--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: Isn’t it better that we send them off…" description: "\"“Isn’t it better that we send them off once and for all beneath the glow of carnival lights, with the taste of treats on our tongues, rather than invit..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/b88/chang-rae-lee-3318_carnival_isn-t-it-better-that-we-send-them-off-on_1102262.jpg" --- # Isn’t it better that we send them off once and for all… ![“Isn’t it better that we send them off once and for all beneath the glow of carnival lights, with the taste of treats on our tongues, rather than invite the acrid tang of doubt, and undue longing, and the heart-stab of a freshly sundered bond?” quote by Chang-rae Lee](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/b88/chang-rae-lee-3318_carnival_isn-t-it-better-that-we-send-them-off-on_1102262.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/b88/chang-rae-lee-3318_carnival_isn-t-it-better-that-we-send-them-off-on_1102262.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/b88/chang-rae-lee-3318_carnival_isn-t-it-better-that-we-send-them-off-on_1102262.jpg) > ““Isn’t it better that we send them off once and for all beneath the glow of carnival lights, with the taste of treats on our tongues, rather than invite the acrid tang of doubt, and undue longing, and the heart-stab of a freshly sundered bond?”” [Chang-rae Lee](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/chang-rae-lee/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. A proposal to end a painful relationship decisively, avoiding lingering doubt and longing. **In simple terms:** End a bad relationship cleanly. Key Takeaway Choose finality over lingering pain. Themes relationships closure decision-making Mood somber reflective Type advice literary When to use this quote - breakups - family disputes - friendship endings Key Concepts psychology emotional health conflict resolution Questions to Reflect On - Will you act now or linger in doubt? - How does closure affect healing? A Different Perspective Finality may cause regret if rushed. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Carnival](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/carnival/) [Hope](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/hope/) [Separation](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/separation/) ## Related quotes > [While we are alive we should sit among colored lights and taste good wines, and discuss our adventures in far places; when we are…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/while-we-are-alive-we-should-sit-among-colored-lights-and-taste-good/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [I think honestly when I was younger I use to love going to carnivals in Long Island. I use to love carnival season; I…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/melanie-martinez/i-think-honestly-when-i-was-younger-i-use-to-love-going-to-carnivals/) [Melanie Martinez](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/melanie-martinez/) > [ \[Carnival Ride\] is part of a line from my favorite song on the album, "Wheel of the World." It sums up everything that's happened… ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/carrie-underwood/carnival-ride-is-part-of-a-line-from-my-favorite-song-on-the-album/) [Carrie Underwood](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/carrie-underwood/) > [Paying to teach in the trenches was like putting my face through a cutout hole at a carnival while a quarterback threw pies at…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/erin-gruwell/paying-to-teach-in-the-trenches-was-like-putting-my-face-through-a/) [Erin Gruwell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/erin-gruwell/) > [“The carnival of carnage that takes place every day, month and year in the realm of industry; the thousands of useful lives that are…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/d-douglas-wilson/the-carnival-of-carnage-that-takes-place-every-day-month-and-year-in/) D. Douglas Wilson > [“A ten-year-old Amanda wandering around the sights and sounds of a carnival. Trying to take it all in as such an event was much…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jaime-allison-parker/a-ten-year-old-amanda-wandering-around-the-sights-and-sounds-of-a/) [Jaime Allison Parker](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jaime-allison-parker/) > [If you have to give a carnival to get people to come to church, then you will have to keep giving carnivals to keep…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/charles-spurgeon/if-you-have-to-give-a-carnival-to-get-people-to-come-to-church-then/) [Charles Spurgeon](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/charles-spurgeon/) > [“Everyone loves a comedy, my dear. It is divine.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rawi-hage/everyone-loves-a-comedy-my-dear-it-is-divine/) [Rawi Hage](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rawi-hage/) > [Not everyone is going to like every carnival ride.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/matthea-harvey/not-everyone-is-going-to-like-every-carnival-ride/) [Matthea Harvey](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/matthea-harvey/) > [I would love to visit Brazil. It's one place I have not been. One of my dreams is to dance with the Carnival girls.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/shanola-hampton/i-would-love-to-visit-brazil-it-s-one-place-i-have-not-been-one-of-my/) [Shanola Hampton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/shanola-hampton/) > [Films have degenerated to their original operation as carnival amusement - they offer not drama but thrills.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-mamet/films-have-degenerated-to-their-original-operation-as-carnival/) [David Mamet](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-mamet/) > [I would come here, too. Who doesn't want a free ride? I want to ride in the carnival for free all day long and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kimberly-guilfoyle/i-would-come-here-too-who-doesn-t-want-a-free-ride-i-want-to-ride-in/) [Kimberly Guilfoyle](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kimberly-guilfoyle/) > [I stumble through a carnival of horrors](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anne-rice/i-stumble-through-a-carnival-of-horrors/) [Anne Rice](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anne-rice/) > [Everything being a constant carnival, there is no carnival left.