--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: There is something wonderful about a…" description: "\"“There is something wonderful about a death, how everything shuts down, and all the ways you thought you were vital are not even vaguely important. You..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/4c1/anne-enright-5402_children_there-is-something-wonderful-about-a-dea_1377206.jpg" --- # There is something wonderful about a death, how everything… ![“There is something wonderful about a death, how everything shuts down, and all the ways you thought you were vital are not even vaguely important. Your husband can feed the kids, he can work the new oven, he can find the sausages in the fridge, after all. And his important meeting was not…” quote by Anne Enright](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/4c1/anne-enright-5402_children_there-is-something-wonderful-about-a-dea_1377206.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/4c1/anne-enright-5402_children_there-is-something-wonderful-about-a-dea_1377206.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/4c1/anne-enright-5402_children_there-is-something-wonderful-about-a-dea_1377206.jpg) > ““There is something wonderful about a death, how everything shuts down, and all the ways you thought you were vital are not even vaguely important. Your husband can feed the kids, he can work the new oven, he can find the sausages in the fridge, after all. And his important meeting was not important, not in the slightest. And the girls will be picked up from school, and dropped off again in the morning. Your eldest daughter can remember her inhaler, and your youngest will take her gym kit with her, and it is just as you suspected - most of the stuff that you do is just stupid, really stupid, most of the stuff you do is just nagging and whining and picking up for people who are too lazy to love you.”” [Anne Enright](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anne-enright/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Life’s mundane tasks can feel trivial when faced with loss, highlighting the fragility of perceived importance. **In simple terms:** Everyday chores seem insignificant after loss. Key Takeaway Recognize impermanence of daily concerns. Themes loss meaning mundanity Mood somber contemplative Type reflective philosophical When to use this quote - grief counseling - daily planning - family support - personal reflection Key Concepts existentialism psychology family dynamics Questions to Reflect On - What truly matters in your life now? - How can you honor daily tasks without minimizing their value? A Different Perspective Focusing on trivialities may distract from processing grief. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Children](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/children/) [Death](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/death/) [Eldest daughter](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/eldest-daughter/) [Marriage](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/marriage/) ## Related quotes > [There is something wonderful about a death, how everything shuts down, and all the ways you thought you were vital are not even vaguely…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anne-enright/there-is-something-wonderful-about-a-death-how-everything-shuts-down-3/) [Anne Enright](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anne-enright/) > [The lazy part of me would love to do a sitcom where I could work three days a week and make a fortune.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/corbin-bernsen/the-lazy-part-of-me-would-love-to-do-a-sitcom-where-i-could-work/) [Corbin Bernsen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/corbin-bernsen/) > [People who are lazy may smoke pot and remain lazy. 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I don’t know if that’s true, but I know white people went all the way to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lance-crouther/there-s-a-stereotype-that-black-people-are-lazy-i-don-t-know-if-that/) Lance Crouther > [Laziness is contagious just like hard work is. I didn't give myself an opportunity to be lazy and I didn't surround myself with people…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-chandler/laziness-is-contagious-just-like-hard-work-is-i-didn-t-give-myself-an/) [Michael Chandler](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michael-chandler/) > [A lot of people are lazy when it comes to making up their own mind about something, you know? 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They simply have important goals that is, goals that do not inspire them.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kavinder-kanwar/people-are-not-lazy-they-simply-have-important-goals-that-is-goals/) [Kavinder Kanwar](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kavinder-kanwar/) > [The paintings may communicate even better because people are lazy and they can look at a painting with less effort than they can read…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lawrence-ferlinghetti/the-paintings-may-communicate-even-better-because-people-are-lazy-and/) [Lawrence Ferlinghetti](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lawrence-ferlinghetti/) > [People are not lazy they are on their ENERGY SAVING MODE.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-angelo-de-leon/people-are-not-lazy-they-are-on-their-energy-saving-mode/) [Michael Angelo De Leon](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michael-angelo-de-leon/) > [I think it's important to show a husband and a wife together, in a room, raising children, because you don't see that anymore.