“Were the earth as smooth as a ball bearing, it might be beautiful seen from another planet, as the rings of Saturn are. But here we live and move; we wander up and down the banks of the creek, we ride a railway through the Alps, and the landscape shifts and changes. Were the earth smooth, our brains would be smooth as well; we would wake, blink, walk two steps to get the whole picture and lapse into dreamless sleep. Because we are living people, and because we are on the receiving end of beauty, another element necessarily enters the question. The texture of space is a condition of time. Time is the warp and matter the weft of woven texture of beauty in space, and death is the hurtling shuttle… What I want to do, then, is add time to the texture, paint the landscape on an unrolling scroll, and set the giant relief globe spinning on it stand.”

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About Annie Dillard

American writer and essayist, 1945–present Known for her lyrical, introspective essays on nature, spirituality, and the human experience. Her work often explores the intersection of quiet observation and profound reflection, blending vivid imagery with philosophical depth.

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"Were the earth as smooth as a ball bearing, it might be beautiful see…" — Annie Dillard | Daily Quotes