--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: I simply haven't the nerve to imagine a…" description: "\"I simply haven't the nerve to imagine a being, a force, a cause which keeps the planets revolving in their orbits and then suddenly stops in order to g..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/837/quentin-crisp-1163_bicycle_i-simply-haven-t-the-nerve-to-imagine-a_1188329.jpg" --- # I simply haven't the nerve to imagine a being, a force, a… ![“I simply haven't the nerve to imagine a being, a force, a cause which keeps the planets revolving in their orbits and then suddenly stops in order to give me a bicycle with three speeds.” quote by Quentin Crisp](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/837/quentin-crisp-1163_bicycle_i-simply-haven-t-the-nerve-to-imagine-a_1188329.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/837/quentin-crisp-1163_bicycle_i-simply-haven-t-the-nerve-to-imagine-a_1188329.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/837/quentin-crisp-1163_bicycle_i-simply-haven-t-the-nerve-to-imagine-a_1188329.jpg) > “I simply haven't the nerve to imagine a being, a force, a cause which keeps the planets revolving in their orbits and then suddenly stops in order to give me a bicycle with three speeds.” [Quentin Crisp](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/quentin-crisp/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. The quote expresses awe at the vast, unseen forces governing the universe and the absurdity of expecting them to cater to trivial personal wishes. **In simple terms:** We can't expect cosmic forces to solve our small problems. Key Takeaway Accept the limits of control. Themes humility cosmic perspective absurdity Mood contemplative skeptical Type philosophical reflective When to use this quote - personal desire - scientific curiosity - philosophical reflection Key Concepts existentialism human limitation Questions to Reflect On - How do you balance wonder with personal responsibility? - What small actions can you take instead of waiting for cosmic aid? A Different Perspective It overlooks personal agency in shaping outcomes. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Bicycle](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/bicycle/) [Giving](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/giving/) [God](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/god/) [Godly](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/godly/) [Nerves](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/nerves/) [Orbit](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/orbit/) [Order](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/order/) [Speed](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/speed/) ## Related quotes > [You can, if you wish, think of it like the universe: Each case is a sun, and all the judges, lawyers and administrative personnel…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sol-wachtler/you-can-if-you-wish-think-of-it-like-the-universe-each-case-is-a-sun/) [Sol Wachtler](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sol-wachtler/) > [The force that keeps the planets revolving around the sun would be glad to handle the circumstances of your life, if only you would…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/marianne-williamson/the-force-that-keeps-the-planets-revolving-around-the-sun-would-be/) [Marianne Williamson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/marianne-williamson/) > [ I had rather be Mercury, the smallest among seven \[planets\], revolving round the sun, than the first among five \[moons\] revolving round Saturn. ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/johann-wolfgang-von-goethe/i-had-rather-be-mercury-the-smallest-among-seven-planets-revolving/) [Johann Wolfgang von Goethe](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/johann-wolfgang-von-goethe/) > [The power that is supported by force alone will have cause often to tremble.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lajos-kossuth/the-power-that-is-supported-by-force-alone-will-have-cause-often-to/) [Lajos Kossuth](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lajos-kossuth/) > [The Sun, with all the planets revolving around it, and depending on it, can still ripen a bunch of grapes as though it had…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/the-sun-with-all-the-planets-revolving-around-it-and-depending-on-it/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [The sun, with all those planets revolving around it and dependent on it, can still ripen a bunch of grapes as if it had…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/galileo-galilei/the-sun-with-all-those-planets-revolving-around-it-and-dependent-on/) [Galileo Galilei](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/galileo-galilei/) > [My life isn't a revolving door, you can't leave and spin around to come back whenever you feel like it.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sonya-parker/my-life-isn-t-a-revolving-door-you-can-t-leave-and-spin-around-to/) [SONYA PARKER](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sonya-parker/) > [I hate the idea of a life revolving around boys.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/taylor-hill/i-hate-the-idea-of-a-life-revolving-around-boys/) [Taylor Hill](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/taylor-hill/) > [I want to make a revolving door that says 'Pull' on it, just see how obedient people are.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/demetri-martin/i-want-to-make-a-revolving-door-that-says-pull-on-it-just-see-how/) [Demetri Martin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/demetri-martin/) > [The time will come when every change shall cease, This quick revolving wheel shall rest in peace: No summer then shall glow, not winter…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/petrarch/the-time-will-come-when-every-change-shall-cease-this-quick-revolving/) [Petrarch](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/petrarch/) > [Bin Laden was constantly revolving in his mind the fact that he had got rid of the Russians; therefore, the Americans can be got…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robert-fisk/bin-laden-was-constantly-revolving-in-his-mind-the-fact-that-he-had/) [Robert Fisk](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robert-fisk/) > [A heart isn't some revolving door where a bunch of people can go in and out.