palmist-reading-the-lines-of-the-planet/) [Pico Iyer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/pico-iyer/) > [In barely one generation, we've moved from exulting in the time-saving devices that have so expanded our lives to trying to get away from…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/pico-iyer/in-barely-one-generation-we-ve-moved-from-exulting-in-the-time-saving/) [Pico Iyer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/pico-iyer/) > [For centuries, Cubas greatest resource has been its people.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/pico-iyer/for-centuries-cubas-greatest-resource-has-been-its-people/) [Pico Iyer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/pico-iyer/) > [Writing is, in the end, that oddest of anomalies: an intimate letter to a stranger.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/pico-iyer/writing-is-in-the-end-that-oddest-of-anomalies-an-intimate-letter-to/) [Pico Iyer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/pico-iyer/) > [“Was it only through another that I could begin to get at myself?”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/pico-iyer/was-it-only-through-another-that-i-could-begin-to-get-at-myself/) [Pico Iyer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/pico-iyer/) [Explore all 266 Pico Iyer quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/pico-iyer/) ## 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. 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": "As Thoreau famously sead, it doesn't matter where or how far you go - the farther commonly the worse - the important thing is how alive you are. 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