---
title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: The promise that mattered has been kept."
description: "\"“The promise that mattered has been kept.”\" — Dean Koontz"
image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/d2c/dean-koontz-118_kept_the-promise-that-mattered-has-been-kept_2295510.jpg"
---

#  The promise that mattered has been kept.

![“The promise that mattered has been kept.” quote by Dean Koontz](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/d2c/dean-koontz-118_kept_the-promise-that-mattered-has-been-kept_2295510.jpg)   [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/d2c/dean-koontz-118_kept_the-promise-that-mattered-has-been-kept_2295510.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/d2c/dean-koontz-118_kept_the-promise-that-mattered-has-been-kept_2295510.jpg)

> ““The promise that mattered has been kept.””

[Dean Koontz](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dean-koontz/)

## About This Quote

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

A promise that mattered has been fulfilled, delivering relief and trust.

**In simple terms:** A crucial promise was kept.

Key Takeaway

Trust is built when promises are fulfilled.

Themes

trust fulfillment hope

Mood

hopeful reassuring

Type

literary motivational

When to use this quote

- personal relationships
- story resolution
- leadership
- team projects

Key Concepts

promise keeping narrative climax character development

Questions to Reflect On

- What promises matter most to you?
- How do you ensure you keep them?

A Different Perspective

Unkept promises erode confidence.

★ ★ ★ ★ ★   No ratings yet

[Promise](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/promise/)

## Related quotes

> [“Though Corey didn’t care what the press thought of him, it mattered to him that he kept the job with CNN. The exposure on…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/corey-r-lewandowski/though-corey-didn-t-care-what-the-press-thought-of-him-it-mattered-to/)

[Corey R. Lewandowski](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/corey-r-lewandowski/)

> [My first plays were amazingly bad, but I had a teacher who thought I had promise, and he kept working with me. I finally…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-henry-hwang/my-first-plays-were-amazingly-bad-but-i-had-a-teacher-who-thought-i/)

[David Henry Hwang](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-henry-hwang/)

> [We'd grown up without any money. I mean, everything was a struggle; our lives were a struggle, and dancing changed all of that. Nothing…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/arlene-phillips/we-d-grown-up-without-any-money-i-mean-everything-was-a-struggle-our/)

[Arlene Phillips](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/arlene-phillips/)

> [ All I cared about was the music, like hearing Townes \[ Van Zandt\] talking about "For the sake of the song"; it's all that… ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/steve-young/all-i-cared-about-was-the-music-like-hearing-townes-van-zandt-talking/)

[Steve Young](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/steve-young/)

> [At this point in my life I'd like to live as if only love mattered.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tracy-chapman/at-this-point-in-my-life-i-d-like-to-live-as-if-only-love-mattered/)

[Tracy Chapman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tracy-chapman/)

> [“Your first kiss isn’t as important as your last. The math test really didn’t matter. The pie really did. The stuff you’re good at…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ethan-wate/your-first-kiss-isn-t-as-important-as-your-last-the-math-test-really/)

Ethan Wate

> [He was the closest thing I'd ever had to something, or someone, that mattered. But in the end, close didn't count. You were either…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sarah-dessen/he-was-the-closest-thing-i-d-ever-had-to-something-or-someone-that/)

[Sarah Dessen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sarah-dessen/)

> [His face was in my neck and he was breathing hard. Was he grieving me? Already? Would he miss me? Had I, in some…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/karen-marie-moning/his-face-was-in-my-neck-and-he-was-breathing-hard-was-he-grieving-me/)

[Karen Marie Moning](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/karen-marie-moning/)

> [“I don't. If it mattered to me even one bit, I wouldn't be here with you, Nakano-san!”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/maki-murakami/i-don-t-if-it-mattered-to-me-even-one-bit-i-wouldn-t-be-here-with-you/)

[Maki Murakami](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/maki-murakami/)

> [Why was it that they could never shout like that about anything that mattered?](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-orwell/why-was-it-that-they-could-never-shout-like-that-about-anything-that/)

[George Orwell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-orwell/)

> [Death mattered not -- It was a mere puncutation](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nathan-huggins/death-mattered-not-it-was-a-mere-puncutation/)

[Nathan Huggins](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nathan-huggins/)

> [“There it was, Hema must have thought; it was both the sorry and the thank-you that was so long overdue, and the funny thing…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/abraham-verghese/there-it-was-hema-must-have-thought-it-was-both-the-sorry-and-the/)

[Abraham Verghese](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/abraham-verghese/)

> [“Knowing you don’t have much time left changes things. You get kind of philosophical. And you figure things out—more like, they figure themselves out—and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kami-garcia/knowing-you-don-t-have-much-time-left-changes-things-you-get-kind-of/)

[Kami Garcia](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kami-garcia/)

