--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: I wasn't born in New York and I may never…" description: "\"I wasn't born in New York and I may never live there again, and just thinking about it makes me melancholy, but I was changed forever by it, my imagina..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/057/anonymous-1_born_i-wasn-t-born-in-new-york-and-i-may-neve_2858531.jpg" --- # I wasn't born in New York and I may never live there… ![“I wasn't born in New York and I may never live there again, and just thinking about it makes me melancholy, but I was changed forever by it, my imagination is manacled to it, and I wear its mark the way you wear a scar. Whatever happens, whether I like it or not, New York City is fated always to…” quote by Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/057/anonymous-1_born_i-wasn-t-born-in-new-york-and-i-may-neve_2858531.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/057/anonymous-1_born_i-wasn-t-born-in-new-york-and-i-may-neve_2858531.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/057/anonymous-1_born_i-wasn-t-born-in-new-york-and-i-may-neve_2858531.jpg) > “I wasn't born in New York and I may never live there again, and just thinking about it makes me melancholy, but I was changed forever by it, my imagination is manacled to it, and I wear its mark the way you wear a scar. Whatever happens, whether I like it or not, New York City is fated always to remain my home.” [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. The city left an indelible emotional imprint, shaping identity and belonging despite distance or melancholy **In simple terms:** New York forever changed me, marking my soul like a scar Key Takeaway Embrace places that shape you, even if you cannot stay Themes identity place attachment nostalgia Mood melancholy reflective Type personal poetic When to use this quote - travel memoir - exile - creative inspiration - urban storytelling Key Concepts urban imprint emotional geography Questions to Reflect On - How does a city become part of your identity? - Can you find home beyond physical location? A Different Perspective The feeling may be bittersweet, but it can also limit growth beyond that place ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Cities](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/cities/) [Home](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/home/) [Imagination](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/imagination/) [Melancholy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/melancholy/) [My imagination](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/my-imagination/) [New york](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/new-york/) [New york city](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/new-york-city/) [Scar](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/scar/) [Thinking](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/thinking/) ## Related quotes > [A scar is what happens when the word is made flesh.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/leonard-cohen/a-scar-is-what-happens-when-the-word-is-made-flesh/) [Leonard Cohen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/leonard-cohen/) > [Why not wear a scar of Motherhood? Better than a tattoo or a mark of Honor. Let the world know what you've achieved.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/richelle-mead/why-not-wear-a-scar-of-motherhood-better-than-a-tattoo-or-a-mark-of/) [Richelle Mead](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/richelle-mead/) > [Wear your scar proudly for they showed that you stood by what you got and will stand up for yourself and won't hide away…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mrcountry/wear-your-scar-proudly-for-they-showed-that-you-stood-by-what-you-got/) MrCountry > [Children show scars like medals. Lovers use them as secrets to reveal. A scar is what happens when the word is made flesh.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/leonard-cohen/children-show-scars-like-medals-lovers-use-them-as-secrets-to-reveal/) [Leonard Cohen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/leonard-cohen/) > [I can no longer think of anything but you. In spite of myself, my imagination carries me to you. I grasp you, I kiss…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/i-can-no-longer-think-of-anything-but-you-in-spite-of-myself-my/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [Through an experience that simultaneously involved my sensibility and intelligence, I realized early on that the imaginative life, however morbid it might seem, is…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/through-an-experience-that-simultaneously-involved-my-sensibility-and/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [I always know exactly where my stories take place, which gives me something certain so I can use my imagination for the other stuff.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/i-always-know-exactly-where-my-stories-take-place-which-gives-me/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [The thought of a comedy with paid prostitutes always seemed so silly and purposeless, for a person hired by me could never take the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/the-thought-of-a-comedy-with-paid-prostitutes-always-seemed-so-silly/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [My imagination completely controls me, and forever feeds the fire that burns with dark red light in my heart by bringing me the best…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/my-imagination-completely-controls-me-and-forever-feeds-the-fire-that/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [Sometimes we must get hurt in order to grow, we must fail in order to know, sometimes our visions clear only after our eyes…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/sometimes-we-must-get-hurt-in-order-to-grow-we-must-fail-in-order-to/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [It is hard to have patience with people who say ''There is no death'' or ''Death doesn't matter'.' There is death. And whatever is…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/it-is-hard-to-have-patience-with-people-who-say-there-is-no-death-or/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [Thinking positive isn't about expecting the best to happen every time, but accepting that whatever happens is the best for this moment.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/thinking-positive-isn-t-about-expecting-the-best-to-happen-every-time/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [No more expectations, whatever happens, happens](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/no-more-expectations-whatever-happens-happens/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [Although we know that the feeling of loss is inevitable, I want us to be sure that whatever happens we can still count on…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/although-we-know-that-the-feeling-of-loss-is-inevitable-i-want-us-to/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [“Whatever happens, you two must not bump uglies. I want your word on this.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/whatever-happens-you-two-must-not-bump-uglies-i-want-your-word-on-this/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) ## More by Anonymous > [And a tear rolled down her cheek, as she said goodbye; because she's walking away, and she's never looking back](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/and-a-tear-rolled-down-her-cheek-as-she-said-goodbye-because-she-s/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [Life is full of change. That's how we learn and grow.