---
title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: Ever is a long time."
description: "\"“Ever is a long time.”\" — Cormac McCarthy"
image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/37c/cormac-mccarthy-181_forever_ever-is-a-long-time-2697225_2697225.jpg"
---

#  Ever is a long time.

![“Ever is a long time.” quote by Cormac McCarthy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/37c/cormac-mccarthy-181_forever_ever-is-a-long-time-2697225_2697225.jpg)   [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/37c/cormac-mccarthy-181_forever_ever-is-a-long-time-2697225_2697225.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/37c/cormac-mccarthy-181_forever_ever-is-a-long-time-2697225_2697225.jpg)

> ““Ever is a long time.””

[Cormac McCarthy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/cormac-mccarthy/)

## About This Quote

This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation.

Time stretches endlessly, making any duration feel prolonged.

**In simple terms:** Time can feel endless.

Key Takeaway

Practice patience and presence.

Themes

time patience existence longevity

Mood

contemplative steady

Type

philosophical inspirational

When to use this quote

- Long projects
- grief periods
- career development

Key Concepts

Temporal perception endurance mindfulness

Questions to Reflect On

- How do you stay present during long waits?
- What makes time feel shorter?

A Different Perspective

May cause frustration.

★ ★ ★ ★ ★   No ratings yet

[Forever](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/forever/) [Long](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/long/) [Long time](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/long-time/) [Time](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/time/)

## Related quotes

> [Forever is a really long time, you know? What do you do with forever?" "The same thing you do when you don't have forever."…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/amanda-hocking/forever-is-a-really-long-time-you-know-what-do-you-do-with-forever/)

[Amanda Hocking](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/amanda-hocking/)

> [In summer, my Sundays are often taken up with cricket. I play with a bunch of other over-competitive and overenthusiastic guys who I have…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ben-elliot/in-summer-my-sundays-are-often-taken-up-with-cricket-i-play-with-a/)

[Ben Elliot](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ben-elliot/)

> [It's weird... I've been an actor for a long time and you can walk around more or less anonymously.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ian-mcelhinney/it-s-weird-i-ve-been-an-actor-for-a-long-time-and-you-can-walk-around/)

[Ian McElhinney](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ian-mcelhinney/)

> [I had a pretty public divorce. They're not easy - divorces - and it took me a long time to really get through.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nas/i-had-a-pretty-public-divorce-they-re-not-easy-divorces-and-it-took/)

[Nas](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nas/)

> [I just decided to take some time off. I've been modeling since '93, '92, and that's a pretty long time. I'm a single mother…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/carolyn-murphy/i-just-decided-to-take-some-time-off-i-ve-been-modeling-since-93-92/)

[Carolyn Murphy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/carolyn-murphy/)

> [I agreed a long time ago, I would not live at any cost. If I am moved or forced away from what I think…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/maya-angelou/i-agreed-a-long-time-ago-i-would-not-live-at-any-cost-if-i-am-moved/)

[Maya Angelou](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/maya-angelou/)

> [I have been famous for a long time.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/warren-beatty/i-have-been-famous-for-a-long-time/)

[Warren Beatty](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/warren-beatty/)

> [I've been around in public life for a long time. I think people know what I stand for. They know that I have strong…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/malcolm-turnbull/i-ve-been-around-in-public-life-for-a-long-time-i-think-people-know/)

[Malcolm Turnbull](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/malcolm-turnbull/)

> [It was only when I started making short films in college and I was looking for girls to play the me-ish parts that I…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lena-dunham/it-was-only-when-i-started-making-short-films-in-college-and-i-was/)

[Lena Dunham](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lena-dunham/)

> [Well, I've been politically involved for a really long time. Growing up in the segregated South, it was a very painful experience for me…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/cybill-shepherd/well-i-ve-been-politically-involved-for-a-really-long-time-growing-up/)

[Cybill Shepherd](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/cybill-shepherd/)

> [Forever is a long time but I most defanitely wouldn't mind spending every minute of it by your side](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/forever-is-a-long-time-but-i-most-defanitely-wouldn-t-mind-spending/)

[Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/)

> [“Forever is a really long time.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nely-cab/forever-is-a-really-long-time/)

[Nely Cab](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nely-cab/)

> [“Forever feels a long time when you're eighteen. When you're away from home for the first time in your life, when you forge instant…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jane-green/forever-feels-a-long-time-when-you-re-eighteen-when-you-re-away-from/)

[Jane Green](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jane-green/)

> [I tried. I did. I stayed strong for a long time. But nothing lasts forever. There's always something that breaks you down in the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bernajoy-vaal/i-tried-i-did-i-stayed-strong-for-a-long-time-but-nothing-lasts/)

[Bernajoy Vaal](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bernajoy-vaal/)

> [Forever is a long long time and time has a way of changing things](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/walt-disney/forever-is-a-long-long-time-and-time-has-a-way-of-changing-things/)

