--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: What if time's not linear, the way people…" description: "\"“What if time's not linear, the way people think it is? What if the past, present and future are all going on at the same time, only they're separated ..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/6d0/charles-de-lint-1481_past-present_what-if-time-s-not-linear-the-way-people_2891845.jpg" --- # What if time's not linear, the way people think it is?… ![“What if time's not linear, the way people think it is? What if the past, present and future are all going on at the same time, only they're separated by- oh, I don't know- a kind of gauze or something. And maybe there are people that can see through that gauze.” quote by Charles de Lint](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/6d0/charles-de-lint-1481_past-present_what-if-time-s-not-linear-the-way-people_2891845.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/6d0/charles-de-lint-1481_past-present_what-if-time-s-not-linear-the-way-people_2891845.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/6d0/charles-de-lint-1481_past-present_what-if-time-s-not-linear-the-way-people_2891845.jpg) > ““What if time's not linear, the way people think it is? What if the past, present and future are all going on at the same time, only they're separated by- oh, I don't know- a kind of gauze or something. And maybe there are people that can see through that gauze.”” [Charles de Lint](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/charles-de-lint/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Time may be experienced as a layered continuum rather than a straight line, suggesting multiple perspectives can coexist. **In simple terms:** Time might be layered, not just a line. Key Takeaway Consider alternative views of time. Themes philosophy perception reality Mood curious speculative thought‑provoking Type philosophical literary When to use this quote - creative writing - philosophical discussion - science fiction analysis Key Concepts temporal theory multiverse subjective experience Questions to Reflect On - How would society change if we perceived time non‑linearly? - What does “seeing through the gauze” imply about insight? A Different Perspective Linear models ignore complexity of human experience. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Past present](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/past-present/) [Past present and future](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/past-present-and-future/) [Present and future](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/present-and-future/) [Time](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/time/) ## Related quotes > [All moments, past, present and future, always have existed, always will exist.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kurt-vonnegut/all-moments-past-present-and-future-always-have-existed-always-will-2/) [Kurt Vonnegut](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kurt-vonnegut/) > [“Past, present and future are timelines.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jeus-newas-novels-azuris/past-present-and-future-are-timelines/) Jeus Newas (novels Azuris > [Everything that ever happened is still happening. Past, present and future keep happening in the eternity which is Here and Now.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/james-broughton/everything-that-ever-happened-is-still-happening-past-present-and/) [James Broughton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/james-broughton/) > [Best there is... past, present and future! Ohhhhh yeahhhh!](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/best-there-is-past-present-and-future-ohhhhh-yeahhhh/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [“Everything dies eventually. We all know that. People, cities, whole civilizations. Nothing lasts. So if existence was just binary, dead or alive, here or…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/isaac-marion/everything-dies-eventually-we-all-know-that-people-cities-whole-2/) [Isaac Marion](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/isaac-marion/) > [Past, present and future are not amenities of language. Time unfolds into the seamsof being. It passes through you, making and shaping.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/don-delillo/past-present-and-future-are-not-amenities-of-language-time-unfolds/) [Don DeLillo](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/don-delillo/) > [“In my mind, past, present and future became a blur as I stood in the middle of the celestial room, in the middle of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mike-ericksen/in-my-mind-past-present-and-future-became-a-blur-as-i-stood-in-the/) [Mike Ericksen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mike-ericksen/) > [“In every action we must look beyond the action at our past, present and future state, and at others whom it affects, and see…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/blaise-pascal/in-every-action-we-must-look-beyond-the-action-at-our-past-present/) [Blaise Pascal](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/blaise-pascal/) > [“I met a boy whose eyes showed me that the past, present and future were all the same thing.