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/life-is-full-of-change-that-s-how-we-learn-and-grow/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [You'll seldom experience regret for anything that you've done. It is what you haven't done that will torment you. The message, therefore, is clear.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/you-ll-seldom-experience-regret-for-anything-that-you-ve-done-it-is/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [Scrabble - The game is available in Braille. That’s a nice fact. This makes me feel better about humanity for some reason. I can’t…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/scrabble-the-game-is-available-in-braille-that-s-a-nice-fact-this/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [Everyone needs someone to love, and I choose you.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/everyone-needs-someone-to-love-and-i-choose-you/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [“THIS tale of my sore-troubled life I write,    To thank the God of nature, who conveyed    My soul to me, and with such care…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/this-tale-of-my-sore-troubled-life-i-write-to-thank-the-god-of-nature/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [Put on my J's and dance the whole night away Im naughty by nature like Im hip-hop hooray With my hands in the sky,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/put-on-my-j-s-and-dance-the-whole-night-away-im-naughty-by-nature/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [Me.. I have been through a lot, but I still manage to have a smile on my face. Im not worried about the past…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/me-i-have-been-through-a-lot-but-i-still-manage-to-have-a-smile-on-my/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [Distance is a test of love. many will fail for those who can't withstand it, but for those who can, theres only one answer…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/distance-is-a-test-of-love-many-will-fail-for-those-who-can-t/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [Im sorry I ever tried...](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/im-sorry-i-ever-tried/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [Being betrayed by the one you love is the worst feeling in the world...](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/being-betrayed-by-the-one-you-love-is-the-worst-feeling-in-the-world/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [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/) > [The only person I've ever purposely caused pain here is myself...By simply sharing, caring too much.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/the-only-person-i-ve-ever-purposely-caused-pain-here-is-myself-by/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [“Start a business, not a startup”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/start-a-business-not-a-startup/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [The truth is, of course, that the curtness of the Ten Commandments is an evidence, not of the gloom and narrowness of a religion,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/the-truth-is-of-course-that-the-curtness-of-the-ten-commandments-is/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) [Explore all 162,899 Anonymous quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) ## More Born quotes > [My mother says I didn't open my eyes for eight days after I was born, but when I did, the first thing I saw…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/elizabeth-taylor/my-mother-says-i-didn-t-open-my-eyes-for-eight-days-after-i-was-born/) [Elizabeth Taylor](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/elizabeth-taylor/) > [I always thought if I was born 2000 years earlier, I would be a monk, probably carving a monastery or some giant pantheon buildings.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jenova-chen/i-always-thought-if-i-was-born-2000-years-earlier-i-would-be-a-monk/) [Jenova Chen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jenova-chen/) > [The real world out there isn't nearly as nice as some people prefer it to be, so don't swallow everything your high-born teachers tell…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/the-real-world-out-there-isn-t-nearly-as-nice-as-some-people-prefer/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [Anybody looking for a quiet life has picked the wrong century to born in.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/anybody-looking-for-a-quiet-life-has-picked-the-wrong-century-to-born/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [I was born and raised in Orlando, where the economy and culture has been powerfully shaped by tourism, and so I've long been interested…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/laura-van-den-berg/i-was-born-and-raised-in-orlando-where-the-economy-and-culture-has/) [Laura van den Berg](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/laura-van-den-berg/) > [I know that in the rap game you've got a lot of people, that come from poverty, was born in poverty and if it…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jon-connor/i-know-that-in-the-rap-game-you-ve-got-a-lot-of-people-that-come-from/) [Jon Connor](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jon-connor/) > [Nothing old is ever reborn but neither does it totally disappear. And that which has once been born, will always reappear in a new…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alvar-aalto/nothing-old-is-ever-reborn-but-neither-does-it-totally-disappear-and/) [Alvar Aalto](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alvar-aalto/) > [I have lifted my plane . . . for perhaps a thousand flights and I have never felt her wheels glide from the Earth…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/beryl-markham/i-have-lifted-my-plane-for-perhaps-a-thousand-flights-and-i-have/) [Beryl Markham](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/beryl-markham/) > [If there is any period one would desire to be born in, is it not the age of Revolution; when the old and the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ralph-waldo-emerson/if-there-is-any-period-one-would-desire-to-be-born-in-is-it-not-the/) [Ralph Waldo Emerson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ralph-waldo-emerson/) > [Must I go bound while you go free Must I love a manwho doesn't love me Must I be born with so little art…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/cassandra-clare/must-i-go-bound-while-you-go-free-must-i-love-a-manwho-doesn-t-love/) [Cassandra Clare](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/cassandra-clare/) > [I'm not against gay people. I have a relative who is also gay. We can't help it if they were born that way.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/manny-pacquiao/i-m-not-against-gay-people-i-have-a-relative-who-is-also-gay-we-can-t/) [Manny Pacquiao](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/manny-pacquiao/) > [“Every child is born as angel.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lailah-gifty-akita/every-child-is-born-as-angel/) [Lailah Gifty Akita](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lailah-gifty-akita/) > [For the glory born of Goodness Never dies, And its flag is not half-masted In the skies.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bret-harte/for-the-glory-born-of-goodness-never-dies-and-its-flag-is-not-half/) [Bret Harte](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bret-harte/) > [There are two kinds of beauty; there is a beauty which God gives at birth, and which withers as a flower. 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