--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: The other day, when I was deciding where…" description: "\"“The other day, when I was deciding where to place a mountain range, how to make a river's flow detour around underground stalactite caves, and what pr..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/1c8/vera-nazarian-1671_art_the-other-day-when-i-was-deciding-where_1998617.png" --- # The other day, when I was deciding where to place a… ![“The other day, when I was deciding where to place a mountain range, how to make a river's flow detour around underground stalactite caves, and what precise color to give the sky at sunset, I realized I was God... or an artist and a writer.” quote by Vera Nazarian](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/1c8/vera-nazarian-1671_art_the-other-day-when-i-was-deciding-where_1998617.png) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/1c8/vera-nazarian-1671_art_the-other-day-when-i-was-deciding-where_1998617.png) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/1c8/vera-nazarian-1671_art_the-other-day-when-i-was-deciding-where_1998617.png) > ““The other day, when I was deciding where to place a mountain range, how to make a river's flow detour around underground stalactite caves, and what precise color to give the sky at sunset, I realized I was God... or an artist and a writer.”” [Vera Nazarian](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/vera-nazarian/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. The speaker equates creative decisions with divine power, feeling godlike while shaping worlds. **In simple terms:** Creating art feels like being a god. Key Takeaway Embrace the authority of your imagination. Themes creativity power identity Mood reflective inspired Type philosophical creative When to use this quote - worldbuilding - visual art - writing - game design Key Concepts divine metaphor artistic responsibility Questions to Reflect On - How does power affect your creative choices? - Do you fear losing humility? A Different Perspective Godlike control can lead to overconfidence and loss of humility. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Art](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/art/) [Artist](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/artist/) [Artist Writer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/artist-writer-644225/) [Color](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/color/) [Create](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/create/) [Creating](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/creating/) [Creation](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/creation/) [Creativity](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/creativity/) [Creator](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/creator/) [Deity](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/deity/) [God](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/god/) [God Artist](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/god-artist-344963/) [Gods](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/gods/) [Mountain](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/mountain/) [Mountains](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/mountains/) [Realized God](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/realized-god-254888/) [River](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/river/) [Rivers](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/rivers/) [Sky](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/sky/) [Sunset](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/sunset/) [Sunset Realized](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/sunset-realized-3503217/) [Writer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/writer/) [Writing](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/writing/) ## Related quotes > [“God Is The Artist Of Your Landscape Will things always work out in the way you hope and want? Of course not! You are…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/cheryl-zelenka/god-is-the-artist-of-your-landscape-will-things-always-work-out-in/) [Cheryl Zelenka](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/cheryl-zelenka/) > [In Italy the artist is a god. Now if the artist is a god, the scientist is likewise a god.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/josef-albers/in-italy-the-artist-is-a-god-now-if-the-artist-is-a-god-the-scientist/) [Josef Albers](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/josef-albers/) > [“God is not a technician. God is an Artist. This is the God who made you. The same God who lives inside of you.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/emily-p-freeman/god-is-not-a-technician-god-is-an-artist-this-is-the-god-who-made-you/) [Emily P. Freeman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/emily-p-freeman/) > [Regardless of theology or however you see life or relate to worshiping God, as an artist, my job is to tell the truth and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mahershala-ali/regardless-of-theology-or-however-you-see-life-or-relate-to/) [Mahershala Ali](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mahershala-ali/) > [Unlike God the artist does not start with nothing and make something of it. He starts with himself as nothing and makes something of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/samuel-pepys/unlike-god-the-artist-does-not-start-with-nothing-and-make-something/) [Samuel Pepys](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/samuel-pepys/) > [God is the artist, nature is his canvas, and I'm just the admirer of his work.