--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: Sometimes I think my father has all these…" description: "\"“Sometimes I think my father has all these scars. On his heart. In his head. All over. It’s not such an easy thing to be the son of a man who’s been to..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/3a7/benjamin-alire-s-enz-1125_father_sometimes-i-think-my-father-has-all-thes_320403.png" --- # Sometimes I think my father has all these scars. On his… ![“Sometimes I think my father has all these scars. On his heart. In his head. All over. It’s not such an easy thing to be the son of a man who’s been to war.” quote by Benjamin Alire Sáenz](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/3a7/benjamin-alire-s-enz-1125_father_sometimes-i-think-my-father-has-all-thes_320403.png) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/3a7/benjamin-alire-s-enz-1125_father_sometimes-i-think-my-father-has-all-thes_320403.png) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/3a7/benjamin-alire-s-enz-1125_father_sometimes-i-think-my-father-has-all-thes_320403.png) > ““Sometimes I think my father has all these scars. On his heart. In his head. All over. It’s not such an easy thing to be the son of a man who’s been to war.”” [Benjamin Alire Sáenz](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/benjamin-alire-s-enz/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. A son reflects on his father's invisible emotional wounds from war. **In simple terms:** War leaves hidden scars on loved ones. Key Takeaway A empathy. Themes family war emotional scars inheritance Mood reflective somber Type literary emotional When to use this quote - family dinner - therapy - memory sharing Key Concepts trauma intergenerational pain Questions to Reflect On - How do you recognize unseen scars? - What can families do to support veterans? A Different Perspective Healing requires open dialogue. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Father](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/father/) [Parenting](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/parenting/) [Scars](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/scars/) [War](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/war/) ## Related quotes > [“There was still so much I wanted to know, needed to know. But I had to be careful how I extracted information from Rowe’s…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/there-was-still-so-much-i-wanted-to-know-needed-to-know-but-i-had-to/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [“Your name is forever written in the scars on my heart. Let’s start erasing the scars leaving only your name and mine.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/c-h-carter/your-name-is-forever-written-in-the-scars-on-my-heart-let-s-start/) C.H. Carter > [Scars on your body shows that you have lived. Scars on your heart shows that you have loved.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/scars-on-your-body-shows-that-you-have-lived-scars-on-your-heart/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [“Love never dies but the ones you love can. So hold them close, don't ever part, for when you do, Scars will be upon…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/shelena/love-never-dies-but-the-ones-you-love-can-so-hold-them-close-don-t/) Shelena > [With every year that passes, I get further away from my target audience, and while I've been happy to think of myself as a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anthony-horowitz/with-every-year-that-passes-i-get-further-away-from-my-target/) [Anthony Horowitz](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anthony-horowitz/) > [“She tried not to think of her father, once a brief inmate of those twenty-foot-high, three-foot-thick crenellated walls. Now”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/j-t-ellison/she-tried-not-to-think-of-her-father-once-a-brief-inmate-of-those/) [J.T. Ellison](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/j-t-ellison/) > [Who has not raised a tombstone, here and there, over buried hopes and dead joys, on the road of life? Like the scars of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ninon-de-l-enclos/who-has-not-raised-a-tombstone-here-and-there-over-buried-hopes-and/) [Ninon de L'Enclos](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ninon-de-l-enclos/) > [“There are scars on my heart, just as thick, as disfiguring as those on my face. I know they’re there. I hope some undamaged…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gail-honeyman/there-are-scars-on-my-heart-just-as-thick-as-disfiguring-as-those-on/) [Gail Honeyman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gail-honeyman/) > [“It’s like … everything that happened to you, all those terrible things that I hope someday you’ll tell me about, they’re part of who…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/elle-casey/it-s-like-everything-that-happened-to-you-all-those-terrible-things/) [Elle Casey](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/elle-casey/) > [“The scars of my heart wore ivory and the lines on my mind told crimson lies.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/laura-chouette/the-scars-of-my-heart-wore-ivory-and-the-lines-on-my-mind-told/) [Laura Chouette](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/laura-chouette/) > [It's the start of the end Surrender the throne The blood on my hands covered the holes We've been surrounded by vicious cycles Are…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bring-me-the-horizon/it-s-the-start-of-the-end-surrender-the-throne-the-blood-on-my-hands-2/) [Bring Me The Horizon](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bring-me-the-horizon/) > [I've been hearing about criticism and negative thoughts my whole life. They say I can't do this, I can't do that, I won't succeed…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/skylerbling/i-ve-been-hearing-about-criticism-and-negative-thoughts-my-whole-life/) [Skylerbling](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/skylerbling/) > [It's the start of the end Surrender the throne The blood on my hands covered the holes We've been surrounded by vicious cycles The…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/it-s-the-start-of-the-end-surrender-the-throne-the-blood-on-my-hands/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [Just give me a reason Just a little bit's enough Just a second we're not broken just bent And we can learn to love…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/just-give-me-a-reason-just-a-little-bit-s-enough-just-a-second-we-re/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [“We should never allow that the scars on our heart change the way we love - no matter how deep they run.