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jennifer-elisabeth/i-met-a-boy-whose-eyes-showed-me-that-the-past-present-and-future/) [Jennifer Elisabeth](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jennifer-elisabeth/) > [The seams, the laminae between the various worlds the past present and future as well as the living and the nonliving may not be…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rick-bass/the-seams-the-laminae-between-the-various-worlds-the-past-present-and/) [Rick Bass](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rick-bass/) > [If Past Present and Future make the moment we call NOW can the word N.O.W. stand for New Omnipresent World?](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stanley-victor-paskavich/if-past-present-and-future-make-the-moment-we-call-now-can-the-word-n/) [Stanley Victor Paskavich](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stanley-victor-paskavich/) > [“We are all of our past, present and future lives, as well as the younger and older versions of ourselves. We are also every…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/russell-anthony-gibbs/we-are-all-of-our-past-present-and-future-lives-as-well-as-the/) [Russell Anthony Gibbs](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/russell-anthony-gibbs/) > [The Fuhrer alone is the present and future German reality and its law. Learn to know ever more deeply: from now on every single…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/martin-heidegger/the-fuhrer-alone-is-the-present-and-future-german-reality-and-its-law/) [Martin Heidegger](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/martin-heidegger/) > [You are here for a special reason. Stop being a prisoner of your past. Become the architect of your present and future. Learn from…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/melchor-lim/you-are-here-for-a-special-reason-stop-being-a-prisoner-of-your-past/) [Melchor Lim](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/melchor-lim/) > [When you truly care for someone there is no past, just a present and future.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nishan-panwar/when-you-truly-care-for-someone-there-is-no-past-just-a-present-and/) [Nishan Panwar](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nishan-panwar/) ## More by Charles de Lint > [The family we choose for ourselves is more important than the one we were born into; that people have to earn our respect and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/charles-de-lint/the-family-we-choose-for-ourselves-is-more-important-than-the-one-we/) [Charles de Lint](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/charles-de-lint/) > [Every time you do a good deed you shine the light a little farther into the dark. And the thing is, when you're gone…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/charles-de-lint/every-time-you-do-a-good-deed-you-shine-the-light-a-little-farther/) [Charles de Lint](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/charles-de-lint/) > [The road leading to a goal does not separate you from the destination; it is essentially a part of it.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/charles-de-lint/the-road-leading-to-a-goal-does-not-separate-you-from-the-destination/) [Charles de Lint](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/charles-de-lint/) > [“Maybe she couldn’t go. Maybe she wanted him to stay. But she knew enough not to try to hold him back if he had…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/charles-de-lint/maybe-she-couldn-t-go-maybe-she-wanted-him-to-stay-but-she-knew/) [Charles de Lint](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/charles-de-lint/) > [The magic in this world seems to work in whispers and small kindnesses.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/charles-de-lint/the-magic-in-this-world-seems-to-work-in-whispers-and-small-kindnesses/) [Charles de Lint](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/charles-de-lint/) > [You can take the woman outta the trash, but you can't take the trash out a the woman.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/charles-de-lint/you-can-take-the-woman-outta-the-trash-but-you-can-t-take-the-trash/) [Charles de Lint](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/charles-de-lint/) > [“You hear this kind of thing, rednecks and their guys and--" "Don't call them that," I say. "They're just assholes. Most people you run…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/charles-de-lint/you-hear-this-kind-of-thing-rednecks-and-their-guys-and-don-t-call/) [Charles de Lint](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/charles-de-lint/) > [Fortune-telling doesn't reveal the future; it mirrors the present. It resonates against what your subconscious already knows and hauls it up out of the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/charles-de-lint/fortune-telling-doesn-t-reveal-the-future-it-mirrors-the-present-it/) [Charles de Lint](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/charles-de-lint/) > [When you're touched by magic, nothing's ever quite the same again. What really makes me sad is all those people who never have the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/charles-de-lint/when-you-re-touched-by-magic-nothing-s-ever-quite-the-same-again-what/) [Charles de Lint](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/charles-de-lint/) > [There are few joys to compare with the telling of a well-told tale.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/charles-de-lint/there-are-few-joys-to-compare-with-the-telling-of-a-well-told-tale/) [Charles de Lint](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/charles-de-lint/) > [How hard would it be to ask children what they see in their heads? How big should the house be in comparison to the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/charles-de-lint/how-hard-would-it-be-to-ask-children-what-they-see-in-their-heads-how/) [Charles de Lint](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/charles-de-lint/) > [... we chase after ghosts and spirits and are left holding only memories and dreams. It's not that we want what we can't have;…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/charles-de-lint/we-chase-after-ghosts-and-spirits-and-are-left-holding-only-memories/) [Charles de Lint](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/charles-de-lint/) > [Writing music uses a whole different process that involves a lot of noodling and just seeing what comes.