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/cheon-eunbi/a-heart-isn-t-some-revolving-door-where-a-bunch-of-people-can-go-in/) [Cheon Eunbi](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/cheon-eunbi/) > [The word revolution itself has become not only a dead relic of Leftism, but a key to the deadendedness of male politics: the revolution…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/adrienne-rich/the-word-revolution-itself-has-become-not-only-a-dead-relic-of/) [Adrienne Rich](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/adrienne-rich/) > [A lot of gay men have a lot of sex. That's what we do. But I've stopped all that-the revolving door into my bedroom.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/julian-clary/a-lot-of-gay-men-have-a-lot-of-sex-that-s-what-we-do-but-i-ve-stopped/) [Julian Clary](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/julian-clary/) > [I think that's the beauty of the current setup, is that Legends is meant to be a bit of a revolving door.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/wentworth-miller/i-think-that-s-the-beauty-of-the-current-setup-is-that-legends-is/) [Wentworth Miller](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/wentworth-miller/) ## More by Quentin Crisp > [You can behave as badly as you like in America. Nobody notices.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/quentin-crisp/you-can-behave-as-badly-as-you-like-in-america-nobody-notices/) [Quentin Crisp](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/quentin-crisp/) > [Never keep up with the Joneses. Drag them down to your level.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/quentin-crisp/never-keep-up-with-the-joneses-drag-them-down-to-your-level/) [Quentin Crisp](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/quentin-crisp/) > [“Masturbation is not only an expression of self-regard: it is also the natural emotional outlet of those who, before anything has reared its ugly…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/quentin-crisp/masturbation-is-not-only-an-expression-of-self-regard-it-is-also-the/) [Quentin Crisp](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/quentin-crisp/) > [I am the last of Britain's stately homos.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/quentin-crisp/i-am-the-last-of-britain-s-stately-homos/) [Quentin Crisp](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/quentin-crisp/) > [My mother protected me from the world and my father threatened me with it.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/quentin-crisp/my-mother-protected-me-from-the-world-and-my-father-threatened-me/) [Quentin Crisp](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/quentin-crisp/) > [Nothing more rapidly inclines a person to go into a monastery than reading a book on etiquette. There are so many trivial ways in…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/quentin-crisp/nothing-more-rapidly-inclines-a-person-to-go-into-a-monastery-than/) [Quentin Crisp](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/quentin-crisp/) > [Vice is its own reward. It is virtue which, if it is to be marketed with consumer appeal, must carry Green Shield stamps.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/quentin-crisp/vice-is-its-own-reward-it-is-virtue-which-if-it-is-to-be-marketed/) [Quentin Crisp](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/quentin-crisp/) > [Most men when they make up their faces, the makeup stands forward, and their faces are behind.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/quentin-crisp/most-men-when-they-make-up-their-faces-the-makeup-stands-forward-and/) [Quentin Crisp](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/quentin-crisp/) > [Development of character consists solely in moving toward self-sufficiency.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/quentin-crisp/development-of-character-consists-solely-in-moving-toward-self/) [Quentin Crisp](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/quentin-crisp/) > [Women have decided to be people, which is a great mistake. Women were nicer than people.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/quentin-crisp/women-have-decided-to-be-people-which-is-a-great-mistake-women-were/) [Quentin Crisp](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/quentin-crisp/) > [Sex is the last refuge of the misreable.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/quentin-crisp/sex-is-the-last-refuge-of-the-misreable/) [Quentin Crisp](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/quentin-crisp/) > [I was amazed to receive later a substantial sum for sitting in my room and talking about myself. If only I could get some…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/quentin-crisp/i-was-amazed-to-receive-later-a-substantial-sum-for-sitting-in-my/) [Quentin Crisp](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/quentin-crisp/) > [If you live in America, you don't have to work. You can just drift along in the smiling and nodding racket.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/quentin-crisp/if-you-live-in-america-you-don-t-have-to-work-you-can-just-drift/) [Quentin Crisp](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/quentin-crisp/) > [“I was from birth an object of mild ridicule because of my movements - especially the perpetual flutter of my hands - and my…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/quentin-crisp/i-was-from-birth-an-object-of-mild-ridicule-because-of-my-movements/) [Quentin Crisp](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/quentin-crisp/) > [If a man were to look over the fence on one side of his garden and observe that the neighbor on his left had…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/quentin-crisp/if-a-man-were-to-look-over-the-fence-on-one-side-of-his-garden-and/) [Quentin Crisp](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/quentin-crisp/) [Explore all 279 Quentin Crisp quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/quentin-crisp/) ## More Bicycle quotes > [I stand and rejoice every time I see a woman ride by on a wheel...the picture of free, untrammeled womanhood.