--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: Pacing back and forth now on the spur of…" description: "\"“Pacing back and forth now on the spur of his conflicting needs, Covenant growled, \"Baradakas said just about the same thing. By hell! You people terri..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/b23/stephen-r-donaldson-9552_quote_pacing-back-and-forth-now-on-the-spur-of_1597781.jpg" --- # Pacing back and forth now on the spur of his conflicting… ![“Pacing back and forth now on the spur of his conflicting needs, Covenant growled, "Baradakas said just about the same thing. By hell! You people terrify me. When I try to be responsible, you pressure me -- and when I collapse you -- You're not asking the right questions. You don't have the vaguest…” quote by Stephen R. Donaldson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/b23/stephen-r-donaldson-9552_quote_pacing-back-and-forth-now-on-the-spur-of_1597781.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/b23/stephen-r-donaldson-9552_quote_pacing-back-and-forth-now-on-the-spur-of_1597781.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/b23/stephen-r-donaldson-9552_quote_pacing-back-and-forth-now-on-the-spur-of_1597781.jpg) > ““Pacing back and forth now on the spur of his conflicting needs, Covenant growled, "Baradakas said just about the same thing. By hell! You people terrify me. When I try to be responsible, you pressure me -- and when I collapse you -- You're not asking the right questions. You don't have the vaguest notion of what a leper is, and it doesn't even occur to you to inquire. \_That's\_ why Foul chose me for this. Because I can't-- Damnation! Why don't you ask me about where I come from? I've got to tell you. The world I come from doesn't allow anyone to live except on its own terms. Those terms-- those terms contradict yours." "What are its terms?" the High Lord asked carefully. "That your world is a dream." ”” [Stephen R. Donaldson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stephen-r-donaldson/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. A character feels trapped by conflicting duties and misunderstood, yearning for acknowledgment of his origins and the harsh reality of his world. **In simple terms:** Struggles with duty and identity. Key Takeaway Acknowledge personal history. Themes conflict identity misunderstanding burden Mood melancholic thoughtful Type literary philosophical When to use this quote - therapy sessions - team debates - creative writing - conflict resolution Key Concepts existential crisis worldview clash Questions to Reflect On - What “ you feel when your world clashes with others’? - How can you communicate your background effectively? A Different Perspective Understanding others’ perspectives can be difficult. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Chose Damnation](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/chose-damnation-6068720/) [Covenant](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/covenant/) [Covenant Growled](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/covenant-growled-6068719/) [Lord Asked](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/lord-asked-799831/) [Needs Covenant](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/needs-covenant-495174/) ## Related quotes > [Mother Earth needs us to keep our covenant. We will do this in courts, we will do this on our radio station, and we…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/winona-laduke/mother-earth-needs-us-to-keep-our-covenant-we-will-do-this-in-courts/) [Winona LaDuke](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/winona-laduke/) > [“You have a visitor, my lord." I frowned, "What?" "That is why I came in here. You have a visitor waiting for you." 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"I do not know," he said, with a revealing simplicity.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/georgette-heyer/have-you-limitations-my-lord-asked-sir-anthony-my-lord-looked-at-him/) [Georgette Heyer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/georgette-heyer/) > [“I'm so sorry, bright little thing." "For what, my lord?:" I asked, my voice small and lost in the dim air. His words caught…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lesley-livingston/i-m-so-sorry-bright-little-thing-for-what-my-lord-i-asked-my-voice/) [Lesley Livingston](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lesley-livingston/) > [There is nothing the Lord has asked of us that in faith we cannot accomplish.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gordon-b-hinckley/there-is-nothing-the-lord-has-asked-of-us-that-in-faith-we-cannot/) [Gordon B. Hinckley](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gordon-b-hinckley/) > [When I left the house of bondage I left everything behind. 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Ah, that is as sad a tale…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stephen-r-donaldson/are-you-a-storyteller-thomas-covenant-absently-he-replied-i-was-once/) [Stephen R. Donaldson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stephen-r-donaldson/) > [“Covenant did not reply at once. He trembled also, and hand to clench himself before he could say without a tremor, "Why? Why do…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stephen-r-donaldson/covenant-did-not-reply-at-once-he-trembled-also-and-hand-to-clench/) [Stephen R. Donaldson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stephen-r-donaldson/) > [Are you a storyteller, Thomas Covenant?" Absently he replied, "I was, once." "And you gave it up? Ah, that is as sad a tale…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stephen-r-donaldson/are-you-a-storyteller-thomas-covenant-absently-he-replied-i-was-once-2/) [Stephen R. Donaldson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stephen-r-donaldson/) > [Gradually, the night stumbled as if stunned and wandering aimlessly into an overcast day -- limped through the wilderland of transition as though