---
title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: For months they'd run their fingers…"
description: "\"“For months they'd run their fingers around the hem of their affection without once acknowledging the fabric.”\" — Anthony Marra"
image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/cbe/anthony-marra-7171_fingers_for-months-they-d-run-their-fingers-arou_664913.png"
---

#  For months they'd run their fingers around the hem of…

![“For months they'd run their fingers around the hem of their affection without once acknowledging the fabric.” quote by Anthony Marra](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/cbe/anthony-marra-7171_fingers_for-months-they-d-run-their-fingers-arou_664913.png)   [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/cbe/anthony-marra-7171_fingers_for-months-they-d-run-their-fingers-arou_664913.png) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/cbe/anthony-marra-7171_fingers_for-months-they-d-run-their-fingers-arou_664913.png)

> ““For months they'd run their fingers around the hem of their affection without once acknowledging the fabric.””

[Anthony Marra](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anthony-marra/)

## About This Quote

This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation.

People often feel affection but never name or recognize it, keeping emotions hidden and unexamined.

**In simple terms:** Unspoken love stays hidden.

Key Takeaway

Name your feelings to understand them.

Themes

emotion relationships self-awareness

Mood

reflective melancholic

Type

literary emotional

When to use this quote

- friendship
- romantic relationships
- personal introspection

Key Concepts

attachment unacknowledged affection

Questions to Reflect On

- What emotions are you avoiding naming?
- How does labeling affection change a relationship?

A Different Perspective

Naming feelings can be painful and may change dynamics.

★ ★ ★ ★ ★   No ratings yet

[Affection Acknowledging](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/affection-acknowledging-944884/) [Fingers](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/fingers/) [Fingers Hem](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/fingers-hem-5291492/) [Hem Affection](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/hem-affection-944885/) [Love](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/love/) [Months Run](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/months-run-2350319/)

## Related quotes

> [She praised his book and he embraced her from gratitude rather than lust, but she didn't let go. Neither did he. She kissed his…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anthony-marra/she-praised-his-book-and-he-embraced-her-from-gratitude-rather-than/)

[Anthony Marra](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anthony-marra/)

> [If someone said I had enough money and I could take six months off, I would run in an instant.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lindsay-duncan/if-someone-said-i-had-enough-money-and-i-could-take-six-months-off-i/)

[Lindsay Duncan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lindsay-duncan/)

> [I would have touched it like a child But knew my finger could but have touched Cold stone and water. I grew wild, Even…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-butler-yeats/i-would-have-touched-it-like-a-child-but-knew-my-finger-could-but/)

[William Butler Yeats](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-butler-yeats/)

> [You hit somebody with your fist and not with your fingers spread.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/heinz-guderian/you-hit-somebody-with-your-fist-and-not-with-your-fingers-spread/)

[Heinz Guderian](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/heinz-guderian/)

> [Jazz is the music of the body. The breath comes through brass. It is the body's breath, and the strings' wails and moans are…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anais-nin/jazz-is-the-music-of-the-body-the-breath-comes-through-brass-it-is/)

[Anais Nin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anais-nin/)

> [ \[Sport officials\] blocked their support of us. But those individuals \[ Muhammad Ali, the Jim Browns, the Bill Russells, Kareem Abdul Jabbar \] were… ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-carlos/sport-officials-blocked-their-support-of-us-but-those-individuals/)

[John Carlos](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-carlos/)

> [Shhh.” He put a finger to her lips. “Hear me out. I cannot deny that I would've liked to have made babies with you.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/elizabeth-hoyt/shhh-he-put-a-finger-to-her-lips-hear-me-out-i-cannot-deny-that-i/)

[Elizabeth Hoyt](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/elizabeth-hoyt/)

> [The world belongs to those who think and act with it, who keep a finger on its pulse.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-ralph-inge/the-world-belongs-to-those-who-think-and-act-with-it-who-keep-a/)

[William Ralph Inge](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-ralph-inge/)

> [I take the seashell from my jeans pocket and rub my fingers across its silken, indented surface, shallow as my own open hand. This…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/katrina-kenison/i-take-the-seashell-from-my-jeans-pocket-and-rub-my-fingers-across/)

[Katrina Kenison](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/katrina-kenison/)

> [Sam reached his hand toward mine and I automatically put my fingers in his. With a guilty little smile he pulled my hand toward…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/maggie-stiefvater/sam-reached-his-hand-toward-mine-and-i-automatically-put-my-fingers/)

[Maggie Stiefvater](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/maggie-stiefvater/)

> [The child who ran weeping to you with a cut finger is now brought home, smiling gamely, with a broken collarbone and incredible contusions-…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/pam-brown/the-child-who-ran-weeping-to-you-with-a-cut-finger-is-now-brought/)

[Pam Brown](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/pam-brown/)

> [The nineteenth century lynching mob cuts off ears, toes, and fingers, strips off flesh, and distributes portions of the body as souvenirs among the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ida-b-wells/the-nineteenth-century-lynching-mob-cuts-off-ears-toes-and-fingers/)

[Ida B. Wells](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ida-b-wells/)

