--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: I have a lion inside me, and I had to…" description: "\"“I have a lion inside me, and I had to feed it words every few days; when I don't, it begins to eat me instead.”\" — Sophy Burnham" image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/285/sophy-burnham-23134_feed_i-have-a-lion-inside-me-and-i-had-to-fee_2725184.jpg" --- # I have a lion inside me, and I had to feed it words every… ![“I have a lion inside me, and I had to feed it words every few days; when I don't, it begins to eat me instead.” quote by Sophy Burnham](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/285/sophy-burnham-23134_feed_i-have-a-lion-inside-me-and-i-had-to-fee_2725184.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/285/sophy-burnham-23134_feed_i-have-a-lion-inside-me-and-i-had-to-fee_2725184.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/285/sophy-burnham-23134_feed_i-have-a-lion-inside-me-and-i-had-to-fee_2725184.jpg) > ““I have a lion inside me, and I had to feed it words every few days; when I don't, it begins to eat me instead.”” [Sophy Burnham](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sophy-burnham/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Unexpressed inner drive can become self‑destructive if not nurtured with expression. **In simple terms:** Without expression, inner power harms you. Key Takeaway Feed your inner voice regularly. Themes self‑expression inner strength self‑care Mood introspective motivational Type advice inspirational When to use this quote - creative work - journaling - public speaking - team leadership Key Concepts psychology personal growth Questions to Reflect On - How do you regularly express your inner drive? - What outlets keep your inner lion healthy? A Different Perspective If you suppress your voice, you may lose control. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Lion](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/lion/) [Lions](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/lions/) ## Related quotes > [Whatever you love about another person is inside of you to; when you find it... feed it.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/melody-minagar/whatever-you-love-about-another-person-is-inside-of-you-to-when-you/) [Melody Minagar](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/melody-minagar/) > [“A fool is always too full to feed on the words of the wise.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/paul-bamikole-pb/a-fool-is-always-too-full-to-feed-on-the-words-of-the-wise/) Paul Bamikole PB > [They're my favorite two words these days: Oscar reject.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/linda-fiorentino/they-re-my-favorite-two-words-these-days-oscar-reject/) [Linda Fiorentino](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/linda-fiorentino/) > [I was the shyest human ever invented, but I had a lion inside me that wouldn't shut up!](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ingrid-bergman/i-was-the-shyest-human-ever-invented-but-i-had-a-lion-inside-me-that/) [Ingrid Bergman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ingrid-bergman/) > [“The main thing is to WRITE. Some days it might be 2000 words. Some days you might tinker with two sentences until you get…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/l-k-madigan/the-main-thing-is-to-write-some-days-it-might-be-2000-words-some-days/) L.K. Madigan > [“Even a dog mocks a lion when the lion is inside a cage.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/amit-kalantri/even-a-dog-mocks-a-lion-when-the-lion-is-inside-a-cage/) [Amit Kalantri](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/amit-kalantri/) > [Ask any guitar player - it's hard to feed yourself when you're picking for a living.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/j-j-cale/ask-any-guitar-player-it-s-hard-to-feed-yourself-when-you-re-picking/) [J. J. Cale](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/j-j-cale/) > [The first information I consume in the morning is probably 'The New York Times' and then my Twitter feed. I think Twitter is a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/uzo-aduba/the-first-information-i-consume-in-the-morning-is-probably-the-new/) [Uzo Aduba](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/uzo-aduba/) > [I definitely feed off of people.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/brooke-baldwin/i-definitely-feed-off-of-people/) [Brooke Baldwin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/brooke-baldwin/) > [I love the pigeons. I just raise them, period, and feed them. Pigeons go away, and they always come back. You get a touch…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-foreman/i-love-the-pigeons-i-just-raise-them-period-and-feed-them-pigeons-go/) [George Foreman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-foreman/) > [I love to feed people, and I like to cook food they want to eat and food that will be good for them. I…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ruth-glick/i-love-to-feed-people-and-i-like-to-cook-food-they-want-to-eat-and/) [Ruth Glick](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ruth-glick/) > [I would ask my mum to feed my dolls and make sure they were tucked in when I went to school.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gayle-rankin/i-would-ask-my-mum-to-feed-my-dolls-and-make-sure-they-were-tucked-in/) [Gayle Rankin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gayle-rankin/) > [Feed me hip-hop and I start tremblin'](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rakim/feed-me-hip-hop-and-i-start-tremblin/) [Rakim](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rakim/) > [Nobody ever wants to see a guy get hurt, because this is how we feed our families.