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/charles-de-lint/writing-music-uses-a-whole-different-process-that-involves-a-lot-of/) [Charles de Lint](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/charles-de-lint/) > [The real problem is, people think life is a ladder, and it's really a wheel.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/charles-de-lint/the-real-problem-is-people-think-life-is-a-ladder-and-it-s-really-a/) [Charles de Lint](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/charles-de-lint/) > [Tattoos...are the stories in your heart, written on your skin.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/charles-de-lint/tattoos-are-the-stories-in-your-heart-written-on-your-skin/) [Charles de Lint](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/charles-de-lint/) [Explore all 237 Charles de Lint quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/charles-de-lint/) ## More Past present quotes > [ The most important thing I learned \[...\] was that when a person dies he only appears to die. He is still very much alive… ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gavin-extence/the-most-important-thing-i-learned-was-that-when-a-person-dies-he/) [Gavin Extence](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gavin-extence/) > [“According to Greek mythology, Medusa is a Triple Goddess, one of three gorgon sisters—Sthenno, Euryale, and Medusa—representing past, present, and future. Only Medusa exists…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joan-marler/according-to-greek-mythology-medusa-is-a-triple-goddess-one-of-three/) [Joan Marler](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joan-marler/) > [“At times I feel as if I had lived all this before and that I have already written these very words, but I know…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/isabel-allende/at-times-i-feel-as-if-i-had-lived-all-this-before-and-that-i-have/) [Isabel Allende](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/isabel-allende/) > [I've never really had a favorite player, past or present.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/magnus-carlsen/i-ve-never-really-had-a-favorite-player-past-or-present/) [Magnus Carlsen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/magnus-carlsen/) > [Turning 60 had an impact on my heart and soul, I must say, because you're dealing with time: past, present, and future. You suddenly…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/pierce-brosnan/turning-60-had-an-impact-on-my-heart-and-soul-i-must-say-because-you/) [Pierce Brosnan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/pierce-brosnan/) > [“Absolute means Universal or fixed. So I think nothing is fixed and universal in Conscious manner. But I also think everything is fixed and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rajendra-prasad-ojha/absolute-means-universal-or-fixed-so-i-think-nothing-is-fixed-and/) Rajendra Prasad Ojha > [Art is an evolution of techniques and materials from past to present and we can't stop learning.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robert-warren/art-is-an-evolution-of-techniques-and-materials-from-past-to-present/) Robert Warren > [“It's very difficult to keep the line between the past and the present.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/edith-beale/it-s-very-difficult-to-keep-the-line-between-the-past-and-the-present/) Edith Beale > [Fiction offers escape but it also interrogates the world we live in, whether the past, present or future.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/roxane-gay/fiction-offers-escape-but-it-also-interrogates-the-world-we-live-in/) [Roxane Gay](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/roxane-gay/) > [The past is the present, isn’t it? It’s the future too.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/eugene-o-neill/the-past-is-the-present-isn-t-it-it-s-the-future-too/) [Eugene O'Neill](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/eugene-o-neill/) > [“The letter said that they were two feet high, and green, and shaped like plumber's friends. Their suction cups were on the ground, and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kurt-vonnegut/the-letter-said-that-they-were-two-feet-high-and-green-and-shaped/) [Kurt Vonnegut](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kurt-vonnegut/) > [My future and past is in the present moment.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jeremy-limn/my-future-and-past-is-in-the-present-moment/) [Jeremy Limn](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jeremy-limn/) > [“I would wonder if you could be a hero or heroine if you did not live in deep time, that is, Past, present, and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/richard-rohr/i-would-wonder-if-you-could-be-a-hero-or-heroine-if-you-did-not-live/) [Richard Rohr](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/richard-rohr/) > [The cumulative weight of all mortal sins--past, present, and future--pressed upon that perfect, sinless, and sensitive Soul! All our infirmities and sicknesses were somehow,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/neal-a-maxwell/the-cumulative-weight-of-all-mortal-sins-past-present-and-future/) [Neal A. Maxwell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/neal-a-maxwell/) > [ “\[They\] talked mostly of their memories, for the past was all they had - the present being such a changable, odd thing, and the… ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jayne-fresina/they-talked-mostly-of-their-memories-for-the-past-was-all-they-had/) [Jayne Fresina](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jayne-fresina/) [Browse all 556 Past present quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/past-present/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "“What if time's not linear, the way people think it is? What if the past, present and future are all going on at the same time, only they're separated by- oh, I don't know- a kind of gauze or something. 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