--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: But I shall choose to remember you, and…" description: "\"“But I shall choose to remember you, and it would be nice if it went both ways. That’s how it generally goes in my country.” But does it? September tho..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/49d/catherynne-m-valente-375_choices_but-i-shall-choose-to-remember-you-and-i_2594461.png" --- # But I shall choose to remember you, and it would be nice… ![“But I shall choose to remember you, and it would be nice if it went both ways. That’s how it generally goes in my country.” But does it? September thought. If a body is hurt, they try to forget the person who hurt them and never think about the pain again.” quote by Catherynne M. Valente](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/49d/catherynne-m-valente-375_choices_but-i-shall-choose-to-remember-you-and-i_2594461.png) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/49d/catherynne-m-valente-375_choices_but-i-shall-choose-to-remember-you-and-i_2594461.png) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/49d/catherynne-m-valente-375_choices_but-i-shall-choose-to-remember-you-and-i_2594461.png) > ““But I shall choose to remember you, and it would be nice if it went both ways. That’s how it generally goes in my country.” But does it? September thought. If a body is hurt, they try to forget the person who hurt them and never think about the pain again. ”” [Catherynne M. Valente](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/catherynne-m-valente/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Explores memory and forgetting, suggesting people try to erase pain by ignoring the source. **In simple terms:** People often forget pain by ignoring its cause. Key Takeaway Confront pain rather than ignore it. Themes memory pain forgiveness Mood thoughtful introspective Type literary psychological When to use this quote - personal healing - psychological insight Key Concepts selective forgetting emotional coping Questions to Reflect On - How do you balance remembering and moving forward? - What helps you process hurt? A Different Perspective May oversimplify complex trauma. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Choices](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/choices/) [Memory](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/memory/) [Pain](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/pain/) ## Related quotes > [That's Venus, September thought. She was the goddess of love. It's nice that love comes on first thing in the evening, and goes out…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/catherynne-m-valente/that-s-venus-september-thought-she-was-the-goddess-of-love-it-s-nice/) [Catherynne M. Valente](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/catherynne-m-valente/) > [“Will you beat me if I say no?" he whispered fearfully. September thought she might cry. "Oh...oh dear. Not all the world is like…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/catherynne-m-valente/will-you-beat-me-if-i-say-no-he-whispered-fearfully-september-thought/) [Catherynne M. Valente](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/catherynne-m-valente/) > [“I have not been in Fairyland nearly long enough to start crying, September thought, then bit her tongue savagely.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/catherynne-m-valente/i-have-not-been-in-fairyland-nearly-long-enough-to-start-crying/) [Catherynne M. Valente](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/catherynne-m-valente/) > [S0metimes, we get hurt because we think so much. The pain that other people cost you, is not actually painful. Its just you thinking…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/s0metimes-we-get-hurt-because-we-think-so-much-the-pain-that-other/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [“It’s up to you. Everyone should get to choose their own way, and that’s all I mean by yelling. But I shall choose to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/catherynne-m-valente/it-s-up-to-you-everyone-should-get-to-choose-their-own-way-and-that-s/) [Catherynne M. Valente](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/catherynne-m-valente/) > [When faced with choosing between remembrance and oblivion, I choose to remember... and to forget.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mariana-fulger/when-faced-with-choosing-between-remembrance-and-oblivion-i-choose-to/) [Mariana Fulger](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mariana-fulger/) > [“A pity we cannot pick and choose what we remember.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lorraine-heath/a-pity-we-cannot-pick-and-choose-what-we-remember/) [Lorraine Heath](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lorraine-heath/) > [“I choose what to remember, and I am choosing Rhiannon. Again and again, I am choosing her, I am conjuring her, because to let…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-levithan/i-choose-what-to-remember-and-i-am-choosing-rhiannon-again-and-again/) [David Levithan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-levithan/) > [“Everyone’s past, I try to rationalize, is nothing more than the collection of memories they choose to remember.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/andrew-davidson/everyone-s-past-i-try-to-rationalize-is-nothing-more-than-the/) [Andrew Davidson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/andrew-davidson/) > [I choose to remember the good things that happened, the opportunity.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rick-carlisle/i-choose-to-remember-the-good-things-that-happened-the-opportunity/) [Rick Carlisle](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rick-carlisle/) > [“Their lives, our lives. All life on earth will be richer if we choose to remember everything we have in common.