--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: I was a soul back on Earth. AWOL a little…" description: "\"“I was a soul back on Earth. AWOL a little while from heaven.”\" — Alice Sebold" image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/d5e/alice-sebold-999_spirituality_i-was-a-soul-back-on-earth-awol-a-little_1884569.jpg" --- # I was a soul back on Earth. AWOL a little while from heaven. ![“I was a soul back on Earth. AWOL a little while from heaven.” quote by Alice Sebold](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/d5e/alice-sebold-999_spirituality_i-was-a-soul-back-on-earth-awol-a-little_1884569.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/d5e/alice-sebold-999_spirituality_i-was-a-soul-back-on-earth-awol-a-little_1884569.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/d5e/alice-sebold-999_spirituality_i-was-a-soul-back-on-earth-awol-a-little_1884569.jpg) > ““I was a soul back on Earth. AWOL a little while from heaven.”” [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. The soul experiences a temporary separation from Earth, feeling both grounded and detached. **In simple terms:** A soul feels briefly disconnected from the world. Key Takeaway Acknowledge feelings of disconnection. Themes life after death spiritual yearning identity Mood melancholic introspective Type literary philosophical When to use this quote - grief counseling - creative writing - mindfulness retreats Key Concepts Existential reflection transcendence loss Questions to Reflect On - How do you interpret feelings of being 'away' from your usual self? - What practices help you feel grounded? A Different Perspective Interpretations vary; some may view it as metaphorical rather than literal. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Heaven](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/heaven/) [Soul](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/soul/) [Spirituality](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/spirituality/) ## Related quotes > [Each soul on earth is complete unto itself.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mark-nepo/each-soul-on-earth-is-complete-unto-itself/) [Mark Nepo](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mark-nepo/) > [“If you were AWOL when your company was going back into combat you might as well keep going because your own officers would blow…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/charles-brandt/if-you-were-awol-when-your-company-was-going-back-into-combat-you/) [Charles Brandt](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/charles-brandt/) > [“None of us liked you being AWOL.” Eli strolls into the house and pats my shoulder as he walks past. “Why didn’t you come…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/katie-mcgarry/none-of-us-liked-you-being-awol-eli-strolls-into-the-house-and-pats/) [Katie McGarry](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/katie-mcgarry/) > [Conner Lassiter. Scheduled to be unwound the 21st of November-until you went AWOL. You caused an accident that killed a bus driver, left dozens…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/neal-shusterman/conner-lassiter-scheduled-to-be-unwound-the-21st-of-november-until/) [Neal Shusterman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/neal-shusterman/) > [The soul is a breath of living spirit, that with excellent sensitivity, permeates the entire body to give it life. Just so, the breath…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/hildegard-of-bingen/the-soul-is-a-breath-of-living-spirit-that-with-excellent-sensitivity/) [Hildegard of Bingen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/hildegard-of-bingen/) > [The Earth school is not a concept. It is an an ongoing 3-dimesional, full colour, hi-fidelity, interactive multi-media experience that does not end until…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gary-zukav/the-earth-school-is-not-a-concept-it-is-an-an-ongoing-3-dimesional/) [Gary Zukav](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gary-zukav/) > [We are all dependent on one another, every soul of us on earth.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-bernard-shaw/we-are-all-dependent-on-one-another-every-soul-of-us-on-earth/) [George Bernard Shaw](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-bernard-shaw/) > [“A good soul on earth hurts very much.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jose-marti/a-good-soul-on-earth-hurts-very-much/) [José Martí](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jose-marti/) > [Water is the soul of the Earth.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/w-h-auden/water-is-the-soul-of-the-earth/) [W. H. Auden](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/w-h-auden/) > [The most tormented soul of them all is the Earth.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mariana-fulger/the-most-tormented-soul-of-them-all-is-the-earth/) [Mariana Fulger](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mariana-fulger/) > [“You work that you may keep pace with the earth and the soul of the earth.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/khalil-gibran/you-work-that-you-may-keep-pace-with-the-earth-and-the-soul-of-the-2/) [Khalil Gibran](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/khalil-gibran/) > [Heaven lent you a soul, Earth will lend a grave.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/christian-nestell-bovee/heaven-lent-you-a-soul-earth-will-lend-a-grave/) [Christian Nestell Bovee](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/christian-nestell-bovee/) > [The soul on earth is an immortal guest.