Memories Quote by George MacDonald
““Strange dim memories, which will not abide identification, often, through misty windows of the past, look out upon me in the broad daylight, but I never dream now. It may be, notwithstanding, that, when most awake, I am only dreaming the more! But when I wake at last into that life which as a mother her child, carries life in its bosom, I shall know that I wake, and shall doubt no more. I wait; asleep or awake, I wait.””
About This Quote
Source Book: The Lost Princess by George MacDonald, 1884
The speaker reflects on fleeting, indistinct memories that surface in daylight yet remain elusive, contrasting waking life with dreaming, and awaiting a profound awakening akin to a mother's nurturing awareness.
In simple terms: Memories appear and fade; true awareness comes with nurturing love.
Key Takeaway
Seek deeper awareness through love.
Themes
memory
awakening
identity
patience
reflection
Mood
contemplative
hopeful
melancholic
Type
philosophical
literary
When to use this quote
- personal introspection
- creative writing
- mindfulness practice
- philosophical discussion
Key Concepts
existentialism
psychology
spirituality
Questions to Reflect On
- How do you distinguish between dreaming and waking awareness?
- What role does love play in personal awakening?
A Different Perspective
The metaphor may be too abstract for practical guidance.
![“And yet, though we wake, though there is no end to waking and saying Oh I see, not ever [...], still within the dream in which we find ourselves every other dream is nested, every one we have awakened from.” quote by John Crowley](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/img-quotes/678/john-crowley-7544_dream_and-yet-though-we-wake-though-there-is-n_3054630.jpg)
![“It is...difficult to describe someone, since memories are by their nature fragmented, isolated, and arbitrary as glimpses one has at night through lighted windows. [E]very memory is turned over and over again, every word, however chance, written in the heart in the hope that memory will fulfill…” quote by Marilynne Robinson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/img-quotes/dd3/marilynne-robinson-602_dreams_it-is-difficult-to-describe-someone-sinc_2711032.jpg)
![“I wish I had [made that song]. No, I don't That would be to take it from somebody else. But it's mine for all that.' 'What makes it yours?' 'I love it so.' 'Does loving a thing make it yours?' 'I think so, Mother -- at least more than anything else can. . . . Love makes the only myness,' said…” quote by George MacDonald](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/img-quotes/722/george-macdonald-295_love_i-wish-i-had-made-that-song-no-i-don-t-t_35103.jpg)
