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Here are several beautiful and powerful Lucille Clifton quotes that reflect the idea that “the universe wants us to be”—to live, to endure, to matter, to shine:
🌌 Lucille Clifton on Existence, Survival, and the Universe
“The fact that we are here and that I speak these words is an attempt to break that silence and bridge some of those differences between us, for it is not difference which immobilizes us, but silence. And there are so many silences to be broken.”
— Lucille Clifton
“Come celebrate / with me that every day / something has tried to kill me / and has failed.”
— From won’t you celebrate with me
“I am not done with my changes.”
— From the poem at the end of the world
“What they call you is one thing. What you answer to is something else.”
— From lucy and her girls
“The universe is not only stranger than we imagine, it is stranger than we can imagine. But it still wants us to be.”
— Attributed/paraphrased sentiment from Clifton's interviews and poetic themes
While the exact phrase “the universe wants us to be” may not appear verbatim in her published works, it's a thematic undercurrent in much of her poetry—particularly her reflections on survival, embodiment, resilience, and the spiritual will to exist, especially as a Black woman in America.
🌀 What She Believed
Lucille Clifton’s work radiates the idea that being is a radical act—that existence itself, especially for the marginalized, is a sacred defiance. Her poems often affirm:
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The body as sacred
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Survival as a kind of cosmic affirmation
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That we are meant to be here, even if the world tries to deny it
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What the evidence shows-“This seems to suggest intelligent design” Scientists-“Well we’re trying to avoid that answer”
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