--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: Several times per heartbeat, over and…" description: "\"“Several times per heartbeat, over and over from birth to death, we each separate the specific from the general, the figure from the ground, and decide..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/e1d/ted-orland-50431_death_several-times-per-heartbeat-over-and-ove_722048.jpg" --- # Several times per heartbeat, over and over from birth to… ![“Several times per heartbeat, over and over from birth to death, we each separate the specific from the general, the figure from the ground, and decide which shape is the mushroom (or the field mouse or the lost contact lens) and which is not. We fit together the pieces that we can, and set aside…” quote by Ted Orland](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/e1d/ted-orland-50431_death_several-times-per-heartbeat-over-and-ove_722048.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/e1d/ted-orland-50431_death_several-times-per-heartbeat-over-and-ove_722048.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/e1d/ted-orland-50431_death_several-times-per-heartbeat-over-and-ove_722048.jpg) > ““Several times per heartbeat, over and over from birth to death, we each separate the specific from the general, the figure from the ground, and decide which shape is the mushroom (or the field mouse or the lost contact lens) and which is not. We fit together the pieces that we can, and set aside the rest. The process of being unfolds as an endlessly overlapping succession of most-plausible-pictures. We become who we are by virtue of the choices we make — consciously or otherwise — about which parts belong in our story, and which parts can be left out.” It”” [Ted Orland](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ted-orland/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. We constantly categorize experiences, selecting some as central to our identity and discarding others, shaping who we become by those choices. **In simple terms:** We pick and drop parts of life to form our story. Key Takeaway Choose what matters, let go of the rest. Themes identity choice perception Mood reflective introspective Type philosophical psychological When to use this quote - personal growth - creative projects - relationship building - decision making Key Concepts cognitive categorization storytelling self-construction Questions to Reflect On - What criteria do you use to decide what belongs in your story? - How does this selection process affect your sense of self? A Different Perspective May overlook valuable nuances when simplifying. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Death](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/death/) [Time](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/time/) ## Related quotes > [“I’m in love with you, Am. Not her. There are parts of me, so many, that will only ever belong to you. I might…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/cambria-hebert/i-m-in-love-with-you-am-not-her-there-are-parts-of-me-so-many-that/) [Cambria Hebert](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/cambria-hebert/) > [In a successful painting everything is integral - all the parts belong to the whole. If you remove an aspect or element you are…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/richard-diebenkorn/in-a-successful-painting-everything-is-integral-all-the-parts-belong/) [Richard Diebenkorn](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/richard-diebenkorn/) > [God doesn't make mistakes and timing unfolds as it should.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ashley-judd/god-doesn-t-make-mistakes-and-timing-unfolds-as-it-should/) [Ashley Judd](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ashley-judd/) > [I love the idea of literature as a room or series of rooms that allow you to be present as it slowly unfolds itself…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gregory-allen-howard/i-love-the-idea-of-literature-as-a-room-or-series-of-rooms-that-allow/) [Gregory Allen Howard](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gregory-allen-howard/) > [“Greatness unfolds beyond your comfort zone.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sravani-saha-nakhro/greatness-unfolds-beyond-your-comfort-zone/) [Sravani Saha Nakhro](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sravani-saha-nakhro/) > [Unfortunately, life unfolds as it does, and you can't do everything at the same time, and you can't do some things if you can't…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/floor-jansen/unfortunately-life-unfolds-as-it-does-and-you-can-t-do-everything-at/) [Floor Jansen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/floor-jansen/) > [Life unfolds in unpredictable ways for a reason. What happens isnt good or bad. It simply is.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/suman-rai/life-unfolds-in-unpredictable-ways-for-a-reason-what-happens-isnt/) [Suman Rai](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/suman-rai/) > [life unfolds itself in mysteries ways.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/khalil-gibran/life-unfolds-itself-in-mysteries-ways/) [Khalil Gibran](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/khalil-gibran/) > [“That's how history unfolds. People weave a web of meaning, believe in it with all their heart, but sooner or later the web unravels,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/yuval-noah-harari/that-s-how-history-unfolds-people-weave-a-web-of-meaning-believe-in/) [Yuval Noah Harari](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/yuval-noah-harari/) > [The universe unfolds in the body, which is its mirror and its creature.