--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: History overflows time. Love overflows…" description: "\"History overflows time. Love overflows the allowance of the world. All the vessels overflow, and no end or limit stays put. Every shakable thing has go..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/685/wendell-berry-236_allowance_history-overflows-time-love-overflows-th_2971888.jpg" --- # History overflows time. Love overflows the allowance of… ![“History overflows time. Love overflows the allowance of the world. All the vessels overflow, and no end or limit stays put. Every shakable thing has got to be shaken. In a sense, nothing that was ever lost in Port William ever has been replaced. In another sense, nothing is ever lost, and we are…” quote by Wendell Berry](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/685/wendell-berry-236_allowance_history-overflows-time-love-overflows-th_2971888.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/685/wendell-berry-236_allowance_history-overflows-time-love-overflows-th_2971888.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/685/wendell-berry-236_allowance_history-overflows-time-love-overflows-th_2971888.jpg) > “History overflows time. Love overflows the allowance of the world. All the vessels overflow, and no end or limit stays put. Every shakable thing has got to be shaken. In a sense, nothing that was ever lost in Port William ever has been replaced. In another sense, nothing is ever lost, and we are compacted together forever, even by our failures, our regrets, and our longings.” [Wendell Berry](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/wendell-berry/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. The quote reflects on abundance, impermanence, and interconnectedness, suggesting love and history overflow limits, and all things are bound together despite loss and longing. **In simple terms:** Love and history overflow limits, binding us despite loss. Key Takeaway Embrace interconnectedness and let love exceed boundaries. Themes love history interconnectedness impermanence loss Mood reflective hopeful melancholic Type poetic philosophical When to use this quote - grief - relationships - community building - personal reflection - spiritual practice Key Concepts philosophy poetry existentialism Questions to Reflect On - How can you experience love’s overflow in daily life? - In what ways does history shape personal identity? A Different Perspective The metaphor may be overly abstract for practical application. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Community](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/community/) [History](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/history/) [Limits](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/limits/) [Longing](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/longing/) [Love](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/love/) [Nostalgia](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/nostalgia/) [Port](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/port/) [Regret](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/regret/) [Time](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/time/) [Together forever](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/together-forever/) [World](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/world/) ## Related quotes > [One of God's main purposes for your life is to fill you with so much of His love that it overflows onto others.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stormie-omartian/one-of-god-s-main-purposes-for-your-life-is-to-fill-you-with-so-much/) [Stormie Omartian](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stormie-omartian/) > [I'm still blown away by how much I love you. It overflows, spilling from my heart.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kemis-khan/i-m-still-blown-away-by-how-much-i-love-you-it-overflows-spilling/) [Kemis Khan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kemis-khan/) > [“I am hopeful because love overflows from my heart. Gratitude for beauty and life leads my way.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bryant-mcgill/i-am-hopeful-because-love-overflows-from-my-heart-gratitude-for/) [Bryant McGill](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bryant-mcgill/) > [When love overflows and is expressed through every word & deed, we call it compassion. That is the goal of religion.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mata-amritanandamayi/when-love-overflows-and-is-expressed-through-every-word-deed-we-call/) [Mata Amritanandamayi](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mata-amritanandamayi/) > [Be like the fountain that overflows, not like the cistern that merely contains.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/paulo-coelho/be-like-the-fountain-that-overflows-not-like-the-cistern-that-merely/) [Paulo Coelho](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/paulo-coelho/) > [Im not fat I'm just so sexy that it overflows>>>](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/im-not-fat-i-m-just-so-sexy-that-it-overflows/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [Hindi naman ako mataba eh. In fact I'm so sexy that it overflows.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/miriam/hindi-naman-ako-mataba-eh-in-fact-i-m-so-sexy-that-it-overflows/) [Miriam](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/miriam/) > [Everything that is superfluous overflows from the full bosom.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/horace/everything-that-is-superfluous-overflows-from-the-full-bosom/) [Horace](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/horace/) > [Imagine two years worth of stuff that you've been holding on to and everything just keeps piling up to the point where the pot…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robert-covington/imagine-two-years-worth-of-stuff-that-you-ve-been-holding-on-to-and/) [Robert Covington](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robert-covington/) > [I'm not fat. I'm just so sexy that it overflows.