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My belief is that the world and our life in it are conditional gifts.

Wendell Berry

This, I thought, is what is meant by ‘thy will be done’ in the Lord’s Prayer, which I had prayed time and again without thinking about it.
WENDELL BERRY

Again Done Lord Meant Prayer Think Thought Thy Time Without
And to take good care of it, we have to know it. And to know it and to be willing to take care of it, we have to love it.
WENDELL BERRY

Care Good Know Love Take Willing
It is a horrible fact that we can read in the daily paper, without interrupting our breakfast, numerical reckonings of death and destruction that ought to break our hearts or scare us out of our wits.
WENDELL BERRY

Breakfast Daily Fact Horrible Interrupting Paper Read
We’re all complicit in the things we may be trying to oppose. I’m complicit in the things that I’m trying to oppose.
WENDELL BERRY

All Complicit May Oppose Thing Try
The uplands of my home country in north central Kentucky are sloping and easily eroded, dependent for safekeeping upon year-round cover of perennial plants.
WENDELL BERRY

Central Country Department Easily Erode Home Keep North People Person Round Safe Stop Upland Upon Year
If I was freer than I had ever been in my life, I was not yet entirely free, for I still hung on to an idea that had been set deep in me by all my schooling so far:
WENDELL BERRY

Been Deep Entirely Ever Far Free Idea Life Schooling Set So Still
The two great aims of industrialism – replacement of people by technology and concentration of wealth into the hands of a small plutocracy – seem close to fulfillment.
WENDELL BERRY

Aim Concentration Great Hand Industrialism People Plutocracy Replacement Small Technology Two Wealth
To hear of a thousand deaths in war is terrible, and we ‘know’ that it is. But as it registers on our hearts, it is not more terrible than one death fully imagined.
WENDELL BERRY

Death Hear Know Terrible Thousand War
The primary motive for good care and good use of the land-community is always going to be affection, which is too often lacking.
WENDELL BERRY

Affection Always Care Community Go Good Lack Land Motive Often Primary Use
The only time I’ve been arrested was in opposing the Marble Hill nuclear power plant in Indiana. That was in 1979.
WENDELL BERRY

Arrest Hill Indiana Marble Nuclear Only Oppose Plant Power Time Year
An economy genuinely local and neighborly offers to localities a measure of security that they cannot derive from a national or a global economy controlled by people who, by principle, have no local commitment.
WENDELL BERRY

Derive Economy Genuine Global Local Locality Measure National Neighbour Offer Security
I come into the peace of wild things who do not tax their lives with forethought of grief…
WENDELL BERRY

Come Forethought Grief Into Live Peace Tax Thing Wild
Whether we or our politicians know it or not, Nature is party to all our deals and decisions, and she has more votes, a longer memory, and a sterner sense of justice than we do.
WENDELL BERRY

All Deal Deciosn Know More Nature Out Party Politician Vote Whether
The care of the Earth is our most ancient and most worthy, and after all our most pleasing responsibility.
WENDELL BERRY

After All Ancient Case Earth Most Please Responsibility Worthy
The latest technology is not always good for anything except to the producers of the technology.
WENDELL BERRY

Always Anything Except Good Latest Produce Technology
We cannot know the whole truth, which belongs to God alone, but our task nevertheless is to seek to know what is true.
WENDELL BERRY

Alone Belong God Know Nevertheless Seek Take True Truth Whose
Why should conservationists have a positive interest in… farming? There are lots of reasons, but the plainest is: Conservationists eat.
WENDELL BERRY

Conservationist Farm Interest Lot Plainest Positive Readon
Annual plants are nature’s emergency medical service, seeded in sounds and scars to hold the land until the perennial cover is re-established.
WENDELL BERRY

Annual Cover Emergency Hold Medical Nature Perennial Plant Scar Seed Service Sound Until
There are no sacred and unsacred places; there are only sacred and desecrated places.
WENDELL BERRY

Decreased Place Scared Unsacred
I prayed like a man walking in a forest at night, feeling his way with his hands, at each step fearing to fall into pure bottomlessness forever.
WENDELL BERRY

Feel Forst Hand Like Man Night Pray Walk Way
We cannot comprehend what comprehends us.
WENDELL BERRY

Comprehend Us What
For any sin, we all suffer. That is why our suffering is endless.
WENDELL BERRY

All Any Endless Sin Suffer
I am not bound for any public place, but for ground of my own where I have planted vines and orchard trees, and in the heat of the day climbed up into the healing shadow of the woods.
WENDELL BERRY

Any Bound Climb Ground Heal Orchard Own Place Plant Public Shadow Tree Vine Wood
It is not from ourselves that we learn to be better than we are.
WENDELL BERRY

Are Better From Learn Ourselves We
I was a bright boy and I ought to make something out of myself… something else that would be a cut or two above my humble origins.
WENDELL BERRY

Above Boy Bright Else Humble Make Myself Origin Out Something
It means that your will and God’s will may not be the same. It means there’s a good possibility that you won’t get what you pray for. It means that in spite of your prayers you are going to suffer.
WENDELL BERRY

Amy God Good Mean Possibility Prayer Same Suffer
When you are new at sheep-raising and your ewe has a lamb, your impulse is to stay there and help it nurse and see to it and all. After a while, you know that the best thing you can do is walk out of the barn.
WENDELL BERRY

All Help Impulse IT Lamb New Nurse Raise See Sheep Stay When

My belief is that the world and our life in it are conditional gifts.

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My belief is that the world and our life in it are conditional gifts.

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Popular Authors

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