> [Yes yes you can count on me - Fingers](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nikhil-saluja/yes-yes-you-can-count-on-me-fingers/)

[Nikhil Saluja](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nikhil-saluja/)

> [Ambition drives you on, ability certainly helps, but the fickle finger of fate and luck are great things.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/fergus-henderson/ambition-drives-you-on-ability-certainly-helps-but-the-fickle-finger/)

[Fergus Henderson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/fergus-henderson/)

> [A poet is wounded into speech, and he examines these wounds, meticulously, to discover how to heal them. The bad poet harangues at the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/samuel-r-delany/a-poet-is-wounded-into-speech-and-he-examines-these-wounds/)

[Samuel R. Delany](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/samuel-r-delany/)

## More by Anthony Marra

> [“Carrying that lumber the forty meters from the forest had left his knuckles blistered, his underarms sopping, but now a few hours of flames…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anthony-marra/carrying-that-lumber-the-forty-meters-from-the-forest-had-left-his/)

[Anthony Marra](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anthony-marra/)

> [“The previous night, for the first time in a long time, he had felt whole, and his eyes returned to the rearview, where his…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anthony-marra/the-previous-night-for-the-first-time-in-a-long-time-he-had-felt/)

[Anthony Marra](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anthony-marra/)

> [“At the kitchen table she examined the glass of ice. Each cube was rounded by room temperature, dissolving in its own remains, and belatedly…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anthony-marra/at-the-kitchen-table-she-examined-the-glass-of-ice-each-cube-was/)

[Anthony Marra](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anthony-marra/)

> [“There was no one left to say whom you could love. p.294”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anthony-marra/there-was-no-one-left-to-say-whom-you-could-love-p-294/)

[Anthony Marra](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anthony-marra/)

> [We twist our souls around each other’s miseries.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anthony-marra/we-twist-our-souls-around-each-other-s-miseries/)

[Anthony Marra](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anthony-marra/)

> [“The television dramas we grew up on, stories of star-crossed lovers, stories of love overcoming all obstacles, well, they’re all fairy tales, obviously, like…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anthony-marra/the-television-dramas-we-grew-up-on-stories-of-star-crossed-lovers/)

[Anthony Marra](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anthony-marra/)

> [“He had always tried to treat Havaa as a child and she always went along with it, as though childhood and innocence were fantastical…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anthony-marra/he-had-always-tried-to-treat-havaa-as-a-child-and-she-always-went/)

[Anthony Marra](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anthony-marra/)

> [“He asked them to close their eyes, and hoped their mouths would follow suit.” p. 137”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anthony-marra/he-asked-them-to-close-their-eyes-and-hoped-their-mouths-would-follow/)

[Anthony Marra](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anthony-marra/)

> [“Don't insult me. Everyone knows a turtle is a crustacean on its mother's side.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anthony-marra/don-t-insult-me-everyone-knows-a-turtle-is-a-crustacean-on-its-mother/)

[Anthony Marra](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anthony-marra/)

> [“Those smooth, spit-cleaned cheeks gave no indication of the dreams crowding her skull. Should she make it to adulthood, the girl would arrive with…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anthony-marra/those-smooth-spit-cleaned-cheeks-gave-no-indication-of-the-dreams/)

[anthony marra](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anthony-marra/)

> [“In all likelihood, Sonja had more academic journal subscriptions than friends. She could explain advanced calculus to her fifth-form algebra teacher but couldn't tell…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anthony-marra/in-all-likelihood-sonja-had-more-academic-journal-subscriptions-than/)

[Anthony Marra](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anthony-marra/)

> [“Even after Sonja graduated secondary school at the top of her class and matriculated to the city university biology department, their parents found more…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anthony-marra/even-after-sonja-graduated-secondary-school-at-the-top-of-her-class/)

[Anthony Marra](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anthony-marra/)

> [“He was losing her incrementally...As a web is no more than holes woven together, they were bonded by what was no longer there.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anthony-marra/he-was-losing-her-incrementally-as-a-web-is-no-more-than-holes-woven/)

[Anthony Marra](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anthony-marra/)

> [“Too young to explain in words, the girl's face was old enough to show the loss that was that name.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anthony-marra/too-young-to-explain-in-words-the-girl-s-face-was-old-enough-to-show/)

[Anthony Marra](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anthony-marra/)

> [“A lizard fucks a crab and nine months later a turtle pops out. It's called evolution.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anthony-marra/a-lizard-fucks-a-crab-and-nine-months-later-a-turtle-pops-out-it-s/)

[Anthony Marra](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anthony-marra/)

[Explore all 94 Anthony Marra quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anthony-marra/)

## More Fingers quotes

> [A poet is wounded into speech, and he examines these wounds, meticulously, to discover how to heal them. The bad poet harangues at the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/samuel-r-delany/a-poet-is-wounded-into-speech-and-he-examines-these-wounds/)

[Samuel R. Delany](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/samuel-r-delany/)

> [Ambition drives you on, ability certainly helps, but the fickle finger of fate and luck are great things.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/fergus-henderson/ambition-drives-you-on-ability-certainly-helps-but-the-fickle-finger/)

[Fergus Henderson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/fergus-henderson/)

