--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: Be like the bird that, pausing in her…" description: "\"Be like the bird that, pausing in her flight awhile on boughs too slight, feels them give way beneath her, and yet sings, knowing that she hath wings.\"..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/128/victor-hugo-32_behavior_be-like-the-bird-that-pausing-in-her-fli_2047393.jpg" --- # Be like the bird that, pausing in her flight awhile on… ![“Be like the bird that, pausing in her flight awhile on boughs too slight, feels them give way beneath her, and yet sings, knowing that she hath wings.” quote by Victor Hugo](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/128/victor-hugo-32_behavior_be-like-the-bird-that-pausing-in-her-fli_2047393.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/128/victor-hugo-32_behavior_be-like-the-bird-that-pausing-in-her-fli_2047393.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/128/victor-hugo-32_behavior_be-like-the-bird-that-pausing-in-her-fli_2047393.jpg) > “Be like the bird that, pausing in her flight awhile on boughs too slight, feels them give way beneath her, and yet sings, knowing that she hath wings.” [Victor Hugo](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/victor-hugo/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Even when support fails, trust in innate ability and continue expressing joy. **In simple terms:** Trust your wings despite fragile branches Key Takeaway Embrace resilience and keep creating Themes resilience creativity faith Mood hopeful determined Type literary inspirational When to use this quote - artistic pursuits - personal setbacks - public speaking Key Concepts poetry philosophy Questions to Reflect On - When have you relied on inner strength? - How do you balance optimism with caution? A Different Perspective Overconfidence may ignore genuine risks. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Behavior](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/behavior/) [Bird](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/bird/) ## Related quotes > [Be like the bird who, pausing in her flight awhile on boughs too slight, feels them give way beneath her, and yet sings, knowing…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/victor-hugo/be-like-the-bird-who-pausing-in-her-flight-awhile-on-boughs-too/) [Victor Hugo](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/victor-hugo/) > [Be like the bird that, passing on her flight awhile on boughs too slight, feels them give way beneath her, and yet sings, knowing…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/victor-hugo/be-like-the-bird-that-passing-on-her-flight-awhile-on-boughs-too/) [Victor Hugo](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/victor-hugo/) > [“Let us be like a bird for a moment perched On a frail branch when he sings; Though he feels it bend, yet he…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/victor-hugo/let-us-be-like-a-bird-for-a-moment-perched-on-a-frail-branch-when-he/) [Victor Hugo](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/victor-hugo/) > [Running made me feel like a bird let out of a cage, I loved it that much.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/priscilla-welch/running-made-me-feel-like-a-bird-let-out-of-a-cage-i-loved-it-that/) Priscilla Welch > [Fire up your heart for the wind is getting cold, now it always gets cold for the riders of the night. When you carry…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jon-stewart/fire-up-your-heart-for-the-wind-is-getting-cold-now-it-always-gets/) [Jon Stewart](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jon-stewart/) > [I have found, whether you have a tiny business or a big business, if you don't jump on something right away, it's like a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/barbara-corcoran/i-have-found-whether-you-have-a-tiny-business-or-a-big-business-if/) [Barbara Corcoran](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/barbara-corcoran/) > [Every bird which flies has the thread of the infinite in its claw.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/victor-hugo/every-bird-which-flies-has-the-thread-of-the-infinite-in-its-claw/) [Victor Hugo](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/victor-hugo/) > [“And I hope each morning you wake like a bird in a nest and fly without a thought.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bill-callahan/and-i-hope-each-morning-you-wake-like-a-bird-in-a-nest-and-fly/) [Bill Callahan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bill-callahan/) > [In every persons life their should be a aim?a person without aim Is like a bird without wings…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/hilton/in-every-persons-life-their-should-be-a-aim-a-person-without-aim-is/) Hilton > [My mother had a great voice. Not like mine, not like my sister's, not like my son's - a high soprano voice, but like…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/barbra-streisand/my-mother-had-a-great-voice-not-like-mine-not-like-my-sister-s-not/) [Barbra Streisand](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/barbra-streisand/) > [Every true writer is like a bird; he repeats the same song, the same theme, all his life. For me, this theme as always…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alberto-moravia/every-true-writer-is-like-a-bird-he-repeats-the-same-song-the-same/) [Alberto Moravia](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alberto-moravia/) > [“Fish have a tank, birds have the world. Think like a bird, not like a fish.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nadia-conrad/fish-have-a-tank-birds-have-the-world-think-like-a-bird-not-like-a/) Nadia Conrad > [“Sometimes redemption lands in your life like a bird and looks you straight in the eye, even when you believe you don't deserve forgiveness.