--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: I am nothing--nothing--nothing. She was…" description: "\"“I am nothing--nothing--nothing. She was clinging to that, she found, as to a sort of anchor, because it kept her from having to face the terrible poss..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/7de/elizabeth-goudge-2888_dark-night_i-am-nothing-nothing-nothing-she-was-cli_2149268.jpg" --- # I am nothing--nothing--nothing. She was clinging to that… ![“I am nothing--nothing--nothing. She was clinging to that, she found, as to a sort of anchor, because it kept her from having to face the terrible possibility that God Himself was not, and the realization of God's nothingness would be the final horror that could not be borne. Yet as time passed she…” quote by Elizabeth Goudge](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/7de/elizabeth-goudge-2888_dark-night_i-am-nothing-nothing-nothing-she-was-cli_2149268.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/7de/elizabeth-goudge-2888_dark-night_i-am-nothing-nothing-nothing-she-was-cli_2149268.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/7de/elizabeth-goudge-2888_dark-night_i-am-nothing-nothing-nothing-she-was-cli_2149268.jpg) > ““I am nothing--nothing--nothing. She was clinging to that, she found, as to a sort of anchor, because it kept her from having to face the terrible possibility that God Himself was not, and the realization of God's nothingness would be the final horror that could not be borne. Yet as time passed she knew that that possibility, too, must be faced. She must let go of the very last thing left her, the knowledge of her own nothingness, and face it. And she let go, and looked around for God and did not find Him; and then there was nothing, except the dark night. But there was the dark night. Very slowly she became conscious of it, and then she found that she was hugging it to her, wrapping herself in it as though it were a cloak to hide her in this hour of her humiliation. For a long while the night was all that she had, and then suddenly, like a sword stabbing the darkness, came a trill of music. It was a bird welcoming the dawn. That, too, was added. She drew back one of the curtains of her bed and saw a patch of grey light where the window was. That also. During the hours of the night she had been completely stripped, and now one by one a few things were being handed to her for the clothing of her naked, shivering, humiliated soul. For a few things one must have to make one decent if one was to step forth again upon the highway. For that, obviously, impossible though the task seemed to her at this moment, was what she had to do as soon as the full day came, because there wasn't anything else that she could do. She had to go on living and serving, with the living and serving stripped of all pleasure...But there would be something. There would be darkness and light, night and day, both sweet things, and music linking them together. The full glory of the dawn chorus seemed all about her...it was full day by the time she pulled back the muslin curtains that covered her window and flung it wide and leaned out, the scent of the spring earth rushing up to meet her. That also was given back...By whom?”” [Elizabeth Goudge](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/elizabeth-goudge/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Confronting the abyss of existential emptiness leads to a gradual emergence of hope and meaning through small gifts and sensory awakenings. **In simple terms:** Facing emptiness eventually brings light and purpose. Key Takeaway Embrace darkness, seek small signs of hope. Themes existentialism spirituality hope resilience Mood melancholy reflective hopeful Type literary philosophical When to use this quote - grief - loneliness - spiritual crisis - personal growth Key Concepts nihilism awakening redemption Questions to Reflect On - What small comforts can you welcome in darkness? - How does acknowledging emptiness enable growth? A Different Perspective The transition may be slow and fragile, and hope can feel fleeting. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Dark night](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/dark-night/) [Dark night of the soul](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/dark-night-of-the-soul/) [Darkness](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/darkness/) [Darkness And Light](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/darkness-and-light/) [Dawn](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/dawn/) [Doubt](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/doubt/) [Existential crisis](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/existential-crisis/) [Faith](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/faith/) [Hope](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/hope/) [Nothingness](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/nothingness/) [Sweet things](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/sweet-things/) ## Related quotes > [God made everything out of nothing, but the nothingness shows through.