--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: She was perhaps seventeen when it…" description: "\"“She was perhaps seventeen when it happened. She was in Central Park, in New York. It was too warm for such an early spring day, and the hammered brown..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/43f/theodore-sturgeon-4560_central-park_she-was-perhaps-seventeen-when-it-happen_115673.jpg" --- # She was perhaps seventeen when it happened. She was in… ![“She was perhaps seventeen when it happened. She was in Central Park, in New York. It was too warm for such an early spring day, and the hammered brown slopes had a dusting of green of precisely the consistency of that morning's hoarfrost on the rocks. But the frost was gone and the grass was brave…” quote by Theodore Sturgeon](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/43f/theodore-sturgeon-4560_central-park_she-was-perhaps-seventeen-when-it-happen_115673.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/43f/theodore-sturgeon-4560_central-park_she-was-perhaps-seventeen-when-it-happen_115673.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/43f/theodore-sturgeon-4560_central-park_she-was-perhaps-seventeen-when-it-happen_115673.jpg) > ““She was perhaps seventeen when it happened. She was in Central Park, in New York. It was too warm for such an early spring day, and the hammered brown slopes had a dusting of green of precisely the consistency of that morning's hoarfrost on the rocks. But the frost was gone and the grass was brave and tempted some hundreds of pairs of feet from the asphalt and concrete to tread on it. Hers were among them. The sprouting soil was a surprise to her feet, as the air was to her lungs. Her feet ceased to be shoes as she walked, her body was consciously more than clothes. It was the only kind of day which in itself can make a city-bred person raise his eyes. She did. For a moment she felt separated from the life she lived, in which there was no fragrance, no silence, in which nothing ever quite fit nor was quite filled. In that moment the ordered disapproval of the buildings around the pallid park could not reach her; for two, three clean breaths it no longer mattered that the whole wide world really belongs to images projected on a screen; to gently groomed goddesses in these steel-and-glass towers; that it belonged, in short, always, always to someone else.”” [Theodore Sturgeon](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/theodore-sturgeon/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. A vivid description of a young woman’s fleeting escape from urban alienation into a sensory, almost spiritual communion with nature. **In simple terms:** Nature offers a brief, liberating break from city life. Key Takeaway Sensory immersion can restore a sense of belonging. Themes nature urban alienation sensory experience transcendence Mood poetic melancholic Type literary descriptive When to use this quote - urban dwellers seeking green spaces - mindfulness walks - literary analysis of nature imagery Key Concepts existential longing environmental perception Practical Applications - design city parks that engage all senses - use nature metaphors in therapy Questions to Reflect On - Why do brief natural moments feel transformative? - How can cities integrate lasting natural experiences? A Different Perspective The escape is temporary; underlying urban pressures remain unchanged. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Central park](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/central-park/) [Early spring](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/early-spring/) [Spring day](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/spring-day/) ## Related quotes > [“There was such a rush about me: wing, and tangled spray, and colors upon colors and shades of colors that were not colors at…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/theodore-sturgeon/there-was-such-a-rush-about-me-wing-and-tangled-spray-and-colors-upon/) [Theodore Sturgeon](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/theodore-sturgeon/) > [“He couldn't remember having been seventeen; it was something that must have happened to him while he was busy. 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And they played it again together, using the gods as pieces, as…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lord-dunsany/then-said-fate-to-chance-let-us-play-our-old-game-again-and-they/) [Lord Dunsany](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lord-dunsany/) > [Almond blossom, sent to teach us That the spring days soon will reach us.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/edwin-arnold/almond-blossom-sent-to-teach-us-that-the-spring-days-soon-will-reach/) [Edwin Arnold](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/edwin-arnold/) > [“To minimize the sense of confinement, one of our video channels provided a breathtaking view of our journey, as seen from a helicopter flying…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gerard-k-o-neill/to-minimize-the-sense-of-confinement-one-of-our-video-channels/) [Gerard K. O'Neill](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gerard-k-o-neill/) > [“I recall looking out the window at Redbuds,Dogwoods, daffodils, irises and pom-pom bushes, knowing exactly what Heaven must look like: a spring day in…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ashley-judd/i-recall-looking-out-the-window-at-redbuds-dogwoods-daffodils-irises/) [Ashley Judd](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ashley-judd/) > [There are no ordinary feelings. Just as there are no ordinary spring days or kicked over cans of paint.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dean-young/there-are-no-ordinary-feelings-just-as-there-are-no-ordinary-spring/) [Dean Young](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dean-young/) ## More by Theodore Sturgeon > [As far as Im concerned, I didnt dream - ever.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/theodore-sturgeon/as-far-as-im-concerned-i-didnt-dream-ever/) [Theodore Sturgeon](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/theodore-sturgeon/) > [For years, I thought I simply didn't dream. I felt left out. Everybody else had a thing I didn't have.