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/elizabeth-homp/god-is-the-artist-nature-is-his-canvas-and-i-m-just-the-admirer-of/) [Elizabeth Homp](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/elizabeth-homp/) > [“To question the world around us and all its complexities is not blasphamy, but simply using the mind God gave us for its intended…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/cristina-marrero/to-question-the-world-around-us-and-all-its-complexities-is-not/) [Cristina Marrero](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/cristina-marrero/) > [Art is the collaboration between God and the artist, and the less the artist does the better.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/andre-gide/art-is-the-collaboration-between-god-and-the-artist-and-the-less-the/) [Andre Gide](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/andre-gide/) > [Art is a collaboration between God and the artist, and the less the artist does the better.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/andre-gide/art-is-a-collaboration-between-god-and-the-artist-and-the-less-the/) [Andre Gide](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/andre-gide/) > [Now there is fame! Of all - hunger, misery, the incomprehension by the public - fame is by far the worst. It is the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/pablo-picasso/now-there-is-fame-of-all-hunger-misery-the-incomprehension-by-the/) [Pablo Picasso](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/pablo-picasso/) > [When I was a kid, my mom once told me that God was an artist and how on occasion He’d throw a bucketful of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kristina-mcmorris/when-i-was-a-kid-my-mom-once-told-me-that-god-was-an-artist-and-how/) [Kristina McMorris](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kristina-mcmorris/) > [“Come, fly with me!" cried the goddess, as she sped ahead of them, her extremities flaming with a comet tail of sparks in the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/vera-nazarian/come-fly-with-me-cried-the-goddess-as-she-sped-ahead-of-them-her/) [Vera Nazarian](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/vera-nazarian/) > [“Know, child, that the One God—He is so vast that He cannot be moved, else the Universe falls. Nor can He answer, for the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/vera-nazarian/know-child-that-the-one-god-he-is-so-vast-that-he-cannot-be-moved/) [Vera Nazarian](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/vera-nazarian/) > [“Ah, well … at last I realized that God would never ask of me that which I know to be psychologically impossible; that the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-peter-blatty/ah-well-at-last-i-realized-that-god-would-never-ask-of-me-that-which/) [William Peter Blatty](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-peter-blatty/) > [“For when you realized that God is Everything you know that you've got to love everything no matter how bad it is, in the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jack-kerouac/for-when-you-realized-that-god-is-everything-you-know-that-you-ve-got/) [Jack Kerouac](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jack-kerouac/) ## More by Vera Nazarian > [Why is wisdom so fair? Why is beauty so wise? Because all else is temporary, while beauty and wisdom are the only real and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/vera-nazarian/why-is-wisdom-so-fair-why-is-beauty-so-wise-because-all-else-is/) [Vera Nazarian](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/vera-nazarian/) > [“The cactus thrives in the desert while the fern thrives in the wetland. The fool will try to plant them in the same flowerbox.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/vera-nazarian/the-cactus-thrives-in-the-desert-while-the-fern-thrives-in-the/) [Vera Nazarian](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/vera-nazarian/) > [“Colored lights blink on and off, racing across the green boughs. Their reflections dance across exquisite glass globes and splinter into shards against tinsel…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/vera-nazarian/colored-lights-blink-on-and-off-racing-across-the-green-boughs-their/) [Vera Nazarian](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/vera-nazarian/) > [It does not take a great supernatural heroine or magical hero to save the world.We all save it every day, and we all destroy…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/vera-nazarian/it-does-not-take-a-great-supernatural-heroine-or-magical-hero-to-save/) [Vera Nazarian](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/vera-nazarian/) > [Here's a new 'Blessing' for our time -- 'May Anderson Cooper never be sent to report on your town!](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/vera-nazarian/here-s-a-new-blessing-for-our-time-may-anderson-cooper-never-be-sent/) [Vera Nazarian](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/vera-nazarian/) > [When you wake up from a dream you have only a few precious moments before