---
title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: When I tried to remember her voice…"
description: "\"“When I tried to remember her voice saying, 'Don't worry,' I found I had no memory for sounds. I couldn't imitate her voice. I couldn't even caricature..."
image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/7b5/graham-greene-441_forgetting_when-i-tried-to-remember-her-voice-sayin_2612229.jpg"
---

#  When I tried to remember her voice saying, 'Don't worry,'…

![“When I tried to remember her voice saying, 'Don't worry,' I found I had no memory for sounds. I couldn't imitate her voice. I couldn't even caricature it: when I tried to remember it, it was anonymous - just any woman's voice. The process of forgetting her had set in. We should keep gramophone…” quote by Graham Greene](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/7b5/graham-greene-441_forgetting_when-i-tried-to-remember-her-voice-sayin_2612229.jpg)   [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/7b5/graham-greene-441_forgetting_when-i-tried-to-remember-her-voice-sayin_2612229.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/7b5/graham-greene-441_forgetting_when-i-tried-to-remember-her-voice-sayin_2612229.jpg)

> ““When I tried to remember her voice saying, 'Don't worry,' I found I had no memory for sounds. I couldn't imitate her voice. I couldn't even caricature it: when I tried to remember it, it was anonymous - just any woman's voice. The process of forgetting her had set in. We should keep gramophone records as we keep photographs.””

[Graham Greene](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/graham-greene/)

## About This Quote

This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation.

Forgetting a loved one's voice can erase the personal details, leaving only a generic impression, highlighting how memory fades and why we preserve recordings.

**In simple terms:** Memory of a voice can fade to anonymity, so we keep recordings.

Key Takeaway

Preserve audio memories like photos.

Themes

memory loss preservation identity technology

Mood

melancholic reflective

Type

observational philosophical

When to use this quote

- personal loss
- historical documentation
- family archives
- audio restoration
- digital preservation

Key Concepts

psychology nostalgia media archiving

Questions to Reflect On

- How do we decide which sounds to preserve?
- What does losing a voice mean for personal identity?

A Different Perspective

Audio recordings can be altered or lost over time, limiting their reliability.

★ ★ ★ ★ ★   No ratings yet

[Forgetting](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/forgetting/) [Memory](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/memory/)

## Related quotes

> [“I can't wait to get my memory back. It sounds like I am a really cool person”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-c-wright/i-can-t-wait-to-get-my-memory-back-it-sounds-like-i-am-a-really-cool/)

[John C. Wright](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-c-wright/)

> [As you get older, you worry about your memory.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ronnie-corbett/as-you-get-older-you-worry-about-your-memory/)

[Ronnie Corbett](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ronnie-corbett/)

> [“In a sense, the recording stylus and its reverse component have defeated time. Up until a little more than a generation ago, the sound…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/judith-c-waller/in-a-sense-the-recording-stylus-and-its-reverse-component-have/)

[Judith C. Waller](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/judith-c-waller/)

> [If you’re so forgetful that you’re incapable of remembering that a co-worker isn’t pregnant on three separate occasions in as many months, I worry…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mallory-ortberg/if-you-re-so-forgetful-that-you-re-incapable-of-remembering-that-a-co/)

[Mallory Ortberg](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mallory-ortberg/)

> [The established characters are easy to recall. I don't know why, but they come back to me instantly when I need them. It's the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jim-cummings/the-established-characters-are-easy-to-recall-i-don-t-know-why-but/)

[Jim Cummings](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jim-cummings/)

> [Remember there's always a voice saying the right thing to you somewhere if you'll only listen for it.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/thomas-hughes/remember-there-s-always-a-voice-saying-the-right-thing-to-you/)

[Thomas Hughes](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/thomas-hughes/)

> [I hate remember your name, your voice, your smile,but, I really hate missing you](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anabella/i-hate-remember-your-name-your-voice-your-smile-but-i-really-hate/)

[Anabella](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anabella/)

> [I remember a voice that was calling my name and I now that someday you will feel the same...](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/qaiffah/i-remember-a-voice-that-was-calling-my-name-and-i-now-that-someday/)