[Walt Disney](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/walt-disney/)

## More by Cormac McCarthy

> [The cooler days have brought a wistful mood upon him. The smell of coalsmoke in the air at night. Old times, dead years. For…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/cormac-mccarthy/the-cooler-days-have-brought-a-wistful-mood-upon-him-the-smell-of/)

[Cormac McCarthy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/cormac-mccarthy/)

> [“The events of the world can have no separate life from the world. And yet the world itself can have no temporal view of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/cormac-mccarthy/the-events-of-the-world-can-have-no-separate-life-from-the-world-and/)

[Cormac McCarthy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/cormac-mccarthy/)

> [“I had two dreams about him after he died. I dont remember the first one all that well but it was about meetin him…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/cormac-mccarthy/i-had-two-dreams-about-him-after-he-died-i-dont-remember-the-first/)

[Cormac McCarthy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/cormac-mccarthy/)

> [“You think people was meaner then than they are now? the deputy said. The old man was looking out at the flooded town. No,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/cormac-mccarthy/you-think-people-was-meaner-then-than-they-are-now-the-deputy-said/)

[Cormac McCarthy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/cormac-mccarthy/)

> [“They set forth in a crimson dawn where sky and earth closed in a razorous plane. Out there dark little archipelagos of cloud and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/cormac-mccarthy/they-set-forth-in-a-crimson-dawn-where-sky-and-earth-closed-in-a/)

[Cormac McCarthy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/cormac-mccarthy/)

> [“Nothing. Where all was burnt to ash before them no fires were to be had and the nights were long and dark and cold…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/cormac-mccarthy/nothing-where-all-was-burnt-to-ash-before-them-no-fires-were-to-be/)

[Cormac McCarthy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/cormac-mccarthy/)

> [He said that whether a man's life was writ in a book someplace or whether it took its form day by day was one…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/cormac-mccarthy/he-said-that-whether-a-man-s-life-was-writ-in-a-book-someplace-or/)

[Cormac McCarthy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/cormac-mccarthy/)

> [“He lives in a room above a courtyard behind a tavern and he comes down at night like some fairybook beast to fight with…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/cormac-mccarthy/he-lives-in-a-room-above-a-courtyard-behind-a-tavern-and-he-comes/)

[Cormac McCarthy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/cormac-mccarthy/)

> [“Ultimo hombre. Last man standing, must've been one. Where'd he go?”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/cormac-mccarthy/ultimo-hombre-last-man-standing-must-ve-been-one-where-d-he-go/)

[Cormac McCarthy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/cormac-mccarthy/)

> [“To seek out the upright. No fall but preceded by a declination. He took great marching steps into the nothingness, counting them against his…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/cormac-mccarthy/to-seek-out-the-upright-no-fall-but-preceded-by-a-declination-he-took/)

[Cormac McCarthy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/cormac-mccarthy/)

> [“They went through the last of the cars and then walked up the track to the locomotive and climbed up to the catwalk. Rust…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/cormac-mccarthy/they-went-through-the-last-of-the-cars-and-then-walked-up-the-track/)

[Cormac McCarthy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/cormac-mccarthy/)

> [“Night fell upon them dark and starblown and the wagon grew swollen near mute with dew. On their chairs in such black immobility these…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/cormac-mccarthy/night-fell-upon-them-dark-and-starblown-and-the-wagon-grew-swollen/)

[Cormac McCarthy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/cormac-mccarthy/)

> [“When I was in school I studied biology. I learned that in making their experiments scientists will take some group - bacteria, mice, people…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/cormac-mccarthy/when-i-was-in-school-i-studied-biology-i-learned-that-in-making-their/)

[Cormac McCarthy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/cormac-mccarthy/)

> [ “We none of us knew him to speak \[Dutch\]. Asked him where he'd learned it you know what he said? What did he say.… ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/cormac-mccarthy/we-none-of-us-knew-him-to-speak-dutch-asked-him-where-he-d-learned-it/)

[Cormac McCarthy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/cormac-mccarthy/)

> [“You know that the things you put it your head stay there, right?' 'Yeah. But you remember some things, don't you?' 'Yeah. You remember…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/cormac-mccarthy/you-know-that-the-things-you-put-it-your-head-stay-there-right-yeah/)

[Cormac McCarthy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/cormac-mccarthy/)

[Explore all 927 Cormac McCarthy quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/cormac-mccarthy/)

## More Forever quotes

> [Every one knows that the exercise of military power is forever dangerous to civil rights; and we have had recent instances of violences that…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/samuel-adams/every-one-knows-that-the-exercise-of-military-power-is-forever/)

[Samuel Adams](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/samuel-adams/)

> [“I believe in forever, and that’s what you and I are. We define eternity. This may sound cheesy, but you make me go there.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gail-mchugh/i-believe-in-forever-and-that-s-what-you-and-i-are-we-define-eternity/)

