--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: As long as we have our stories there is…" description: "\"As long as we have our stories there is hope.\" — Henri Nouwen" image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/18c/henri-nouwen-600_hope_as-long-as-we-have-our-stories-there-is_207037.png" --- # As long as we have our stories there is hope. ![“As long as we have our stories there is hope.” quote by Henri Nouwen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/18c/henri-nouwen-600_hope_as-long-as-we-have-our-stories-there-is_207037.png) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/18c/henri-nouwen-600_hope_as-long-as-we-have-our-stories-there-is_207037.png) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/18c/henri-nouwen-600_hope_as-long-as-we-have-our-stories-there-is_207037.png) > “As long as we have our stories there is hope.” [Henri Nouwen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/henri-nouwen/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Stories give meaning and continuity, sustaining hope even in hardship. **In simple terms:** Stories keep hope alive. Key Takeaway Hold onto narratives that inspire. Themes hope storytelling resilience Mood reflective uplifting Type inspirational philosophical When to use this quote - grief counseling - community building - personal healing - cultural preservation Key Concepts existential meaning narrative therapy Questions to Reflect On - What story gives you hope? - How do you share hope through stories? A Different Perspective Stories can be romanticized, ignoring harsh realities. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Hope](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/hope/) [Long](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/long/) [Long Stories](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/long-stories-1605636/) [Stories](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/stories/) [Stories Hope](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/stories-hope-494118/) [Storytelling](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/storytelling/) [There is hope](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/there-is-hope/) ## Related quotes > [“All of these heroes had failed to cajole and coerce the masters of America. Their ambition of a better world had been frustrated. This…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ta-nehisi-coates/all-of-these-heroes-had-failed-to-cajole-and-coerce-the-masters-of/) [Ta-Nehisi Coates](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ta-nehisi-coates/) > [People across the world are yearning to be connected to stories of hope.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jacqueline-novogratz/people-across-the-world-are-yearning-to-be-connected-to-stories-of/) [Jacqueline Novogratz](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jacqueline-novogratz/) > [All I thought about when I wrote my stories was, "I hope that these comic books would sell so I can keep my job…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stan-lee/all-i-thought-about-when-i-wrote-my-stories-was-i-hope-that-these/) [Stan Lee](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stan-lee/) > [The most hopeful thing in the stories, I hope, is wit. I make it up. If I make up a world in which we're…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-saunders/the-most-hopeful-thing-in-the-stories-i-hope-is-wit-i-make-it-up-if-i/) [George Saunders](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-saunders/) > [“The Word of God is a hub where stories of hope are told, from the young to the old.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gift-gugu-mona/the-word-of-god-is-a-hub-where-stories-of-hope-are-told-from-the/) [Gift Gugu Mona](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gift-gugu-mona/) > [The only thing that kept me going was stories. Stories are hope. They take you out of yourself for a bit, and when you…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/neil-gaiman/the-only-thing-that-kept-me-going-was-stories-stories-are-hope-they/) [Neil Gaiman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/neil-gaiman/) > [I don't write stories about despair. I write stories about hope.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mark-waid/i-don-t-write-stories-about-despair-i-write-stories-about-hope/) [Mark Waid](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mark-waid/) > [One of the remarkable qualities of the story is that it creates space. We can dwell in a story, walk around, find our own…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/henri-nouwen/one-of-the-remarkable-qualities-of-the-story-is-that-it-creates-space/) [Henri Nouwen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/henri-nouwen/) > [“...it's not the stories - it's the pain and the joy and the people who stay with you long after the stories are told ...”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-geddes/it-s-not-the-stories-it-s-the-pain-and-the-joy-and-the-people-who/) [John Geddes](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-geddes/) > [We live in a time of short attention spans and long stories. The short attention spans are seen as inevitable, the consequence of living…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tom-junod/we-live-in-a-time-of-short-attention-spans-and-long-stories-the-short/) [Tom Junod](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tom-junod/) > [I lose patience with long stories. I get people who go, "Crumb, do some long stories, do a graphic novel." Novel-schmovel.