---
title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: Our family has made its livelihood from…"
description: "\"Our family has made its livelihood from the land, digging trenches for hundreds of miles cross-country. You could say this is a real paradox, to destro..."
image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/2cb/terry-tempest-williams-835_community_our-family-has-made-its-livelihood-from_3168914.jpg"
---

#  Our family has made its livelihood from the land, digging…

![“Our family has made its livelihood from the land, digging trenches for hundreds of miles cross-country. You could say this is a real paradox, to destroy the land, yet love it at the same time. This is a typical story of Westerners, how we build community through change.” quote by Terry Tempest Williams](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/2cb/terry-tempest-williams-835_community_our-family-has-made-its-livelihood-from_3168914.jpg)   [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/2cb/terry-tempest-williams-835_community_our-family-has-made-its-livelihood-from_3168914.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/2cb/terry-tempest-williams-835_community_our-family-has-made-its-livelihood-from_3168914.jpg)

> “Our family has made its livelihood from the land, digging trenches for hundreds of miles cross-country. You could say this is a real paradox, to destroy the land, yet love it at the same time. This is a typical story of Westerners, how we build community through change.”

[Terry Tempest Williams](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/terry-tempest-williams/)

## About This Quote

This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation.

Living on land creates a love‑hate paradox: we depend on it, yet can harm it, reflecting how community forms through shared change.

**In simple terms:** Land love and harm coexist, shaping community.

Key Takeaway

Recognize and balance exploitation with stewardship.

Themes

environment community paradox stewardship

Mood

reflective concerned

Type

philosophical inspirational

When to use this quote

- agricultural work
- land conservation
- community building
- policy making

Key Concepts

Ecology cultural identity sustainability

Questions to Reflect On

- How do you reconcile personal benefit with environmental impact?
- What practices foster sustainable community?

A Different Perspective

Balancing progress with ecological health is challenging.

★ ★ ★ ★ ★   No ratings yet

[Community](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/community/) [Country](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/country/) [Family](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/family/) [Livelihood](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/livelihood/) [Our family](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/our-family/) [Paradox](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/paradox/) [Stories](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/stories/) [Trenches](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/trenches/) [Westerners](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/westerners/)

## Related quotes

> [“Destroy us, land and forest takes forever from your children. Walk the circle of life. Have no fear. Together, let us love and protect…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/frederic-m-perrin/destroy-us-land-and-forest-takes-forever-from-your-children-walk-the/)

[Frederic M. Perrin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/frederic-m-perrin/)

> [“Your money is not as good as our land is it? The wind will blow it away, fire will burn it and water will…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/crowfoot/your-money-is-not-as-good-as-our-land-is-it-the-wind-will-blow-it/)

[Crowfoot](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/crowfoot/)

> [“They can laugh, but they can't deny us. They can curse and kill us, but they can't destroy us. This land is ours because…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ralph-ellison/they-can-laugh-but-they-can-t-deny-us-they-can-curse-and-kill-us-but/)

[Ralph Ellison](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ralph-ellison/)

> [“Among ourselves (Westerners), the people who are regarded as moral luminaries are those who forgo ordinary pleasures themselves and find compensation in interfering with…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bertrand-russell/among-ourselves-westerners-the-people-who-are-regarded-as-moral/)

[Bertrand Russell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bertrand-russell/)

> [Muslims, who have a completely different value system, come to the West, then they should accept that there are certain basic values in the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-cleese/muslims-who-have-a-completely-different-value-system-come-to-the-west/)

[John Cleese](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-cleese/)

> [A youth with wings are the assurance of our nation's future. We must start to work right away and make progress so that; if…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mustafa-kemal-ataturk/a-youth-with-wings-are-the-assurance-of-our-nation-s-future-we-must/)

[Mustafa Kemal Ataturk](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mustafa-kemal-ataturk/)

> [Incredibly deep research combines with the talents of a fine historian and writer to produce superb narrative history. The true character and relationship of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robert-m-utley/incredibly-deep-research-combines-with-the-talents-of-a-fine/)

