--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: looking off at the past as though it were…" description: "\"“looking off at the past as though it were a place one might still get to”\" — Cathie Pelletier" image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/f18/cathie-pelletier-20205_looking_looking-off-at-the-past-as-though-it-wer_454441.jpg" --- # looking off at the past as though it were a place one… ![“looking off at the past as though it were a place one might still get to” quote by Cathie Pelletier](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/f18/cathie-pelletier-20205_looking_looking-off-at-the-past-as-though-it-wer_454441.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/f18/cathie-pelletier-20205_looking_looking-off-at-the-past-as-though-it-wer_454441.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/f18/cathie-pelletier-20205_looking_looking-off-at-the-past-as-though-it-wer_454441.jpg) > ““looking off at the past as though it were a place one might still get to”” [Cathie Pelletier](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/cathie-pelletier/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Reflecting on the past feels like revisiting a place you can still reach, blending nostalgia with present awareness. **In simple terms:** Past is a reachable place. Key Takeaway Use past reflections to inform present choices. Themes memory reflection time travel Mood nostalgic thoughtful Type literary inspirational When to use this quote - therapy sessions - journaling - decision making Key Concepts Contemporary fiction psychology Questions to Reflect On - What does the past teach you now? - How can you honor memories without being stuck? A Different Perspective Dwelling too much may hinder moving forward. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Past](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/past/) [Time](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/time/) ## Related quotes > [I don't want to keep looking back in the past. I want to move forward.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/becca-kufrin/i-don-t-want-to-keep-looking-back-in-the-past-i-want-to-move-forward/) [Becca Kufrin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/becca-kufrin/) > [“The past is a place we can visit but cannot live there.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sam-izad/the-past-is-a-place-we-can-visit-but-cannot-live-there/) Sam Izad > [The past is the place we view the present from as much as the other way around.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/frederick-buechner/the-past-is-the-place-we-view-the-present-from-as-much-as-the-other/) [Frederick Buechner](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/frederick-buechner/) > [“Our past can control today and tomorrow only to the degree we allow it. The past should not be a place where we dwell…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sue-augustine/our-past-can-control-today-and-tomorrow-only-to-the-degree-we-allow/) [Sue Augustine](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sue-augustine/) > [One of the reasons for going back into the past is that it's almost the only place that there's any drama.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robert-towne/one-of-the-reasons-for-going-back-into-the-past-is-that-it-s-almost/) [Robert Towne](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robert-towne/) > [Load up your mind with pictures capturing your preferred tomorrow. Put the remembrances of the past in a place where they won't block your…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gary-carter/load-up-your-mind-with-pictures-capturing-your-preferred-tomorrow-put/) [Gary Carter](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gary-carter/) > [“For anyone who wanted to throw away his watch, along with his past, this was the place.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/peggy-kopman-owens/for-anyone-who-wanted-to-throw-away-his-watch-along-with-his-past/) [Peggy Kopman-Owens](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/peggy-kopman-owens/) > [“The past is not a place I like to visit. This project is forcing me to go there, to tidy up my thoughts. I'm…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bono/the-past-is-not-a-place-i-like-to-visit-this-project-is-forcing-me-to/) [Bono](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bono/) > [The past is a place you can learn from, not a place you want to live.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tony-robbins/the-past-is-a-place-you-can-learn-from-not-a-place-you-want-to-live/) [Tony Robbins](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tony-robbins/) > [Sometimes you have to find the good in goodbye. The past is a place of reference, not a place of residence. Getting over the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/sometimes-you-have-to-find-the-good-in-goodbye-the-past-is-a-place-of/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [The Past is a Place of 'REFERENCE'à Not a Place of RESIDENCE.!!!!à KEEP IT MOVING!!](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/the-past-is-a-place-of-reference-a-not-a-place-of-residence-a-keep-it/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [“People from the past belong to the past not to the place which you're heading”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/people-from-the-past-belong-to-the-past-not-to-the-place-which-you-re/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [The past is still, for us, a place that is not safely settled.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-ondaatje/the-past-is-still-for-us-a-place-that-is-not-safely-settled/) [Michael Ondaatje](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michael-ondaatje/) > [The past should not be a place where we live, but something from which we learn.