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/laura-chouette/we-should-never-allow-that-the-scars-on-our-heart-change-the-way-we/) [Laura Chouette](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/laura-chouette/) ## More by Benjamin Alire Sáenz > [“If we studied birds ,maybe we could learn to be free.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/benjamin-alire-s-enz/if-we-studied-birds-maybe-we-could-learn-to-be-free/) [Benjamin Alire Sáenz](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/benjamin-alire-s-enz/) > [“It felt like there was a whole world inside her.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/benjamin-alire-s-enz/it-felt-like-there-was-a-whole-world-inside-her/) [Benjamin Alire Sáenz](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/benjamin-alire-s-enz/) > [“Breakfast seemed to be a good time for throwing your emotions around. Jodie said that at this place emotions were like Frisbees – people…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/benjamin-alire-s-enz/breakfast-seemed-to-be-a-good-time-for-throwing-your-emotions-around/) [Benjamin Alire Sáenz](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/benjamin-alire-s-enz/) > [“I loved the different rules of summer.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/benjamin-alire-s-enz/i-loved-the-different-rules-of-summer/) [Benjamin Alire Sáenz](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/benjamin-alire-s-enz/) > [“I decided that maybe we left each other alone too much. Leaving each other alone was killing us.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/benjamin-alire-s-enz/i-decided-that-maybe-we-left-each-other-alone-too-much-leaving-each/) [Benjamin Alire Sáenz](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/benjamin-alire-s-enz/) > [Why do we smile? Why do we laugh? Why do we feel alone? Why are we sad and confused? Why do we read poetry?…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/benjamin-alire-s-enz/why-do-we-smile-why-do-we-laugh-why-do-we-feel-alone-why-are-we-sad/) [Benjamin Alire Saenz](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/benjamin-alire-s-enz/) > [“See, I think there are roads that lead us to each other. But in my family, there were no roads - just underground tunnels.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/benjamin-alire-s-enz/see-i-think-there-are-roads-that-lead-us-to-each-other-but-in-my/) [Benjamin Alire Sáenz](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/benjamin-alire-s-enz/) > [“That was the first time I did coke. My body, it was electric. For the first time in my life I felt as if…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/benjamin-alire-s-enz/that-was-the-first-time-i-did-coke-my-body-it-was-electric-for-the/) [Benjamin Alire Sáenz](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/benjamin-alire-s-enz/) > [“Did the thought ever occur to you that I might care about you? People are allowed to care about each other." "You don't know…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/benjamin-alire-s-enz/did-the-thought-ever-occur-to-you-that-i-might-care-about-you-people/) [Benjamin Alire Sáenz](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/benjamin-alire-s-enz/) > [“Words exist only in theory. And then one ordinary day you run into a word that exists only in theory. And you meet it…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/benjamin-alire-s-enz/words-exist-only-in-theory-and-then-one-ordinary-day-you-run-into-a/) [Benjamin Alire Sáenz](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/benjamin-alire-s-enz/) > [“I don't like remembering. Remembering makes me feel things. I don't like to feel things. I'm thinking I could spend the rest of my…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/benjamin-alire-s-enz/i-don-t-like-remembering-remembering-makes-me-feel-things-i-don-t/) [Benjamin Alire Saenz](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/benjamin-alire-s-enz/) > [“In the distance, I can see a storm coming in, the dark clouds and the lightning on the horizon moving towards me. I wait…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/benjamin-alire-s-enz/in-the-distance-i-can-see-a-storm-coming-in-the-dark-clouds-and-the/) [Benjamin Alire Sáenz](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/benjamin-alire-s-enz/) > [“I kind of liked his voice. He sounded like he had a cold, you know, like he was about to lose his voice. "You…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/benjamin-alire-s-enz/i-kind-of-liked-his-voice-he-sounded-like-he-had-a-cold-you-know-like/) [Benjamin Alire Sáenz](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/benjamin-alire-s-enz/) > [“I have this idea that the reason we have dreams is that we're thinking about things that we don't know we're thinking about-and those…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/benjamin-alire-s-enz/i-have-this-idea-that-the-reason-we-have-dreams-is-that-we-re/) [Benjamin Alire Sáenz](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/benjamin-alire-s-enz/) > [“Everyone expected something from me. Something I just couldn't give.