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tyler-perry/i-think-it-s-important-to-show-a-husband-and-a-wife-together-in-a/) [Tyler Perry](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tyler-perry/) > [“It’s important to have a husband that lives and believes the same way you do. Otherwise, you’re asking for problems.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/j-e-b-spredemann/it-s-important-to-have-a-husband-that-lives-and-believes-the-same-way/) [J.E.B. Spredemann](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/j-e-b-spredemann/) ## More by Anne Enright > [Story is about pulling the reader in and a plot is a more externalized mechanism of revelation. A plot is more antic, more performative,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anne-enright/story-is-about-pulling-the-reader-in-and-a-plot-is-a-more/) [Anne Enright](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anne-enright/) > [I am interested in levels of brain discourse. How articulate are the voices in your head? You know, there's a different voice for the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anne-enright/i-am-interested-in-levels-of-brain-discourse-how-articulate-are-the/) [Anne Enright](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anne-enright/) > [I have a small room to write in. One wall is completely covered in books. And I face the window with the curtain closed…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anne-enright/i-have-a-small-room-to-write-in-one-wall-is-completely-covered-in/) [Anne Enright](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anne-enright/) > [I do not think we remember our family in any real sense. We live in them instead](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anne-enright/i-do-not-think-we-remember-our-family-in-any-real-sense-we-live-in/) [Anne Enright](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anne-enright/) > [I do not believe in evil- I believe that we are human and fallible, that we things and spoil them in an ordinary way.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anne-enright/i-do-not-believe-in-evil-i-believe-that-we-are-human-and-fallible/) [Anne Enright](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anne-enright/) > [“Val is a bachelor farmer in his seventies, so he should, by rights, be half mad.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anne-enright/val-is-a-bachelor-farmer-in-his-seventies-so-he-should-by-rights-be/) [Anne Enright](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anne-enright/) > [Sometimes I will spend two or three days not speaking to anyone outside of the immediate family when they come home, and then I…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anne-enright/sometimes-i-will-spend-two-or-three-days-not-speaking-to-anyone/) [Anne Enright](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anne-enright/) > [God, I hate my family, these people I never chose to love, but love all the same.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anne-enright/god-i-hate-my-family-these-people-i-never-chose-to-love-but-love-all/) [Anne Enright](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anne-enright/) > [I find being Irish quite a wearing thing. 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Find a place to stand.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anne-enright/description-is-hard-remember-that-all-description-is-an-opinion-about/) [Anne Enright](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anne-enright/) [Explore all 101 Anne Enright quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anne-enright/) ## More Children quotes > [I am certain that children always know more than they are able to tell, and that makes the big difference between them and adults,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jacques-lusseyran/i-am-certain-that-children-always-know-more-than-they-are-able-to/) [Jacques Lusseyran](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jacques-lusseyran/) > [Behind every successful child is an adult who believed in him.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rick-warren/behind-every-successful-child-is-an-adult-who-believed-in-him/) [Rick Warren](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rick-warren/) > [I believe in freedom to do what you want if you aren't hurting others, but pictures of obese protesters giving their children big gulps.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/philip-defranco/i-believe-in-freedom-to-do-what-you-want-if-you-aren-t-hurting-others/) [Philip DeFranco](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/philip-defranco/) > [If the audience likes your work, if they like you, they don't think whether you are married or have children or not. I made…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dimple-kapadia/if-the-audience-likes-your-work-if-they-like-you-they-don-t-think/) [Dimple Kapadia](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dimple-kapadia/) > [It doesnt seem to me strange that children should like the macabre, the sensational, and the forbidden.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anthony-hecht/it-doesnt-seem-to-me-strange-that-children-should-like-the-macabre/) [Anthony Hecht](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anthony-hecht/) > [Let children support their parents or be imprisoned.