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stormie-omartian/the-past-should-not-be-a-place-where-we-live-but-something-from-which/) [Stormie Omartian](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stormie-omartian/) > [“The past is a place of reference, not a place of residence; the past is a place of learning, not a place of living.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/roy-t-bennett/the-past-is-a-place-of-reference-not-a-place-of-residence-the-past-is/) [Roy T. Bennett](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/roy-t-bennett/) ## More by Cathie Pelletier > [“Never had anyone said, "Listen. Life is short. Pretend your body is still in its twenties. Jump for the brass ring. Swing for those…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/cathie-pelletier/never-had-anyone-said-listen-life-is-short-pretend-your-body-is-still/) [Cathie Pelletier](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/cathie-pelletier/) > [“Peace of mind comes in the strangest boxes.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/cathie-pelletier/peace-of-mind-comes-in-the-strangest-boxes/) [Cathie Pelletier](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/cathie-pelletier/) > [Almost overnight, Albert Pinkham had gone from being barely able to keep his head above water to walking on the stuff.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/cathie-pelletier/almost-overnight-albert-pinkham-had-gone-from-being-barely-able-to/) [Cathie Pelletier](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/cathie-pelletier/) > [“Who the hell ain't dysfunctional these days? When the Kennedys straighten out, then maybe the rest of us should worry.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/cathie-pelletier/who-the-hell-ain-t-dysfunctional-these-days-when-the-kennedys/) [Cathie Pelletier](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/cathie-pelletier/) > [“He felt the rush of years, years wasted and years used wisely. He felt time moving through him, as if it were a ghost,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/cathie-pelletier/he-felt-the-rush-of-years-years-wasted-and-years-used-wisely-he-felt/) [Cathie Pelletier](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/cathie-pelletier/) > [Sometimes you need to be touched to know you're still alive.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/cathie-pelletier/sometimes-you-need-to-be-touched-to-know-you-re-still-alive/) [Cathie Pelletier](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/cathie-pelletier/) > [“But Harry knew now that love was a soldier. It can invade the human heart. Build canopies through jungles. Scale castle walls. Cross moats.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/cathie-pelletier/but-harry-knew-now-that-love-was-a-soldier-it-can-invade-the-human/) [Cathie Pelletier](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/cathie-pelletier/) > [“caught up in the exciting world of adults and their antics”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/cathie-pelletier/caught-up-in-the-exciting-world-of-adults-and-their-antics/) [Cathie Pelletier](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/cathie-pelletier/) > [“She had stood there with the phone pressed to her ear as though it were a huge plastic seashell, all the unhappy years of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/cathie-pelletier/she-had-stood-there-with-the-phone-pressed-to-her-ear-as-though-it/) [Cathie Pelletier](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/cathie-pelletier/) > [“When you don't know enough about life to know what you might have missed out on, your imagination plays wicked tricks on you.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/cathie-pelletier/when-you-don-t-know-enough-about-life-to-know-what-you-might-have/) [Cathie Pelletier](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/cathie-pelletier/) > [“Nobody likes for the hero to walk away.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/cathie-pelletier/nobody-likes-for-the-hero-to-walk-away/) [Cathie Pelletier](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/cathie-pelletier/) > [“The big television crouched in the shadowy beam of the porch light. Mattie could see its black, open face, and she felt as though…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/cathie-pelletier/the-big-television-crouched-in-the-shadowy-beam-of-the-porch-light/) [Cathie Pelletier](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/cathie-pelletier/) > [“This is what keeps ghosts locked to the earth, that sweet burning need for something they loved and gave up too soon.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/cathie-pelletier/this-is-what-keeps-ghosts-locked-to-the-earth-that-sweet-burning-need/) [Cathie Pelletier](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/cathie-pelletier/) > [“She knew for certain there were all kinds of people who craved their youth, who would run like gazelles toward that fishhook of time,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/cathie-pelletier/she-knew-for-certain-there-were-all-kinds-of-people-who-craved-their/) [Cathie Pelletier](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/cathie-pelletier/) > [If God had meant for me to be religious, he would have alphabetized the books of the Bible. It was just too hard for…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/cathie-pelletier/if-god-had-meant-for-me-to-be-religious-he-would-have-alphabetized/) [Cathie Pelletier](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/cathie-pelletier/) [Explore all 31 Cathie Pelletier quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/cathie-pelletier/) ## More Looking quotes > [I'm tired of looking for the perfect guy. From now on.. he can look for me.