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/theodore-sturgeon/for-years-i-thought-i-simply-didn-t-dream-i-felt-left-out-everybody/) [Theodore Sturgeon](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/theodore-sturgeon/) > [I learned how to live on five and sometimes ten dollars a week.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/theodore-sturgeon/i-learned-how-to-live-on-five-and-sometimes-ten-dollars-a-week/) [Theodore Sturgeon](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/theodore-sturgeon/) > [“Anger was foreign to him; he had only felt it once before. But now it came, a wash of it that made him swell,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/theodore-sturgeon/anger-was-foreign-to-him-he-had-only-felt-it-once-before-but-now-it/) [Theodore Sturgeon](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/theodore-sturgeon/) > [Fear is a survival instinct; fear in its way is a comfort for it means that somewhere hope is alive.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/theodore-sturgeon/fear-is-a-survival-instinct-fear-in-its-way-is-a-comfort-for-it-means/) [Theodore Sturgeon](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/theodore-sturgeon/) > [I repeat Sturgeon's Revelation, which was wrung out of me after twenty years of wearying defense of science fiction against attacks of people who…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/theodore-sturgeon/i-repeat-sturgeon-s-revelation-which-was-wrung-out-of-me-after-twenty/) [Theodore Sturgeon](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/theodore-sturgeon/) > [Once I had all the facts in, I found I didn't have the immoral courage to pull the caper. So I wrote it as…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/theodore-sturgeon/once-i-had-all-the-facts-in-i-found-i-didn-t-have-the-immoral-courage/) [Theodore Sturgeon](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/theodore-sturgeon/) > [It should consist of short, sharply focused sentences, each of which is a whole scene in itself.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/theodore-sturgeon/it-should-consist-of-short-sharply-focused-sentences-each-of-which-is/) [Theodore Sturgeon](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/theodore-sturgeon/) > [Logic and truth are two very different things, but they often look the same to the mind that's performing the logic.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/theodore-sturgeon/logic-and-truth-are-two-very-different-things-but-they-often-look-the/) [Theodore Sturgeon](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/theodore-sturgeon/) > [Science fiction, outside of poetry, is the only literary field which has no limits, no parameters whatsoever.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/theodore-sturgeon/science-fiction-outside-of-poetry-is-the-only-literary-field-which/) [Theodore Sturgeon](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/theodore-sturgeon/) > [Create a world in which these things do or do not exist, or in which they are extended in some way. Test reality against…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/theodore-sturgeon/create-a-world-in-which-these-things-do-or-do-not-exist-or-in-which/) [Theodore Sturgeon](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/theodore-sturgeon/) > [“Living things aren't finished, you see. Everything they have ever been in contact with, each thought they have had, each person they have known…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/theodore-sturgeon/living-things-aren-t-finished-you-see-everything-they-have-ever-been/) [Theodore Sturgeon](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/theodore-sturgeon/) > [Fiction is very important to me. It's what I do, it's what I do with my life.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/theodore-sturgeon/fiction-is-very-important-to-me-it-s-what-i-do-it-s-what-i-do-with-my/) [Theodore Sturgeon](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/theodore-sturgeon/) > [The first writing I did was short short stories for a newspaper syndicate for which I was paid five dollars a piece on publication.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/theodore-sturgeon/the-first-writing-i-did-was-short-short-stories-for-a-newspaper/) [Theodore Sturgeon](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/theodore-sturgeon/) > [I teach writing courses and first of all, I teach my students what prosody is.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/theodore-sturgeon/i-teach-writing-courses-and-first-of-all-i-teach-my-students-what/) [Theodore Sturgeon](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/theodore-sturgeon/) [Explore all 102 Theodore Sturgeon quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/theodore-sturgeon/) ## More Central park quotes > [“Then she began to mutter to herself and gesture to the empty air. oh. Sonny sighed. Just another central park crazy.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lesley-livingston/then-she-began-to-mutter-to-herself-and-gesture-to-the-empty-air-oh/) [Lesley Livingston](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lesley-livingston/) > [“But the heat and the drought were in some ways the least of it. On May 9 a colossal dust storm had swung out…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/daniel-james-brown/but-the-heat-and-the-drought-were-in-some-ways-the-least-of-it-on-may/) [Daniel James Brown](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/daniel-james-brown/) > [“Go ahead, throw this book away. Spit on me. Revile me. I dare you. Cast me out of your intellectual orbit. Throw me out…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anne-rice/go-ahead-throw-this-book-away-spit-on-me-revile-me-i-dare-you-cast-me/) [Anne Rice](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anne-rice/) > [I'm the only woman who can walk in Central Park at night... and reduce the crime rate.