Nothing is more memorable than a smell. One scent can be unexpected, momentary and fleeting, yet conjure up a childhood summer beside a lake in the mountains... Diane Ackerman More Quotes by Diane Ackerman More Quotes From Diane Ackerman Devising a vocabulary for gardening is like devising a vocabulary for sex. There are the correct Latin names, but most people invent euphemisms. Those who refer to plants by Latin name are considered more expert, if a little pedantic. Diane Ackerman vocabulary latin sex The great affair, the love affair with life, is to live as variously as possible, to groom one's curiosity like a high-spirited thoroughbred, climb aboard, and gallop over the thick, sunstruck hills every day. Diane Ackerman hills curiosity life-is Of all the errands life seems to be running, of all the mysteries that enchant us, love is my favorite Diane Ackerman errands running love-is Writing is my form of celebration and prayer. Diane Ackerman celebration prayer writing Because we can't escape our ancient hunger to live close to nature, we encircle the house with lawns and gardens, install picture windows, adopt pets and Boston ferns, and scent everything that touches our lives. Diane Ackerman boston garden house There was nothing to do but wait. It is always like this for naturalists, and for poets--the long hours of travel and preparation, and then the longer hours of waiting. All for that one electric, pulse-revving vision when the universe suddenly declares itself. Diane Ackerman preparation waiting long ...for most people in the [Jewish] Ghetto [of Warsaw] nature lived only in memory -- no parks, birds, or greenery existed in the Ghetto -- and they suffered the loss of nature like a phantom-limb pain, an amputation that scrambled the body's rhythms, starved the senses, and made basic ideas about the world impossible for children to fathom. Diane Ackerman pain memories children Because IQ tests favor memory skills and logic, overlooking artistic creativity, insight, resiliency, emotional reserves, sensory gifts, and life experience, they can't really predict success, let alone satisfaction. Diane Ackerman creativity emotional memories I watched her face switch among the radio stations of memory Diane Ackerman radio faces memories It's essential to tailor rehab to what impassions someone. The brain gradually learns by riveting its attention-through endless repetitions. Diane Ackerman essentials brain attention Adult bats don't weigh much. They're mainly fur and appetite. Diane Ackerman fur bats adults Nature is more like a seesaw than a crystal, a never-ending conga line of bold moves and corrections. Diane Ackerman crystals lines moving Nothing reveals more about the inner life of a people than their arts. Diane Ackerman inner-life people art ... love is an act of sedition, a revolt against reason, an uprising in the body politic, a private mutiny. Diane Ackerman mutiny uprising love-is Love is the great intangible. ... Frantic and serene, vigilant and calm, wrung-out and fortified, explosive and sedate -- love commands a vast army of moods. Hoping for victory, limping from the latest skirmish, lovers enter the arena once again. ... Love is the white light of emotion. ... Everyone admits that love is wonderful and necessary, yet no one can agree on what it is. Diane Ackerman army white love-is Life becomes a lot simpler for a creative person when he or she finds the routine that works best. ... get in the habit of going through the routine every day, and on some of those days, you're going to be lucky and have done some good work. ... Go to your study, close the door, invent your confidence. Diane Ackerman routine creative doors Who would drink from a cup when they can drink from the source? Diane Ackerman authenticity drink cups The brain is only three pounds of blood, dream, and electricity, and yet from that mortal stew come Beethoven's sonatas. Dizzie Gillespie's jazz. Audrey Hepburn's wish to spend the last month of her life in Somalia, saving children. Diane Ackerman dream children blood Choice is a signature of our species. Diane Ackerman species signatures choices On some summer days in New York City, the air hangs thickly visible, like the combined exhalations of eight million souls. Steam rising from vents underground makes you wonder if there isn't one giant sweat gland lodged beneath the city. Diane Ackerman eight new-york summer
