--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: She had thought often of Ada's words…" description: "\"“She had thought often of Ada's words about inventing new endings to stories and choosing joy over sorrow. In recent years she had decided her sister h..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/36b/eowyn-ivey-7989_death-and-loss_she-had-thought-often-of-ada-s-words-abo_1779708.jpg" --- # She had thought often of Ada's words about inventing new… ![“She had thought often of Ada's words about inventing new endings to stories and choosing joy over sorrow. In recent years she had decided her sister had been in part wrong. Suffering and death and loss were inescapable. And yet, what Ada had written about joy was entirely true. When she stands…” quote by Eowyn Ivey](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/36b/eowyn-ivey-7989_death-and-loss_she-had-thought-often-of-ada-s-words-abo_1779708.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/36b/eowyn-ivey-7989_death-and-loss_she-had-thought-often-of-ada-s-words-abo_1779708.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/36b/eowyn-ivey-7989_death-and-loss_she-had-thought-often-of-ada-s-words-abo_1779708.jpg) > ““She had thought often of Ada's words about inventing new endings to stories and choosing joy over sorrow. In recent years she had decided her sister had been in part wrong. Suffering and death and loss were inescapable. And yet, what Ada had written about joy was entirely true. When she stands before you with her long, naked limbs and her mysterious smile, you must embrace her while you can.”” [Eowyn Ivey](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/eowyn-ivey/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Embracing joy despite inevitable suffering, recognizing that loss is unavoidable but joy can be chosen. **In simple terms:** Choose joy even when loss is inevitable. Key Takeaway Find joy now. Themes grief joy acceptance Mood reflective hopeful Type inspirational philosophical When to use this quote - Bereavement - caregiving - personal loss - supporting others Key Concepts Existentialism Stoicism Questions to Reflect On - How can you honor grief while seeking joy? - What small joys can you notice today? A Different Perspective Joy may feel forced when grief is deep. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Ada Written](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/ada-written-1561204/) [Choosing Joy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/choosing-joy-212955/) [Death and loss](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/death-and-loss/) [Grief](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/grief/) [Joy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/joy/) [Joy Sorrow](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/joy-sorrow/) [Thought Ada](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/thought-ada-1852262/) [Written Joy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/written-joy-1561206/) ## Related quotes > [“And yet, what Ada had written about joy was entirely true. When she stands before you with her long, naked limbs and her mysterious…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/eowyn-ivey/and-yet-what-ada-had-written-about-joy-was-entirely-true-when-she/) [Eowyn Ivey](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/eowyn-ivey/) > [I am a dedicated madman, and that becomes its own training. If you can't resist, if the typewriter is like candy to you, you…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ray-bradbury/i-am-a-dedicated-madman-and-that-becomes-its-own-training-if-you-can/) [Ray Bradbury](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ray-bradbury/) > [ “1 John 1:4 "These things \[are written\] that your joy may be full." I can always measure the amount of time I'm spending in… ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/evelyn-christenson/1-john-1-4-these-things-are-written-that-your-joy-may-be-full-i-can/) [Evelyn Christenson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/evelyn-christenson/) > [All you need to do is turn on the news, and in five minutes, you're depressed with the state of the world. Choosing joy…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/billy-porter/all-you-need-to-do-is-turn-on-the-news-and-in-five-minutes-you-re/) [Billy Porter](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/billy-porter/) > [“Ever since Brenna’s birth shook up everything we thought we knew, God had been reshaping and remolding my heart to discover all the joy…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/courtney-westlake/ever-since-brenna-s-birth-shook-up-everything-we-thought-we-knew-god/) [Courtney Westlake](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/courtney-westlake/) > [Choosing joy involves spiritual surrender, and sometimes we would rather hold on to the pain than surrender our egos.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/marianne-williamson/choosing-joy-involves-spiritual-surrender-and-sometimes-we-would/) [Marianne Williamson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/marianne-williamson/) > [In choosing joy, the finish line dissolves into a different matter altogether.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mary-anne-radmacher/in-choosing-joy-the-finish-line-dissolves-into-a-different-matter/) [Mary Anne Radmacher](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mary-anne-radmacher/) > [A horizon is nothing save the limit of our sight.