the details of the dream begin to dissipate and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/vera-nazarian/when-you-wake-up-from-a-dream-you-have-only-a-few-precious-moments/) [Vera Nazarian](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/vera-nazarian/) > [“It's a fact— everyone is ignorant in some way or another. Ignorance is our deepest secret. And it is one of the scariest things…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/vera-nazarian/it-s-a-fact-everyone-is-ignorant-in-some-way-or-another-ignorance-is/) [Vera Nazarian](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/vera-nazarian/) > [Was it you or I who stumbled first? It does not matter. The one of us who finds the strength to get up first,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/vera-nazarian/was-it-you-or-i-who-stumbled-first-it-does-not-matter-the-one-of-us/) [Vera Nazarian](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/vera-nazarian/) > [“Meditation is a mysterious method of self-restoration. It involves “shutting” out the outside world, and by that means sensing the universal “presence” which is,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/vera-nazarian/meditation-is-a-mysterious-method-of-self-restoration-it-involves/) [Vera Nazarian](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/vera-nazarian/) > [The great miraculous bell of translucent ice is suspended in mid-air. It rings to announce endings and beginnings. And it rings because there is…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/vera-nazarian/the-great-miraculous-bell-of-translucent-ice-is-suspended-in-mid-air/) [Vera Nazarian](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/vera-nazarian/) > [Unlike a fountain that circulates the same water in an enclosed, perpetually recycling system, a human being circulates thoughts in an unlimited reservoir of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/vera-nazarian/unlike-a-fountain-that-circulates-the-same-water-in-an-enclosed/) [Vera Nazarian](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/vera-nazarian/) > [I've always been creative verbally, had a flair, my teachers said - wrote great expository essays in elementary school, scribbled little poems, embraced all…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/vera-nazarian/i-ve-always-been-creative-verbally-had-a-flair-my-teachers-said-wrote/) [Vera Nazarian](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/vera-nazarian/) > [One sin seldom mentioned is that of killing time.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/vera-nazarian/one-sin-seldom-mentioned-is-that-of-killing-time/) [Vera Nazarian](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/vera-nazarian/) > [The sand in the hourglass runs from one compartment to the other, marking the passage of moments with something constant and tangible.If you watch…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/vera-nazarian/the-sand-in-the-hourglass-runs-from-one-compartment-to-the-other/) [Vera Nazarian](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/vera-nazarian/) > [When you reach for the stars, you are reaching for the farthest thing out there. When you reach deep into yourself, it is the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/vera-nazarian/when-you-reach-for-the-stars-you-are-reaching-for-the-farthest-thing/) [Vera Nazarian](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/vera-nazarian/) [Explore all 217 Vera Nazarian quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/vera-nazarian/) ## More Art quotes > [True works of art contain their own theory and give us the measurement according to which we should judge them.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/johann-wolfgang-von-goethe/true-works-of-art-contain-their-own-theory-and-give-us-the/) [Johann Wolfgang von Goethe](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/johann-wolfgang-von-goethe/) > [Before Noah, men having only water to drink, could not find the truth. Accordingly...they became abominably wicked, and they were justly exterminated by the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/benjamin-franklin/before-noah-men-having-only-water-to-drink-could-not-find-the-truth/) [Benjamin Franklin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/benjamin-franklin/) > [“Hear the sum of the whole matter in the compass of one brief word — every art possessed by man comes from Prometheus.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/aeschylus/hear-the-sum-of-the-whole-matter-in-the-compass-of-one-brief-word/) [Aeschylus](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/aeschylus/) > [I think most artists feel like they're outside society - no matter how many accolades they receive, or how much money is in your…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/aaron-rose/i-think-most-artists-feel-like-they-re-outside-society-no-matter-how/) [Aaron Rose](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/aaron-rose/) > [The capacity to be puzzled is the premise of all creation, be it in art or in science.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/erich-fromm/the-capacity-to-be-puzzled-is-the-premise-of-all-creation-be-it-in/) [Erich Fromm](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/erich-fromm/) > [That's the great secret of creativity. You treat ideas like cats: you make them follow you.