--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: I thought if I was very quiet, I would…" description: "\"I thought if I was very quiet, I would hear you. If I was still enough, you might come back.\" — Alice Sebold" image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/41d/alice-sebold-999_feeling-lonely_i-thought-if-i-was-very-quiet-i-would-he_466737.jpg" --- # I thought if I was very quiet, I would hear you. If I was… ![“I thought if I was very quiet, I would hear you. If I was still enough, you might come back.” quote by Alice Sebold](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/41d/alice-sebold-999_feeling-lonely_i-thought-if-i-was-very-quiet-i-would-he_466737.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/41d/alice-sebold-999_feeling-lonely_i-thought-if-i-was-very-quiet-i-would-he_466737.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/41d/alice-sebold-999_feeling-lonely_i-thought-if-i-was-very-quiet-i-would-he_466737.jpg) > “I thought if I was very quiet, I would hear you. If I was still enough, you might come back.” [Alice Sebold](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alice-sebold/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Quiet listening and stillness are imagined as ways to invite a lost loved one back, reflecting longing and hope. **In simple terms:** Being quiet might bring back someone you miss. Key Takeaway Practice mindful listening and patience. Themes loneliness grief hope Mood melancholic reflective Type poetic emotional When to use this quote - mourning rituals - personal reflection - spiritual seeking Key Concepts attachment theory mindfulness Questions to Reflect On - What does silence mean to you in grief? - Can waiting ever change reality? A Different Perspective Silence may not actually bridge loss; expectations can cause frustration. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Feeling lonely](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/feeling-lonely/) ## Related quotes > [Ho! Tom Bombadil, Tom Bombadillo! By water, wood and hill, by reed and willow, By fire, sun and moon, harken now and hear us!…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/ho-tom-bombadil-tom-bombadillo-by-water-wood-and-hill-by-reed-and/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [“I never thought of myself as quiet or much less silent... is ignorance bliss, I don't know, but it's painful to think, and tell…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jonathan-safran-foer/i-never-thought-of-myself-as-quiet-or-much-less-silent-is-ignorance/) [Jonathan Safran Foer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jonathan-safran-foer/) > [Better, Cilla thought, to be alone on a quiet night than to be alone in a crowd. Much better.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nora-roberts/better-cilla-thought-to-be-alone-on-a-quiet-night-than-to-be-alone-in/) [Nora Roberts](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nora-roberts/) > [“It’s quiet now. So quiet that you can almost hear other people’s dreams.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gayle-forman/it-s-quiet-now-so-quiet-that-you-can-almost-hear-other-people-s-dreams/) [Gayle Forman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gayle-forman/) > [“Fire was loud – not quiet. You could hear it eating everything it touched.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dianna-hardy/fire-was-loud-not-quiet-you-could-hear-it-eating-everything-it-touched/) [Dianna Hardy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dianna-hardy/) > [What's wrong with people?" she says, almost too quiet for me to hear. "Were they born with parts missing or did it fall out…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/isaac-marion/what-s-wrong-with-people-she-says-almost-too-quiet-for-me-to-hear/) [Isaac Marion](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/isaac-marion/) > [“Stop and be quiet, hear His voice of Hope and feel the confidence. ~Janiece Rendon”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/janiece-rendon/stop-and-be-quiet-hear-his-voice-of-hope-and-feel-the-confidence/) [Janiece Rendon](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/janiece-rendon/) > [It's quiet now. So quiet that can almost hear other people's dreams.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gayle-forman/it-s-quiet-now-so-quiet-that-can-almost-hear-other-people-s-dreams/) [Gayle Forman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gayle-forman/) > [Remember, all the answers you need are inside of you; you only have to become quiet enough to hear them.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/debbie-ford/remember-all-the-answers-you-need-are-inside-of-you-you-only-have-to/) [Debbie Ford](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/debbie-ford/) > [“You have the Answer. Just get quiet enough to hear it. ~Pat Obuchowski”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/laurie-stevens/you-have-the-answer-just-get-quiet-enough-to-hear-it-pat-obuchowski/) Laurie Stevens > [“It was so quiet you could hear a fly run into a wall. Everyone was staring at me like I’d just pulled up my…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jennifer-l-armentrout/it-was-so-quiet-you-could-hear-a-fly-run-into-a-wall-everyone-was/) [Jennifer L. Armentrout](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jennifer-l-armentrout/) > [In fact at home I sometimes like to be quiet and hear the sounds of the world outside.