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/paul-valery/god-made-everything-out-of-nothing-but-the-nothingness-shows-through/) [Paul Valery](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/paul-valery/) > [Ultimately, Leibniz argued, there are only two absolutely simple concepts, God and Nothingness. From these, all other concepts may be constructed, the world, and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-berlinski/ultimately-leibniz-argued-there-are-only-two-absolutely-simple/) [David Berlinski](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-berlinski/) > [“As we previously postulated, God of itself is nothing, and the Nothing of itself is nothing. In the absolute, without the world's existence as…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dejan-stojanovic/as-we-previously-postulated-god-of-itself-is-nothing-and-the-nothing/) [Dejan Stojanovic](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dejan-stojanovic/) > [“You see my state, and still increase my pain I see your face, the need for union regain. For my welfare, you have no…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/hafiz/you-see-my-state-and-still-increase-my-pain-i-see-your-face-the-need/) [Hafiz](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/hafiz/) > [“Maslow emphasized the “heights”, but to get to the heights you must have the Dark Night of the soul, and make your trip to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rob-armstrong/maslow-emphasized-the-heights-but-to-get-to-the-heights-you-must-have/) Rob Armstrong > [I believe that the 'dark night of the soul' is a common spiritual experience. I believe, too, that the answer is continued seeking and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/julia-cameron/i-believe-that-the-dark-night-of-the-soul-is-a-common-spiritual/) [Julia Cameron](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/julia-cameron/) > [There can be no rebirth without a dark night of the soul, a total annihilation of all that you believed in and thought that…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/there-can-be-no-rebirth-without-a-dark-night-of-the-soul-a-total/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [“While the Dark Night of the Soul is a process of death, the Spiritual Awakening Process is the rebirth.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mateo-sol/while-the-dark-night-of-the-soul-is-a-process-of-death-the-spiritual/) [Mateo Sol](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mateo-sol/) > [The dark night of the soul for me was one night in Florida, when I had been on the road for about four years…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/barry-manilow/the-dark-night-of-the-soul-for-me-was-one-night-in-florida-when-i-had/) [Barry Manilow](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/barry-manilow/) > [“The journey of the dark night of the soul is where we learn who we are, without people telling us.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ad-le-green/the-journey-of-the-dark-night-of-the-soul-is-where-we-learn-who-we/) Adèle Green > [“The idea is a complicated one, as the burden falls to us to differentiate this Divine Darkness from other kinds of darknesses-- that off…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/maggie-nelson/the-idea-is-a-complicated-one-as-the-burden-falls-to-us-to/) [Maggie Nelson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/maggie-nelson/) > [“There is another reason also why the soul has traveled safely in this obscurity; it has suffered: for the way of suffering is safer,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/saint-john-of-the-cross/there-is-another-reason-also-why-the-soul-has-traveled-safely-in-this/) Saint John of the Cross > [And through a dark night of the soul, I came to realize that salvation happens through a mysterious, indefinable, relational interaction with Jesus in…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/donald-miller/and-through-a-dark-night-of-the-soul-i-came-to-realize-that-salvation/) [Donald Miller](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/donald-miller/) > [“do you dare to step in- to the vulnerable black, stripped to the soul with human blindness – when the full and weeping moon…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/beth-morey/do-you-dare-to-step-in-to-the-vulnerable-black-stripped-to-the-soul/) Beth Morey > [“...the important questions are answered by not liking only but disliking and accepting equally what one likes and dislikes. Otherwise there is no access…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-cage/the-important-questions-are-answered-by-not-liking-only-but-disliking/) [John Cage](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-cage/) ## More by Elizabeth Goudge > [“He strolled to the front door and stood watching, letting the picture of Felicity grave itself so deeply on his mind that when with…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/elizabeth-goudge/he-strolled-to-the-front-door-and-stood-watching-letting-the-picture/) [Elizabeth Goudge](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/elizabeth-goudge/) > [I have known him nearly all my life, and I am going to marry him, so that there won't ever be a time when…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/elizabeth-goudge/i-have-known-him-nearly-all-my-life-and-i-am-going-to-marry-him-so/) [Elizabeth Goudge](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/elizabeth-goudge/) > [Because of course she had known she must go. She always did the thing because in obedience lay the integrity that God asked of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/elizabeth-goudge/because-of-course-she-had-known-she-must-go-she-always-did-the-thing/) [Elizabeth Goudge](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/elizabeth-goudge/) > [Marriage is a very long process.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/elizabeth-goudge/marriage-is-a-very-long-process/) [Elizabeth Goudge](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/elizabeth-goudge/) > [Being ill makes you feel what well people call sentimental, but what you feel is nonetheless genuine whatever they call it.