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/hannah-more/the-soul-on-earth-is-an-immortal-guest/) [Hannah More](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/hannah-more/) > [You work that you may keep peace with the earth and the soul of the earth.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/khalil-gibran/you-work-that-you-may-keep-peace-with-the-earth-and-the-soul-of-the/) [Khalil Gibran](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/khalil-gibran/) > [The foundation of the Christian's peace is everlasting; it is what no time, no change can destroy. It will remain when the body dies;…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jonathan-edwards/the-foundation-of-the-christian-s-peace-is-everlasting-it-is-what-no/) [Jonathan Edwards](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jonathan-edwards/) ## 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 Heaven quotes > [Heaven lies around us in our infancy.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-golding/heaven-lies-around-us-in-our-infancy/) [William Golding](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-golding/) > [The more perfect the sight is the more delightful the beautiful object. The more perfect the appetite, the sweeter the food. The more musical…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/richard-baxter/the-more-perfect-the-sight-is-the-more-delightful-the-beautiful/) [Richard Baxter](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/richard-baxter/) > [A real Christian in an odd number anyway. He feels supreme love for One whom he has never seen, talks familiarly every day to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/a-real-christian-in-an-odd-number-anyway-he-feels-supreme-love-for/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [I believe that on any trip to heaven, there are always detours through hell.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/richard-finney/i-believe-that-on-any-trip-to-heaven-there-are-always-detours-through/) [Richard Finney](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/richard-finney/) > [When I get a chance to play golf or go on a boat with good people, take the boat out and put some lobsters…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bernie-mac/when-i-get-a-chance-to-play-golf-or-go-on-a-boat-with-good-people/) [Bernie Mac](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bernie-mac/) > [Every saved person this side of heaven owes the gospel to every lost person this side of hell.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-platt/every-saved-person-this-side-of-heaven-owes-the-gospel-to-every-lost/) [David Platt](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-platt/) > [When you have accomplished your goal simply walk away. This is the path way to Heaven.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/laozi/when-you-have-accomplished-your-goal-simply-walk-away-this-is-the/) [Laozi](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/laozi/) > [I wonder: when a Jehovah's Witness dies and goes to Heaven, does God hide behind the door and pretend He's not home?](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/brian-celio/i-wonder-when-a-jehovah-s-witness-dies-and-goes-to-heaven-does-god/) [Brian Celio](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/brian-celio/) > [By the time you have no difficulties in your life, you have achieved Heaven.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/charles-brown/by-the-time-you-have-no-difficulties-in-your-life-you-have-achieved/) [Charles Brown](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/charles-brown/) > [I'm what is known as gradually disintegrating. I don't fear the next world, or anything. I don't fear hell, and I don't look forward…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/katharine-hepburn/i-m-what-is-known-as-gradually-disintegrating-i-don-t-fear-the-next/) [Katharine Hepburn](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/katharine-hepburn/) > [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 do not want a kingdom, or heaven; what I want is to remove the trouble of the oppressed, the poor, and the needy.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mahatma-gandhi/i-do-not-want-a-kingdom-or-heaven-what-i-want-is-to-remove-the/) [Mahatma Gandhi](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mahatma-gandhi/) > [“God is the highest good of the reasonable creature, and the enjoyment of him is the only happiness with which our souls can be…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/randy-alcorn/god-is-the-highest-good-of-the-reasonable-creature-and-the-enjoyment/) [Randy Alcorn](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/randy-alcorn/) > [“The Creator sat upon the throne, thinking. Behind him stretched the illimitable continent of heaven, steeped in a glory of light and color; before…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mark-twain/the-creator-sat-upon-the-throne-thinking-behind-him-stretched-the/) [Mark Twain](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mark-twain/) > [Bring into captivity every thought to the obedience of Christ. Take what I cannot give: my heart, body, thoughts, time, abilities, money, health, strength,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/elizabeth-prentiss/bring-into-captivity-every-thought-to-the-obedience-of-christ-take/) [Elizabeth Prentiss](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/elizabeth-prentiss/) [Browse all 9,540 Heaven quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/heaven/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "“I was a soul back on Earth. 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