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/brenda-blethyn/in-fact-at-home-i-sometimes-like-to-be-quiet-and-hear-the-sounds-of/) [Brenda Blethyn](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/brenda-blethyn/) > [It was so quiet, you could hear a pun drop.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/it-was-so-quiet-you-could-hear-a-pun-drop/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [There are so many noises and pulls and competing demands in our lives that many of us never find out who we are. Learn…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/marian-wright-edelman/there-are-so-many-noises-and-pulls-and-competing-demands-in-our-lives/) [Marian Wright Edelman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/marian-wright-edelman/) > [“She lives in a shadow of a lonely girl Voice so quiet you a hear a word Always talking but she can't be heard...”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/little-mix/she-lives-in-a-shadow-of-a-lonely-girl-voice-so-quiet-you-a-hear-a/) [Little Mix](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/little-mix/) ## More by Alice Sebold > [Now I am in the place I call this wide wide Heaven because it includes all my simplest desires but also the most humble…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alice-sebold/now-i-am-in-the-place-i-call-this-wide-wide-heaven-because-it/) [Alice Sebold](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alice-sebold/) > [I left my mark on that man.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alice-sebold/i-left-my-mark-on-that-man/) [Alice Sebold](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alice-sebold/) > [These things, she felt, were not to be passed around like disingenuous party favors. She kept an honor code with her journals and her…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alice-sebold/these-things-she-felt-were-not-to-be-passed-around-like-disingenuous/) [Alice Sebold](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alice-sebold/) > [I don't think ignorance is a way that you gain distance on something.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alice-sebold/i-don-t-think-ignorance-is-a-way-that-you-gain-distance-on-something/) [Alice Sebold](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alice-sebold/) > [I was like I was in science class: I was curious.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alice-sebold/i-was-like-i-was-in-science-class-i-was-curious/) [Alice Sebold](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alice-sebold/) > [“There are secret rooms inside us,” I had said to my therapist. “A relatively benign construct,” he said, and so I did not bother…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alice-sebold/there-are-secret-rooms-inside-us-i-had-said-to-my-therapist-a/) [Alice Sebold](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alice-sebold/) > [“This is just a temporary hell, not a permanent one”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alice-sebold/this-is-just-a-temporary-hell-not-a-permanent-one/) [Alice Sebold](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alice-sebold/) > [“And a soul would run by a living being, touch them softly on the shoulder or cheek, and continue on its way to heaven.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alice-sebold/and-a-soul-would-run-by-a-living-being-touch-them-softly-on-the/) [Alice Sebold](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alice-sebold/) > [As if in the other side of his kiss there could ve a new life](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alice-sebold/as-if-in-the-other-side-of-his-kiss-there-could-ve-a-new-life/) [Alice Sebold](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alice-sebold/) > [“My little brother's greatest fear was that the one person who meant so much to him would go away. He loved Lindsey and Grandma…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alice-sebold/my-little-brother-s-greatest-fear-was-that-the-one-person-who-meant/) [Alice Sebold](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alice-sebold/) > [“She listened for the pain in my words, not to the narrative itself. She was intuiting what it meant to me, what was most…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alice-sebold/she-listened-for-the-pain-in-my-words-not-to-the-narrative-itself-she/) [Alice Sebold](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alice-sebold/) > [The relationship with the words someone uses is more intimate and integrated than just a quick read and a blurb can ever be. This…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alice-sebold/the-relationship-with-the-words-someone-uses-is-more-intimate-and/) [Alice Sebold](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alice-sebold/) > [Ruth hadn't talked to my sister since before my death, and then it was only to excuse herself in the hallway at school. But…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alice-sebold/ruth-hadn-t-talked-to-my-sister-since-before-my-death-and-then-it-was/) [Alice Sebold](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alice-sebold/) > [Since then I've always thought that under rape in the dictionary it should tell the truth. It is not just forcible intercourse; rape means…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alice-sebold/since-then-i-ve-always-thought-that-under-rape-in-the-dictionary-it/) [Alice Sebold](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alice-sebold/) > [I live in a world where two truths coexist: where both hell and hope lie in the palm of my hand](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alice-sebold/i-live-in-a-world-where-two-truths-coexist-where-both-hell-and-hope/) [Alice Sebold](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alice-sebold/) [Explore all 302 Alice Sebold quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alice-sebold/) ## More Feeling lonely quotes > [The worst feeling is not being lonely, sometimes it is being forgotten by someone you cant forget.