Robert M. Utley

> [I lived in Saudi Arabia in the late 1970s. It was, for a Westerner, pretty idyllic. There were the religious police; there were the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robert-lacey/i-lived-in-saudi-arabia-in-the-late-1970s-it-was-for-a-westerner/)

[Robert Lacey](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robert-lacey/)

> [This, I believe, is the great Western truth: that each of us is a completely unique creature and that, if we are ever to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joseph-campbell/this-i-believe-is-the-great-western-truth-that-each-of-us-is-a/)

[Joseph Campbell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joseph-campbell/)

> [The Dalai Lama, these days, encourages Westerners not to take up Buddhism, partly because he feels that our roots are deep in other traditions,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/pico-iyer/the-dalai-lama-these-days-encourages-westerners-not-to-take-up/)

[Pico Iyer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/pico-iyer/)

> [“To most Westerners, the Philippines suffers from a lack of exoticism. Simply put, Philippine culture is just too accessible. To a young Western backpacker,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/steven-martin/to-most-westerners-the-philippines-suffers-from-a-lack-of-exoticism/)

Steven Martin

> [The entrenched beliefs many westerners profess about Islam often reveal more about the West than they do about Islam or Muslims.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/hamza-yusuf/the-entrenched-beliefs-many-westerners-profess-about-islam-often/)

[Hamza Yusuf](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/hamza-yusuf/)

> [Political correctness is a major defect of the western ethos. Some Western countries have even passed blasphemy laws that would put you in legal…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ali-sina/political-correctness-is-a-major-defect-of-the-western-ethos-some/)

[Ali Sina](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ali-sina/)

> [Metaphysical assertions, however, are statements of the psyche, and are therefore psychological. Whenever the Westerner hears the word “psychological,” it always sounds to him…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/carl-jung/metaphysical-assertions-however-are-statements-of-the-psyche-and-are/)

[Carl Jung](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/carl-jung/)

> [“The West won the world not by the superiority of its ideas or values or religion (to which few members of other religions were…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/oliver-stone/the-west-won-the-world-not-by-the-superiority-of-its-ideas-or-values/)

[Oliver Stone](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/oliver-stone/)

## More by Terry Tempest Williams

> [I admire how she protects her energy and understands her limitations.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/terry-tempest-williams/i-admire-how-she-protects-her-energy-and-understands-her-limitations/)

[Terry Tempest Williams](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/terry-tempest-williams/)

> [Buddha says there are two kinds of suffering: the kind that leads to more suffering and the kind that brings an end to suffering.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/terry-tempest-williams/buddha-says-there-are-two-kinds-of-suffering-the-kind-that-leads-to/)

[Terry Tempest Williams](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/terry-tempest-williams/)

> [I wonder how, among the Fremont, mothers and daughters shared their world. Did they walk side by side along the lake edge? What stories…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/terry-tempest-williams/i-wonder-how-among-the-fremont-mothers-and-daughters-shared-their/)

[Terry Tempest Williams](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/terry-tempest-williams/)

> [I believe the personal is the collective. One of the ironies of writing memoir is in using the "I" it becomes an alchemical "we."…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/terry-tempest-williams/i-believe-the-personal-is-the-collective-one-of-the-ironies-of/)

[Terry Tempest Williams](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/terry-tempest-williams/)

> [“I write to discover. I write to uncover. I write to meet my ghosts... I write because it is dangerous, a bloody risk, like…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/terry-tempest-williams/i-write-to-discover-i-write-to-uncover-i-write-to-meet-my-ghosts-i/)

[Terry Tempest Williams](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/terry-tempest-williams/)

> [“I write to make peace with the things I cannot control. I write to create red in a world that often appears black and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/terry-tempest-williams/i-write-to-make-peace-with-the-things-i-cannot-control-i-write-to/)

[Terry Tempest Williams](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/terry-tempest-williams/)

> [Hope is not attached to outcomes but is a state of mind.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/terry-tempest-williams/hope-is-not-attached-to-outcomes-but-is-a-state-of-mind/)

[Terry Tempest Williams](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/terry-tempest-williams/)

> [I have spoken about what we can do as citizens, what we can do as a responsive citizenry, and this is where we have…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/terry-tempest-williams/i-have-spoken-about-what-we-can-do-as-citizens-what-we-can-do-as-a/)

