--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: You see how when rivers are swollen in…" description: "\"You see how when rivers are swollen in winter those trees that yield to the flood retain their branches, but those that offer resistance perish, trunk ..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/191/sophocles-370_branches_you-see-how-when-rivers-are-swollen-in-w_2229060.png" --- # You see how when rivers are swollen in winter those trees… ![“You see how when rivers are swollen in winter those trees that yield to the flood retain their branches, but those that offer resistance perish, trunk and all.” quote by Sophocles](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/191/sophocles-370_branches_you-see-how-when-rivers-are-swollen-in-w_2229060.png) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/191/sophocles-370_branches_you-see-how-when-rivers-are-swollen-in-w_2229060.png) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/191/sophocles-370_branches_you-see-how-when-rivers-are-swollen-in-w_2229060.png) > “You see how when rivers are swollen in winter those trees that yield to the flood retain their branches, but those that offer resistance perish, trunk and all.” [Sophocles](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sophocles/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Flexibility in adversity preserves life; rigid resistance leads to destruction. **In simple terms:** Adapt or perish. Key Takeaway Embrace flexibility in challenges. Themes resilience adaptability nature Mood reflective thoughtful Type philosophical literary When to use this quote - business crises - personal setbacks - environmental disasters Key Concepts philosophy survival environment Questions to Reflect On - When is resistance justified? - How can flexibility be balanced with principles? A Different Perspective Rigid resistance may sometimes be necessary for integrity. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Branches](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/branches/) [Flood](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/flood/) [Flood Retain](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/flood-retain-5007676/) [Flower](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/flower/) [Offers](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/offers/) [Resistance](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/resistance/) [Rivers](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/rivers/) [Rivers Swollen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/rivers-swollen-5007674/) [Swollen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/swollen/) [Swollen Winter](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/swollen-winter-5007675/) [Tree](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/tree/) [Trees](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/trees/) [Trees Yield](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/trees-yield-1938883/) [Trunks](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/trunks/) [Winter](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/winter/) [Winter Trees](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/winter-trees-5007677/) [Yield](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/yield/) ## Related quotes > [“But the trees would remain with him and he would always mourn them. He had laboured for them all of his life. They would…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/scott-pearce/but-the-trees-would-remain-with-him-and-he-would-always-mourn-them-he/) [Scott Pearce](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/scott-pearce/) > [“Unexpected treat," he said. His eyes fell on Marcus and widened. "I'll be damned. You found him." "Thanks to you," I said. Adrian glanced…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/richelle-mead/unexpected-treat-he-said-his-eyes-fell-on-marcus-and-widened-i-ll-be/) [Richelle Mead](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/richelle-mead/) > [If a man going down into a river, swollen and swiftly flowing, is carried away by the current - how can he help others…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gautama-buddha/if-a-man-going-down-into-a-river-swollen-and-swiftly-flowing-is/) [Gautama Buddha](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gautama-buddha/) > [When heaven doth weep, doth not the earth o'erflow? 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The earth tilted on its…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/philip-yancey/i-fell-in-love-it-felt-exactly-like-a-fall-a-head-over-heels-tumble/) [Philip Yancey](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/philip-yancey/) > [“Matron Malice, her belly swollen in the final hours of pregnancy.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/r-a-salvatore/matron-malice-her-belly-swollen-in-the-final-hours-of-pregnancy/) [R.A. Salvatore](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/r-a-salvatore/) > [Catastrophes come when some dominant institution, swollen like a soap-bubble and still standing without foundations, suddenly crumbles at the touch of what may seem…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-santayana/catastrophes-come-when-some-dominant-institution-swollen-like-a-soap/) [George Santayana](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-santayana/) > [We both gaze down at my swollen tummy for a while. I still can't quite get my head round the fact that there's a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sophie-kinsella/we-both-gaze-down-at-my-swollen-tummy-for-a-while-i-still-can-t-quite/) [Sophie Kinsella](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sophie-kinsella/) > [Blessed be they as virtuous, who when they feel their virile members swollen with lust, visit a brothel rather than grind at some husband's…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/cato-the-younger/blessed-be-they-as-virtuous-who-when-they-feel-their-virile-members/) [Cato the Younger](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/cato-the-younger/) > [The seed, swollen with moisture, burst asunder its covering of soil and out peers the blade of wheat, full of symbols. So faith, whose…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ephrem-the-syrian/the-seed-swollen-with-moisture-burst-asunder-its-covering-of-soil-and/) [Ephrem the Syrian](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ephrem-the-syrian/) > [“There it is: the spoken admission that he was hers to lose. As soon as the words leave my mouth, I feel weirdly deflated,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lauren-oliver/there-it-is-the-spoken-admission-that-he-was-hers-to-lose-as-soon-as/) [Lauren Oliver](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lauren-oliver/) > [“No matter how it felt to be near him, she had to keep her swollen heart in check.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ann-brashares/no-matter-how-it-felt-to-be-near-him-she-had-to-keep-her-swollen/) [Ann Brashares](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ann-brashares/) > [I was raised to stand up for myself, if I feel I'm in the right. 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Best to live lightly, as one…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sophocles/why-should-man-fear-since-chance-is-all-in-all-for-him-and-he-can/) [Sophocles](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sophocles/) > [“But life takes sudden twists.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sophocles/but-life-takes-sudden-twists/) [Sophocles](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sophocles/) > [When ice appears out of doors, and boys seize it up while it is solid, at first they experience new pleasures. But in the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sophocles/when-ice-appears-out-of-doors-and-boys-seize-it-up-while-it-is-solid/) [Sophocles](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sophocles/) > [For God hates utterly the bray of bragging tongues.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sophocles/for-god-hates-utterly-the-bray-of-bragging-tongues/) [Sophocles](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sophocles/) > [“I have nothing but contempt for the kind of governor who is afraid, for whatever reason, to follow the course that he knows is…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sophocles/i-have-nothing-but-contempt-for-the-kind-of-governor-who-is-afraid/) [Sophocles](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sophocles/) > [“Not from Hades' black and universal lake can you lift him. Not by groaning, not by prayers. 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McLean](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/a-j-mclean/) [Browse all 1,228 Branches quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/branches/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "You see how when rivers are swollen in winter those trees that yield to the flood retain their branches, but those that offer resistance perish, trunk and all.", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "Sophocles" }, "isPartOf": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website" }, "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sophocles/you-see-how-when-rivers-are-swollen-in-winter-those-trees-that-yield/", "about": { "@type": "Thing", "name": "Branches" }, "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sophocles/you-see-how-when-rivers-are-swollen-in-winter-those-trees-that-yield/#quotation", "image": { "@type": "ImageObject", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/191/sophocles-370_branches_you-see-how-when-rivers-are-swollen-in-w_2229060.png", "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/191/sophocles-370_branches_you-see-how-when-rivers-are-swollen-in-w_2229060.png", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/191/sophocles-370_branches_you-see-how-when-rivers-are-swollen-in-w_2229060.png", "width": 1080, "height": 1080, "caption": "“You see how when rivers are swollen in winter those trees that yield to the flood retain their branches, but…” — Sophocles", "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": "Sophocles", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sophocles/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 4, "name": "You see how when rivers are...", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sophocles/you-see-how-when-rivers-are-swollen-in-winter-those-trees-that-yield/" } ], "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sophocles/you-see-how-when-rivers-are-swollen-in-winter-those-trees-that-yield/#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 } } ] } ```