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/susan-b-anthony/i-stand-and-rejoice-every-time-i-see-a-woman-ride-by-on-a-wheel-the/) [Susan B. Anthony](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/susan-b-anthony/) > [Can you understand why the Congress, most states and most cities refuse to pass legislation requiring the registration and licensing of any and all…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/malcolm-forbes/can-you-understand-why-the-congress-most-states-and-most-cities/) [Malcolm Forbes](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/malcolm-forbes/) > [My father had Parkinson's, though he actually died following a bicycle accident.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kt-tunstall/my-father-had-parkinson-s-though-he-actually-died-following-a-bicycle/) [KT Tunstall](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kt-tunstall/) > [At that age, it's one of the worse things in the world to wake up and not see your bike where you left it.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/curtis-jackson/at-that-age-it-s-one-of-the-worse-things-in-the-world-to-wake-up-and/) [Curtis Jackson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/curtis-jackson/) > [I think if I got a bicycle from my father, I should give a car to my son.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lech-walesa/i-think-if-i-got-a-bicycle-from-my-father-i-should-give-a-car-to-my/) [Lech Walesa](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lech-walesa/) > [Life is like a bicycle; keep moving on to maintain balance.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/albert-einstein/life-is-like-a-bicycle-keep-moving-on-to-maintain-balance/) [Albert Einstein](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/albert-einstein/) > [It has been explained to me that toys are packaged in shards, to be assembled by the middle-aged and butter-fingered, because this makes it…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jean-kerr/it-has-been-explained-to-me-that-toys-are-packaged-in-shards-to-be/) [Jean Kerr](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jean-kerr/) > [I simply want to celebrate the fact that right near your home, year in and year out, a community college is quietly - and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kay-ryan/i-simply-want-to-celebrate-the-fact-that-right-near-your-home-year-in/) [Kay Ryan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kay-ryan/) > [Let me tell you what I think of bicycling. I think it has done more to emancipate women than anything else in the world.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/susan-b-anthony/let-me-tell-you-what-i-think-of-bicycling-i-think-it-has-done-more-to/) [Susan B. Anthony](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/susan-b-anthony/) > [If we’re going to talk about transport, I would say that the great city is not the one that has highways, but one where…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/enrique-penalosa/if-we-re-going-to-talk-about-transport-i-would-say-that-the-great/) [Enrique Penalosa](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/enrique-penalosa/) > [Like a fish needs a bicycle. A goldfish riding a bicycle underwater. I need a man like a fish needs a bicycle.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/irina-dunn/like-a-fish-needs-a-bicycle-a-goldfish-riding-a-bicycle-underwater-i/) Irina Dunn > [Life is like riding a bicycle. To keep your balance, you must keep moving.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/life-is-like-riding-a-bicycle-to-keep-your-balance-you-must-keep/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [I love a bicycle, and I haven't been without at least one since I was three years old.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/james-may/i-love-a-bicycle-and-i-haven-t-been-without-at-least-one-since-i-was/) [James May](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/james-may/) > [ Rose: Look at you, beaming away like you're Father Christmas! The Doctor: Who says I'm not, red-bicycle-when-you-were-twelve? Rose: \[shocked\] What? The Doctor: And everybody… ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/steven-moffat/rose-look-at-you-beaming-away-like-you-re-father-christmas-the-doctor/) [Steven Moffat](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/steven-moffat/) > [Life is like riding a bicycle: you don't fall off unless you stop pedaling.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/claude-pepper/life-is-like-riding-a-bicycle-you-don-t-fall-off-unless-you-stop/) [Claude Pepper](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/claude-pepper/) [Browse all 531 Bicycle quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/bicycle/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "I simply haven't the nerve to imagine a being, a force, a cause which keeps the planets revolving in their orbits and then suddenly stops in order to give me a bicycle with three speeds.", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "Quentin Crisp" }, "isPartOf": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website" }, "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/quentin-crisp/i-simply-haven-t-the-nerve-to-imagine-a-being-a-force-a-cause-which/", "about": { "@type": "Thing", "name": "Bicycle" }, "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/quentin-crisp/i-simply-haven-t-the-nerve-to-imagine-a-being-a-force-a-cause-which/#quotation", "image": { "@type": "ImageObject", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/837/quentin-crisp-1163_bicycle_i-simply-haven-t-the-nerve-to-imagine-a_1188329.jpg", "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/837/quentin-crisp-1163_bicycle_i-simply-haven-t-the-nerve-to-imagine-a_1188329.jpg", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/837/quentin-crisp-1163_bicycle_i-simply-haven-t-the-nerve-to-imagine-a_1188329.jpg", "width": 1080, "height": 1080, "caption": "“I simply haven't the nerve to imagine a being, a force, a cause which keeps the planets revolving in their…” — Quentin Crisp", "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": "Quentin Crisp", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/quentin-crisp/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 4, "name": "I simply haven't the nerve to...", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/quentin-crisp/i-simply-haven-t-the-nerve-to-imagine-a-being-a-force-a-cause-which/" } ], "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/quentin-crisp/i-simply-haven-t-the-nerve-to-imagine-a-being-a-force-a-cause-which/#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 } } ] } ```