[Qaiffah](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/qaiffah/)

> [If you're having dinner with a friend and you realize you can't remember what their voice sounds like you've been talking too much.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/if-you-re-having-dinner-with-a-friend-and-you-realize-you-can-t/)

[Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/)

> [“Of course I remember you." My voice is a strangled whisper. I squeeze my eyes shut. "You were the only one who ever looked…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tahereh-mafi/of-course-i-remember-you-my-voice-is-a-strangled-whisper-i-squeeze-my/)

[Tahereh Mafi](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tahereh-mafi/)

> [I say with pride that I've done over a hundred voices or something, and some of them may have only had two or three…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/hank-azaria/i-say-with-pride-that-i-ve-done-over-a-hundred-voices-or-something/)

[Hank Azaria](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/hank-azaria/)

> [“At the end, I know we won't remember the voice of our critics, but we will remember the Legacy that we left.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/thomas-appiah/at-the-end-i-know-we-won-t-remember-the-voice-of-our-critics-but-we/)

[Thomas Appiah](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/thomas-appiah/)

> [“I made a noise in my throat and tried to remember why I thought I'd missed her the last couple of days.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jay-crownover/i-made-a-noise-in-my-throat-and-tried-to-remember-why-i-thought-i-d/)

[Jay Crownover](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jay-crownover/)

> [Percy tried to remember. He really did. For some reason, Annabeth and he had visited a spa and decided to destroy it. He couldn't…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rick-riordan/percy-tried-to-remember-he-really-did-for-some-reason-annabeth-and-he/)

[Rick Riordan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rick-riordan/)

> [“The other day, I tried to remember what was the word for ‘dragonfly’ and couldn’t.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/donna-tartt/the-other-day-i-tried-to-remember-what-was-the-word-for-dragonfly-and/)

[Donna Tartt](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/donna-tartt/)

## More by Graham Greene

> [“Time gives poetry to a battlefield...”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/graham-greene/time-gives-poetry-to-a-battlefield/)

[Graham Greene](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/graham-greene/)

> [“What is cowardice in the young is wisdom in the old, but all the same one can be ashamed of wisdom.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/graham-greene/what-is-cowardice-in-the-young-is-wisdom-in-the-old-but-all-the-same/)

[Graham Greene](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/graham-greene/)

> [Pity is cruel. Pity destroys.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/graham-greene/pity-is-cruel-pity-destroys/)

[Graham Greene](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/graham-greene/)

> [Hate is a lack of imagination.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/graham-greene/hate-is-a-lack-of-imagination/)

[Graham Greene](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/graham-greene/)

> [Despair is the price one pays for setting oneself an impossible aim. It is, one is told, the unforgivable sin, but it is a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/graham-greene/despair-is-the-price-one-pays-for-setting-oneself-an-impossible-aim/)

[Graham Greene](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/graham-greene/)

> [“Knowledge was the great thing--not abstract knowledge in which Dr. Forester had been so rich, the theories which lead one enticingly on with their…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/graham-greene/knowledge-was-the-great-thing-not-abstract-knowledge-in-which-dr/)

[Graham Greene](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/graham-greene/)

> [With Your great schemes, You ruin our happiness like a harvester ruins a mouse's nest: I hate You, God, I hate You as though…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/graham-greene/with-your-great-schemes-you-ruin-our-happiness-like-a-harvester-ruins/)

[Graham Greene](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/graham-greene/)

> [Heresy is only another word for freedom of thought.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/graham-greene/heresy-is-only-another-word-for-freedom-of-thought/)

[Graham Greene](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/graham-greene/)

> [“He had thought that home was something one possessed, but the things one had possessed were cursed with change; it was what one didn't…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/graham-greene/he-had-thought-that-home-was-something-one-possessed-but-the-things/)

[Graham Greene](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/graham-greene/)

> [Perhaps the comparison is closer to the Chinese cook who leaves hardly any part of a duck unserved.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/graham-greene/perhaps-the-comparison-is-closer-to-the-chinese-cook-who-leaves/)