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robert-crumb/i-lose-patience-with-long-stories-i-get-people-who-go-crumb-do-some/) [Robert Crumb](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robert-crumb/) > [“When I think about my life, I'm always thinking, 'I hope I live long enough to do all the stories I know.' And I…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/andrew-smith/when-i-think-about-my-life-i-m-always-thinking-i-hope-i-live-long/) [Andrew Smith](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/andrew-smith/) > [A lot of people would write to me long stories from their lives, and I felt they were thinking of me as some sort…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jens-lekman/a-lot-of-people-would-write-to-me-long-stories-from-their-lives-and-i/) [Jens Lekman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jens-lekman/) > [“You have a long history," he said, when Lanya indicated her story was finished. "Ah, Harrier, were I to tell you a long story,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mercedes-lackey/you-have-a-long-history-he-said-when-lanya-indicated-her-story-was/) [Mercedes Lackey](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mercedes-lackey/) > [“As long as there have been stories, there have been characters that refuse to stick to the outline.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/suzanne-selfors/as-long-as-there-have-been-stories-there-have-been-characters-that/) [Suzanne Selfors](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/suzanne-selfors/) ## More by Henri Nouwen > [We are not the healers, we are not the reconcilers, we are not the givers of life. We are sinful, broken, vulnerable people who…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/henri-nouwen/we-are-not-the-healers-we-are-not-the-reconcilers-we-are-not-the/) [Henri Nouwen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/henri-nouwen/) > [The more we touch the intimate love of God which creates, sustains, and guides us, the more we recognize the multitude of fruits that…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/henri-nouwen/the-more-we-touch-the-intimate-love-of-god-which-creates-sustains-and/) [Henri Nouwen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/henri-nouwen/) > [Feelings of guilt dominate our work as peacemakers we cannot last long. But when we have opened each other's eyes to the great human…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/henri-nouwen/feelings-of-guilt-dominate-our-work-as-peacemakers-we-cannot-last/) [Henri Nouwen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/henri-nouwen/) > [...we all want to hear stories, from the moment we are born to the moment we die. Stories connect our little lives with the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/henri-nouwen/we-all-want-to-hear-stories-from-the-moment-we-are-born-to-the-moment/) [Henri Nouwen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/henri-nouwen/) > [I have found it very important...to let go of my wishes and start hoping.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/henri-nouwen/i-have-found-it-very-important-to-let-go-of-my-wishes-and-start-hoping/) [Henri Nouwen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/henri-nouwen/) > [Simply being with someone is difficult because it asks of us that we share in the other's vulnerability, enter with him or her into…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/henri-nouwen/simply-being-with-someone-is-difficult-because-it-asks-of-us-that-we/) [Henri Nouwen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/henri-nouwen/) > [Somewhere we know that without silence, words lose their meaning.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/henri-nouwen/somewhere-we-know-that-without-silence-words-lose-their-meaning/) [Henri Nouwen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/henri-nouwen/) > [Jesus says, "Keep your heart on the kingdom first. Keep your heart on God's love. Keep focused on the fact that you are God's…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/henri-nouwen/jesus-says-keep-your-heart-on-the-kingdom-first-keep-your-heart-on/) [Henri Nouwen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/henri-nouwen/) > [This sounds very simple and maybe even trite, but very few people know that they are loved without condition or limits.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/henri-nouwen/this-sounds-very-simple-and-maybe-even-trite-but-very-few-people-know/) [Henri Nouwen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/henri-nouwen/) > [“The more preoccupied we are with security the more visible the force of death becomes, whether in the form of a pistol beside our…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/henri-nouwen/the-more-preoccupied-we-are-with-security-the-more-visible-the-force/) [Henri Nouwen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/henri-nouwen/) > [If you feel a great loneliness and a deep longing for human contact, you have to be extremely discerning...and ask yourself whether this situation…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/henri-nouwen/if-you-feel-a-great-loneliness-and-a-deep-longing-for-human-contact/) [Henri Nouwen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/henri-nouwen/) > [I choose L'Arche; L'Arche chooses me. I would be dead if I weren't here. I need people to love me and care for me.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/henri-nouwen/i-choose-l-arche-l-arche-chooses-me-i-would-be-dead-if-i-weren-t-here/) [Henri Nouwen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/henri-nouwen/) > [The truth, even though I cannot feel it right now, is that I am the chosen child of God, precious in God's eyes, called…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/henri-nouwen/the-truth-even-though-i-cannot-feel-it-right-now-is-that-i-am-the/) [Henri Nouwen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/henri-nouwen/) > [In a world so torn apart by rivalry, anger, and hatred, we have the privileged vocation to be living signs of a love that…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/henri-nouwen/in-a-world-so-torn-apart-by-rivalry-anger-and-hatred-we-have-the/) [Henri Nouwen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/henri-nouwen/) > [Where true inner freedom is, there is God. And where God is, there we want to be.