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/benjamin-alire-s-enz/everyone-expected-something-from-me-something-i-just-couldn-t-give/) [Benjamin Alire Sáenz](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/benjamin-alire-s-enz/) [Explore all 283 Benjamin Alire Sáenz quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/benjamin-alire-s-enz/) ## More Father quotes > [Whatever meaning 'Annie's Song' had for me on a personal level, there was also a larger context. It could just as easily have been…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-denver/whatever-meaning-annie-s-song-had-for-me-on-a-personal-level-there/) [John Denver](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-denver/) > [Of all the people who have affected my life and influenced the choices I've made, none has been more important than my father. I…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/teddy-atlas/of-all-the-people-who-have-affected-my-life-and-influenced-the/) [Teddy Atlas](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/teddy-atlas/) > [(knitting while on a motorcycle) "For several years she knitted in secret (my father would not approve; she was to concentrate on motorcycling and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/elizabeth-zimmermann/knitting-while-on-a-motorcycle-for-several-years-she-knitted-in/) [Elizabeth Zimmermann](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/elizabeth-zimmermann/) > [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/) > [My parents were not musical, and they were not effervescent people; everything was very quiet. The music that I played was loud; it used…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/don-mclean/my-parents-were-not-musical-and-they-were-not-effervescent-people/) [Don McLean](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/don-mclean/) > [“My father called twice and left a voicemail—who does that?”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/megan-erickson/my-father-called-twice-and-left-a-voicemail-who-does-that/) [Megan Erickson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/megan-erickson/) > [My father longed for a better life for us, and when I was nine he got a job as a heart surgeon in Belfast.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/katie-melua/my-father-longed-for-a-better-life-for-us-and-when-i-was-nine-he-got/) [Katie Melua](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/katie-melua/) > [I guess, it's a father's dream for his daughter to be known around the world.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/liza-soberano/i-guess-it-s-a-father-s-dream-for-his-daughter-to-be-known-around-the/) [Liza Soberano](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/liza-soberano/) > [The old men of the village of Mahotière say that the Mistress of the Water is a mulatto woman. At midnight she comes out…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jacques-roumain/the-old-men-of-the-village-of-mahoti-re-say-that-the-mistress-of-the/) [Jacques Roumain](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jacques-roumain/) > [“I don’t know. We all have to bear things, Ari. All of us. Your father has to bear the war and what it did…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/i-don-t-know-we-all-have-to-bear-things-ari-all-of-us-your-father-has/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [“This was, I sometimes thought, the last gift my father gave me. And the best: His death stood out as the supreme-o excuse for…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jerry-stahl/this-was-i-sometimes-thought-the-last-gift-my-father-gave-me-and-the/) [Jerry Stahl](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jerry-stahl/) > [My father was very encouraging.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/paolo-nutini/my-father-was-very-encouraging/) [Paolo Nutini](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/paolo-nutini/) > [I'm a strange mixture of my mother's curiosity; my father, who grew up the son of the manse in a Presbyterian family, who had…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rupert-murdoch/i-m-a-strange-mixture-of-my-mother-s-curiosity-my-father-who-grew-up/) [Rupert Murdoch](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rupert-murdoch/) > [It is a sweet thing that we serve a dissatisfied God who has destinations in mind for us that we would never choose for…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/paul-david-tripp/it-is-a-sweet-thing-that-we-serve-a-dissatisfied-god-who-has/) [Paul David Tripp](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/paul-david-tripp/) > [Liesel observed the strangeness of her foster father's eyes. They were made of kindness, and silver.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/markus-zusak/liesel-observed-the-strangeness-of-her-foster-father-s-eyes-they-were/) [Markus Zusak](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/markus-zusak/) [Browse all 19,784 Father quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/father/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "“Sometimes I think my father has all these scars. On his heart. In his head. All over. It’s not such an easy thing to be the son of a man who’s been to war.”", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "Benjamin Alire Sáenz" }, "isPartOf": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website" }, "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/benjamin-alire-s-enz/sometimes-i-think-my-father-has-all-these-scars-on-his-heart-in-his/", "about": { "@type": "Thing", "name": "Father" }, "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/benjamin-alire-s-enz/sometimes-i-think-my-father-has-all-these-scars-on-his-heart-in-his/#quotation", "image": { "@type": "ImageObject", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/3a7/benjamin-alire-s-enz-1125_father_sometimes-i-think-my-father-has-all-thes_320403.png", "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/3a7/benjamin-alire-s-enz-1125_father_sometimes-i-think-my-father-has-all-thes_320403.png", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/3a7/benjamin-alire-s-enz-1125_father_sometimes-i-think-my-father-has-all-thes_320403.png", "width": 1080, "height": 1080, "caption": "“Sometimes I think my father has all these scars. On his heart. In his head. All over. It’s not such an easy…” — Benjamin Alire Sáenz", "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": "Benjamin Alire Sáenz", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/benjamin-alire-s-enz/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 4, "name": "“Sometimes I think my father has...", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/benjamin-alire-s-enz/sometimes-i-think-my-father-has-all-these-scars-on-his-heart-in-his/" } ], "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/benjamin-alire-s-enz/sometimes-i-think-my-father-has-all-these-scars-on-his-heart-in-his/#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 } } ] } ```