--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: Folks think a lifetime is a thing…" description: "\"Folks think a lifetime is a thing stretched out over years. It ain't. It can happen quick as a match in a dark room.\" — Esi Edugyan" image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/f60/esi-edugyan-22515_dark_folks-think-a-lifetime-is-a-thing-stretc_2071357.png" --- # Folks think a lifetime is a thing stretched out over… ![“Folks think a lifetime is a thing stretched out over years. It ain't. It can happen quick as a match in a dark room.” quote by Esi Edugyan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/f60/esi-edugyan-22515_dark_folks-think-a-lifetime-is-a-thing-stretc_2071357.png) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/f60/esi-edugyan-22515_dark_folks-think-a-lifetime-is-a-thing-stretc_2071357.png) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/f60/esi-edugyan-22515_dark_folks-think-a-lifetime-is-a-thing-stretc_2071357.png) > “Folks think a lifetime is a thing stretched out over years. It ain't. It can happen quick as a match in a dark room.” [Esi Edugyan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/esi-edugyan/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Life can be fleeting, intense, and transformative, not merely a long stretch of time. **In simple terms:** Life can be sudden and intense. Key Takeaway Embrace moments fully. Themes transience intensity time Mood reflective intense Type philosophical inspirational When to use this quote - personal crisis - creative bursts - relationships - spiritual awakenings Key Concepts existentialism mindfulness Questions to Reflect On - How do you honor brief, powerful experiences? - What does “quick as a match” mean to you? A Different Perspective Moments may be brief but can have lasting impact. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Dark](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/dark/) [Dark room](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/dark-room/) [Folks](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/folks/) [Folks Think](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/folks-think-243633/) [Lifetime](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/lifetime/) [Lifetime Thing](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/lifetime-thing-2228284/) [Rooms](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/rooms/) [Stretched Years](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/stretched-years-4000931/) [Think Lifetime](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/think-lifetime-1640409/) [Thinking](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/thinking/) [Years](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/years/) ## Related quotes > [I was born in the summer of 1970, the last of five boys stretched over eight years. My parents were a struggling young couple…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/charles-m-blow/i-was-born-in-the-summer-of-1970-the-last-of-five-boys-stretched-over/) [Charles M. Blow](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/charles-m-blow/) > [She entered the story knowing she would emerge from it feeling she had been immersed in the lives of others, in plots that stretched…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-ondaatje/she-entered-the-story-knowing-she-would-emerge-from-it-feeling-she-2/) [Michael Ondaatje](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michael-ondaatje/) > [The great man is not so great as folks think, and the dull man is not quite so stupid as he seems. The difference…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/elbert-hubbard/the-great-man-is-not-so-great-as-folks-think-and-the-dull-man-is-not/) [Elbert Hubbard](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/elbert-hubbard/) > [God must have a weird sense of values, and if there's a Judgment Day, as some folks think, He's going to have a lot…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/philip-appleman/god-must-have-a-weird-sense-of-values-and-if-there-s-a-judgment-day/) [Philip Appleman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/philip-appleman/) > [“I am in awe,” he said. “Where do all these ideas come from?” “I think from a lifetime of only being able to observe…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mary-balogh/i-am-in-awe-he-said-where-do-all-these-ideas-come-from-i-think-from-a/) [Mary Balogh](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mary-balogh/) > [I kept on trying to use so many media and ideas in my work because our horizon is so vast and Indian culture is…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/m-f-husain/i-kept-on-trying-to-use-so-many-media-and-ideas-in-my-work-because/) [M. F. Husain](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/m-f-husain/) > [Teach a man to reason and he will think for a lifetime.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/phil-plait/teach-a-man-to-reason-and-he-will-think-for-a-lifetime/) [Phil Plait](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/phil-plait/) > [Think beyond your lifetime, if you want to do something truly great.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/walt-disney/think-beyond-your-lifetime-if-you-want-to-do-something-truly-great/) [Walt Disney](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/walt-disney/) > [The happy think a lifetime short, but to the unhappy one night can be an eternity.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/the-happy-think-a-lifetime-short-but-to-the-unhappy-one-night-can-be/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [Think beyond your lifetime if you want to accomplish something truly worthwhile.