“I alternate between thinking of the planet as home - dear and familiar stone hearth and garden - and as a hard land of exile in which we are all sojourners.”
Reflection on our relationship with the planet
Annie Dillard's words resonate with the modern world as we face environmental challenges and the effects of climate change. The concept of Earth as both our beloved home and a place of temporary stay encourages us to reflect on our responsibility to protect and preserve the planet for future generations. This duality highlights the need for sustainable practices and conservation efforts to ensure that Earth remains a hospitable environment for all life forms.
Annie Dillard on the Earth as Home and Exile
"I alternate between thinking of the planet as home - dear and familiar stone hearth and garden - and as a hard land of exile in which we are all sojourners." - Annie Dillard
Quote Analysis
In this quote by Annie Dillard, she beautifully captures the duality of our relationship with Earth. On one hand, she sees the planet as a comforting and familiar home - a stone hearth and garden where we belong. On the other hand, she also recognizes the harsh reality that Earth can be a challenging place of exile, where humans are merely temporary inhabitants. This quote highlights the complexity of our connection to the planet and the constant struggle between feeling at home and feeling out of place in the world.
Reflective Questions:
As we ponder Annie Dillard's words about our relationship to the planet, it prompts us to consider our own perspectives and feelings towards the Earth. Here are some reflective questions to explore further:
How do you typically view the Earth - as a comforting and familiar place, or as a temporary and challenging environment?
In what ways do you personally feel connected to the planet, and in what ways do you feel detached or transient?
Do you believe it is possible to find a balance between seeing the Earth as both home and a foreign place of passage? How might this perspective influence your actions and decisions in relation to the environment?
Have there been particular experiences or moments in your life that have shaped your perception of the Earth as either a home or a place of exile? How do these experiences influence your connection to nature and the world around you?
Similar quotes
“We are all strangers in a strange land, longing for home, but not quite knowing what or where home is. We glimpse it sometimes in our dreams, or as we turn a corner, and suddenly there is a strange, sweet familiarity that vanishes almost as soon as it comes.”
“I think of the security of cages. How violence, cruelty, oppression, become a kind of home, a familiar pattern, a cage, in which we know how to operate and define ourselves…”
“I don't mean what other people mean when they speak of a home, because I don't regard a home as a...well, as a place, a building...a house...of wood, bricks, stone. I think of a home as being a thing that two people have between them in which each can...well, nest.”
“...for reading, once begun, quickly becomes home and circle and court and family, and indeed, without narrative, I felt exiled from my own country. By the transport of books, that which is most foreign becomes one's familiar walks and avenues; while that which is most familiar is removed to delightful strangeness; and unmoving, one travels infinite causeways, immobile and thus unfettered.”
“We have all been expelled from the Garden, but the ones who suffer most in exile are those who are still permitted to dream of perfection.”