> [“Climbing mattered. The danger bathed the world in a halogen glow that caused everything—the sweep of the rock, the orange and yellow lichens, the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jon-krakauer/climbing-mattered-the-danger-bathed-the-world-in-a-halogen-glow-that/)

[Jon Krakauer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jon-krakauer/)

> [“History mattered. But it could not guarantee what might happen next.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michelle-gable/history-mattered-but-it-could-not-guarantee-what-might-happen-next/)

[Michelle Gable](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michelle-gable/)

## More by Dean Koontz

> [“This kind of derangement is emblematic of humankind. Grave faults are said to be only eccentricities, and imperfections are routinely celebrated as mere differences…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dean-koontz/this-kind-of-derangement-is-emblematic-of-humankind-grave-faults-are/)

[Dean Koontz](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dean-koontz/)

> [“He often remembered his dad's admonition that envy was mental theft. If you coveted another man's possessions, Dad said, then you should be willing…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dean-koontz/he-often-remembered-his-dad-s-admonition-that-envy-was-mental-theft/)

[Dean Koontz](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dean-koontz/)

> [But victimhood was seductive, a release from responsibility and caring. Fear would be transmuted into weary resignation; failure would no longer generate guilt but,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dean-koontz/but-victimhood-was-seductive-a-release-from-responsibility-and-caring/)

[Dean Koontz](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dean-koontz/)

> [What really holds their marriage together are mutual respect of an awesome depth, a shared sense of humor, faith that they were brought together…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dean-koontz/what-really-holds-their-marriage-together-are-mutual-respect-of-an/)

[Dean Koontz](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dean-koontz/)

> [“Her mother said that three great powers kept the universe going. The first and the strongest was God. Each of the two additional powers…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dean-koontz/her-mother-said-that-three-great-powers-kept-the-universe-going-the/)

[Dean Koontz](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dean-koontz/)

> [“I stopped keeping an eye out for Santa Claus on Christmas Eve because, when I was five, my mother told me that Santa was…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dean-koontz/i-stopped-keeping-an-eye-out-for-santa-claus-on-christmas-eve-because/)

[Dean Koontz](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dean-koontz/)

> [“To one degree or another, I have been happy most of my life, in part because the world has infinite charms if you wish…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dean-koontz/to-one-degree-or-another-i-have-been-happy-most-of-my-life-in-part/)

[Dean Koontz](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dean-koontz/)

> [“This life is just a bootcamp, to test and toughen us, to prepare us for the next life of service in some great adventure.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dean-koontz/this-life-is-just-a-bootcamp-to-test-and-toughen-us-to-prepare-us-for/)

[Dean Koontz](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dean-koontz/)

> [“A madman should have a madman’s laugh, not the warm chuckle of a favorite uncle.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dean-koontz/a-madman-should-have-a-madman-s-laugh-not-the-warm-chuckle-of-a/)

[Dean Koontz](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dean-koontz/)

> [“Anger was a reliable defense, but one that allowed no chance of final victory. Anger was a medicine but never a cure, briefly numbing…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dean-koontz/anger-was-a-reliable-defense-but-one-that-allowed-no-chance-of-final/)

[Dean Koontz](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dean-koontz/)

> [“Nothing is predetermined for us, and yet all our possible choices are threads in the vast weave of things, so that we have free…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dean-koontz/nothing-is-predetermined-for-us-and-yet-all-our-possible-choices-are/)

[Dean Koontz](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dean-koontz/)

> [“In fact, time teaches us that the musical score of life oscillates between that of Psycho and that of The Sound of Music, with…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dean-koontz/in-fact-time-teaches-us-that-the-musical-score-of-life-oscillates/)

[Dean Koontz](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dean-koontz/)

> [“Some will accuse me of being judgmental. Thank you. And proud of it. You wreck a kid's life, I have no pity for you.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dean-koontz/some-will-accuse-me-of-being-judgmental-thank-you-and-proud-of-it-you/)

[Dean Koontz](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dean-koontz/)

> [“Waiting is one of the things that humans beings cannot do well, though it is one of the essential things we must do successfully…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dean-koontz/waiting-is-one-of-the-things-that-humans-beings-cannot-do-well-though/)

[Dean Koontz](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dean-koontz/)

> [“Dogs know we need to give affection as much as they need to receive it. They were the first therapists; they've been in practice…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dean-koontz/dogs-know-we-need-to-give-affection-as-much-as-they-need-to-receive/)

[Dean Koontz](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dean-koontz/)

[Explore all 1,233 Dean Koontz quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dean-koontz/)

## More Kept quotes

> [I was in high school and I had an independent album out, and we kept sending that out, and I was doing shows. No…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tyler-hilton/i-was-in-high-school-and-i-had-an-independent-album-out-and-we-kept/)

[Tyler Hilton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tyler-hilton/)

> [“man she loved. Of course, one decision didn’t banish all the other doubts, but if she kept her gaze on God’s plan for her…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/staci-stallings/man-she-loved-of-course-one-decision-didn-t-banish-all-the-other/)