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/walt-disney/think-beyond-your-lifetime-if-you-want-to-accomplish-something-truly/) [Walt Disney](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/walt-disney/) > [Make yourself useful, not just on a day to day basis, but as a lifetime thing.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/julia-stiles/make-yourself-useful-not-just-on-a-day-to-day-basis-but-as-a-lifetime/) [Julia Stiles](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/julia-stiles/) > [The combination of us two was a once-in-a-lifetime thing. You meet someone, and you just work, you have chemistry on stage, and writing.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/noel-fielding/the-combination-of-us-two-was-a-once-in-a-lifetime-thing-you-meet/) [Noel Fielding](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/noel-fielding/) > [It was a once in a lifetime thing. I hate to think it but I bet it's true. It's too bad for us that…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/scott-spencer/it-was-a-once-in-a-lifetime-thing-i-hate-to-think-it-but-i-bet-it-s/) [Scott Spencer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/scott-spencer/) > [I think that a show that is as successful as 'The Golden Girls' is a once-in-a-lifetime thing. If you don't feel proud to be…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/betty-white/i-think-that-a-show-that-is-as-successful-as-the-golden-girls-is-a/) [Betty White](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/betty-white/) > [I didn't want to make it a lifetime thing. I don't believe in statutory term limits, but people can limit themselves if they want…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-j-mitchell/i-didn-t-want-to-make-it-a-lifetime-thing-i-don-t-believe-in/) [George J. Mitchell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-j-mitchell/) ## More by Esi Edugyan > [“Hell," he said with a grin. "It's early yet. It's always early, while you still alive.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/esi-edugyan/hell-he-said-with-a-grin-it-s-early-yet-it-s-always-early-while-you/) [Esi Edugyan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/esi-edugyan/) > [Ain't no glory made from being dependable.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/esi-edugyan/ain-t-no-glory-made-from-being-dependable/) [Esi Edugyan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/esi-edugyan/) > [“Do you still call it talent, if it blooms without any kind of nurturing? That's got to be something else. She made talent sound…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/esi-edugyan/do-you-still-call-it-talent-if-it-blooms-without-any-kind-of/) [Esi Edugyan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/esi-edugyan/) > [“She laughed. I closed my eyes. It sounded damn mournful, that laugh of hers echoing off the square.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/esi-edugyan/she-laughed-i-closed-my-eyes-it-sounded-damn-mournful-that-laugh-of/) [Esi Edugyan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/esi-edugyan/) > [Of all the excellent copyedits I've received over the years, Marie-Lynn Hammond's was by far the best. Her work on Half Blood Blues was…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/esi-edugyan/of-all-the-excellent-copyedits-i-ve-received-over-the-years-marie/) [Esi Edugyan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/esi-edugyan/) > [“Her lips was hot, like the ridge of a cooking dish.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/esi-edugyan/her-lips-was-hot-like-the-ridge-of-a-cooking-dish/) [Esi Edugyan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/esi-edugyan/) > [“Jazz. Here in Germany it become something worse than a virus. We was all of us damn fleas, us Negroes and Jews and low-life…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/esi-edugyan/jazz-here-in-germany-it-become-something-worse-than-a-virus-we-was/) [Esi Edugyan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/esi-edugyan/) > [“An ancient old raisin of a man. I”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/esi-edugyan/an-ancient-old-raisin-of-a-man-i/) [Esi Edugyan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/esi-edugyan/) > [“Chip recons that he is charming as hell, and who am I to poke holes in his theory. That means that sometimes lies leave…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/esi-edugyan/chip-recons-that-he-is-charming-as-hell-and-who-am-i-to-poke-holes-in/) [Esi Edugyan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/esi-edugyan/) > [It's like that, I guess, when the past come to collect what you owe.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/esi-edugyan/it-s-like-that-i-guess-when-the-past-come-to-collect-what-you-owe/) [Esi Edugyan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/esi-edugyan/) > [“There's all sorts of ways to live, Chip. Some of them you give a lot. Some of them you take a lot. Art, jazz,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/esi-edugyan/there-s-all-sorts-of-ways-to-live-chip-some-of-them-you-give-a-lot/) [Esi Edugyan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/esi-edugyan/) > [“It's always early, while you still alive.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/esi-edugyan/it-s-always-early-while-you-still-alive/) [Esi Edugyan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/esi-edugyan/) > [To me, chocolate was the sole reason we on this earth.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/esi-edugyan/to-me-chocolate-was-the-sole-reason-we-on-this-earth/) [Esi Edugyan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/esi-edugyan/) > [“Chip said it was his piano hands - one ain't never doing the same thing as the other.