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/phyllis-diller/i-m-the-only-woman-who-can-walk-in-central-park-at-night-and-reduce/) [Phyllis Diller](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/phyllis-diller/) > [When I thought about Detroit, I would think big city, very urban - not a lot of places to walk around, not a lot…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/erin-cummings/when-i-thought-about-detroit-i-would-think-big-city-very-urban-not-a/) [Erin Cummings](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/erin-cummings/) > [“I once saw her throw a Juicy Fruit wrapper on the ground in Central Park. She doesn’t even feel guilty about littering.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/meg-cabot/i-once-saw-her-throw-a-juicy-fruit-wrapper-on-the-ground-in-central/) [Meg Cabot](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/meg-cabot/) > [Back in the mid '90s, I went to a film festival, and they were airing 'Central Park West' at the same time as this…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/madchen-amick/back-in-the-mid-90s-i-went-to-a-film-festival-and-they-were-airing/) [Madchen Amick](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/madchen-amick/) > [And the most unusual and surrealistic place in New York City is Central Park.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/christo/and-the-most-unusual-and-surrealistic-place-in-new-york-city-is/) [Christo](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/christo/) > [It was sweaty Whitney (Houston) in Central Park. She knew that park pretty well. Every bush!](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kathy-griffin/it-was-sweaty-whitney-houston-in-central-park-she-knew-that-park/) [Kathy Griffin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kathy-griffin/) > [“Structured Notes. These are perhaps one of the more exciting tools available today, but, unfortunately, they are rarely offered to the general public because…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tony-robbins/structured-notes-these-are-perhaps-one-of-the-more-exciting-tools/) [Tony Robbins](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tony-robbins/) > [I don't force myself to exercise; I find going to gyms really boring. I find it easier to go for a fast walk or…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sarah-brightman/i-don-t-force-myself-to-exercise-i-find-going-to-gyms-really-boring-i/) [Sarah Brightman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sarah-brightman/) > [“Tips for aliens in New York: ‘Land anywhere, Central Park, anywhere. No one will care, or indeed even notice. ‘Surviving: Get a job as…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/douglas-adams/tips-for-aliens-in-new-york-land-anywhere-central-park-anywhere-no/) [Douglas Adams](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/douglas-adams/) > [Running in Central Park is my favorite thing to wake up and do. I have my own specific path that I have to run…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nate-ruess/running-in-central-park-is-my-favorite-thing-to-wake-up-and-do-i-have/) [Nate Ruess](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nate-ruess/) > [I've also gotten to play in front of a million people in Central Park when there was a grass roots movement calling for nuclear…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jackson-browne/i-ve-also-gotten-to-play-in-front-of-a-million-people-in-central-park/) [Jackson Browne](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jackson-browne/) > [I run from Horatio Street down just past Battery Park City and back. It's amazing to run and see the Statue of Liberty and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/andy-cohen/i-run-from-horatio-street-down-just-past-battery-park-city-and-back/) [Andy Cohen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/andy-cohen/) [Browse all 161 Central park quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/central-park/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "“She was perhaps seventeen when it happened. She was in Central Park, in New York. It was too warm for such an early spring day, and the hammered brown slopes had a dusting of green of precisely the consistency of that morning's hoarfrost on the rocks. But the frost was gone and the grass was brave and tempted some hundreds of pairs of feet from the asphalt and concrete to tread on it. Hers were among them. The sprouting soil was a surprise to her feet, as the air was to her lungs. Her feet ceased to be shoes as she walked, her body was consciously more than clothes. It was the only kind of day which in itself can make a city-bred person raise his eyes. She did. For a moment she felt separated from the life she lived, in which there was no fragrance, no silence, in which nothing ever quite fit nor was quite filled. In that moment the ordered disapproval of the buildings around the pallid park could not reach her; for two, three clean breaths it no longer mattered that the whole wide world really belongs to images projected on a screen; to gently groomed goddesses in these steel-and-glass towers; that it belonged, in short, always, always to someone else.”", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "Theodore Sturgeon" }, "isPartOf": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website" }, "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/theodore-sturgeon/she-was-perhaps-seventeen-when-it-happened-she-was-in-central-park-in/", "about": { "@type": "Thing", "name": "Central park" }, "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/theodore-sturgeon/she-was-perhaps-seventeen-when-it-happened-she-was-in-central-park-in/#quotation", "image": { "@type": "ImageObject", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/43f/theodore-sturgeon-4560_central-park_she-was-perhaps-seventeen-when-it-happen_115673.jpg", "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/43f/theodore-sturgeon-4560_central-park_she-was-perhaps-seventeen-when-it-happen_115673.jpg", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/43f/theodore-sturgeon-4560_central-park_she-was-perhaps-seventeen-when-it-happen_115673.jpg", "width": 1080, "height": 1080, "caption": "“She was perhaps seventeen when it happened. 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