[Staci Stallings](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/staci-stallings/)

> [A man should be upright, not kept upright.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/marcus-aurelius/a-man-should-be-upright-not-kept-upright/)

[Marcus Aurelius](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/marcus-aurelius/)

> [If I had problems, I kept them to myself. I didn't make a scene.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ann-patchett/if-i-had-problems-i-kept-them-to-myself-i-didn-t-make-a-scene/)

[Ann Patchett](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ann-patchett/)

> [What I love most about Her Majesty is that she has kept hats alive in people's minds for more than 60 years. You can't…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/philip-treacy/what-i-love-most-about-her-majesty-is-that-she-has-kept-hats-alive-in/)

[Philip Treacy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/philip-treacy/)

> [“But as long as he kept on caring, nothing could touch the freedom of his inner thoughts.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sylvia-engdahl/but-as-long-as-he-kept-on-caring-nothing-could-touch-the-freedom-of/)

[Sylvia Engdahl](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sylvia-engdahl/)

> [It is interesting that Nehru fought and kept saying that if you break India into languages, there is no end to it.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/shekhar-kapur/it-is-interesting-that-nehru-fought-and-kept-saying-that-if-you-break/)

[Shekhar Kapur](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/shekhar-kapur/)

> [People kept asking, 'What's your market?' I've got no idea at all other than me, an eleven year old kid in a 56-year-old body.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/graeme-base/people-kept-asking-what-s-your-market-i-ve-got-no-idea-at-all-other/)

[Graeme Base](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/graeme-base/)

> [I wanted to be champ of the world, but I kept hoping something would happen to Frazier. I didn't want to fight him. Nobody…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-foreman/i-wanted-to-be-champ-of-the-world-but-i-kept-hoping-something-would/)

[George Foreman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-foreman/)

> [I hit Damian Fuller with a left hook that left him laid out for 30-45 minutes. They brought oxygen to him, they couldn't wake…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/diego-corrales/i-hit-damian-fuller-with-a-left-hook-that-left-him-laid-out-for-30-45/)

[Diego Corrales](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/diego-corrales/)

> [My mother sent me to speech classes, but the other kids still teased me. I was shy. I stooped. Instead of talking, I kept…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/colman-domingo/my-mother-sent-me-to-speech-classes-but-the-other-kids-still-teased/)

[Colman Domingo](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/colman-domingo/)

> [“She kept laughing all the way to her car, but I couldn’t move.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tijan/she-kept-laughing-all-the-way-to-her-car-but-i-couldn-t-move/)

[Tijan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tijan/)

> [“She's kept her love for him as alive as the summer they first met. In order to do this, she's turned life away. Sometimes…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nicole-krauss/she-s-kept-her-love-for-him-as-alive-as-the-summer-they-first-met-in/)

[Nicole Krauss](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nicole-krauss/)

> [I always kept my expectations in life very tame.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/hannah-gadsby/i-always-kept-my-expectations-in-life-very-tame/)

[Hannah Gadsby](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/hannah-gadsby/)

> [When I was in Greenough, Montana, I came across a bear cub. I was off this path, and I thought, If there's a bear…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/al-roker/when-i-was-in-greenough-montana-i-came-across-a-bear-cub-i-was-off/)

[Al Roker](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/al-roker/)

Browse all 817 Kept quotes

```json
{
    "@context": "https://schema.org",
    "@graph": [
        {
            "@type": "Quotation",
            "text": "“The promise that mattered has been kept.”",
            "creator": {
                "@type": "Person",
                "name": "Dean Koontz"
            },
            "isPartOf": {
                "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website"
            },
            "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dean-koontz/the-promise-that-mattered-has-been-kept/",
            "about": {
                "@type": "Thing",
                "name": "Kept"
            },
            "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dean-koontz/the-promise-that-mattered-has-been-kept/#quotation",
            "image": {
                "@type": "ImageObject",
                "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/d2c/dean-koontz-118_kept_the-promise-that-mattered-has-been-kept_2295510.jpg",
                "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/d2c/dean-koontz-118_kept_the-promise-that-mattered-has-been-kept_2295510.jpg",
                "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/d2c/dean-koontz-118_kept_the-promise-that-mattered-has-been-kept_2295510.jpg",
                "width": 1080,
                "height": 1080,
                "caption": "“The promise that mattered has been kept.” — Dean Koontz",
                "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": "Dean Koontz",
                    "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dean-koontz/"
                },
                {
                    "@type": "ListItem",
                    "position": 4,
                    "name": "“The promise that mattered has been...",
                    "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dean-koontz/the-promise-that-mattered-has-been-kept/"
                }
            ],
            "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dean-koontz/the-promise-that-mattered-has-been-kept/#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
            }
        }
    ]
}
```