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/a-horizon-is-nothing-save-the-limit-of-our-sight/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [“I could not do this, I realized, if I were immortal. This degree of love of life and of one another is granted, I…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dan-simmons/i-could-not-do-this-i-realized-if-i-were-immortal-this-degree-of-love/) [Dan Simmons](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dan-simmons/) > [Ours is a society of denial that conditions us to protect ourselves from any direct difficulty and discomfort. We expend enormous energy denying our…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jack-kornfield/ours-is-a-society-of-denial-that-conditions-us-to-protect-ourselves/) [Jack Kornfield](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jack-kornfield/) > [“I've never felt normal, because I'm not normal, and I don't wanna be. I've had to face death and loss and pain in your…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stephenie-meyer/i-ve-never-felt-normal-because-i-m-not-normal-and-i-don-t-wanna-be-i/) [Stephenie Meyer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stephenie-meyer/) > [“This is a kiss worthy of a blood-soaked battlefield, a kiss born out of tragedy and misery and death and loss. A kiss that…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/summer-lane/this-is-a-kiss-worthy-of-a-blood-soaked-battlefield-a-kiss-born-out/) [Summer Lane](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/summer-lane/) > [You're already naked. There is no reason not to follow your heart.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/steve-jobs/you-re-already-naked-there-is-no-reason-not-to-follow-your-heart/) [Steve Jobs](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/steve-jobs/) > [A man is not completely born until he is dead.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/benjamin-franklin/a-man-is-not-completely-born-until-he-is-dead/) [Benjamin Franklin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/benjamin-franklin/) > [We think of death and loss as tragic twins, but in fact it is loss that hurts us.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/perry-brass/we-think-of-death-and-loss-as-tragic-twins-but-in-fact-it-is-loss/) [Perry Brass](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/perry-brass/) ## More by Eowyn Ivey > [“It was beautiful, Mabel knew, but it was a beauty that ripped you open and scored you clean so that you were left helpless…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/eowyn-ivey/it-was-beautiful-mabel-knew-but-it-was-a-beauty-that-ripped-you-open/) [Eowyn Ivey](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/eowyn-ivey/) > [“Makes me see that there might be some sense to having children after all, just so your entire life and all your family’s contributions…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/eowyn-ivey/makes-me-see-that-there-might-be-some-sense-to-having-children-after/) [Eowyn Ivey](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/eowyn-ivey/) > [“She and Jack had formed her of snow and birch boughs and frosty wild grass.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/eowyn-ivey/she-and-jack-had-formed-her-of-snow-and-birch-boughs-and-frosty-wild/) [Eowyn Ivey](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/eowyn-ivey/) > [“You’ll drive yourself crazy looking for something that’s not there.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/eowyn-ivey/you-ll-drive-yourself-crazy-looking-for-something-that-s-not-there/) [Eowyn Ivey](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/eowyn-ivey/) > [“She might be curt and ungrateful, but by God she could bake.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/eowyn-ivey/she-might-be-curt-and-ungrateful-but-by-god-she-could-bake/) [Eowyn Ivey](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/eowyn-ivey/) > [“And if it is true...that we are each inhabited by some bit of divine light, then upon death, how long before those particles dissipate…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/eowyn-ivey/and-if-it-is-true-that-we-are-each-inhabited-by-some-bit-of-divine/) [Eowyn Ivey](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/eowyn-ivey/) > [“Carry me on and on to the edge of the earth, with children's laughter like a wind - full sail, then carry me beyond”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/eowyn-ivey/carry-me-on-and-on-to-the-edge-of-the-earth-with-children-s-laughter/) [Eowyn Ivey](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/eowyn-ivey/) > [“When she first fell in love with Jack, she had dreamed she could fly, that on a warm, inky black night she had pushed…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/eowyn-ivey/when-she-first-fell-in-love-with-jack-she-had-dreamed-she-could-fly/) [Eowyn Ivey](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/eowyn-ivey/) > [“But what makes the question of cultural loss the most uncomfortable, and difficult for me to address, are the inherent definitions built into it.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/eowyn-ivey/but-what-makes-the-question-of-cultural-loss-the-most-uncomfortable/) [Eowyn Ivey](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/eowyn-ivey/) > [“Sewing was different. Mabel knew if she was patient and meticulous, if she carefully followed the lines, took each step as it came, and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/eowyn-ivey/sewing-was-different-mabel-knew-if-she-was-patient-and-meticulous-if/) [Eowyn Ivey](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/eowyn-ivey/) > [“As Jack's eyes grew accustomed to the darkness, he saw the ground covered in white and, in the light of Garrett"s lantern, snowflakes spinning…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/eowyn-ivey/as-jack-s-eyes-grew-accustomed-to-the-darkness-he-saw-the-ground/) [Eowyn Ivey](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/eowyn-ivey/) > [“Doubt crouched over his shoulder, ready to take him by the throat, whispering in his ear, You are an old man. An old, old…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/eowyn-ivey/doubt-crouched-over-his-shoulder-ready-to-take-him-by-the-throat/) [Eowyn Ivey](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/eowyn-ivey/) > [“All her life she had believed in something more, in the mystery that shape-shifted at the edge of her senses. It was the flutter…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/eowyn-ivey/all-her-life-she-had-believed-in-something-more-in-the-mystery-that/) [Eowyn