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/adriana-trigiani/sometimes-redemption-lands-in-your-life-like-a-bird-and-looks-you/) [Adriana Trigiani](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/adriana-trigiani/) > [“Flight is many things. Something clean and swift, like a bird skimming across the sky. Or something filthy and crawling; a series of crablike…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jim-thompson/flight-is-many-things-something-clean-and-swift-like-a-bird-skimming/) [Jim Thompson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jim-thompson/) > [“Love is like a bird, they flies everywhere, its free, but its hard to trust someone where they like to stay.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/erico-quiambao/love-is-like-a-bird-they-flies-everywhere-its-free-but-its-hard-to/) Erico Quiambao ## More by Victor Hugo > [Houses are like the human beings that inhabit them.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/victor-hugo/houses-are-like-the-human-beings-that-inhabit-them/) [Victor Hugo](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/victor-hugo/) > [“There is still a certain grace in a dead festival. It has been happy.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/victor-hugo/there-is-still-a-certain-grace-in-a-dead-festival-it-has-been-happy/) [Victor Hugo](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/victor-hugo/) > [He caught her, she fell, he caught her in his arms, he held her tightly unconscious of what he was doing. He held her…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/victor-hugo/he-caught-her-she-fell-he-caught-her-in-his-arms-he-held-her-tightly/) [Victor Hugo](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/victor-hugo/) > [“First I loved women, then animals, and now I love stones. They're just as amusing as women and animals and they're much less trecherous.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/victor-hugo/first-i-loved-women-then-animals-and-now-i-love-stones-they-re-just/) [Victor Hugo](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/victor-hugo/) > [Nature is pitiless; she never withdraws her flowers, her music, her fragrance, and her sunlight from before human cruelty or suffering.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/victor-hugo/nature-is-pitiless-she-never-withdraws-her-flowers-her-music-her/) [Victor Hugo](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/victor-hugo/) > [“Have courage for the great sorrows of life, and patience for the small ones. And when you have finished your daily task, go to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/victor-hugo/have-courage-for-the-great-sorrows-of-life-and-patience-for-the-small/) [Victor Hugo](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/victor-hugo/) > [The peasants of the Asturias believe that in every litter of wolves there is one pup that is killed by the mother for fear…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/victor-hugo/the-peasants-of-the-asturias-believe-that-in-every-litter-of-wolves/) [Victor Hugo](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/victor-hugo/) > [Great blunders are often made, like large ropes, of a multitude of fibres.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/victor-hugo/great-blunders-are-often-made-like-large-ropes-of-a-multitude-of/) [Victor Hugo](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/victor-hugo/) > [“For love is like a tree; it grows of itself; it send its roots deep into our being, and often continues to grow green…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/victor-hugo/for-love-is-like-a-tree-it-grows-of-itself-it-send-its-roots-deep/) [Victor Hugo](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/victor-hugo/) > [“Blacheville smiles with the self-satisfied smugness of a man whose vanity is tickled”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/victor-hugo/blacheville-smiles-with-the-self-satisfied-smugness-of-a-man-whose/) [Victor Hugo](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/victor-hugo/) > [“Loving in ignorance, she loved with all the more passion. She did not know whether it was good or evil, beneficent or dangerous, necessary…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/victor-hugo/loving-in-ignorance-she-loved-with-all-the-more-passion-she-did-not/) [Victor Hugo](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/victor-hugo/) > [Laughter is the sun that drives winter from the human face.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/victor-hugo/laughter-is-the-sun-that-drives-winter-from-the-human-face/) [Victor Hugo](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/victor-hugo/) > [“Our joys have shadows. The perfect smile belongs to God alone.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/victor-hugo/our-joys-have-shadows-the-perfect-smile-belongs-to-god-alone/) [Victor Hugo](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/victor-hugo/) > [“When those we love are in question, our prudence invents every sort of madness.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/victor-hugo/when-those-we-love-are-in-question-our-prudence-invents-every-sort-of/) [Victor Hugo](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/victor-hugo/) > [Love is a fault; so be it.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/victor-hugo/love-is-a-fault-so-be-it/) [Victor Hugo](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/victor-hugo/) [Explore all 2,181 Victor Hugo quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/victor-hugo/) ## More Behavior quotes > [The vision of the left, full of envy and resentment, takes its worst toll on those at the bottom - whether black or white…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/thomas-sowell/the-vision-of-the-left-full-of-envy-and-resentment-takes-its-worst/) [Thomas Sowell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/thomas-sowell/) > [By making conscious choices in our behavior and where we focus our attention, we can transform our experience of our body, decrease our biological…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/deepak-chopra/by-making-conscious-choices-in-our-behavior-and-where-we-focus-our/) [Deepak Chopra](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/deepak-chopra/) > [As you begin changing your thinking, start immediately to change your behaviour. Begin to act the part of the person you would like