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/enzo-amore/nobody-ever-wants-to-see-a-guy-get-hurt-because-this-is-how-we-feed/) [Enzo Amore](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/enzo-amore/) > [My sister-in-law works for a group that supports orphanages in Cairo. She and her colleagues take care of children left behind by circumstances beyond…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mohamed-elbaradei/my-sister-in-law-works-for-a-group-that-supports-orphanages-in-cairo/) [Mohamed ElBaradei](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mohamed-elbaradei/) ## More by Sophy Burnham > [There are so many different kinds of writing and so many ways to work that the only rule is this: do what works. Almost…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sophy-burnham/there-are-so-many-different-kinds-of-writing-and-so-many-ways-to-work/) [Sophy Burnham](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sophy-burnham/) > [Angels come in all sizes and shapes and colors, visible and invisible to the physical eye. But always you are changed from having seen…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sophy-burnham/angels-come-in-all-sizes-and-shapes-and-colors-visible-and-invisible/) [Sophy Burnham](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sophy-burnham/) > [A guest at a dinner party observed the strange expression on James Thurber's face. 'Don't be concerned,' said Thurber's wife. 'He's writing.'](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sophy-burnham/a-guest-at-a-dinner-party-observed-the-strange-expression-on-james/) [Sophy Burnham](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sophy-burnham/) > [Harriet Beecher Stowe thought Uncle Tom's Cabin was written through her by Another Hand, so little did she know what was going to happen…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sophy-burnham/harriet-beecher-stowe-thought-uncle-tom-s-cabin-was-written-through/) [Sophy Burnham](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sophy-burnham/) > [We all have angels guiding us...They look after us. They heal us, touch us, comfort us with invisible warm hands...What will bring their help?…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sophy-burnham/we-all-have-angels-guiding-us-they-look-after-us-they-heal-us-touch/) [Sophy Burnham](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sophy-burnham/) > [We write to understand our deepest secrets to ourselves, to understand. We write in an outpouring of love. We write in secret, either for…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sophy-burnham/we-write-to-understand-our-deepest-secrets-to-ourselves-to-understand/) [Sophy Burnham](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sophy-burnham/) > [It is said that angels come as thoughts, as visions, as dreams, as animals, as the light on the water or in clouds and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sophy-burnham/it-is-said-that-angels-come-as-thoughts-as-visions-as-dreams-as/) [Sophy Burnham](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sophy-burnham/) > [To believe in God or in a guiding force because someone tells you to is the height of stupidity. We are given senses to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sophy-burnham/to-believe-in-god-or-in-a-guiding-force-because-someone-tells-you-to/) [Sophy Burnham](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sophy-burnham/) > [I think our animals are angels, earth-angels, pointing out for us the steadfast path of love, loyalty, optimism, faith, joy, hope. They teach us…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sophy-burnham/i-think-our-animals-are-angels-earth-angels-pointing-out-for-us-the/) [Sophy Burnham](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sophy-burnham/) > [So loving is the universe, so joyful, so determined to give us everything we need and to love us and show us the way…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sophy-burnham/so-loving-is-the-universe-so-joyful-so-determined-to-give-us/) [Sophy Burnham](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sophy-burnham/) > [... where do they go when they die? We hear of the elephant graveyards, where the elephants go to die, but how much more…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sophy-burnham/where-do-they-go-when-they-die-we-hear-of-the-elephant-graveyards/) [Sophy Burnham](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sophy-burnham/) > [Prayer is a law of the universe, like gravity. You don't even have to believe in God to ask.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sophy-burnham/prayer-is-a-law-of-the-universe-like-gravity-you-don-t-even-have-to/) [Sophy Burnham](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sophy-burnham/) > [When I'm having trouble I write by hand. There is some connection between the mind and the fingers that draws out words.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sophy-burnham/when-i-m-having-trouble-i-write-by-hand-there-is-some-connection/) [Sophy Burnham](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sophy-burnham/) > [Harriet Beecher Stowe was thirty-nine when she began Uncle Tom's Cabin. She had given birth to seven children and seen one die. She wrote…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sophy-burnham/harriet-beecher-stowe-was-thirty-nine-when-she-began-uncle-tom-s/) [Sophy Burnham](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sophy-burnham/) > [Sometimes writer's block is no more than a signal that you have not done enough research.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sophy-burnham/sometimes-writer-s-block-is-no-more-than-a-signal-that-you-have-not/) [Sophy Burnham](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sophy-burnham/) [Explore all 25 Sophy Burnham quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sophy-burnham/) ## More Feed quotes > [My sister-in-law works for a group that supports orphanages in Cairo. She and her colleagues take care of children left behind by circumstances beyond…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mohamed-elbaradei/my-sister-in-law-works-for-a-group-that-supports-orphanages-in-cairo/) [Mohamed ElBaradei](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mohamed-elbaradei/) > [Nobody ever wants to see a guy get hurt, because this is how we feed our families.