--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: There is nothing that can replace the…" description: "\"“There is nothing that can replace the absence of someone dear to us, and one should not even attempt to do so. One must simply hold out and endure it...." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/c46/dietrich-bonhoeffer-303_hidden-treasure_there-is-nothing-that-can-replace-the-ab_2403054.jpg" --- # There is nothing that can replace the absence of someone… ![“There is nothing that can replace the absence of someone dear to us, and one should not even attempt to do so. One must simply hold out and endure it. At first that sounds very hard, but at the same time it is also a great comfort. For to the extent the emptiness truly remains unfilled one remains…” quote by Dietrich Bonhoeffer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/c46/dietrich-bonhoeffer-303_hidden-treasure_there-is-nothing-that-can-replace-the-ab_2403054.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/c46/dietrich-bonhoeffer-303_hidden-treasure_there-is-nothing-that-can-replace-the-ab_2403054.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/c46/dietrich-bonhoeffer-303_hidden-treasure_there-is-nothing-that-can-replace-the-ab_2403054.jpg) > ““There is nothing that can replace the absence of someone dear to us, and one should not even attempt to do so. One must simply hold out and endure it. At first that sounds very hard, but at the same time it is also a great comfort. For to the extent the emptiness truly remains unfilled one remains connected to the other person through it. It is wrong to say that God fills the emptiness. God in no way fills it but much more leaves it precisely unfilled and thus helps us preserve -- even in pain -- the authentic relationship. Further more, the more beautiful and full the remembrances, the more difficult the separation. But gratitude transforms the torment of memory into silent joy. One bears what was lovely in the past not as a thorn but as a precious gift deep within, a hidden treasure of which one can always be certain.”” [Dietrich Bonhoeffer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dietrich-bonhoeffer/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Loss leaves a void that reminds us of the loved one, and gratitude can turn that ache into quiet joy. **In simple terms:** Missing someone creates an empty space that can become a treasured memory. Key Takeaway Embrace the emptiness as a sign of deep connection. Themes grief memory gratitude Mood reflective comforting Type spiritual philosophical When to use this quote - mourning a bereavement - spiritual reflection - creative writing - counseling sessions Key Concepts existentialism theology attachment theory Questions to Reflect On - What does the emptiness teach you about love? - How can gratitude reshape painful memories? A Different Perspective Some find comfort in religious explanations, which may conflict with this view. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Hidden treasure](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/hidden-treasure/) [Precious gift](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/precious-gift/) ## Related quotes > [There is nothing that can replace the absence of someone dear to us, and one should not even attempt to do so. 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Howard](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/a-g-howard/) > [But don’t ever let yourself forget that the person you care about fills an emptiness no one else ever has and that while life…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sherrilyn-kenyon/but-don-t-ever-let-yourself-forget-that-the-person-you-care-about/) [Sherrilyn Kenyon](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sherrilyn-kenyon/) > [...Gratitude transforms the torment of memory of good things now gone into silent joy. One bears what was lovely in the past not as…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dietrich-bonhoeffer/gratitude-transforms-the-torment-of-memory-of-good-things-now-gone/) [Dietrich Bonhoeffer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dietrich-bonhoeffer/) > [“I decided I would fill the emptiness in me with God and with paint.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kimberly-novosel/i-decided-i-would-fill-the-emptiness-in-me-with-god-and-with-paint/) [Kimberly Novosel](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kimberly-novosel/) > [I've come to understand that the best one can hope for as a human is to have a relationship with that emptiness where God…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anne-carson/i-ve-come-to-understand-that-the-best-one-can-hope-for-as-a-human-is/) [Anne Carson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anne-carson/) > [“Alcohol doesn't console," she wrote. "All it replaces is the lack of God." It does not necessarily follow, however, that if and when a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/maggie-nelson/alcohol-doesn-t-console-she-wrote-all-it-replaces-is-the-lack-of-god/) [Maggie Nelson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/maggie-nelson/) > [“You ever feel the emptiness? You ever feel an emptiness so bad, you've got to fill it or you'll die, but you don't know…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dean-koontz/you-ever-feel-the-emptiness-you-ever-feel-an-emptiness-so-bad-you-ve/) [Dean Koontz](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dean-koontz/) > [No person, possession, profession, or position ever fills the cup of a wounded, empty heart. It's an emptiness only God can fill.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lysa-terkeurst/no-person-possession-profession-or-position-ever-fills-the-cup-of-a/) [Lysa TerKeurst](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lysa-terkeurst/) > [In the silence of the heart God speaks. If you face God in prayer and silence, God will speak to you. Then you will…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mother-teresa/in-the-silence-of-the-heart-god-speaks-if-you-face-god-in-prayer-and/) [Mother Teresa](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mother-teresa/) > [It is only when you realize your nothingness, your emptiness, that God can fill you with Himself.