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/victor-hugo/everything-being-a-constant-carnival-there-is-no-carnival-left/) [Victor Hugo](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/victor-hugo/) > [At spelling bee, how does the one kid get laborious, and next kid gets carnival?](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/at-spelling-bee-how-does-the-one-kid-get-laborious-and-next-kid-gets/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) ## More by Chang-rae Lee > [The truth, finally, is who can tell it.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/chang-rae-lee/the-truth-finally-is-who-can-tell-it/) [Chang-Rae Lee](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/chang-rae-lee/) > [I think my parents recognised that I'd always wanted to be a writer, and so they didn't think that this was some idle, faddish…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/chang-rae-lee/i-think-my-parents-recognised-that-i-d-always-wanted-to-be-a-writer/) [Chang-Rae Lee](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/chang-rae-lee/) > [Some writers are writing one great, big book and just taking all these different avenues towards it. They might seem on the outside to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/chang-rae-lee/some-writers-are-writing-one-great-big-book-and-just-taking-all-these/) [Chang-Rae Lee](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/chang-rae-lee/) > [I try to be aware of what I'm concerned about, aware of how I feel about myself in the world, aware of how I…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/chang-rae-lee/i-try-to-be-aware-of-what-i-m-concerned-about-aware-of-how-i-feel/) [Chang-Rae Lee](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/chang-rae-lee/) > [“Behold a fire from the opposite shore.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/chang-rae-lee/behold-a-fire-from-the-opposite-shore/) [Chang-rae Lee](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/chang-rae-lee/) > [“I would give most anything to hear my father's talk again, the crash and bang and stop of his language, always hurtling by. I…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/chang-rae-lee/i-would-give-most-anything-to-hear-my-father-s-talk-again-the-crash/) [Chang-rae Lee](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/chang-rae-lee/) > [We have hopes and make plans, and if they are dashed or waylaid, we naturally rationalize and redraw the map to locate ourselves anew.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/chang-rae-lee/we-have-hopes-and-make-plans-and-if-they-are-dashed-or-waylaid-we/) [Chang-Rae Lee](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/chang-rae-lee/) > [I remember when I was in art classes, I hated following the assignments. And I would get in trouble for doing something totally different…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/chang-rae-lee/i-remember-when-i-was-in-art-classes-i-hated-following-the/) [Chang-Rae Lee](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/chang-rae-lee/) > [The past, as you suggest, is absolutely present at all times and the present is born from the past. I wouldn't want to suggest…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/chang-rae-lee/the-past-as-you-suggest-is-absolutely-present-at-all-times-and-the/) [Chang-Rae Lee](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/chang-rae-lee/) > [Most people don't think about race as much as I do. They don't have to.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/chang-rae-lee/most-people-don-t-think-about-race-as-much-as-i-do-they-don-t-have-to/) [Chang-Rae Lee](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/chang-rae-lee/) > [Not to any really influential effect, but certainly there have been comments that have surprised me. It's surprising sometimes to get particular perspectives on…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/chang-rae-lee/not-to-any-really-influential-effect-but-certainly-there-have-been/) [Chang-Rae Lee](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/chang-rae-lee/) > [My family immigrated when I was 3, and our predecessors inhabited the Korean Peninsula for as long as can be recalled.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/chang-rae-lee/my-family-immigrated-when-i-was-3-and-our-predecessors-inhabited-the/) [Chang-Rae Lee](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/chang-rae-lee/) > [After college, I was living in New York and wrote furiously, a huge novel that I knew was a failure. I hoped that the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/chang-rae-lee/after-college-i-was-living-in-new-york-and-wrote-furiously-a-huge/) [Chang-Rae Lee](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/chang-rae-lee/) > [Usually, when you're talking about work with other writers it's because something seriously bad is going on with your work and you've absolutely thrown…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/chang-rae-lee/usually-when-you-re-talking-about-work-with-other-writers-it-s/) [Chang-Rae Lee](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/chang-rae-lee/) > [ I had a visceral connection to the period \[of Korean War\]. By visceral I suppose I mean emotional. But every fiction requires so much… ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/chang-rae-lee/i-had-a-visceral-connection-to-the-period-of-korean-war-by-visceral-i/) [Chang-Rae Lee](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/chang-rae-lee/) [Explore all 133 Chang-rae Lee quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/chang-rae-lee/) ## More Carnival quotes > [At spelling bee, how does the one kid get laborious, and next kid gets carnival?](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/at-spelling-bee-how-does-the-one-kid-get-laborious-and-next-kid-gets/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [Everything being a constant carnival, there is no carnival left.