[Terry Tempest Williams](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/terry-tempest-williams/)

> [The moment Eve bit into the apple, her eyes opened and she became free. She exposed the truth of what every woman knows: to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/terry-tempest-williams/the-moment-eve-bit-into-the-apple-her-eyes-opened-and-she-became-free/)

[Terry Tempest Williams](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/terry-tempest-williams/)

> [I accept the Organic Trinity of Mineral, Vegetable, and Animal with as much authority as I accept the Holy Trinity. Both are sacred.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/terry-tempest-williams/i-accept-the-organic-trinity-of-mineral-vegetable-and-animal-with-as/)

[Terry Tempest Williams](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/terry-tempest-williams/)

> [Good writing must stay open to the questions and not fall prey to the pull of a polemic, otherwise, words simply become predictable, sentimental,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/terry-tempest-williams/good-writing-must-stay-open-to-the-questions-and-not-fall-prey-to-the/)

[Terry Tempest Williams](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/terry-tempest-williams/)

> [“I believe we must do things in our lives for the right reasons, because we enjoy doing them, with no expectation of getting something…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/terry-tempest-williams/i-believe-we-must-do-things-in-our-lives-for-the-right-reasons/)

[Terry Tempest Williams](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/terry-tempest-williams/)

> [A mother and daughter are an edge. Edges are ecotones, transitional zones, places of danger or opportunity. House-dwelling tension. When I stand on the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/terry-tempest-williams/a-mother-and-daughter-are-an-edge-edges-are-ecotones-transitional/)

[Terry Tempest Williams](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/terry-tempest-williams/)

> [“To be read. To be heard. To be seen. I want to be read, I want to be heard. I don't need to be…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/terry-tempest-williams/to-be-read-to-be-heard-to-be-seen-i-want-to-be-read-i-want-to-be/)

[Terry Tempest Williams](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/terry-tempest-williams/)

> [The Eyes of the Future are looking back at us and they are praying for us to see beyond our own time.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/terry-tempest-williams/the-eyes-of-the-future-are-looking-back-at-us-and-they-are-praying/)

[Terry Tempest Williams](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/terry-tempest-williams/)

[Explore all 357 Terry Tempest Williams quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/terry-tempest-williams/)

## More Community quotes

> [Race is the idea that a human being is more superior than another human being, race in society grants illusional rights to mistreat each…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jeremy-limn/race-is-the-idea-that-a-human-being-is-more-superior-than-another/)

[Jeremy Limn](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jeremy-limn/)

> [But we are convinced that if we are to play a meaningful role nationally, and in the community of nations, we must be second…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/vikram-sarabhai/but-we-are-convinced-that-if-we-are-to-play-a-meaningful-role/)

[Vikram Sarabhai](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/vikram-sarabhai/)

> [In the hearing world, I'm constantly having to lip-read and trying to understand what's going on. Sign language is so beautiful. It gives you…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rose-ayling-ellis/in-the-hearing-world-i-m-constantly-having-to-lip-read-and-trying-to/)

[Rose Ayling-Ellis](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rose-ayling-ellis/)

> [The strains and stresses suffered by the individual in society are grounded in the normal functioning of that society (and of the individual!) rather…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/herbert-marcuse/the-strains-and-stresses-suffered-by-the-individual-in-society-are/)

[Herbert Marcuse](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/herbert-marcuse/)

> [Hackney gets a bit of a bad rap, but it's the only place I've ever lived that felt like a community. I know my…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sharon-horgan/hackney-gets-a-bit-of-a-bad-rap-but-it-s-the-only-place-i-ve-ever/)

[Sharon Horgan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sharon-horgan/)

> [ The social \[media channel\] isn't about beauty contests and popularity contests. They're a distortion, a caricature of the real thing. It's about trust, connection,… ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/umair-haque/the-social-media-channel-isn-t-about-beauty-contests-and-popularity/)

[Umair Haque](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/umair-haque/)

> [We're at a point in history were we have to become a part of the neighborhood of inhabited planets, like a neighborhood of a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/edgar-mitchell/we-re-at-a-point-in-history-were-we-have-to-become-a-part-of-the/)

