--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: The past exists only in our memories, the…" description: "\"The past exists only in our memories, the future only in our plans. The present is our only reality. The tree that you are aware of intellectually, bec..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/cc4/anonymous-1_lag_the-past-exists-only-in-our-memories-the_959774.jpg" --- # The past exists only in our memories, the future only in… ![“The past exists only in our memories, the future only in our plans. The present is our only reality. The tree that you are aware of intellectually, because of that small time lag, is always in the past and therefore is always unreal. Any intellectually conceived object is always in the past and…” quote by Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/cc4/anonymous-1_lag_the-past-exists-only-in-our-memories-the_959774.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/cc4/anonymous-1_lag_the-past-exists-only-in-our-memories-the_959774.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/cc4/anonymous-1_lag_the-past-exists-only-in-our-memories-the_959774.jpg) > “The past exists only in our memories, the future only in our plans. The present is our only reality. The tree that you are aware of intellectually, because of that small time lag, is always in the past and therefore is always unreal. Any intellectually conceived object is always in the past and therefore unreal. Reality is always the moment of vision before the intellectualization takes place. There is no other reality.” [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. Our perception of reality is always delayed; true reality exists only in the present moment before thought labels it. **In simple terms:** We only truly experience the present. Key Takeaway Focus on present awareness. Themes philosophy time perception Mood contemplative calm Type philosophical inspirational When to use this quote - meditation - creative work - decision making Key Concepts subjectivity reality mindfulness Questions to Reflect On - How can you stay present in fast‑paced tasks? - What does “unreal” mean for past ideas? A Different Perspective Thought can distort immediate experience. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Lag](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/lag/) [Memories](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/memories/) [Memory](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/memory/) [Moments](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/moments/) [Past](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/past/) [Reality](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/reality/) [Time](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/time/) [Tree](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/tree/) [Vision](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/vision/) ## Related quotes > [The past exists only in our memories, the future only in our plans. The present is our only reality.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/the-past-exists-only-in-our-memories-the-future-only-in-our-plans-the-2/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [I fell victim to the temptation of every autobiographer, to the illusion that since the past exists only in one's memories and the words…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/salman-rushdie/i-fell-victim-to-the-temptation-of-every-autobiographer-to-the/) [Salman Rushdie](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/salman-rushdie/) > [“The past exists only in our memories, the future only in our plans. The present is our only reality. The tree that you are…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robert-m-pirsig/the-past-exists-only-in-our-memories-the-future-only-in-our-plans-the-3/) [Robert M. Pirsig](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robert-m-pirsig/) > [I teach you that there is no other aim than to live with such totality that each moment becomes a celebration. 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Give them new ones”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/atticus-poetry/the-world-s-perception-of-you-exists-only-in-memories-give-them-new/) [Atticus Poetry](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/atticus-poetry/) > [“My reflections amount to a love story that is mostly made up, from memories that are mostly false, between people who were mainly not…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/olivia-sudjic/my-reflections-amount-to-a-love-story-that-is-mostly-made-up-from/) [Olivia Sudjic](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/olivia-sudjic/) > [Video games don't make kids violent, lag does.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/video-games-don-t-make-kids-violent-lag-does/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [“Let us settle ourselves, and work and wedge our feet downward through the mud and slush of opinion, and prejudice, and tradition, and delusion,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/henry-david-thoreau/let-us-settle-ourselves-and-work-and-wedge-our-feet-downward-through/) [Henry David Thoreau](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/henry-david-thoreau/) > [“But everything takes a different shape when we pass from abstractions to reality. In the former, everything must be subject to optimism, and we…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/carl-von-clausewitz/but-everything-takes-a-different-shape-when-we-pass-from-abstractions/) [Carl von Clausewitz](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/carl-von-clausewitz/) > [The best comedy and horror feel like they take place in reality. You have a rule or two you are bending or heightening, but…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jordan-peele/the-best-comedy-and-horror-feel-like-they-take-place-in-reality-you/) [Jordan Peele](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jordan-peele/) > [I think because I try to keep things as real as I can, or I try to start from a place of reality, I…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/maria-semple/i-think-because-i-try-to-keep-things-as-real-as-i-can-or-i-try-to/) [Maria Semple](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/maria-semple/) > [Reality is always the moment of vision before the intellectualization takes place. There is no other reality.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robert-m-pirsig/reality-is-always-the-moment-of-vision-before-the-intellectualization/) [Robert M. Pirsig](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robert-m-pirsig/) > [“TIME IS CONSIDERED TO BE THE FOURTH DIMENSION OF REALITY BECAUSE TIME VARIES FROM PLACE TO PLACE AND REALITY VARIES FROM TIME TO TIME”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/p-s-jagadeesh-kumar/time-is-considered-to-be-the-fourth-dimension-of-reality-because-time/) [P.S. Jagadeesh Kumar](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/p-s-jagadeesh-kumar/) > [The movies I make don't take place in reality.