Ivey](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/eowyn-ivey/) > [“In my old age, I see that life itself is often more fantastic and terrible than the stories we believed as children, and that…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/eowyn-ivey/in-my-old-age-i-see-that-life-itself-is-often-more-fantastic-and/) [Eowyn Ivey](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/eowyn-ivey/) > [“I see that life itself is often more fantastic and terrible than the stories we believed as children, and that perhaps there is no…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/eowyn-ivey/i-see-that-life-itself-is-often-more-fantastic-and-terrible-than-the/) [Eowyn Ivey](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/eowyn-ivey/) [Explore all 84 Eowyn Ivey quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/eowyn-ivey/) ## More Death and loss quotes > [We think of death and loss as tragic twins, but in fact it is loss that hurts us.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/perry-brass/we-think-of-death-and-loss-as-tragic-twins-but-in-fact-it-is-loss/) [Perry Brass](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/perry-brass/) > [A man is not completely born until he is dead.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/benjamin-franklin/a-man-is-not-completely-born-until-he-is-dead/) [Benjamin Franklin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/benjamin-franklin/) > [You're already naked. There is no reason not to follow your heart.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/steve-jobs/you-re-already-naked-there-is-no-reason-not-to-follow-your-heart/) [Steve Jobs](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/steve-jobs/) > [“This is a kiss worthy of a blood-soaked battlefield, a kiss born out of tragedy and misery and death and loss. A kiss that…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/summer-lane/this-is-a-kiss-worthy-of-a-blood-soaked-battlefield-a-kiss-born-out/) [Summer Lane](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/summer-lane/) > [“I've never felt normal, because I'm not normal, and I don't wanna be. I've had to face death and loss and pain in your…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stephenie-meyer/i-ve-never-felt-normal-because-i-m-not-normal-and-i-don-t-wanna-be-i/) [Stephenie Meyer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stephenie-meyer/) > [Ours is a society of denial that conditions us to protect ourselves from any direct difficulty and discomfort. We expend enormous energy denying our…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jack-kornfield/ours-is-a-society-of-denial-that-conditions-us-to-protect-ourselves/) [Jack Kornfield](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jack-kornfield/) > [A horizon is nothing save the limit of our sight.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/a-horizon-is-nothing-save-the-limit-of-our-sight/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [“I could not do this, I realized, if I were immortal. This degree of love of life and of one another is granted, I…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dan-simmons/i-could-not-do-this-i-realized-if-i-were-immortal-this-degree-of-love/) [Dan Simmons](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dan-simmons/) > [Though nothing can bring back the hour Of splendour in the grass, of glory in the flower.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-wordsworth/though-nothing-can-bring-back-the-hour-of-splendour-in-the-grass-of/) [William Wordsworth](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-wordsworth/) > [“You don’t have control” she spat. “Iris doesn’t have control. No one does. Control is an illusion. Terrible things happen with no reason at…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kristen-mae/you-don-t-have-control-she-spat-iris-doesn-t-have-control-no-one-does/) [Kristen Mae](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kristen-mae/) > [I know for certain that we never lose the people we love, even to death. They continue to participate in every act, thought and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/leo-buscaglia/i-know-for-certain-that-we-never-lose-the-people-we-love-even-to/) [Leo Buscaglia](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/leo-buscaglia/) > [He spoke well who said that graves are the footprints of angels.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/henry-wadsworth-longfellow/he-spoke-well-who-said-that-graves-are-the-footprints-of-angels/) [Henry Wadsworth Longfellow](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/henry-wadsworth-longfellow/) > [“Death is death and loss is loss.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/melina-marchetta/death-is-death-and-loss-is-loss/) [Melina Marchetta](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/melina-marchetta/) > [The light has gone out of my life.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/theodore-roosevelt/the-light-has-gone-out-of-my-life/) [Theodore Roosevelt](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/theodore-roosevelt/) > [When you awaken in the morning's hush I am the swift uplifting rush Of quiet birds in circled flight. I am the soft stars…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mary-elizabeth-frye/when-you-awaken-in-the-morning-s-hush-i-am-the-swift-uplifting-rush/) [Mary Elizabeth Frye](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mary-elizabeth-frye/) [Browse all 29 Death and loss quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/death-and-loss/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "“She had thought often of Ada's words about inventing new endings to stories and choosing joy over sorrow. In recent years she had decided her sister had been in part wrong. Suffering and death and loss were inescapable. And yet, what Ada had written about joy was entirely true. 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