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/elizabeth-goudge/being-ill-makes-you-feel-what-well-people-call-sentimental-but-what/) [Elizabeth Goudge](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/elizabeth-goudge/) > [Nothing living should ever be treated with contempt. Whatever it is that lives, a man, a tree, or a bird, should be touched gently,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/elizabeth-goudge/nothing-living-should-ever-be-treated-with-contempt-whatever-it-is/) [Elizabeth Goudge](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/elizabeth-goudge/) > [“These black times go as they come and we do not know how they come or why they go. But we know that God…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/elizabeth-goudge/these-black-times-go-as-they-come-and-we-do-not-know-how-they-come-or/) [Elizabeth Goudge](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/elizabeth-goudge/) > [“What is the distinguishing mark of an aristocrat?' she asked him suddenly. 'Reverence,' he replied.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/elizabeth-goudge/what-is-the-distinguishing-mark-of-an-aristocrat-she-asked-him/) [Elizabeth Goudge](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/elizabeth-goudge/) > [Could you understand the meaning of light if there were no darkness to point the contrast? Day and night, life and death, love and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/elizabeth-goudge/could-you-understand-the-meaning-of-light-if-there-were-no-darkness/) [Elizabeth Goudge](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/elizabeth-goudge/) > [A well-trained dog is like religion, it sets the deserving at their ease and is a terror to evildoers.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/elizabeth-goudge/a-well-trained-dog-is-like-religion-it-sets-the-deserving-at-their/) [Elizabeth Goudge](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/elizabeth-goudge/) > [The sun is still there... even if clouds drift over it. Once you have experienced the reality of sunshine you may weep, but you…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/elizabeth-goudge/the-sun-is-still-there-even-if-clouds-drift-over-it-once-you-have/) [Elizabeth Goudge](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/elizabeth-goudge/) > [ \[Salvation\] is a curious process of divine burglary. The first thing to be wrested from one by a God who said 'Thou shalt not… ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/elizabeth-goudge/salvation-is-a-curious-process-of-divine-burglary-the-first-thing-to/) [Elizabeth Goudge](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/elizabeth-goudge/) > [The lovers of life, they are children at heart always in their wonder and delight, but they do not grab.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/elizabeth-goudge/the-lovers-of-life-they-are-children-at-heart-always-in-their-wonder/) [Elizabeth Goudge](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/elizabeth-goudge/) > [Our home, our special country, is for all of us the place where we find liberation; a very difficult word ... that tries to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/elizabeth-goudge/our-home-our-special-country-is-for-all-of-us-the-place-where-we-find/) [Elizabeth Goudge](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/elizabeth-goudge/) > [“Nothing whatsoever, not even the existence of God to His lovers, can be proved, but that every man, if he is to live at…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/elizabeth-goudge/nothing-whatsoever-not-even-the-existence-of-god-to-his-lovers-can-be/) [Elizabeth Goudge](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/elizabeth-goudge/) [Explore all 144 Elizabeth Goudge quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/elizabeth-goudge/) ## More Dark night quotes > [On Hanukkah, the first dark night, Light yourself a candle bright. I'll you, if you will me invite To dance within that gentle light.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nick-gordon/on-hanukkah-the-first-dark-night-light-yourself-a-candle-bright-i-ll/) [Nick Gordon](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nick-gordon/) > [“What do we do in the dark night? We do nothing. We wait. We remember that we are not God. We hold on. We…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-ortberg/what-do-we-do-in-the-dark-night-we-do-nothing-we-wait-we-remember/) [John Ortberg](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-ortberg/) > [Faith is a dark night for man, but in this very way it gives him light.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/faith-is-a-dark-night-for-man-but-in-this-very-way-it-gives-him-light/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [Maine out of season is unmistakably a great destination: hospitable, good-humored, plenty of elbow room, short days, dark nights of crackling ice crystals.