there…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stephen-r-donaldson/gradually-the-night-stumbled-as-if-stunned-and-wandering-aimlessly/) [Stephen R. Donaldson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stephen-r-donaldson/) > [The portal structure is simply a technique: it is neither necessary nor unnecessary, except as the writer and the story make it so. In…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stephen-r-donaldson/the-portal-structure-is-simply-a-technique-it-is-neither-necessary/) [Stephen R. Donaldson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stephen-r-donaldson/) ## More by Stephen R. Donaldson > [“A real man—real in all the ways that we recognize as real—finds himself suddenly abstracted from the world and deposited in a physical situation…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stephen-r-donaldson/a-real-man-real-in-all-the-ways-that-we-recognize-as-real-finds/) [Stephen R. Donaldson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stephen-r-donaldson/) > [Any belief that puts itself beyond doubt nurtures its own collapse.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stephen-r-donaldson/any-belief-that-puts-itself-beyond-doubt-nurtures-its-own-collapse/) [Stephen R. Donaldson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stephen-r-donaldson/) > [“But he was dreaming. The way to endure a dream was to flow with it until it ended.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stephen-r-donaldson/but-he-was-dreaming-the-way-to-endure-a-dream-was-to-flow-with-it/) [Stephen R. Donaldson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stephen-r-donaldson/) > [This you have to understand. There's only one way to hurt a man who's lost everything. Give him back something broken.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stephen-r-donaldson/this-you-have-to-understand-there-s-only-one-way-to-hurt-a-man-who-s/) [Stephen R. Donaldson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stephen-r-donaldson/) > [Everything dies, from the smallest blade of grass to the biggest galaxy.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stephen-r-donaldson/everything-dies-from-the-smallest-blade-of-grass-to-the-biggest-galaxy/) [Stephen R. Donaldson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stephen-r-donaldson/) > [“this library is another desert. A wasteland of words instead of sand.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stephen-r-donaldson/this-library-is-another-desert-a-wasteland-of-words-instead-of-sand/) [Stephen R. Donaldson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stephen-r-donaldson/) > [“...are you a person - with volition and maybe some stubborness and at least the capacity if not the actual determination to do something…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stephen-r-donaldson/are-you-a-person-with-volition-and-maybe-some-stubborness-and-at/) [Stephen R. Donaldson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stephen-r-donaldson/) > [“The speed felt tremendous. And the bottom of the ravine was treacherous. She ought to control her mount somehow - slow it; steer it…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stephen-r-donaldson/the-speed-felt-tremendous-and-the-bottom-of-the-ravine-was/) [Stephen R. Donaldson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stephen-r-donaldson/) > [Whatever the explanation, it's perfectly obvious that our educational system has nothing to do with education: it's a babysitting service designed to replicate the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stephen-r-donaldson/whatever-the-explanation-it-s-perfectly-obvious-that-our-educational/) [Stephen R. Donaldson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stephen-r-donaldson/) > [I had no intention of pursuing either the characters or the setting further.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stephen-r-donaldson/i-had-no-intention-of-pursuing-either-the-characters-or-the-setting/) [Stephen R. Donaldson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stephen-r-donaldson/) > [I respect my limitations, but I don't use them as an excuse.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stephen-r-donaldson/i-respect-my-limitations-but-i-don-t-use-them-as-an-excuse/) [Stephen R. Donaldson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stephen-r-donaldson/) > [For a variety of reasons, my books struck the marketplace like a thunderclap; and one of those reasons was that there were so few…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stephen-r-donaldson/for-a-variety-of-reasons-my-books-struck-the-marketplace-like-a/) [Stephen R. Donaldson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stephen-r-donaldson/) > [“But then a bubbling tenor voice said kindly, "Do not fear. It is a dream." The reassurance spread over him like a blanket. But…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stephen-r-donaldson/but-then-a-bubbling-tenor-voice-said-kindly-do-not-fear-it-is-a-dream/) [Stephen R. Donaldson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stephen-r-donaldson/) > [The heart cherishes secrets not worth the telling](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stephen-r-donaldson/the-heart-cherishes-secrets-not-worth-the-telling/) [Stephen R. Donaldson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stephen-r-donaldson/) > ["And you require no answers", Foamfollower was laughing in his gladness, "You are sufficient to every question".](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stephen-r-donaldson/and-you-require-no-answers-foamfollower-was-laughing-in-his-gladness/) [Stephen R. Donaldson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stephen-r-donaldson/) [Explore all 72 Stephen R. Donaldson quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stephen-r-donaldson/) ## More Covenant quotes > [ T\]he church is not a place. It's not a building. It's not a preaching point. It's not a spiritual service provider. It's a people… ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mark-dever/t-he-church-is-not-a-place-it-s-not-a-building-it-s-not-a-preaching/) [Mark Dever](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mark-dever/) > [God will keep His promises to you as you honor your covenants with Him.