[Graham Greene](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/graham-greene/)

> [“He said, ‘Oh god, help her. Damn me, I deserve it, but let her live forever.’ This was the love he should have felt…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/graham-greene/he-said-oh-god-help-her-damn-me-i-deserve-it-but-let-her-live-forever/)

[Graham Greene](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/graham-greene/)

> [“A police photograph is like a passport photograph: the intelligence which casts a veil over the crude common shape is never recorded by the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/graham-greene/a-police-photograph-is-like-a-passport-photograph-the-intelligence/)

[Graham Greene](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/graham-greene/)

> [ “I tossed up whether I'd see \[the critic\] or not: I knew too well the pompous phrases of his article, the buried significance he… ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/graham-greene/i-tossed-up-whether-i-d-see-the-critic-or-not-i-knew-too-well-the/)

[Graham Greene](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/graham-greene/)

> [Success is more dangerous than failure, the ripples break over a wider coastline.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/graham-greene/success-is-more-dangerous-than-failure-the-ripples-break-over-a-wider/)

[Graham Greene](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/graham-greene/)

> [“But we do not love people for what they do for us. Love happens to us; it isn't created.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/graham-greene/but-we-do-not-love-people-for-what-they-do-for-us-love-happens-to-us/)

[Graham Greene](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/graham-greene/)

[Explore all 550 Graham Greene quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/graham-greene/)

## More Forgetting quotes

> [I have never been in, nor have I had any strong particular desire to be in, what is termed a costume drama, but I…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/martin-freeman/i-have-never-been-in-nor-have-i-had-any-strong-particular-desire-to/)

[Martin Freeman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/martin-freeman/)

> [The most painful thing in life is losing yourself in the process of valuing someone too much &amp; forgetting that you are special too.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/the-most-painful-thing-in-life-is-losing-yourself-in-the-process-of/)

[Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/)

> [I focus on this one thing: Forgetting the past and looking forward to what lies ahead.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/i-focus-on-this-one-thing-forgetting-the-past-and-looking-forward-to/)

[Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/)

> [Forgetting your Self is the greatest injury; all the calamities flow from it. Take care of the most important, the lesser will take care…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sri-nisargadatta-maharaj/forgetting-your-self-is-the-greatest-injury-all-the-calamities-flow/)

[Sri Nisargadatta Maharaj](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sri-nisargadatta-maharaj/)

> [If you can't forgive and forget, pick only one.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robert-brault/if-you-can-t-forgive-and-forget-pick-only-one/)

[Robert Brault](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robert-brault/)

> [Absolute is a game with only one player where Absolute forgets itself so it would have a reason to fulfill the motion while returning.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dejan-stojanovic/absolute-is-a-game-with-only-one-player-where-absolute-forgets-itself/)

[Dejan Stojanovic](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dejan-stojanovic/)

> [“Several times that day, the name or thought of Papa had come up. And each time, Francie had felt a flash of tenderness instead…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/betty-smith/several-times-that-day-the-name-or-thought-of-papa-had-come-up-and/)

[Betty Smith](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/betty-smith/)

> [“It's my fault. I am forgetting too much.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/margaret-atwood/it-s-my-fault-i-am-forgetting-too-much/)

[Margaret Atwood](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/margaret-atwood/)

> [Falling out of love is chiefly a matter of forgetting how charming someone is.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/iris-murdoch/falling-out-of-love-is-chiefly-a-matter-of-forgetting-how-charming/)

[Iris Murdoch](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/iris-murdoch/)

> [“She's sure, absolutely sure, that what she's waiting for will happen, just the way she wants it to; and I'm so uncertain, so fearful…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lois-lowry/she-s-sure-absolutely-sure-that-what-she-s-waiting-for-will-happen/)

[Lois Lowry](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lois-lowry/)

> [Im afraid of being forgotten. Because, it seems everyone I get close to, ends up forgetting me.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/arcine-arciniegas/im-afraid-of-being-forgotten-because-it-seems-everyone-i-get-close-to/)