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/the-worst-feeling-is-not-being-lonely-sometimes-it-is-being-forgotten/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [You should never feel lonely, neglected, fearful, or defeated when you remember that there are the shining ones. They are watching with keen interest…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/flower-a-newhouse/you-should-never-feel-lonely-neglected-fearful-or-defeated-when-you/) [Flower A. Newhouse](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/flower-a-newhouse/) > [I used to receive virtual smiles, sweet morning and night greetings. Now all I have is silence, and a blistered heart.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nikhil-saluja/i-used-to-receive-virtual-smiles-sweet-morning-and-night-greetings/) [Nikhil Saluja](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nikhil-saluja/) > [People think being alone makes you LONELY, But I don't think thats true. Being surrounded by wrong people is the loneliest thing in World](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/people-think-being-alone-makes-you-lonely-but-i-don-t-think-thats/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [Don't feel alone, because there is always someone out there who loves you more than you can imagine.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anurag-prakash-ray/don-t-feel-alone-because-there-is-always-someone-out-there-who-loves/) [Anurag Prakash Ray](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anurag-prakash-ray/) > [Dear God, thanks for being there when no one else was.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/myah/dear-god-thanks-for-being-there-when-no-one-else-was/) [Myah](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/myah/) > [There's nothing worse than feeling lonely in a relationship, its time to move on...](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/there-s-nothing-worse-than-feeling-lonely-in-a-relationship-its-time/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [Loneliness hits the minds of those that thinks they are single and alone. There's always someone out there waiting patiently for you.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/loneliness-hits-the-minds-of-those-that-thinks-they-are-single-and/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [Once you're back on your feet - if you ever make it back on your feet - that's the ultimate achievement. I remember I…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rihanna/once-you-re-back-on-your-feet-if-you-ever-make-it-back-on-your-feet/) [Rihanna](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rihanna/) > [The worst feeling: Being in a room full of PEOPLE & still being lonely.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kiana-j-wilson/the-worst-feeling-being-in-a-room-full-of-people-still-being-lonely/) [Kiana J Wilson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kiana-j-wilson/) > [I never feel lonely in the kitchen. Food is very friendly.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/julia-child/i-never-feel-lonely-in-the-kitchen-food-is-very-friendly/) [Julia Child](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/julia-child/) > [Lonely isn't a feeling when you're alone, lonely is a feeling when no one cares.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/lonely-isn-t-a-feeling-when-you-re-alone-lonely-is-a-feeling-when-no/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [You'll never love yourself half as much as I love you, youll never treat yourself right, but I want you to, if I let…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/one-direction/you-ll-never-love-yourself-half-as-much-as-i-love-you-youll-never/) [One Direction](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/one-direction/) > [People used to talk bad about you,i defended you and told them they were wrong.stupid me.i finally see what they see](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/punkinhead-abhishek/people-used-to-talk-bad-about-you-i-defended-you-and-told-them-they/) [Punkinhead Abhishek](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/punkinhead-abhishek/) > [Too much to ask for may leave me feeling lonely. Too little leaves me nothing.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lisa-loeb/too-much-to-ask-for-may-leave-me-feeling-lonely-too-little-leaves-me/) [Lisa Loeb](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lisa-loeb/) [Browse all 500 Feeling lonely quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/feeling-lonely/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "I thought if I was very quiet, I would hear you. 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