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/carole-m-stephens/god-will-keep-his-promises-to-you-as-you-honor-your-covenants-with-him/) [Carole M. Stephens](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/carole-m-stephens/) > [“God is worming out His and our adversaries, which He will do by little and little, till they be consumed. The covenant is seasonable.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/various/god-is-worming-out-his-and-our-adversaries-which-he-will-do-by-little/) [Various](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/various/) > [There is no more blessed way of living, than the life of faith based upon a covenant-keepin g God - to know that we…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/charles-spurgeon/there-is-no-more-blessed-way-of-living-than-the-life-of-faith-based/) [Charles Spurgeon](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/charles-spurgeon/) > [White and shining virgin of all human virtues, ark of the covenant between earth and heaven, tender and strong companion partaking of the lion…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/honor-de-balzac/white-and-shining-virgin-of-all-human-virtues-ark-of-the-covenant/) [Honore de Balzac](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/honor-de-balzac/) > [The average citizen expresses pride in the American Bill of Rights and then seeks to protect his real estate by restrictive covenants.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/harry-allen-overstreet/the-average-citizen-expresses-pride-in-the-american-bill-of-rights/) [Harry Allen Overstreet](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/harry-allen-overstreet/) > [The only compensation, gained through the influence of nongovernmental organizations, consisted in slightly broadening for private individuals the possibility of access and appeal to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rene-cassin/the-only-compensation-gained-through-the-influence-of-nongovernmental/) [Rene Cassin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rene-cassin/) > [Baptism by immersion for the remission of sins is an essential covenant to make with the Lord. Faith and repentance precede this ordinance. Confirmation…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/a-theodore-tuttle/baptism-by-immersion-for-the-remission-of-sins-is-an-essential/) [A. Theodore Tuttle](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/a-theodore-tuttle/) > [Peace does not rest in the charters and covenants alone. It lies in the hearts and minds of all people. So let us not…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-f-kennedy/peace-does-not-rest-in-the-charters-and-covenants-alone-it-lies-in/) [John F. Kennedy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-f-kennedy/) > [Modern societies accepted the treasures and the power offered them by science. But they have not accepted - they have scarcely even heard -…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jacques-monod/modern-societies-accepted-the-treasures-and-the-power-offered-them-by/) [Jacques Monod](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jacques-monod/) > [A covenant is an agreement between God and man, an accord whose terms are set by God.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/d-todd-christofferson/a-covenant-is-an-agreement-between-god-and-man-an-accord-whose-terms/) [D. Todd Christofferson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/d-todd-christofferson/) > [A group is as healthy as its 'social contract' is clear; a congregation as faithful as its covenant is mutually understood; a pastor as…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/a-group-is-as-healthy-as-its-social-contract-is-clear-a-congregation/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [There is no exception to this rule: "All the paths of the LORD are mercy and truth unto such as keep his covenant." They…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/charles-spurgeon/there-is-no-exception-to-this-rule-all-the-paths-of-the-lord-are/) [Charles Spurgeon](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/charles-spurgeon/) > [What I am trying to teach is that when we keep the temple covenants we have made and when we live righteously in order…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/richard-g-scott/what-i-am-trying-to-teach-is-that-when-we-keep-the-temple-covenants/) [Richard G. Scott](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/richard-g-scott/) > [No love can be bound by oath or covenant to secure it against a higher love.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ralph-waldo-emerson/no-love-can-be-bound-by-oath-or-covenant-to-secure-it-against-a/) [Ralph Waldo Emerson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ralph-waldo-emerson/) [Browse all 421 Covenant quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/covenant/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "“Pacing back and forth now on the spur of his conflicting needs, Covenant growled, \"Baradakas said just about the same thing. By hell! You people terrify me. When I try to be responsible, you pressure me -- and when I collapse you -- You're not asking the right questions. You don't have the vaguest notion of what a leper is, and it doesn't even occur to you to inquire. _That's_ why Foul chose me for this. Because I can't-- Damnation! Why don't you ask me about where I come from? I've got to tell you. The world I come from doesn't allow anyone to live except on its own terms. Those terms-- those terms contradict yours.\" \"What are its terms?\" the High Lord asked carefully. \"That your world is a dream.\" ”", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "Stephen R. 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