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mother-teresa/it-is-only-when-you-realize-your-nothingness-your-emptiness-that-god/) [Mother Teresa](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mother-teresa/) > [Before there can be fullness there must be emptiness. Before God can fill us with Himself we must first be emptied of ourselves.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/aiden-wilson-tozer/before-there-can-be-fullness-there-must-be-emptiness-before-god-can/) [Aiden Wilson Tozer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/aiden-wilson-tozer/) > [“The monk's ultimate goal is direct union with the Godhead. But to aim at that goal is to miss it altogether. His task is…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/walter-m-miller-jr/the-monk-s-ultimate-goal-is-direct-union-with-the-godhead-but-to-aim/) [Walter M. Miller Jr](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/walter-m-miller-jr/) > [In your emptiness, You will find yourself. You will find your God. Homily, Peace be with you. Ash Wednesday!](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/in-your-emptiness-you-will-find-yourself-you-will-find-your-god/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) ## More by Dietrich Bonhoeffer > [So the fool, as distinct from the scoundrel, is completely self- satisfied; in fact, he can easily become dangerous, as it does not take…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dietrich-bonhoeffer/so-the-fool-as-distinct-from-the-scoundrel-is-completely-self/) [Dietrich Bonhoeffer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dietrich-bonhoeffer/) > [Why do Christians sing when they are together? The reason is, quite simply, because in singing together it is possible for them to speak…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dietrich-bonhoeffer/why-do-christians-sing-when-they-are-together-the-reason-is-quite/) [Dietrich Bonhoeffer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dietrich-bonhoeffer/) > [What we shall need is not geniuses, or cynics, or misanthropes, or clever tacticians, but plain, honest, straghtforward men.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dietrich-bonhoeffer/what-we-shall-need-is-not-geniuses-or-cynics-or-misanthropes-or/) [Dietrich Bonhoeffer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dietrich-bonhoeffer/) > [...Gratitude transforms the torment of memory of good things now gone into silent joy. One bears what was lovely in the past not as…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dietrich-bonhoeffer/gratitude-transforms-the-torment-of-memory-of-good-things-now-gone/) [Dietrich Bonhoeffer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dietrich-bonhoeffer/) > [Only he who believes is obedient and only he who is obedient believes.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dietrich-bonhoeffer/only-he-who-believes-is-obedient-and-only-he-who-is-obedient-believes/) [Dietrich Bonhoeffer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dietrich-bonhoeffer/) > [Who can really be faithful in great things if he has not learned to be faithful in the things of daily life?](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dietrich-bonhoeffer/who-can-really-be-faithful-in-great-things-if-he-has-not-learned-to/) [Dietrich Bonhoeffer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dietrich-bonhoeffer/) > [“The church can only defend its own space by fighting, not for space, but for the salvation of the world. Otherwise the church becomes…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dietrich-bonhoeffer/the-church-can-only-defend-its-own-space-by-fighting-not-for-space/) [Dietrich Bonhoeffer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dietrich-bonhoeffer/) > [There remains an experience of incomparable value . . . to see the great events of world history from below; from the perspective of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dietrich-bonhoeffer/there-remains-an-experience-of-incomparable-value-to-see-the-great/) [Dietrich Bonhoeffer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dietrich-bonhoeffer/) > [“To endure the cross is not a tragedy; it is the suffering which is the fruit of an exclusive allegiance to Jesus Christ. When…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dietrich-bonhoeffer/to-endure-the-cross-is-not-a-tragedy-it-is-the-suffering-which-is-the/) [Dietrich Bonhoeffer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dietrich-bonhoeffer/) > [“There is only one church, the church of faith ruled by the word of Jesus Christ alone. This is the true catholic church that…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dietrich-bonhoeffer/there-is-only-one-church-the-church-of-faith-ruled-by-the-word-of/) [Dietrich Bonhoeffer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dietrich-bonhoeffer/) > [“As Christians, we needn’t be at all ashamed of some impatience, longing, opposition to what is unnatural, and our full share of desire for…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dietrich-bonhoeffer/as-christians-we-needn-t-be-at-all-ashamed-of-some-impatience-longing/) [Dietrich Bonhoeffer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dietrich-bonhoeffer/) > [Those who love their dream of a Christian community more than the Christian community itself become destroyers of that Christian community even though their…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dietrich-bonhoeffer/those-who-love-their-dream-of-a-christian-community-more-than-the/) [Dietrich Bonhoeffer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dietrich-bonhoeffer/) > [“From now on there can be no more wars of faith. The only way to overcome our enemy is by loving him.