Know what we did, Lucy? You and me? We spent our whole lives yearning. Isn't that the God damndest thing?
Interpretation
The quote reflects on how people can spend their lives in longing and desire, which may ultimately be unfulfilled.
In this quote, Richard Yates expresses a profound realization about the human condition, emphasizing the idea that much of life can be spent in yearning for what we do not have, rather than appreciating what we do have. This sentiment captures the bittersweet nature of existence, where desires often overshadow the present moment, leading to a sense of dissatisfaction and regret. It suggests a reflective examination of life and the futility of longing, inviting readers to consider their own experiences with desire and fulfillment.
In practice
In a speech about pursuing happiness, this quote can illustrate the need to focus on living fully rather than desiring what is out of reach.
She was calm and quiet now with knowing what she had always known, what neither her parents nor Aunt Claire nor Frank nor anyone else had ever had to teach her: that if you wanted something to do something absolutely honest, something true, it always turned out to be a thing that had to be done alone.
He found it so easy and so pleasant to cry that he didn’t try to stop for a while, until he realized he was forcing his sobs a little, exaggerating their depth with unnecessary shudders. … The whole point of crying is to quit before you coined it up. The whole point of grief itself was to cut it out while it was still honest, while it still meant something. Because the thing was so easily corrupted
Do you know what the definition of insane is? Yes. It’s the inability to relate to another human being. It’s the inability to love.
It's a disease. Nobody thinks or feels or cares any more; nobody gets excited or believes in anything except their own comfortable little God damn mediocrity.
She just happened to feel like it. Wasn’t that after all, the only reason there was? Had she ever had a less selfish, more complicated reason for doing anything in her life?
He knew it was possible for shame to be nursed and doctored like an illness, if you wanted to keep it separate from the rest of your life, but that didn't mean there'd be any way to keep from knowing it was there.
When you are brought up as a frozen child, you go on freezing. It wasn't until I had my four sons, who have brought me immense joy, that I began to thaw. That I realised how utterly extraordinary my childhood was.
I was burned out from exhaustion, buried in the hail, poisoned in the bushes,_x000D_ _x000D_ blown out on the trail; hunted like a crocodile, ravaged in the corn, _x000D_ _x000D_ "Come in," she said, "I'll give ya shelter from the storm."
The town was paper, but the memories were not.
I play by my own rules so please think twice before you step into my life.
I had gotten to a place where I truly believed everything I was called: 'not sexy,' 'not funny,' 'too intense,' desperate.' All those labels they gave me, I took them because there wasn't a trace of my true self left.
I've been around longer than most of my fans have been alive.
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