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/victor-hugo/everything-being-a-constant-carnival-there-is-no-carnival-left/) [Victor Hugo](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/victor-hugo/) > [I stumble through a carnival of horrors](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anne-rice/i-stumble-through-a-carnival-of-horrors/) [Anne Rice](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anne-rice/) > [I would come here, too. Who doesn't want a free ride? I want to ride in the carnival for free all day long and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kimberly-guilfoyle/i-would-come-here-too-who-doesn-t-want-a-free-ride-i-want-to-ride-in/) [Kimberly Guilfoyle](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kimberly-guilfoyle/) > [Films have degenerated to their original operation as carnival amusement - they offer not drama but thrills.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-mamet/films-have-degenerated-to-their-original-operation-as-carnival/) [David Mamet](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-mamet/) > [I would love to visit Brazil. It's one place I have not been. One of my dreams is to dance with the Carnival girls.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/shanola-hampton/i-would-love-to-visit-brazil-it-s-one-place-i-have-not-been-one-of-my/) [Shanola Hampton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/shanola-hampton/) > [Not everyone is going to like every carnival ride.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/matthea-harvey/not-everyone-is-going-to-like-every-carnival-ride/) [Matthea Harvey](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/matthea-harvey/) > [“Everyone loves a comedy, my dear. It is divine.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rawi-hage/everyone-loves-a-comedy-my-dear-it-is-divine/) [Rawi Hage](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rawi-hage/) > [If you have to give a carnival to get people to come to church, then you will have to keep giving carnivals to keep…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/charles-spurgeon/if-you-have-to-give-a-carnival-to-get-people-to-come-to-church-then/) [Charles Spurgeon](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/charles-spurgeon/) > [“A ten-year-old Amanda wandering around the sights and sounds of a carnival. Trying to take it all in as such an event was much…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jaime-allison-parker/a-ten-year-old-amanda-wandering-around-the-sights-and-sounds-of-a/) [Jaime Allison Parker](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jaime-allison-parker/) > [“The carnival of carnage that takes place every day, month and year in the realm of industry; the thousands of useful lives that are…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/d-douglas-wilson/the-carnival-of-carnage-that-takes-place-every-day-month-and-year-in/) D. Douglas Wilson > [Paying to teach in the trenches was like putting my face through a cutout hole at a carnival while a quarterback threw pies at…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/erin-gruwell/paying-to-teach-in-the-trenches-was-like-putting-my-face-through-a/) [Erin Gruwell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/erin-gruwell/) > [ \[Carnival Ride\] is part of a line from my favorite song on the album, "Wheel of the World." It sums up everything that's happened… ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/carrie-underwood/carnival-ride-is-part-of-a-line-from-my-favorite-song-on-the-album/) [Carrie Underwood](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/carrie-underwood/) > [I think honestly when I was younger I use to love going to carnivals in Long Island. I use to love carnival season; I…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/melanie-martinez/i-think-honestly-when-i-was-younger-i-use-to-love-going-to-carnivals/) [Melanie Martinez](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/melanie-martinez/) > [I took her to the carnival, b\*tches love funnel cake.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/i-took-her-to-the-carnival-b-tches-love-funnel-cake/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) [Browse all 98 Carnival quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/carnival/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "“Isn’t it better that we send them off once and for all beneath the glow of carnival lights, with the taste of treats on our tongues, rather than invite the acrid tang of doubt, and undue longing, and the heart-stab of a freshly sundered bond?”", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "Chang-rae Lee" }, "isPartOf": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website" }, "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/chang-rae-lee/isn-t-it-better-that-we-send-them-off-once-and-for-all-beneath-the/", "about": { "@type": "Thing", "name": "Carnival" }, "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/chang-rae-lee/isn-t-it-better-that-we-send-them-off-once-and-for-all-beneath-the/#quotation", "image": { "@type": "ImageObject", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/b88/chang-rae-lee-3318_carnival_isn-t-it-better-that-we-send-them-off-on_1102262.jpg", "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/b88/chang-rae-lee-3318_carnival_isn-t-it-better-that-we-send-them-off-on_1102262.jpg", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/b88/chang-rae-lee-3318_carnival_isn-t-it-better-that-we-send-them-off-on_1102262.jpg", "width": 1080, "height": 1080, "caption": "“Isn’t it better that we send them off once and for all beneath the glow of carnival lights, with the taste…” — Chang-rae Lee", "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": "Chang-rae Lee", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/chang-rae-lee/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 4, "name": "“Isn’t it better that we send...", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/chang-rae-lee/isn-t-it-better-that-we-send-them-off-once-and-for-all-beneath-the/" } ], "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/chang-rae-lee/isn-t-it-better-that-we-send-them-off-once-and-for-all-beneath-the/#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 } } ] } ```