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/miranda-h/i-m-not-fat-i-m-just-so-sexy-that-it-overflows/) [Miranda H](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/miranda-h/) > [“Life overflows with imperfections, but some matter more than others”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jonathan-safran-foer/life-overflows-with-imperfections-but-some-matter-more-than-others/) [Jonathan Safran Foer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jonathan-safran-foer/) > [A man's interest in the world is only the overflow from his interest in himself. When you are a child your vessel is not…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-bernard-shaw/a-man-s-interest-in-the-world-is-only-the-overflow-from-his-interest/) [George Bernard Shaw](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-bernard-shaw/) > [When a companion's heart of itself overflows, the best one can do is to do nothing.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/herman-melville/when-a-companion-s-heart-of-itself-overflows-the-best-one-can-do-is/) [Herman Melville](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/herman-melville/) > [There's plenty of great stuff out there. I think it's just what we do is we all spend our allowance on the thing that…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robert-englund/there-s-plenty-of-great-stuff-out-there-i-think-it-s-just-what-we-do/) [Robert Englund](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robert-englund/) > [I like buying clothes, especially as I get a tax-deductible allowance.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/wendy-cope/i-like-buying-clothes-especially-as-i-get-a-tax-deductible-allowance/) [Wendy Cope](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/wendy-cope/) ## More by Wendell Berry > [During the last 17 years... I have been working at the restoration of a once exhausted hillside. Its scars are now healed over, though…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/wendell-berry/during-the-last-17-years-i-have-been-working-at-the-restoration-of-a/) [Wendell Berry](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/wendell-berry/) > [Like the water of a deep stream, love is always too much. We did not make it. Though we drink till we burst, we…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/wendell-berry/like-the-water-of-a-deep-stream-love-is-always-too-much-we-did-not/) [Wendell Berry](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/wendell-berry/) > [To husband is to use with care, to keep, to save, to make last, to conserve. Old usage tells us that there is a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/wendell-berry/to-husband-is-to-use-with-care-to-keep-to-save-to-make-last-to/) [Wendell Berry](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/wendell-berry/) > [“The two families, sundered in the ruin of a friendship, were united again first in new friendship and then in mariage. My grandfather made…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/wendell-berry/the-two-families-sundered-in-the-ruin-of-a-friendship-were-united/) [Wendell Berry](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/wendell-berry/) > [The living can't quit living because the world has turned terrible and people they love and need are killed. They can't because they don't.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/wendell-berry/the-living-can-t-quit-living-because-the-world-has-turned-terrible/) [Wendell Berry](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/wendell-berry/) > [“I knew a man who, in the age of chain-saws, went right on cutting his wood with a handsaw and an axe. He was…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/wendell-berry/i-knew-a-man-who-in-the-age-of-chain-saws-went-right-on-cutting-his/) [Wendell Berry](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/wendell-berry/) > [“The concept of country, homeland, dwelling place becomes simplified as "the environment" -- that is, what surrounds us, we have already made a profound…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/wendell-berry/the-concept-of-country-homeland-dwelling-place-becomes-simplified-as/) [Wendell Berry](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/wendell-berry/) > [A community is the mental and spiritual condition of knowing that the place is shared, and that the people who share the place define…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/wendell-berry/a-community-is-the-mental-and-spiritual-condition-of-knowing-that-the/) [Wendell Berry](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/wendell-berry/) > [“That we can prescribe the terms of our own success, that we can live outside or in ignorance of the Great Economy are the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/wendell-berry/that-we-can-prescribe-the-terms-of-our-own-success-that-we-can-live/) [Wendell Berry](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/wendell-berry/) > [“The mind that comes to rest is tended In ways that it cannot intend: Is borne, preserved, and comprehended By what it cannot comprehend.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/wendell-berry/the-mind-that-comes-to-rest-is-tended-in-ways-that-it-cannot-intend/) [Wendell Berry](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/wendell-berry/) > [The mercy of the world is time. Time does not stop for love, but it does not stop for death and grief, either.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/wendell-berry/the-mercy-of-the-world-is-time-time-does-not-stop-for-love-but-it/) [Wendell Berry](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/wendell-berry/) > [The soil is the great connector of our lives, the source and destination of all.