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/octavio-paz/the-universe-unfolds-in-the-body-which-is-its-mirror-and-its-creature/) [Octavio Paz](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/octavio-paz/) > [If anything unfolds, it's supposed to](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-frusciante/if-anything-unfolds-it-s-supposed-to/) [John Frusciante](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-frusciante/) > [Consciousness means being present to everything in life as it unfolds.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/consciousness-means-being-present-to-everything-in-life-as-it-unfolds/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [“One of my book-reading friends used the term "our story unfolds" when describing a paper he was writing. He became somewhat less of a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tommy-greenwald/one-of-my-book-reading-friends-used-the-term-our-story-unfolds-when/) [Tommy Greenwald](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tommy-greenwald/) > [The gospel comprises indeed, and unfolds, the whole mystery of man's redemption, as far forth as it is necessary to be known for our…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robert-boyle/the-gospel-comprises-indeed-and-unfolds-the-whole-mystery-of-man-s/) [Robert Boyle](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robert-boyle/) > [“A tremendous mystery unfolds in front of our senses every waking hour of our lives; a mystery more profound, more tantalizing, more penetrating and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bernardo-kastrup/a-tremendous-mystery-unfolds-in-front-of-our-senses-every-waking-hour/) Bernardo Kastrup ## More by Ted Orland > [“Art school is a small island of acceptance in a vast sea of disinterest.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ted-orland/art-school-is-a-small-island-of-acceptance-in-a-vast-sea-of/) [Ted Orland](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ted-orland/) > [“A degree in art doesn’t automatically make you an artist any more than lacking a degree precludes you from becoming an artist.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ted-orland/a-degree-in-art-doesn-t-automatically-make-you-an-artist-any-more/) [Ted Orland](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ted-orland/) > [“When it comes to making art, our intuition is often light-years ahead of our intellect.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ted-orland/when-it-comes-to-making-art-our-intuition-is-often-light-years-ahead/) [Ted Orland](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ted-orland/) > [“It seems an almost transcendental quality of the mind that we can even know we see the world differently from others — and more…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ted-orland/it-seems-an-almost-transcendental-quality-of-the-mind-that-we-can/) [Ted Orland](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ted-orland/) > [“Where, then, does your vision of the world reside? What part of your art is drawn from history? What part is prophecy? What part…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ted-orland/where-then-does-your-vision-of-the-world-reside-what-part-of-your-art/) [Ted Orland](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ted-orland/) > [“The most distinctive quality of artmaking is the investment of the artist’s own humanity in the finished piece.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ted-orland/the-most-distinctive-quality-of-artmaking-is-the-investment-of-the/) [Ted Orland](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ted-orland/) [Explore all 7 Ted Orland quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ted-orland/) ## More Consciously quotes > [“The only sure path is to live consciously, moment to moment, as you let go of the outcome.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/charlotte-kasl/the-only-sure-path-is-to-live-consciously-moment-to-moment-as-you-let/) Charlotte Kasl > [When you do not consciously relate to your body, your mind does not relate consciously to you.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/harbhajan-singh-yogi/when-you-do-not-consciously-relate-to-your-body-your-mind-does-not/) [Harbhajan Singh Yogi](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/harbhajan-singh-yogi/) > [I think that our work and our music stands on its own without this knowledge about our identity around it. But I also think…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ben-hopkins/i-think-that-our-work-and-our-music-stands-on-its-own-without-this/) [Ben Hopkins](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ben-hopkins/) > [I never consciously set out to model myself after Upton Sinclair.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/eric-schlosser/i-never-consciously-set-out-to-model-myself-after-upton-sinclair/) [Eric Schlosser](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/eric-schlosser/) > [Enlightenment doesn't mean you know anything. It doesn't mean you don't know anything. It means that you've returned to the source, consciously.