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bobcat-goldthwait/the-movies-i-make-don-t-take-place-in-reality/) [Bobcat Goldthwait](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bobcat-goldthwait/) > [“I learned a long, long time ago, that I could accomplish things in this place we call reality and yet still spend most of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kevin-walker/i-learned-a-long-long-time-ago-that-i-could-accomplish-things-in-this/) [Kevin Walker](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kevin-walker/) ## 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. 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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 Lag quotes > [Sometimes the challenge of beating the jet lag and getting a decent sleep can be as hard to solve as finding the right setup…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/romain-grosjean/sometimes-the-challenge-of-beating-the-jet-lag-and-getting-a-decent/) [Romain Grosjean](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/romain-grosjean/) > [Photography is solitary and there are lags between seeing with your eyes and seeing through the lens, and then seeing the image on your…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/christian-marclay/photography-is-solitary-and-there-are-lags-between-seeing-with-your/) [Christian Marclay](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/christian-marclay/) > [For what is the use of transmitting knowledge if the individual's total development lags behind?](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/maria-montessori/for-what-is-the-use-of-transmitting-knowledge-if-the-individual-s/) [Maria Montessori](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/maria-montessori/) > [Canada is one of the few places left where the small decencies are observed. If, as a young man, I was scornful of the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mordecai-richler/canada-is-one-of-the-few-places-left-where-the-small-decencies-are/) [Mordecai Richler](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mordecai-richler/) > [Knowledge and wisdom must go hand in hand. The adept will therefore endeavour to get on in knowledge as well as in wisdom, for…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/franz-bardon/knowledge-and-wisdom-must-go-hand-in-hand-the-adept-will-therefore/) [Franz Bardon](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/franz-bardon/) > [“Summit Lag occurs when a summit worker is kept in a permanent state of mal-acclimatization.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/steven-magee/summit-lag-occurs-when-a-summit-worker-is-kept-in-a-permanent-state/) [Steven Magee](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/steven-magee/) > [As soon as I reach my destination I have a cup of tea, something to eat and then sleep for about 13 hours. I…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jackie-collins/as-soon-as-i-reach-my-destination-i-have-a-cup-of-tea-something-to/) [Jackie Collins](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jackie-collins/) > [Upon my lips the breath of song, Within my heart a rhyme, Howe'er time trips or lags along, I keep abreast with time!](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/clinton-scollard/upon-my-lips-the-breath-of-song-within-my-heart-a-rhyme-howe-er-time/) [Clinton Scollard](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/clinton-scollard/) > [Normally, if you have a huge category that leads a bear market all the way down to the bottom - like tech after 2000,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kenneth-fisher/normally-if-you-have-a-huge-category-that-leads-a-bear-market-all-the/) [Kenneth Fisher](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kenneth-fisher/) > [The problem is that it takes physicians so long to accept a radical change. And the lag is unacceptable.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/eric-topol/the-problem-is-that-it-takes-physicians-so-long-to-accept-a-radical/) [Eric Topol](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/eric-topol/) > [Modeling in Europe at the beginning of my career was pretty hard, with the constant traveling and uncertainty as to where I was going…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/molly-sims/modeling-in-europe-at-the-beginning-of-my-career-was-pretty-hard-with/) [Molly Sims](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/molly-sims/) > [Sometimes I think the Congress feels that if you only decided tomorrow to switch to wind power that in two years we'd be getting…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/paul-r-ehrlich/sometimes-i-think-the-congress-feels-that-if-you-only-decided/) [Paul R. Ehrlich](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/paul-r-ehrlich/) > [The history of media is the market share of advertising dollars has followed.. albeit with a lag.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/james-packer/the-history-of-media-is-the-market-share-of-advertising-dollars-has/) [James Packer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/james-packer/) > [Lies always come first, dragging fools along by their irreparable vulgarity. Truth always lags last, limping along on the arm of time.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/baltasar-gracian/lies-always-come-first-dragging-fools-along-by-their-irreparable/) [Baltasar Gracian](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/baltasar-gracian/) > [Get over jet-lag quickly. I think a lot of people waste the first few days sleeping in the wrong time zone. Sometimes I take…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jane-seymour/get-over-jet-lag-quickly-i-think-a-lot-of-people-waste-the-first-few/) [Jane Seymour](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jane-seymour/) [Browse all 105 Lag quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/lag/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "The past exists only in our memories, the future only in our plans. The present is our only reality. The tree that you are aware of intellectually, because of that small time lag, is always in the past and therefore is always unreal. Any intellectually conceived object is always in the past and therefore unreal. Reality is always the moment of vision before the intellectualization takes place. 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