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/esi-edugyan/chip-said-it-was-his-piano-hands-one-ain-t-never-doing-the-same-thing/) [Esi Edugyan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/esi-edugyan/) > [“Tell me bout this caveman with the clam moustache been barkin speeches all over Germany.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/esi-edugyan/tell-me-bout-this-caveman-with-the-clam-moustache-been-barkin/) [Esi Edugyan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/esi-edugyan/) [Explore all 27 Esi Edugyan quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/esi-edugyan/) ## More Dark quotes > [Crony capitalism is essentially a condition in which... public officials are giving favours to people in the private sector in payment of political favours.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alan-greenspan/crony-capitalism-is-essentially-a-condition-in-which-public-officials/) [Alan Greenspan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alan-greenspan/) > [“I could see her will leaving and death seeping through her skin to skewer her soul.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/j-d-stroube/i-could-see-her-will-leaving-and-death-seeping-through-her-skin-to/) [J.D. Stroube](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/j-d-stroube/) > [The soul wanders in the dark, until it finds love. And so, wherever our love goes, there we find our soul.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mary-zimmerman/the-soul-wanders-in-the-dark-until-it-finds-love-and-so-wherever-our/) [Mary Zimmerman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mary-zimmerman/) > [“Men circle like bees around honey, buzzing to communicate their sexual despair.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/carla-h-krueger/men-circle-like-bees-around-honey-buzzing-to-communicate-their-sexual/) [Carla H Krueger](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/carla-h-krueger/) > [All comedy comes from a dark place.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/katt-williams/all-comedy-comes-from-a-dark-place/) [Katt Williams](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/katt-williams/) > [It's a really dark, emotionally wrenching world that we've created on 'The Walking Dead.'](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/laurie-holden/it-s-a-really-dark-emotionally-wrenching-world-that-we-ve-created-on/) [Laurie Holden](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/laurie-holden/) > [I get afraid of the dark if I'm in a great deal of dark, and I have to move around inside of that fear...…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/emil-ferris/i-get-afraid-of-the-dark-if-i-m-in-a-great-deal-of-dark-and-i-have-to/) [Emil Ferris](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/emil-ferris/) > [I guess he'll have to figure out someday that he is supposed to have this dark side, that it is part of what it…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anne-lamott/i-guess-he-ll-have-to-figure-out-someday-that-he-is-supposed-to-have/) [Anne Lamott](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anne-lamott/) > [“Once upon a time, there was a naïve and innocent girl who thought she could tame the beast and live happily ever after. But…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nenia-campbell/once-upon-a-time-there-was-a-na-ve-and-innocent-girl-who-thought-she/) [Nenia Campbell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nenia-campbell/) > [Memory revises me. Even now a letter comes from a place I don’t know, from someone with my name and postmarked years ago, while…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/li-young-lee/memory-revises-me-even-now-a-letter-comes-from-a-place-i-don-t-know/) [Li-Young Lee](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/li-young-lee/) > [Like the water of a deep stream, love is always too much. We did not make it. Though we drink till we burst, we…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/wendell-berry/like-the-water-of-a-deep-stream-love-is-always-too-much-we-did-not/) [Wendell Berry](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/wendell-berry/) > [Let death bless me with you.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/let-death-bless-me-with-you/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [“what do you call/that space between the dark geographies of sex?”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/natasha-trethaway/what-do-you-call-that-space-between-the-dark-geographies-of-sex/) [Natasha Trethaway](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/natasha-trethaway/) > [Twinking tears in a sea of black. Soft light in a world of darkness. Tiny wishes in a place of dreams. Do you see…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nicole-gentile/twinking-tears-in-a-sea-of-black-soft-light-in-a-world-of-darkness/) [Nicole Gentile](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nicole-gentile/) > [Even in the dark your shadow is like a guide to me! you are my rising sun that brings forth hope just as it…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nkemjika-linus/even-in-the-dark-your-shadow-is-like-a-guide-to-me-you-are-my-rising/) [Nkemjika Linus](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nkemjika-linus/) [Browse all 10,198 Dark quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/dark/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "Folks think a lifetime is a thing stretched out over years. It ain't. 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