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/frederick-lenz/enlightenment-doesn-t-mean-you-know-anything-it-doesn-t-mean-you-don/) [Frederick Lenz](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/frederick-lenz/) > [Consciously or subconsciously, we become slaves to debt and social obligation. As a result, we end up more committed to the minutia and less…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/romany-malco/consciously-or-subconsciously-we-become-slaves-to-debt-and-social/) [Romany Malco](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/romany-malco/) > [“Something in us recognizes magic when we encounter it. Whether we believe in it consciously or not. It affects us and the choices we…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jeffe-kennedy/something-in-us-recognizes-magic-when-we-encounter-it-whether-we/) Jeffe Kennedy > [“When you consciously choose to do what you love, life becomes a pleasure and ceases to be a chore.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/amy-leigh-mercree/when-you-consciously-choose-to-do-what-you-love-life-becomes-a/) [Amy Leigh Mercree](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/amy-leigh-mercree/) > [It is often tragic to see how blatantly a man bungles his own life and the lives of others yet remains totally incapable of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/it-is-often-tragic-to-see-how-blatantly-a-man-bungles-his-own-life/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [“Whatever we become in life we either "let happen" or we consciously CREATE to be. One puts you in a VICTIM pit, the other…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tina-mitchell/whatever-we-become-in-life-we-either-let-happen-or-we-consciously/) Tina Mitchell > [I am consciously selective of the work that I do.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mithila-palkar/i-am-consciously-selective-of-the-work-that-i-do/) [Mithila Palkar](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mithila-palkar/) > [“The Matrix can feel like a pretty hopeless place. I get that. Nobody in his or her right mind (a tiny minority, admittedly) wants…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sol-luckman/the-matrix-can-feel-like-a-pretty-hopeless-place-i-get-that-nobody-in/) [Sol Luckman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sol-luckman/) > [It is important for us consciously to say, or claim, only the things we want rather than what we do not want.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/darren-l-johnson/it-is-important-for-us-consciously-to-say-or-claim-only-the-things-we/) [Darren L Johnson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/darren-l-johnson/) > [“YOU are becoming a new species. The vibrations in and around you are increasing in speed. YOU are all adjusting to these higher dimensional…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/elaine-seiler/you-are-becoming-a-new-species-the-vibrations-in-and-around-you-are/) [Elaine Seiler](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/elaine-seiler/) > [“We need to learn how to live consciously and, trusting ourselves, purposefully on that inevitable balance point between form and emptiness, relative and absolute,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lama-surya-das/we-need-to-learn-how-to-live-consciously-and-trusting-ourselves/) [Lama Surya Das](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lama-surya-das/) Browse all 197 Consciously quotes ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "“Several times per heartbeat, over and over from birth to death, we each separate the specific from the general, the figure from the ground, and decide which shape is the mushroom (or the field mouse or the lost contact lens) and which is not. We fit together the pieces that we can, and set aside the rest. The process of being unfolds as an endlessly overlapping succession of most-plausible-pictures. We become who we are by virtue of the choices we make — consciously or otherwise — about which parts belong in our story, and which parts can be left out.” It”", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "Ted Orland" }, "isPartOf": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website" }, "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ted-orland/several-times-per-heartbeat-over-and-over-from-birth-to-death-we-each/", "about": { "@type": "Thing", "name": "Consciously" }, "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ted-orland/several-times-per-heartbeat-over-and-over-from-birth-to-death-we-each/#quotation", "image": { "@type": "ImageObject", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/e1d/ted-orland-50431_death_several-times-per-heartbeat-over-and-ove_722048.jpg", "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/e1d/ted-orland-50431_death_several-times-per-heartbeat-over-and-ove_722048.jpg", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/e1d/ted-orland-50431_death_several-times-per-heartbeat-over-and-ove_722048.jpg", "width": 1080, "height": 1080, "caption": "“Several times per heartbeat, over and over from birth to death, we each separate the specific from the…” — Ted Orland", "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": "Ted Orland", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ted-orland/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 4, "name": "“Several times per heartbeat, over and...", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ted-orland/several-times-per-heartbeat-over-and-over-from-birth-to-death-we-each/" } ], "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ted-orland/several-times-per-heartbeat-over-and-over-from-birth-to-death-we-each/#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 } } ] } ```