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/wendell-berry/the-soil-is-the-great-connector-of-our-lives-the-source-and/) [Wendell Berry](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/wendell-berry/) > [I dislike the thought that some animal has been made miserable to feed me. If I am going to eat meat, I want it…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/wendell-berry/i-dislike-the-thought-that-some-animal-has-been-made-miserable-to/) [Wendell Berry](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/wendell-berry/) > [Laughter is immeasurable. Be joyful](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/wendell-berry/laughter-is-immeasurable-be-joyful/) [Wendell Berry](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/wendell-berry/) > [These are people who are capable of devotion, public devotion, to justice. They meant what they said and every day that passes, they mean…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/wendell-berry/these-are-people-who-are-capable-of-devotion-public-devotion-to/) [Wendell Berry](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/wendell-berry/) [Explore all 847 Wendell Berry quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/wendell-berry/) ## More Allowance quotes > [I like buying clothes, especially as I get a tax-deductible allowance.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/wendy-cope/i-like-buying-clothes-especially-as-i-get-a-tax-deductible-allowance/) [Wendy Cope](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/wendy-cope/) > [There's plenty of great stuff out there. I think it's just what we do is we all spend our allowance on the thing that…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robert-englund/there-s-plenty-of-great-stuff-out-there-i-think-it-s-just-what-we-do/) [Robert Englund](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robert-englund/) > [A realistic expectation also demands our acceptance that one's allotted time on earth must be limited to an allowance consistent with the continuity of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sherwin-b-nuland/a-realistic-expectation-also-demands-our-acceptance-that-one-s/) [Sherwin B. Nuland](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sherwin-b-nuland/) > [Anyhow, we obviously understand that, being a United States' ally and having a special relationship with it, the UK in its relations with Russian…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/vladimir-putin/anyhow-we-obviously-understand-that-being-a-united-states-ally-and/) [Vladimir Putin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/vladimir-putin/) > [If you want to be rich, don’t allow yourself the luxury of excuses.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robert-kiyosaki/if-you-want-to-be-rich-don-t-allow-yourself-the-luxury-of-excuses/) [Robert Kiyosaki](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robert-kiyosaki/) > [I'm a big advocate of a work-for-pay setup rather than an allowance that isn't attached to chores - it's a great way to impart…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/suze-orman/i-m-a-big-advocate-of-a-work-for-pay-setup-rather-than-an-allowance/) [Suze Orman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/suze-orman/) > [Few human creatures would consent to be changed into any of the lower animals for a promise of the fullest allowance of a beast's…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-stuart-mill/few-human-creatures-would-consent-to-be-changed-into-any-of-the-lower/) [John Stuart Mill](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-stuart-mill/) > [In regard to the amount of difference between the races, we must make some allowance for our nice powers of discrimination gained by a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/charles-darwin/in-regard-to-the-amount-of-difference-between-the-races-we-must-make/) [Charles Darwin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/charles-darwin/) > [Besides, there is more that binds us to Bolshevism than separates us from it. There is, above all, genuine, revolutionary feeling, which is alive…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/adolf-hitler/besides-there-is-more-that-binds-us-to-bolshevism-than-separates-us/) [Adolf Hitler](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/adolf-hitler/) > [So scanty is our present allowance of happiness that in many situations life could scarcely be supported if hope were not allowed to relieve…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/samuel-johnson/so-scanty-is-our-present-allowance-of-happiness-that-in-many/) [Samuel Johnson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/samuel-johnson/) > [Ain't trickin I just treat her like she need allowance .](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/wiz-khalifa/ain-t-trickin-i-just-treat-her-like-she-need-allowance/) [Wiz Khalifa](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/wiz-khalifa/) > [You have to learn how to take an allowance.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rakim/you-have-to-learn-how-to-take-an-allowance/) [Rakim](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rakim/) > [“modest allowance. Giving your children a small weekly or monthly allowance that they can spend as they wish will help them learn the value…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/devin-d-thorpe/modest-allowance-giving-your-children-a-small-weekly-or-monthly/) [Devin D. Thorpe](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/devin-d-thorpe/) > [Negative emotion is your indicator of resistance, while positive emotion is your indicator of allowance. And they are on the same meter: allowance; resistance.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/esther-hicks/negative-emotion-is-your-indicator-of-resistance-while-positive/) [Esther Hicks](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/esther-hicks/) > [Old Madame du Deffand and her friends talked for fifty years without stopping. And of it all, what remains? Perhaps three witty sayings. So…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/virginia-woolf/old-madame-du-deffand-and-her-friends-talked-for-fifty-years-without/) [Virginia Woolf](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/virginia-woolf/) Browse all 167 Allowance quotes ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "History overflows time. Love overflows the allowance of the world. All the vessels overflow, and no end or limit stays put. Every shakable thing has got to be shaken. In a sense, nothing that was ever lost in Port William ever has been replaced. 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