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dietrich-bonhoeffer/from-now-on-there-can-be-no-more-wars-of-faith-the-only-way-to/) [Dietrich Bonhoeffer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dietrich-bonhoeffer/) > [“The scriptures do not present us with a series of Christian types to be imitated according to choice; they preach to us in every…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dietrich-bonhoeffer/the-scriptures-do-not-present-us-with-a-series-of-christian-types-to/) [Dietrich Bonhoeffer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dietrich-bonhoeffer/) > [We are not to simply bandage the wounds of victims beneath the wheels of injustice, we are to drive a spoke into the wheel…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dietrich-bonhoeffer/we-are-not-to-simply-bandage-the-wounds-of-victims-beneath-the-wheels/) [Dietrich Bonhoeffer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dietrich-bonhoeffer/) [Explore all 711 Dietrich Bonhoeffer quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dietrich-bonhoeffer/) ## More Hidden treasure quotes > [...Gratitude transforms the torment of memory of good things now gone into silent joy. One bears what was lovely in the past not as…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dietrich-bonhoeffer/gratitude-transforms-the-torment-of-memory-of-good-things-now-gone/) [Dietrich Bonhoeffer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dietrich-bonhoeffer/) > [A classic is like a hidden treasure. Its core is buried under so many layers of varnish that it can be reached only by…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jean-louis-barrault/a-classic-is-like-a-hidden-treasure-its-core-is-buried-under-so-many/) [Jean-Louis Barrault](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jean-louis-barrault/) > [“Sienna swallowed down her hurt and added it to the growing infestation of pain placed it in that beating glass jar of hers, concealed…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ali-harper/sienna-swallowed-down-her-hurt-and-added-it-to-the-growing/) [Ali Harper](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ali-harper/) > [“When I write to please everybody, it falls flat. When I write what I know, fearlessly, It won't please everybody, but it doesn't fall…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ronald-p-chavez/when-i-write-to-please-everybody-it-falls-flat-when-i-write-what-i/) Ronald P. Chavez > [Her heart was a secret garden and the walls were very high.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/her-heart-was-a-secret-garden-and-the-walls-were-very-high/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [Learning is like a cow of desire. It, like her, yields in all seasons. Like a mother, it feeds you on your journey. Therefore…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/chanakya/learning-is-like-a-cow-of-desire-it-like-her-yields-in-all-seasons/) [Chanakya](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/chanakya/) > [A woman's whole life is a history of the affections. The heart is her world: it is there her ambition strives for empire; it…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/washington-irving/a-woman-s-whole-life-is-a-history-of-the-affections-the-heart-is-her/) [Washington Irving](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/washington-irving/) > [There comes a time in every rightly constructed boy's life when he has a raging desire to go somewhere and dig for hidden treasure.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mark-twain/there-comes-a-time-in-every-rightly-constructed-boy-s-life-when-he/) [Mark Twain](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mark-twain/) > [Holding on to anger is like grasping a hot coal with the intent of throwing it at someone else; you are the one who…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gautama-buddha/holding-on-to-anger-is-like-grasping-a-hot-coal-with-the-intent-of/) [Gautama Buddha](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gautama-buddha/) > [My husband claims I have an unhealthy obsession with secondhand bookshops. That I spend too much time daydreaming altogether. But either you intrinsically understand…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kathleen-tessaro/my-husband-claims-i-have-an-unhealthy-obsession-with-secondhand/) [Kathleen Tessaro](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kathleen-tessaro/) > [Your the hidden treasure in my heart¥.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mauvra-babar/your-the-hidden-treasure-in-my-heart/) Mauvra Babar > [“Your mind is a wealth-carrier – a chest filled with hidden treasures.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-bassey-johnson/your-mind-is-a-wealth-carrier-a-chest-filled-with-hidden-treasures/) [Michael Bassey Johnson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michael-bassey-johnson/) > [There comes a time in every rightly constructed boy's life that he has a raging desire to go somewhere and dig for hidden treasure](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mark-twain/there-comes-a-time-in-every-rightly-constructed-boy-s-life-that-he/) [Mark Twain](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mark-twain/) > [You trust, there is something in garb of opportunity, knocking door for your initiative to shape your fortune Opportunities are like hidden treasure. You…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dranil-kr-sinha/you-trust-there-is-something-in-garb-of-opportunity-knocking-door-for/) [DrAnil Kr Sinha](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dranil-kr-sinha/) > [That is the best part of writing: finding the hidden treasures, giving sparkle to worn out events, invigorating the tired soul with imagination, creating…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/isabel-allende/that-is-the-best-part-of-writing-finding-the-hidden-treasures-giving/) [Isabel Allende](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/isabel-allende/) [Browse all 81 Hidden treasure quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/hidden-treasure/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "“There is nothing that can replace the absence of someone dear to us, and one should not even attempt to do so. One must simply hold out and endure it. At first that sounds very hard, but at the same time it is also a great comfort. 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