[Edgar Mitchell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/edgar-mitchell/)

> [I have to feel the audience. I enjoy that feeling of community.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dave-gahan/i-have-to-feel-the-audience-i-enjoy-that-feeling-of-community/)

[Dave Gahan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dave-gahan/)

> [It rolls off my back. Ridicule doesn't mean anything - even from people you're supposed to wear knee pads around, like the scientific community.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dwight-schultz/it-rolls-off-my-back-ridicule-doesn-t-mean-anything-even-from-people/)

[Dwight Schultz](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dwight-schultz/)

> [Jeff Chu's pilgrimage across America to discover his own place as a gay man in the Christian church as well as attitudes about being…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/donna-freitas/jeff-chu-s-pilgrimage-across-america-to-discover-his-own-place-as-a/)

[Donna Freitas](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/donna-freitas/)

> [I think that most of us, anyway, read these stories that we know are not "true" because we're hungry for another kind of truth:…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/orson-scott-card/i-think-that-most-of-us-anyway-read-these-stories-that-we-know-are/)

[Orson Scott Card](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/orson-scott-card/)

> [Human life consists of doing certain things ... to take part in the life of the community; to be able to talk about subjects…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/amartya-sen/human-life-consists-of-doing-certain-things-to-take-part-in-the-life/)

[Amartya Sen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/amartya-sen/)

> [Parents who are stressed or disturbed will have more difficulty in meeting their children's needs. Parents who have little support--from friends, relatives, neighbors, or…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sheila-kamerman/parents-who-are-stressed-or-disturbed-will-have-more-difficulty-in/)

Sheila Kamerman

> [I think what was special about 'Music by Prudence' was the classic story of the title subject's life path - from being an outcast…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/roger-ross-williams/i-think-what-was-special-about-music-by-prudence-was-the-classic/)

[Roger Ross Williams](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/roger-ross-williams/)

> [Perhaps the greatest and least visible form of impoverishment caused by the Corporate State is the destruction of community.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/charles-a-reich/perhaps-the-greatest-and-least-visible-form-of-impoverishment-caused/)

[Charles A. Reich](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/charles-a-reich/)

[Browse all 13,840 Community quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/community/)

```json
{
    "@context": "https://schema.org",
    "@graph": [
        {
            "@type": "Quotation",
            "text": "Our family has made its livelihood from the land, digging trenches for hundreds of miles cross-country. You could say this is a real paradox, to destroy the land, yet love it at the same time. This is a typical story of Westerners, how we build community through change.",
            "creator": {
                "@type": "Person",
                "name": "Terry Tempest Williams"
            },
            "isPartOf": {
                "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website"
            },
            "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/terry-tempest-williams/our-family-has-made-its-livelihood-from-the-land-digging-trenches-for/",
            "about": {
                "@type": "Thing",
                "name": "Community"
            },
            "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/terry-tempest-williams/our-family-has-made-its-livelihood-from-the-land-digging-trenches-for/#quotation",
            "image": {
                "@type": "ImageObject",
                "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/2cb/terry-tempest-williams-835_community_our-family-has-made-its-livelihood-from_3168914.jpg",
                "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/2cb/terry-tempest-williams-835_community_our-family-has-made-its-livelihood-from_3168914.jpg",
                "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/2cb/terry-tempest-williams-835_community_our-family-has-made-its-livelihood-from_3168914.jpg",
                "width": 1080,
                "height": 1080,
                "caption": "“Our family has made its livelihood from the land, digging trenches for hundreds of miles cross-country. You…” — Terry Tempest Williams",
                "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": "Terry Tempest Williams",
                    "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/terry-tempest-williams/"
                },
                {
                    "@type": "ListItem",
                    "position": 4,
                    "name": "Our family has made its livelihood...",
                    "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/terry-tempest-williams/our-family-has-made-its-livelihood-from-the-land-digging-trenches-for/"
                }
            ],
            "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/terry-tempest-williams/our-family-has-made-its-livelihood-from-the-land-digging-trenches-for/#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
            }
        }
    ]
}
```