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/one-life/their-lives-our-lives-all-life-on-earth-will-be-richer-if-we-choose/) One life > [“What is the past but what we choose to remember?”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/amy-tan/what-is-the-past-but-what-we-choose-to-remember/) [Amy Tan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/amy-tan/) > [For memory is a moral action, a choice. You can choose to remember. You can choose not.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joyce-carol-oates/for-memory-is-a-moral-action-a-choice-you-can-choose-to-remember-you/) [Joyce Carol Oates](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joyce-carol-oates/) > [I can't control what people think about me or how they choose to remember me.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mohamed-sanu/i-can-t-control-what-people-think-about-me-or-how-they-choose-to/) [Mohamed Sanu](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mohamed-sanu/) > [After all, Bao Bomu says, what is the past but what we choose to remember?](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/amy-tan/after-all-bao-bomu-says-what-is-the-past-but-what-we-choose-to/) [Amy Tan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/amy-tan/) ## More by Catherynne M. Valente > [When I saw him I thought I could curl up inside him and go to sleep and never wake up." "Men are no good…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/catherynne-m-valente/when-i-saw-him-i-thought-i-could-curl-up-inside-him-and-go-to-sleep/) [Catherynne M. Valente](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/catherynne-m-valente/) > [We all just keep moving, September. We keep moving until we stop.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/catherynne-m-valente/we-all-just-keep-moving-september-we-keep-moving-until-we-stop/) [Catherynne M. Valente](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/catherynne-m-valente/) > [“You couldn't ever really fix a sad story. You could only make another. And another. And another, until you found the right one at…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/catherynne-m-valente/you-couldn-t-ever-really-fix-a-sad-story-you-could-only-make-another/) [Catherynne M. Valente](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/catherynne-m-valente/) > [“He considers it for a moment and spits out the seeds, which sprout, quickly, into tiny junkblossoms sizzling with recursive algorithms. The algorithms wriggle…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/catherynne-m-valente/he-considers-it-for-a-moment-and-spits-out-the-seeds-which-sprout/) [Catherynne M. Valente](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/catherynne-m-valente/) > [“Truly, Mallow yearned to know everything. Curiosity was part of her, like her short blond hair and bitten fingernails.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/catherynne-m-valente/truly-mallow-yearned-to-know-everything-curiosity-was-part-of-her/) [Catherynne M. Valente](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/catherynne-m-valente/) > [“The cicada lies in the earth for seventeen years. It is warm and dark there, it is soft and wet. Its little legs curl…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/catherynne-m-valente/the-cicada-lies-in-the-earth-for-seventeen-years-it-is-warm-and-dark/) [Catherynne M. Valente](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/catherynne-m-valente/) > [We all live inside the terrible engine of authority, and it grinds and shrieks and burns so that no one will say: lines on…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/catherynne-m-valente/we-all-live-inside-the-terrible-engine-of-authority-and-it-grinds-and/) [Catherynne M. Valente](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/catherynne-m-valente/) > [Her heart was bruised by the kiss, smashed and surprised and unsettled by it. September thought kisses were all nice, sweet things asked for…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/catherynne-m-valente/her-heart-was-bruised-by-the-kiss-smashed-and-surprised-and-unsettled/) [Catherynne M. Valente](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/catherynne-m-valente/) > [“September put her hand on the grip of the Rivet Gun. She’d only just gotten it, and she’d promised to take copious notes for…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/catherynne-m-valente/september-put-her-hand-on-the-grip-of-the-rivet-gun-she-d-only-just/) [Catherynne M. Valente](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/catherynne-m-valente/) > [Just tell yourself a story that'll satisfy you and pretend he told it.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/catherynne-m-valente/just-tell-yourself-a-story-that-ll-satisfy-you-and-pretend-he-told-it/) [Catherynne M. Valente](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/catherynne-m-valente/) > [“You see, the future is a kind of stew, a soup, a vichyssoise of the present and the past. That's how you get the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/catherynne-m-valente/you-see-the-future-is-a-kind-of-stew-a-soup-a-vichyssoise-of-the/) [Catherynne M. Valente](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/catherynne-m-valente/) > [Fairy tales have always been about getting through the worst of everything, the darkest and the deepest and the bloodiest of events. They are…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/catherynne-m-valente/fairy-tales-have-always-been-about-getting-through-the-worst-of/) [Catherynne M. Valente](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/catherynne-m-valente/) > [“There is a place, September, oh, very far from Pandemonium. A place where it is always autumn, where there is always cider and pumpkin…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/catherynne-m-valente/there-is-a-place-september-oh-very-far-from-pandemonium-a-place-where/) [Catherynne M. Valente](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/catherynne-m-valente/) > [“I was happy, the sun was high. I had enough.