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/enzo-amore/nobody-ever-wants-to-see-a-guy-get-hurt-because-this-is-how-we-feed/) [Enzo Amore](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/enzo-amore/) > [Feed me hip-hop and I start tremblin'](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rakim/feed-me-hip-hop-and-i-start-tremblin/) [Rakim](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rakim/) > [I would ask my mum to feed my dolls and make sure they were tucked in when I went to school.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gayle-rankin/i-would-ask-my-mum-to-feed-my-dolls-and-make-sure-they-were-tucked-in/) [Gayle Rankin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gayle-rankin/) > [I love to feed people, and I like to cook food they want to eat and food that will be good for them. I…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ruth-glick/i-love-to-feed-people-and-i-like-to-cook-food-they-want-to-eat-and/) [Ruth Glick](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ruth-glick/) > [I love the pigeons. I just raise them, period, and feed them. Pigeons go away, and they always come back. You get a touch…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-foreman/i-love-the-pigeons-i-just-raise-them-period-and-feed-them-pigeons-go/) [George Foreman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-foreman/) > [I definitely feed off of people.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/brooke-baldwin/i-definitely-feed-off-of-people/) [Brooke Baldwin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/brooke-baldwin/) > [The first information I consume in the morning is probably 'The New York Times' and then my Twitter feed. I think Twitter is a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/uzo-aduba/the-first-information-i-consume-in-the-morning-is-probably-the-new/) [Uzo Aduba](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/uzo-aduba/) > [Ask any guitar player - it's hard to feed yourself when you're picking for a living.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/j-j-cale/ask-any-guitar-player-it-s-hard-to-feed-yourself-when-you-re-picking/) [J. J. Cale](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/j-j-cale/) > [I try to feed my hunger rather than my appetite.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ginger-rogers/i-try-to-feed-my-hunger-rather-than-my-appetite/) [Ginger Rogers](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ginger-rogers/) > [Give a man a fish, feed home for a day. Teach a man to fish, feed for a lifetime.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/confucius/give-a-man-a-fish-feed-home-for-a-day-teach-a-man-to-fish-feed-for-a/) [Confucius](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/confucius/) > [“Your realm is an insane place. In Volaria, no-one goes hungry, slaves are no use when they starve. Those freeborn too lazy or lacking…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anthony-ryan/your-realm-is-an-insane-place-in-volaria-no-one-goes-hungry-slaves/) [Anthony Ryan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anthony-ryan/) > [I have a family to feed.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/latrell-sprewell/i-have-a-family-to-feed/) [Latrell Sprewell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/latrell-sprewell/) > [We have been fed so many false narratives, many of them racialized to deliberately feed a racist agenda. It's important to address and dig…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rhiannon-giddens/we-have-been-fed-so-many-false-narratives-many-of-them-racialized-to/) [Rhiannon Giddens](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rhiannon-giddens/) > [“What you feed your mind, will lead your life.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kemi-sogunle/what-you-feed-your-mind-will-lead-your-life/) [Kemi Sogunle](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kemi-sogunle/) Browse all 448 Feed quotes ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "“I have a lion inside me, and I had to feed it words every few days; when I don't, it begins to eat me instead.”", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "Sophy Burnham" }, "isPartOf": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website" }, "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sophy-burnham/i-have-a-lion-inside-me-and-i-had-to-feed-it-words-every-few-days/", "about": { "@type": "Thing", "name": "Feed" }, "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sophy-burnham/i-have-a-lion-inside-me-and-i-had-to-feed-it-words-every-few-days/#quotation", "image": { "@type": "ImageObject", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/285/sophy-burnham-23134_feed_i-have-a-lion-inside-me-and-i-had-to-fee_2725184.jpg", "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/285/sophy-burnham-23134_feed_i-have-a-lion-inside-me-and-i-had-to-fee_2725184.jpg", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/285/sophy-burnham-23134_feed_i-have-a-lion-inside-me-and-i-had-to-fee_2725184.jpg", "width": 1080, "height": 1080, "caption": "“I have a lion inside me, and I had to feed it words every few days; when I don't, it begins to eat me instead.” — Sophy Burnham", "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": "Sophy Burnham", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sophy-burnham/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 4, "name": "“I have a lion inside me,...", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sophy-burnham/i-have-a-lion-inside-me-and-i-had-to-feed-it-words-every-few-days/" } ], "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sophy-burnham/i-have-a-lion-inside-me-and-i-had-to-feed-it-words-every-few-days/#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 } } ] } ```