“I was young, and by instinct of self-preservation I had to collect my energy on something, if I were not to be whirled away with the dusk on the farm-roads, or the smoke on the plain. I begun in the evenings to write stories, fairy-tales, and romances, that would take my mind a long way off, to other countries and times.”
Analysis
In this quote from Karen Blixen, the author reflects on her need to escape her surroundings and find solace in writing. Blixen acknowledges her youth and the desire to preserve herself from the mundane and chaotic aspects of her environment. By engaging in storytelling, she is able to transport herself to different worlds and eras, providing a sense of escapism and relief from the pressures of her reality. This quote highlights the therapeutic nature of writing as a form of self-expression and a means of mental respite.
Finding Escape Through Creativity
Karen Blixen's quote highlights the importance of creative expression as a means of escaping from the challenges and pressures of everyday life. This sentiment holds modern relevance as individuals continue to seek outlets to channel their energy and imagination in order to cope with the stresses of the world. Whether through writing, art, music, or other forms of creativity, finding an escape can provide solace and refuge in turbulent times.
Karen Blixen's Escape through Writing
“I was young, and by instinct of self-preservation I had to collect my energy on something, if I were not to be whirled away with the dusk on the farm-roads, or the smoke on the plain. I begun in the evenings to write stories, fairy-tales, and romances, that would take my mind a long way off, to other countries and times.” - Karen Blixen
Reflection Questions
Karen Blixen found solace in writing stories as a young person, using it as a way to escape from the challenges of her youth. Reflecting on her experience, consider the following questions:
- Have you ever turned to writing or another form of creativity as a means of self-preservation or escape from difficult circumstances?
- How does engaging in creative activities help you to process difficult emotions or navigate challenging situations?
- Do you find that immersing yourself in storytelling, whether through writing or reading, allows you to transport yourself to another time or place? If so, how does this affect your mood or mindset?
- In what ways can creativity serve as a form of self-care or a means of coping with stress or uncertainty in your own life?
Similar quotes
“After a childhood reading fairy tales and myths, is it any wonder that when I began to write my own stories I included fairy tales? Fairy tales are storytelling at its most basic. They’ve been with mankind for as long as people have told stories to each other. Fairy tales speak to something intrinsic in humans—they touch our most primitive selves. How else to explain that the Cinderella story is told in nearly every society on earth? To think of fairy tales as merely stories for children is to ignore thousands of years when fairy tales were used to teach morality, to warn, and to entertain both children and adults.”
“I realized at that moment - observing his form move further away without once turning back - that I’d already begun to rebuild the imaginary wall between us. I was shielding my heart with stone cold feelings again, the only way I knew to protect it. I still planned to try my hand at prayer. If God would grant me this one request, if I could keep my only friend, I would give anything in return, even the treasured books trapped beneath my arm. I’d tasted enough of a dismal life to know that a real, true friend was of greater worth than the collection of every imagined fairy tale in the world.”
“Besides, she likes my stories. They are like fairy tales, I suppose, full of kings and queens and adventures. Ma says people think fairy tales are simple stories but they are not. I guess I agree. My trouble is I have no talent for thinking up plots. The best I can do is come up with a good beginning. My book of story ideas is really just a book of story beginnings. Still and all, that is something.”
“I stared at Irys. My Story Weaver had to be laughing his blue ass off right now. My future appeared to be a long twisted road fraught with knots, tangles and traps. Just the way I liked it.”
“The new country lay open before me: there were no fences in those days, and I could choose my own way over the grass uplands, trusting the pony to get me home again. Sometimes I followed the sunflower-bordered roads. Fuchs told me that the sunflowers were introduced into that country by the Mormons; that at the time of the persecution when they left Missouri and struck out into the wilderness to find a place where they could worship God in their own way, the members of the first exploring party, crossing the plains to Utah, scattered sunflower seeds as they went. The next summer, when the long trains of wagons came through with all the women and children, they had a sunflower trail to follow. I believe that botanists do not confirm Jake's story but, insist that the sunflower was native to those plains. Nevertheless, that legend has stuck in my mind, and sunflower-bordered roads always seem to me the roads to freedom.”