to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/as-you-begin-changing-your-thinking-start-immediately-to-change-your/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [“I now know that deep within the human concept is something dark, selfish, and completely willing to do whatever is necessary to support the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/melissa-west/i-now-know-that-deep-within-the-human-concept-is-something-dark/) [Melissa West](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/melissa-west/) > [“We are endowed with genes which code out our reaction to beavers and otters, maybe our reaction to each other as well. We are…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lewis-thomas/we-are-endowed-with-genes-which-code-out-our-reaction-to-beavers-and/) [Lewis Thomas](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lewis-thomas/) > [The number of poor, and poorly prepared, students who succeed in college and beyond undercuts the simplistic notion that economic or educational disadvantage is…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/roland-merullo/the-number-of-poor-and-poorly-prepared-students-who-succeed-in/) [Roland Merullo](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/roland-merullo/) > [To behave creatively in art means behavior with skill; and skill comes from discipline, not derangement. The artist who knows the rules -and proportion…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/burne-hogarth/to-behave-creatively-in-art-means-behavior-with-skill-and-skill-comes/) Burne Hogarth > [You don't put milk in chamomile tea - that's disgusting behavior! That's not right.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/laura-fraser/you-don-t-put-milk-in-chamomile-tea-that-s-disgusting-behavior-that-s/) [Laura Fraser](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/laura-fraser/) > [The laws of thermodynamics, as empirically determined, express the approximate and probable behavior of systems of a great number of particles, or, more precisely,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/j-willard-gibbs/the-laws-of-thermodynamics-as-empirically-determined-express-the/) J. Willard Gibbs > [I started with the belief that every person who came to the laboratory was free to accept or to reject the dictates of authority.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stanley-milgram/i-started-with-the-belief-that-every-person-who-came-to-the/) [Stanley Milgram](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stanley-milgram/) > [The tipping point is that magic moment when an idea, trend, or social behavior crosses a threshold, tips, and spreads like wildfire.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/malcolm-gladwell/the-tipping-point-is-that-magic-moment-when-an-idea-trend-or-social/) [Malcolm Gladwell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/malcolm-gladwell/) > [I think we've told a lot of lies about human behavior through film.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/patricia-arquette/i-think-we-ve-told-a-lot-of-lies-about-human-behavior-through-film/) [Patricia Arquette](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/patricia-arquette/) > [The strongest rebellion may be expressed in quiet, undramatic behavior.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/benjamin-spock/the-strongest-rebellion-may-be-expressed-in-quiet-undramatic-behavior/) [Benjamin Spock](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/benjamin-spock/) > [The behavior of any bureaucratic organization can best be understood by assuming that it is controlled by a secret cabal of its enemies.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robert-conquest/the-behavior-of-any-bureaucratic-organization-can-best-be-understood/) [Robert Conquest](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robert-conquest/) > [If you want good behavior, don't pay on a commission basis. Our judges aren't paid so much a case. We keep them pretty well…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/charlie-munger/if-you-want-good-behavior-don-t-pay-on-a-commission-basis-our-judges/) [Charlie Munger](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/charlie-munger/) [Browse all 4,218 Behavior quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/behavior/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "Be like the bird that, pausing in her flight awhile on boughs too slight, feels them give way beneath her, and yet sings, knowing that she hath wings.", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "Victor Hugo" }, "isPartOf": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website" }, "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/victor-hugo/be-like-the-bird-that-pausing-in-her-flight-awhile-on-boughs-too/", "about": { "@type": "Thing", "name": "Behavior" }, "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/victor-hugo/be-like-the-bird-that-pausing-in-her-flight-awhile-on-boughs-too/#quotation", "image": { "@type": "ImageObject", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/128/victor-hugo-32_behavior_be-like-the-bird-that-pausing-in-her-fli_2047393.jpg", "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/128/victor-hugo-32_behavior_be-like-the-bird-that-pausing-in-her-fli_2047393.jpg", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/128/victor-hugo-32_behavior_be-like-the-bird-that-pausing-in-her-fli_2047393.jpg", "width": 1080, "height": 1080, "caption": "“Be like the bird that, pausing in her flight awhile on boughs too slight, feels them give way beneath her…” — Victor Hugo", "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": "Victor Hugo", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/victor-hugo/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 4, "name": "Be like the bird that, pausing...", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/victor-hugo/be-like-the-bird-that-pausing-in-her-flight-awhile-on-boughs-too/" } ], "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/victor-hugo/be-like-the-bird-that-pausing-in-her-flight-awhile-on-boughs-too/#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 } } ] } ```