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/let-children-support-their-parents-or-be-imprisoned/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [Gratitude isn't just a feeling, it's an action. Expressing gratitude by writing in a journal, taking a photo, or shooting a video creates a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/janice-kaplan/gratitude-isn-t-just-a-feeling-it-s-an-action-expressing-gratitude-by/) [Janice Kaplan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/janice-kaplan/) > [My embarrassing confession is that my father is a 'Camelot: The Musical' obsessive. So as a child, when we were going to visit relatives…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/chris-chibnall/my-embarrassing-confession-is-that-my-father-is-a-camelot-the-musical/) [Chris Chibnall](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/chris-chibnall/) > [I have many who keep me going, I am very fortunate in this sense. There is nothing like a child who knows more about…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/floyd-cooper/i-have-many-who-keep-me-going-i-am-very-fortunate-in-this-sense-there/) [Floyd Cooper](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/floyd-cooper/) > [My school was one of the most beautiful places a child can grow up in. You are surrounded by nature - cats, dogs, birds…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/amala-akkineni/my-school-was-one-of-the-most-beautiful-places-a-child-can-grow-up-in/) [Amala Akkineni](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/amala-akkineni/) > [A lesser complaint: hair extensions. There are moments on 'All My Children' when half the women actors, young and old, seem to be afflicted…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/camille-paglia/a-lesser-complaint-hair-extensions-there-are-moments-on-all-my/) [Camille Paglia](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/camille-paglia/) > [As a child, I had a lot of older gay men taking care of me. There's a trust there. I feel like little girls…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/margaret-cho/as-a-child-i-had-a-lot-of-older-gay-men-taking-care-of-me-there-s-a/) [Margaret Cho](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/margaret-cho/) > [If my child had prejudice in his head, I'd be ashamed. I would see it as my failure as a parent.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/salman-rushdie/if-my-child-had-prejudice-in-his-head-i-d-be-ashamed-i-would-see-it/) [Salman Rushdie](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/salman-rushdie/) > [“Children's lives are always beginning and adults' lives are always ending. Or is it the opposite? 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And his important meeting was not important, not in the slightest. And the girls will be picked up from school, and dropped off again in the morning. Your eldest daughter can remember her inhaler, and your youngest will take her gym kit with her, and it is just as you suspected - most of the stuff that you do is just stupid, really stupid, most of the stuff you do is just nagging and whining and picking up for people who are too lazy to love you.”", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "Anne Enright" }, "isPartOf": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website" }, "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anne-enright/there-is-something-wonderful-about-a-death-how-everything-shuts-down/", "about": { "@type": "Thing", "name": "Children" }, "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anne-enright/there-is-something-wonderful-about-a-death-how-everything-shuts-down/#quotation", "image": { "@type": "ImageObject", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/4c1/anne-enright-5402_children_there-is-something-wonderful-about-a-dea_1377206.jpg", "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/4c1/anne-enright-5402_children_there-is-something-wonderful-about-a-dea_1377206.jpg", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/4c1/anne-enright-5402_children_there-is-something-wonderful-about-a-dea_1377206.jpg", "width": 1080, "height": 1080, "caption": "“There is something wonderful about a death, how everything shuts down, and all the ways you thought you were…” — Anne Enright", "creditText": "SMS4Smile Quotes", "creator": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization" } } }, { "@type": "BreadcrumbList", "itemListElement": [ { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 1, "name": "Home", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 2, "name": "Quotes", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 3, "name": "Anne Enright", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anne-enright/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 4, "name": "“There is something wonderful about a...", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anne-enright/there-is-something-wonderful-about-a-death-how-everything-shuts-down/" } ], "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anne-enright/there-is-something-wonderful-about-a-death-how-everything-shuts-down/#breadcrumb" }, { "@type": "WebSite", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website", "name": "SMS4Smile Quotes", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/", "publisher": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization" } }, { "@type": "Organization", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization", "name": "SMS4Smile Quotes", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/", "logo": { "@type": "ImageObject", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/wp-content/themes/sq/assets/icons/icon-512.png", "width": 512, "height": 512 } } ] } ```