--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: People need to feed themselves, next they…" description: "\"People need to feed themselves, next they need to feed their own communities.\" — Wendell Berry" image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/381/wendell-berry-236_community_people-need-to-feed-themselves-next-they_657020.jpg" --- # People need to feed themselves, next they need to feed… ![“People need to feed themselves, next they need to feed their own communities.” quote by Wendell Berry](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/381/wendell-berry-236_community_people-need-to-feed-themselves-next-they_657020.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/381/wendell-berry-236_community_people-need-to-feed-themselves-next-they_657020.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/381/wendell-berry-236_community_people-need-to-feed-themselves-next-they_657020.jpg) > “People need to feed themselves, next they need to feed their own communities.” [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. Individuals must first care for themselves before they can effectively support their communities. **In simple terms:** Self‑care precedes community care. Key Takeaway Take care of yourself first. Themes self‑reliance community sustainability Mood reflective thoughtful Type philosophical inspirational When to use this quote - family health - local volunteering - environmental stewardship Key Concepts personal responsibility social cohesion Questions to Reflect On - What does self‑care look like for you? - How can personal health benefit your community? A Different Perspective Neglecting self can lead to burnout. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Community](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/community/) [Feed](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/feed/) [Feed Communities](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/feed-communities-5242541/) [Feed Need](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/feed-need-5242542/) [Food](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/food/) [Need Feed](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/need-feed-1499835/) [Needs](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/needs/) [Next](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/next/) [People](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/people/) [People Need](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/people-need/) ## Related quotes > [You will be tempted by the need to feed yourself.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rick-warren/you-will-be-tempted-by-the-need-to-feed-yourself/) [Rick Warren](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rick-warren/) > [You'll be back. When the hunger knows no reason! And then you'll need to feed, and you'll need me to show you how.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/catherine-deneuve/you-ll-be-back-when-the-hunger-knows-no-reason-and-then-you-ll-need/) [Catherine Deneuve](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/catherine-deneuve/) > [You need to feed yourself with emotions and life or you'll become empty.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/guillaume-canet/you-need-to-feed-yourself-with-emotions-and-life-or-you-ll-become/) [Guillaume Canet](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/guillaume-canet/) > [“I don't feed the birds because they need me; I feed the birds because I need them.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kathi-hutton/i-don-t-feed-the-birds-because-they-need-me-i-feed-the-birds-because/) [Kathi Hutton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kathi-hutton/) > [We still need to feed the public, both physically and intellectually.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/barry-corbin/we-still-need-to-feed-the-public-both-physically-and-intellectually/) [Barry Corbin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/barry-corbin/) > [Will you still need me, will you still feed me, when I'm sixty-four?](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/paul-mccartney/will-you-still-need-me-will-you-still-feed-me-when-i-m-sixty-four/) [Paul McCartney](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/paul-mccartney/) > [It's very important not just to think you need to eat and drink and sleep. You need to feed your heart and your mind…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/elliot-knight/it-s-very-important-not-just-to-think-you-need-to-eat-and-drink-and/) [Elliot Knight](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/elliot-knight/) > [When I get older losing my hair many years from now, Will you still be sending me a Valentine, birthday greetings, bottle of wine?…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-lennon/when-i-get-older-losing-my-hair-many-years-from-now-will-you-still-be/) [John Lennon](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-lennon/) > [Cats don't need you that much. They like to come and get stroked now and then, and they need you to feed them. But…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ruth-wilson/cats-don-t-need-you-that-much-they-like-to-come-and-get-stroked-now/) [Ruth Wilson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ruth-wilson/) > [You need to feed yourself with emotions and life or youll become empty.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/guillaume-canet/you-need-to-feed-yourself-with-emotions-and-life-or-youll-become-empty/) [Guillaume Canet](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/guillaume-canet/) > [There is just this need to feed the beast of movie, or TV, or whatever it may be and you don't want to do…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bryan-burk/there-is-just-this-need-to-feed-the-beast-of-movie-or-tv-or-whatever/) [Bryan Burk](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bryan-burk/) > [“I need to feed her with affection and gain her trust before I slap a collar on her and declare her mine.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/k-webster/i-need-to-feed-her-with-affection-and-gain-her-trust-before-i-slap-a/) [K. Webster](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/k-webster/) > [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/) > [Nobody ever wants to see a guy get hurt, because this is how we feed our families.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/enzo-amore/nobody-ever-wants-to-see-a-guy-get-hurt-because-this-is-how-we-feed/) [Enzo Amore](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/enzo-amore/) > [My sister-in-law works for a group that supports orphanages in Cairo. She and her colleagues take care of children left behind by circumstances beyond…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mohamed-elbaradei/my-sister-in-law-works-for-a-group-that-supports-orphanages-in-cairo/) [Mohamed ElBaradei](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mohamed-elbaradei/) ## 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. 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