[Gail McHugh](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gail-mchugh/)

> [Contradictory precepts that have guided me for as long as I can remember: 1: I will live forever. 2: I will die tomorrow.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/howard-gardner/contradictory-precepts-that-have-guided-me-for-as-long-as-i-can/)

[Howard Gardner](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/howard-gardner/)

> [People don't always realize that a record is forever. It'll always be there under your name. You've got to be certain that it's right.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/frank-iero/people-don-t-always-realize-that-a-record-is-forever-it-ll-always-be/)

[Frank Iero](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/frank-iero/)

> [When you find someone you want to spend forever with you, you don't let them go, whether forever turns out to be a day…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nicole-williams/when-you-find-someone-you-want-to-spend-forever-with-you-you-don-t/)

[Nicole Williams](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nicole-williams/)

> [What does forever mean to you? When you couldnt even keep it true You said were youd forever be there But were those just…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/fad-ibra/what-does-forever-mean-to-you-when-you-couldnt-even-keep-it-true-you/)

[Fad Ibra](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/fad-ibra/)

> [Forever is a really long time, you know? What do you do with forever?" "The same thing you do when you don't have forever."…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/amanda-hocking/forever-is-a-really-long-time-you-know-what-do-you-do-with-forever/)

[Amanda Hocking](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/amanda-hocking/)

> [I think when you’re dying you start looking for important things in the corners. You can’t let anything that seems even semi-important pass, because…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/chris-crutcher/i-think-when-you-re-dying-you-start-looking-for-important-things-in/)

[Chris Crutcher](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/chris-crutcher/)

> [Whole scenes of your life slip away forever if you don't put them down in ink.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/silas-house/whole-scenes-of-your-life-slip-away-forever-if-you-don-t-put-them/)

[Silas House](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/silas-house/)

> [Tonight I feel like a prisoner on fire, waiting desperately... denied, sentenced forever more. Only your love can set me free.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-bolton/tonight-i-feel-like-a-prisoner-on-fire-waiting-desperately-denied/)

[Michael Bolton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michael-bolton/)

> [It all depends on you. You can go on sleeping forever, you can wake up right this moment.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rajneesh/it-all-depends-on-you-you-can-go-on-sleeping-forever-you-can-wake-up/)

[Rajneesh](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rajneesh/)

> [I do conscientiously and sincerely believe that the Order of Freemasonry, if not the greatest, is one of the greatest moral and political evils…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-quincy-adams/i-do-conscientiously-and-sincerely-believe-that-the-order-of/)

[John Quincy Adams](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-quincy-adams/)

> [There is nothing more I ask of this life than this moment, exactly so. And suddenly forever seems like too short a time.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/brian-andreas/there-is-nothing-more-i-ask-of-this-life-than-this-moment-exactly-so/)

[Brian Andreas](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/brian-andreas/)

> [I want to do - I want to be putting out classic stuff that's gonna stick and last forever, you feel me?](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/yg/i-want-to-do-i-want-to-be-putting-out-classic-stuff-that-s-gonna/)

[YG](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/yg/)

> [“I will run every mile, i will save every line, i will say i reached the top and i will fall back down standing.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mennah-al-refaey/i-will-run-every-mile-i-will-save-every-line-i-will-say-i-reached-the/)

[Mennah al refaey](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mennah-al-refaey/)

[Browse all 10,689 Forever quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/forever/)

```json
{
    "@context": "https://schema.org",
    "@graph": [
        {
            "@type": "Quotation",
            "text": "“Ever is a long time.”",
            "creator": {
                "@type": "Person",
                "name": "Cormac McCarthy"
            },
            "isPartOf": {
                "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website"
            },
            "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/cormac-mccarthy/ever-is-a-long-time/",
            "about": {
                "@type": "Thing",
                "name": "Forever"
            },
            "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/cormac-mccarthy/ever-is-a-long-time/#quotation",
            "image": {
                "@type": "ImageObject",
                "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/37c/cormac-mccarthy-181_forever_ever-is-a-long-time-2697225_2697225.jpg",
                "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/37c/cormac-mccarthy-181_forever_ever-is-a-long-time-2697225_2697225.jpg",
                "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/37c/cormac-mccarthy-181_forever_ever-is-a-long-time-2697225_2697225.jpg",
                "width": 1080,
                "height": 1080,
                "caption": "“Ever is a long time.” — Cormac McCarthy",
                "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": "Cormac McCarthy",
                    "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/cormac-mccarthy/"
                },
                {
                    "@type": "ListItem",
                    "position": 4,
                    "name": "“Ever is a long time.”",
                    "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/cormac-mccarthy/ever-is-a-long-time/"
                }
            ],
            "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/cormac-mccarthy/ever-is-a-long-time/#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
            }
        }
    ]
}
```