[Arcine Arciniegas](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/arcine-arciniegas/)

> [“Keeping histories is as much about knowing what needs forgetting as what ought to be remembered.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/leah-bobet/keeping-histories-is-as-much-about-knowing-what-needs-forgetting-as/)

[Leah Bobet](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/leah-bobet/)

> [“Forgetting is what nature does best. The universe is a huge forgetting machine. It erases information no matter how hard we try to hang…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/carolyn-ives-gilman/forgetting-is-what-nature-does-best-the-universe-is-a-huge-forgetting/)

Carolyn Ives Gilman

> [“Who was it said, ‘We forget because we must’? He was right.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/l-m-montgomery/who-was-it-said-we-forget-because-we-must-he-was-right/)

[L.M. Montgomery](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/l-m-montgomery/)

> [Moving on isnt forgetting the past, its learning from it.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/moving-on-isnt-forgetting-the-past-its-learning-from-it/)

[Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/)

[Browse all 1,010 Forgetting quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/forgetting/)

```json
{
    "@context": "https://schema.org",
    "@graph": [
        {
            "@type": "Quotation",
            "text": "“When I tried to remember her voice saying, 'Don't worry,' I found I had no memory for sounds. I couldn't imitate her voice. I couldn't even caricature it: when I tried to remember it, it was anonymous - just any woman's voice. The process of forgetting her had set in. We should keep gramophone records as we keep photographs.”",
            "creator": {
                "@type": "Person",
                "name": "Graham Greene"
            },
            "isPartOf": {
                "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website"
            },
            "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/graham-greene/when-i-tried-to-remember-her-voice-saying-don-t-worry-i-found-i-had/",
            "about": {
                "@type": "Thing",
                "name": "Forgetting"
            },
            "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/graham-greene/when-i-tried-to-remember-her-voice-saying-don-t-worry-i-found-i-had/#quotation",
            "image": {
                "@type": "ImageObject",
                "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/7b5/graham-greene-441_forgetting_when-i-tried-to-remember-her-voice-sayin_2612229.jpg",
                "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/7b5/graham-greene-441_forgetting_when-i-tried-to-remember-her-voice-sayin_2612229.jpg",
                "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/7b5/graham-greene-441_forgetting_when-i-tried-to-remember-her-voice-sayin_2612229.jpg",
                "width": 1080,
                "height": 1080,
                "caption": "“When I tried to remember her voice saying, 'Don't worry,' I found I had no memory for sounds. I couldn't…” — Graham Greene",
                "creditText": "SMS4Smile Quotes",
                "creator": {
                    "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization"
                }
            }
        },
        {
            "@type": "BreadcrumbList",
            "itemListElement": [
                {
                    "@type": "ListItem",
                    "position": 1,
                    "name": "Home",
                    "item": "https://sms4smile.com/"
                },
                {
                    "@type": "ListItem",
                    "position": 2,
                    "name": "Quotes",
                    "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/"
                },
                {
                    "@type": "ListItem",
                    "position": 3,
                    "name": "Graham Greene",
                    "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/graham-greene/"
                },
                {
                    "@type": "ListItem",
                    "position": 4,
                    "name": "“When I tried to remember her...",
                    "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/graham-greene/when-i-tried-to-remember-her-voice-saying-don-t-worry-i-found-i-had/"
                }
            ],
            "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/graham-greene/when-i-tried-to-remember-her-voice-saying-don-t-worry-i-found-i-had/#breadcrumb"
        },
        {
            "@type": "WebSite",
            "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website",
            "name": "SMS4Smile Quotes",
            "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/",
            "publisher": {
                "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization"
            }
        },
        {
            "@type": "Organization",
            "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization",
            "name": "SMS4Smile Quotes",
            "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/",
            "logo": {
                "@type": "ImageObject",
                "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/wp-content/themes/sq/assets/icons/icon-512.png",
                "width": 512,
                "height": 512
            }
        }
    ]
}
```