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/henri-nouwen/where-true-inner-freedom-is-there-is-god-and-where-god-is-there-we/) [Henri Nouwen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/henri-nouwen/) [Explore all 452 Henri Nouwen quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/henri-nouwen/) ## More Hope quotes > [Of all the people who have affected my life and influenced the choices I've made, none has been more important than my father. I…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/teddy-atlas/of-all-the-people-who-have-affected-my-life-and-influenced-the/) [Teddy Atlas](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/teddy-atlas/) > [“Cine a ucis stelele? Cine a surpat drumul spre viitor al celor din morminte?”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ionel-teodoreanu/cine-a-ucis-stelele-cine-a-surpat-drumul-spre-viitor-al-celor-din/) [Ionel Teodoreanu](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ionel-teodoreanu/) > [“What can we do in any hardship? We can hope with prayerful praise.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lailah-gifty-akita/what-can-we-do-in-any-hardship-we-can-hope-with-prayerful-praise/) [Lailah Gifty Akita](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lailah-gifty-akita/) > [I hope I continue to evolve.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/charlotte-flair/i-hope-i-continue-to-evolve/) [Charlotte Flair](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/charlotte-flair/) > [If one truly has lost hope, one would not be on hand to say so.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/eric-bentley/if-one-truly-has-lost-hope-one-would-not-be-on-hand-to-say-so/) [Eric Bentley](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/eric-bentley/) > [“too—I realized that my only hope was to give up the life that had been, in order to make room for the life that…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/elizabeth-lesser/too-i-realized-that-my-only-hope-was-to-give-up-the-life-that-had/) [Elizabeth Lesser](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/elizabeth-lesser/) > [You practice mindfulness, on the one hand, to be calm and peaceful. On the other hand, as you practice mindfulness and live a life…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/you-practice-mindfulness-on-the-one-hand-to-be-calm-and-peaceful-on/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [Stop trying to give me hope ... I have no room left for it.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jenn-f/stop-trying-to-give-me-hope-i-have-no-room-left-for-it/) [Jenn F](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jenn-f/) > [If there is any period one would desire to be born in, is it not the age of Revolution; when the old and the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ralph-waldo-emerson/if-there-is-any-period-one-would-desire-to-be-born-in-is-it-not-the/) [Ralph Waldo Emerson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ralph-waldo-emerson/) > [Give me love, give me peace on earth, give me light, give me life, keep me free from birth, give me hope, help me…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/give-me-love-give-me-peace-on-earth-give-me-light-give-me-life-keep/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [Pray, hope, don't worry.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/pio-of-pietrelcina/pray-hope-don-t-worry/) [Pio of Pietrelcina](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/pio-of-pietrelcina/) > [Do not pray for tasks equal to your powers. Pray for powers equal to your tasks.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/phillips-brooks/do-not-pray-for-tasks-equal-to-your-powers-pray-for-powers-equal-to/) [Phillips Brooks](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/phillips-brooks/) > [I am at a point in my life where everything I have worked for starts to look like a burden, a weight on my…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/simone-abou-samra/i-am-at-a-point-in-my-life-where-everything-i-have-worked-for-starts/) [Simone Abou Samra](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/simone-abou-samra/) > [Im really happy that I met you I hope you know that](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/im-nothing/im-really-happy-that-i-met-you-i-hope-you-know-that/) [Im Nothing](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/im-nothing/) > [All that I am or ever hope to be, I owe to my angel Mother.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/abraham-lincoln/all-that-i-am-or-ever-hope-to-be-i-owe-to-my-angel-mother/) [Abraham Lincoln](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/abraham-lincoln/) [Browse all 24,868 Hope quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/hope/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "As long as we have our stories there is hope.", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "Henri Nouwen" }, "isPartOf": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website" }, "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/henri-nouwen/as-long-as-we-have-our-stories-there-is-hope/", "about": { "@type": "Thing", "name": "Hope" }, "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/henri-nouwen/as-long-as-we-have-our-stories-there-is-hope/#quotation", "image": { "@type": "ImageObject", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/18c/henri-nouwen-600_hope_as-long-as-we-have-our-stories-there-is_207037.png", "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/18c/henri-nouwen-600_hope_as-long-as-we-have-our-stories-there-is_207037.png", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/18c/henri-nouwen-600_hope_as-long-as-we-have-our-stories-there-is_207037.png", "width": 1080, "height": 1080, "caption": "“As long as we have our stories there is hope.” — Henri Nouwen", "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": "Henri Nouwen", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/henri-nouwen/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 4, "name": "As long as we have our...", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/henri-nouwen/as-long-as-we-have-our-stories-there-is-hope/" } ], "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/henri-nouwen/as-long-as-we-have-our-stories-there-is-hope/#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 } } ] } ```