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/catherynne-m-valente/i-was-happy-the-sun-was-high-i-had-enough/) [Catherynne M. Valente](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/catherynne-m-valente/) > [Who are you?" "I am Death," said the creature. "I thought that was obvious." "But you're so small!" "Only because you are small. You…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/catherynne-m-valente/who-are-you-i-am-death-said-the-creature-i-thought-that-was-obvious/) [Catherynne M. Valente](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/catherynne-m-valente/) [Explore all 621 Catherynne M. Valente quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/catherynne-m-valente/) ## More Choices quotes > [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/) > [“Don’t allow anyone to pressure you into taking a job in a field that doesn’t feel right in your gut. You are the one…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alison-james/don-t-allow-anyone-to-pressure-you-into-taking-a-job-in-a-field-that/) Alison James > [When you have a choice, choose happy!](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/pancho-barnes/when-you-have-a-choice-choose-happy/) Pancho Barnes > [By making conscious choices in our behavior and where we focus our attention, we can transform our experience of our body, decrease our biological…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/deepak-chopra/by-making-conscious-choices-in-our-behavior-and-where-we-focus-our/) [Deepak Chopra](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/deepak-chopra/) > [Movies have power. Power to impact society and the choices we make. I want to entertain, but I also want to say something to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gina-prince-bythewood/movies-have-power-power-to-impact-society-and-the-choices-we-make-i/) [Gina Prince-Bythewood](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gina-prince-bythewood/) > [If you have a different mindset, you will have a different outcome: if you make different choices from your peers, your life will then…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jack-ma/if-you-have-a-different-mindset-you-will-have-a-different-outcome-if/) [Jack Ma](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jack-ma/) > [Personally, I prefer contemporary films, but the market calls for more period choices, especially since China opened up a cinema market in Hong Kong.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/donnie-yen/personally-i-prefer-contemporary-films-but-the-market-calls-for-more/) [Donnie Yen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/donnie-yen/) > [Clarissa," he said, "here with the vampire, I see. When things have settled a bit, we really must discuss you choice in pets..](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/cassandra-clare/clarissa-he-said-here-with-the-vampire-i-see-when-things-have-settled/) [Cassandra Clare](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/cassandra-clare/) > [Change is inevitable but personal growth is a choice.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bob-proctor/change-is-inevitable-but-personal-growth-is-a-choice/) [Bob Proctor](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bob-proctor/) > [Time hath not yet so dried this blood of mine, Nor age so eat up my invention, Nor fortune made such havoc of my…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-shakespeare/time-hath-not-yet-so-dried-this-blood-of-mine-nor-age-so-eat-up-my/) [William Shakespeare](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-shakespeare/) > [If you choose to draw from the inner well of free will, then you can make choices that are outside your current karmic patterns.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/frederick-lenz/if-you-choose-to-draw-from-the-inner-well-of-free-will-then-you-can/) [Frederick Lenz](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/frederick-lenz/) > [Act always so as to increase the number of choices](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/heinz-von-foerster/act-always-so-as-to-increase-the-number-of-choices/) [Heinz von Foerster](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/heinz-von-foerster/) > [Give me a platter of choice finnan haddie, freshly cooked in its bath of water and milk, add melted butter, a slice or two…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/craig-claiborne/give-me-a-platter-of-choice-finnan-haddie-freshly-cooked-in-its-bath/) [Craig Claiborne](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/craig-claiborne/) > [I don't know that any woman could ever not think about that at some point - even making the choice not to do it…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/naomi-watts/i-don-t-know-that-any-woman-could-ever-not-think-about-that-at-some/) [Naomi Watts](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/naomi-watts/) > [In this choice of inheritance we have given to our frame of polity the image of a relation in blood; binding up the constitution…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/edmund-burke/in-this-choice-of-inheritance-we-have-given-to-our-frame-of-polity/) [Edmund Burke](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/edmund-burke/) [Browse all 11,466 Choices quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/choices/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "“But I shall choose to remember you, and it would be nice if it went both ways. 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