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ray-bradbury/that-s-the-great-secret-of-creativity-you-treat-ideas-like-cats-you/) [Ray Bradbury](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ray-bradbury/) > [“So, really," continued Jacob as if this were perfectly normal to expound on art in these circumstances, "when you think about it, the artists…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/justina-chen-headley/so-really-continued-jacob-as-if-this-were-perfectly-normal-to-expound/) [Justina Chen Headley](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/justina-chen-headley/) > [“There are two options in art; either to adopt philosophical life by dissecting art, or to write your own philosophical life and claim it…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/taf-teh/there-are-two-options-in-art-either-to-adopt-philosophical-life-by/) [Taf Teh](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/taf-teh/) > [The house has to serve comfort. The work of art is revolutionary; the house is conservative.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/adolf-loos/the-house-has-to-serve-comfort-the-work-of-art-is-revolutionary-the/) [Adolf Loos](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/adolf-loos/) > [During human progress, every science is evolved out of its corresponding art.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/herbert-spencer/during-human-progress-every-science-is-evolved-out-of-its/) [Herbert Spencer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/herbert-spencer/) > [In literature and art memory is a synonym for invention. It is the life-blood of imagination, which faints and dies when the veins are…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robert-aris-willmott/in-literature-and-art-memory-is-a-synonym-for-invention-it-is-the/) [Robert Aris Willmott](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robert-aris-willmott/) > [I think a business guy is different from an artist. They walk different paths. Artists create the best outputs when they're having fun. And…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/g-dragon/i-think-a-business-guy-is-different-from-an-artist-they-walk/) [G-Dragon](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/g-dragon/) > [“The only thing--I tell you this straight from the heart--that disgusts me in Salzburg is that one can't have any proper social intercourse with…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/wolfgang-amadeus-mozart/the-only-thing-i-tell-you-this-straight-from-the-heart-that-disgusts/) [Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/wolfgang-amadeus-mozart/) > [The sublime in art is the attempt to express the infinite without finding in the realm of phenomena any object which proves itself fitting…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/georg-wilhelm-friedrich-hegel/the-sublime-in-art-is-the-attempt-to-express-the-infinite-without/) [Georg Wilhelm Friedrich Hegel](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/georg-wilhelm-friedrich-hegel/) > [Art isn't done to decorate apartments, but to wage war against the enemy.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/pablo-picasso/art-isn-t-done-to-decorate-apartments-but-to-wage-war-against-the/) [Pablo Picasso](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/pablo-picasso/) [Browse all 48,643 Art quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/art/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "“The other day, when I was deciding where to place a mountain range, how to make a river's flow detour around underground stalactite caves, and what precise color to give the sky at sunset, I realized I was God... or an artist and a writer.”", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "Vera Nazarian" }, "isPartOf": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website" }, "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/vera-nazarian/the-other-day-when-i-was-deciding-where-to-place-a-mountain-range-how/", "about": { "@type": "Thing", "name": "Art" }, "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/vera-nazarian/the-other-day-when-i-was-deciding-where-to-place-a-mountain-range-how/#quotation", "image": { "@type": "ImageObject", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/1c8/vera-nazarian-1671_art_the-other-day-when-i-was-deciding-where_1998617.png", "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/1c8/vera-nazarian-1671_art_the-other-day-when-i-was-deciding-where_1998617.png", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/1c8/vera-nazarian-1671_art_the-other-day-when-i-was-deciding-where_1998617.png", "width": 1080, "height": 1080, "caption": "“The other day, when I was deciding where to place a mountain range, how to make a river's flow detour around…” — Vera Nazarian", "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": "Vera Nazarian", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/vera-nazarian/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 4, "name": "“The other day, when I was...", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/vera-nazarian/the-other-day-when-i-was-deciding-where-to-place-a-mountain-range-how/" } ], "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/vera-nazarian/the-other-day-when-i-was-deciding-where-to-place-a-mountain-range-how/#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 } } ] } ```