> [Yes yes you can count on me - Fingers](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nikhil-saluja/yes-yes-you-can-count-on-me-fingers/)

[Nikhil Saluja](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nikhil-saluja/)

> [The nineteenth century lynching mob cuts off ears, toes, and fingers, strips off flesh, and distributes portions of the body as souvenirs among the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ida-b-wells/the-nineteenth-century-lynching-mob-cuts-off-ears-toes-and-fingers/)

[Ida B. Wells](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ida-b-wells/)

> [The child who ran weeping to you with a cut finger is now brought home, smiling gamely, with a broken collarbone and incredible contusions-…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/pam-brown/the-child-who-ran-weeping-to-you-with-a-cut-finger-is-now-brought/)

[Pam Brown](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/pam-brown/)

> [Sam reached his hand toward mine and I automatically put my fingers in his. With a guilty little smile he pulled my hand toward…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/maggie-stiefvater/sam-reached-his-hand-toward-mine-and-i-automatically-put-my-fingers/)

[Maggie Stiefvater](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/maggie-stiefvater/)

> [I take the seashell from my jeans pocket and rub my fingers across its silken, indented surface, shallow as my own open hand. This…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/katrina-kenison/i-take-the-seashell-from-my-jeans-pocket-and-rub-my-fingers-across/)

[Katrina Kenison](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/katrina-kenison/)

> [The world belongs to those who think and act with it, who keep a finger on its pulse.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-ralph-inge/the-world-belongs-to-those-who-think-and-act-with-it-who-keep-a/)

[William Ralph Inge](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-ralph-inge/)

> [Shhh.” He put a finger to her lips. “Hear me out. I cannot deny that I would've liked to have made babies with you.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/elizabeth-hoyt/shhh-he-put-a-finger-to-her-lips-hear-me-out-i-cannot-deny-that-i/)

[Elizabeth Hoyt](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/elizabeth-hoyt/)

> [ \[Sport officials\] blocked their support of us. But those individuals \[ Muhammad Ali, the Jim Browns, the Bill Russells, Kareem Abdul Jabbar \] were… ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-carlos/sport-officials-blocked-their-support-of-us-but-those-individuals/)

[John Carlos](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-carlos/)

> [Jazz is the music of the body. The breath comes through brass. It is the body's breath, and the strings' wails and moans are…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anais-nin/jazz-is-the-music-of-the-body-the-breath-comes-through-brass-it-is/)

[Anais Nin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anais-nin/)

> [You hit somebody with your fist and not with your fingers spread.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/heinz-guderian/you-hit-somebody-with-your-fist-and-not-with-your-fingers-spread/)

[Heinz Guderian](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/heinz-guderian/)

> [I would have touched it like a child But knew my finger could but have touched Cold stone and water. I grew wild, Even…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-butler-yeats/i-would-have-touched-it-like-a-child-but-knew-my-finger-could-but/)

[William Butler Yeats](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-butler-yeats/)

> [The trees change their voices in autumn as well as their shapes. No longer do they whisper to one another in muffled tones as…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/patience-strong/the-trees-change-their-voices-in-autumn-as-well-as-their-shapes-no/)

[Patience Strong](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/patience-strong/)

> [Some people are born skinny, and that's just the way it is. You can't point a finger at them and say they're ill or…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/heidi-klum/some-people-are-born-skinny-and-that-s-just-the-way-it-is-you-can-t/)

[Heidi Klum](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/heidi-klum/)

[Browse all 2,537 Fingers quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/fingers/)

```json
{
    "@context": "https://schema.org",
    "@graph": [
        {
            "@type": "Quotation",
            "text": "“For months they'd run their fingers around the hem of their affection without once acknowledging the fabric.”",
            "creator": {
                "@type": "Person",
                "name": "Anthony Marra"
            },
            "isPartOf": {
                "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website"
            },
            "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anthony-marra/for-months-they-d-run-their-fingers-around-the-hem-of-their-affection/",
            "about": {
                "@type": "Thing",
                "name": "Fingers"
            },
            "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anthony-marra/for-months-they-d-run-their-fingers-around-the-hem-of-their-affection/#quotation",
            "image": {
                "@type": "ImageObject",
                "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/cbe/anthony-marra-7171_fingers_for-months-they-d-run-their-fingers-arou_664913.png",
                "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/cbe/anthony-marra-7171_fingers_for-months-they-d-run-their-fingers-arou_664913.png",
                "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/cbe/anthony-marra-7171_fingers_for-months-they-d-run-their-fingers-arou_664913.png",
                "width": 1080,
                "height": 1080,
                "caption": "“For months they'd run their fingers around the hem of their affection without once acknowledging the fabric.” — Anthony Marra",
                "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": "Anthony Marra",
                    "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anthony-marra/"
                },
                {
                    "@type": "ListItem",
                    "position": 4,
                    "name": "“For months they'd run their fingers...",
                    "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anthony-marra/for-months-they-d-run-their-fingers-around-the-hem-of-their-affection/"
                }
            ],
            "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anthony-marra/for-months-they-d-run-their-fingers-around-the-hem-of-their-affection/#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
            }
        }
    ]
}
```