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/paul-theroux/maine-out-of-season-is-unmistakably-a-great-destination-hospitable/) [Paul Theroux](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/paul-theroux/) > [“Too often on such occasions one feels, as I feel so strongly with regard to poor old Stilton, that the kindly thing to do…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/p-g-wodehouse/too-often-on-such-occasions-one-feels-as-i-feel-so-strongly-with/) [P.G. Wodehouse](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/p-g-wodehouse/) > [“Look at all the resources around you before you make a decision. Look for ways to make your environment work for you. The solution…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/c-d-sutherland/look-at-all-the-resources-around-you-before-you-make-a-decision-look/) [C.D. SUTHERLAND](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/c-d-sutherland/) > [“Sitting outside on a dark night, under the stars, invites confidences amongst people of all ages, and all walks of life. It invokes an…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/a-b-shepherd/sitting-outside-on-a-dark-night-under-the-stars-invites-confidences/) [A.B. Shepherd](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/a-b-shepherd/) > [One thing is certain, whatever choices we make: we will not miss out on some critical purgation by seeking treatment for depression or any…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tim-farrington/one-thing-is-certain-whatever-choices-we-make-we-will-not-miss-out-on/) [Tim Farrington](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tim-farrington/) > [“...the important questions are answered by not liking only but disliking and accepting equally what one likes and dislikes. Otherwise there is no access…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-cage/the-important-questions-are-answered-by-not-liking-only-but-disliking/) [John Cage](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-cage/) > [A swift carriage, of a dark night, rattling with four horses over roads that one can’t see--that’s my idea of happiness.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/henry-james/a-swift-carriage-of-a-dark-night-rattling-with-four-horses-over-roads/) [Henry James](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/henry-james/) > [“The dark night of fascism is always descending in the United States and yet lands only in Europe.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tom-wolfe/the-dark-night-of-fascism-is-always-descending-in-the-united-states/) [Tom Wolfe](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tom-wolfe/) > [Though it's cold and lonely in the deep dark night I can see paradise by the dashboard light.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/though-it-s-cold-and-lonely-in-the-deep-dark-night-i-can-see-paradise/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [Oh, it is sad for a poor Christian to stand at the door of the promise, in the dark night of affliction, afraid to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-gurnall/oh-it-is-sad-for-a-poor-christian-to-stand-at-the-door-of-the-promise/) [William Gurnall](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-gurnall/) > [“Korsakov turned away, sighing heavily as he made his way toward his SUV. It had been the early winter of 1997, a dark night…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stephen-england/korsakov-turned-away-sighing-heavily-as-he-made-his-way-toward-his/) [Stephen England](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stephen-england/) > [“Perhaps, if I use my reason in good faith, I may suceed in discovering some ray of probability to lighten me in the dark…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/voltaire/perhaps-if-i-use-my-reason-in-good-faith-i-may-suceed-in-discovering/) [Voltaire](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/voltaire/) [Browse all 380 Dark night quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/dark-night/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "“I am nothing--nothing--nothing. She was clinging to that, she found, as to a sort of anchor, because it kept her from having to face the terrible possibility that God Himself was not, and the realization of God's nothingness would be the final horror that could not be borne. Yet as time passed she knew that that possibility, too, must be faced. She must let go of the very last thing left her, the knowledge of her own nothingness, and face it. And she let go, and looked around for God and did not find Him; and then there was nothing, except the dark night. But there was the dark night. Very slowly she became conscious of it, and then she found that she was hugging it to her, wrapping herself in it as though it were a cloak to hide her in this hour of her humiliation. For a long while the night was all that she had, and then suddenly, like a sword stabbing the darkness, came a trill of music. It was a bird welcoming the dawn. That, too, was added. She drew back one of the curtains of her bed and saw a patch of grey light where the window was. That also. During the hours of the night she had been completely stripped, and now one by one a few things were being handed to her for the clothing of her naked, shivering, humiliated soul. For a few things one must have to make one decent if one was to step forth again upon the highway. For that, obviously, impossible though the task seemed to her at this moment, was what she had to do as soon as the full day came, because there wasn't anything else that she could do. She had to go on living and serving, with the living and serving stripped of all pleasure...But there would be something. There would be darkness and light, night and day, both sweet things, and music linking them together. The full glory of the dawn chorus seemed all about her...it was full day by the time she pulled back the muslin curtains that covered her window and flung it wide and leaned out, the scent of the spring earth rushing up to meet her. 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