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/i-m-tired-of-looking-for-the-perfect-guy-from-now-on-he-can-look-for/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [With multiplayer, permanent death, and an ever-changing world to explore and conquer, 'A Valley Without Wind' might be the place you're looking for if…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rob-manuel/with-multiplayer-permanent-death-and-an-ever-changing-world-to/) [Rob Manuel](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rob-manuel/) > [Once you stop looking for what you what you find exactly what you need](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/cynthia/once-you-stop-looking-for-what-you-what-you-find-exactly-what-you-need/) [Cynthia](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/cynthia/) > [I'm looking to fight the best guys in the world.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/yair-rodriguez/i-m-looking-to-fight-the-best-guys-in-the-world/) [Yair Rodriguez](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/yair-rodriguez/) > [I'm just always looking forwards. I spend very little time, looking backwards.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gary-vaynerchuk/i-m-just-always-looking-forwards-i-spend-very-little-time-looking/) [Gary Vaynerchuk](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gary-vaynerchuk/) > [I will support my party when they are right on an issue, but am not afraid to stand up to party bosses who are…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/darlene-senger/i-will-support-my-party-when-they-are-right-on-an-issue-but-am-not/) Darlene Senger > [Nothing is really broke, so it's not like I can fix it. I just have to keep trying to find what I'm looking for.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sarah-addison-allen/nothing-is-really-broke-so-it-s-not-like-i-can-fix-it-i-just-have-to/) [Sarah Addison Allen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sarah-addison-allen/) > [The hard-working Mexican tries to get up here looking for opportunities because America's one of the greatest countries in the world.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/andy-ruiz-jr/the-hard-working-mexican-tries-to-get-up-here-looking-for/) [Andy Ruiz Jr](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/andy-ruiz-jr/) > [Whenever I was flying commercial, I would land in Chicago, and they would announce, 'Get your passports out.' It happened so often, I would…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/shahid-khan/whenever-i-was-flying-commercial-i-would-land-in-chicago-and-they/) [Shahid Khan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/shahid-khan/) > [If it comes, it comes, but its not like a main focus. If you go looking for something youre never gone find what youre…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/akon/if-it-comes-it-comes-but-its-not-like-a-main-focus-if-you-go-looking/) [Akon](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/akon/) > [I've played a mother before, but it's always been a very young child, which is closer to what I can imagine my own life…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/andrea-riseborough/i-ve-played-a-mother-before-but-it-s-always-been-a-very-young-child/) [Andrea Riseborough](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/andrea-riseborough/) > [“I’ve been looking for you my whole damn life.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/colleen-hoover/i-ve-been-looking-for-you-my-whole-damn-life/) [Colleen Hoover](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/colleen-hoover/) > [“God isn't looking for perfect people. He is looking to perfect people.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-hileman/god-isn-t-looking-for-perfect-people-he-is-looking-to-perfect-people/) John Hileman > [The woman who gave birth to me, I don't have a relationship with. I'm not looking for one, either.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jordan-fisher/the-woman-who-gave-birth-to-me-i-don-t-have-a-relationship-with-i-m/) [Jordan Fisher](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jordan-fisher/) > [It's very important to me that I look good when I go out publicly. I like looking at my clothes rack in the morning…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anna-wintour/it-s-very-important-to-me-that-i-look-good-when-i-go-out-publicly-i/) [Anna Wintour](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anna-wintour/) Browse all 5,428 Looking quotes ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "“looking off at the past as though it were a place one might still get to”", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "Cathie Pelletier" }, "isPartOf": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website" }, "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/cathie-pelletier/looking-off-at-the-past-as-though-it-were-a-place-one-might-still-get/", "about": { "@type": "Thing", "name": "Looking" }, "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/cathie-pelletier/looking-off-at-the-past-as-though-it-were-a-place-one-might-still-get/#quotation", "image": { "@type": "ImageObject", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/f18/cathie-pelletier-20205_looking_looking-off-at-the-past-as-though-it-wer_454441.jpg", "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/f18/cathie-pelletier-20205_looking_looking-off-at-the-past-as-though-it-wer_454441.jpg", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/f18/cathie-pelletier-20205_looking_looking-off-at-the-past-as-though-it-wer_454441.jpg", "width": 1080, "height": 1080, "caption": "“looking off at the past as though it were a place one might still get to” — Cathie Pelletier", "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": "Cathie Pelletier", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/cathie-pelletier/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 4, "name": "“looking off at the past as...", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/cathie-pelletier/looking-off-at-the-past-as-though-it-were-a-place-one-might-still-get/" } ], "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/cathie-pelletier/looking-off-at-the-past-as-though-it-were-a-place-one-might-still-get/#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 } } ] } ```