--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: People forget ideas; they don't forget…" description: "\"People forget ideas; they don't forget the real presence.\" — Henri Nouwen" image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/d20/henri-nouwen-600_forget_people-forget-ideas-they-don-t-forget-th_204476.png" --- # People forget ideas; they don't forget the real presence. ![“People forget ideas; they don't forget the real presence.” quote by Henri Nouwen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/d20/henri-nouwen-600_forget_people-forget-ideas-they-don-t-forget-th_204476.png) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/d20/henri-nouwen-600_forget_people-forget-ideas-they-don-t-forget-th_204476.png) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/d20/henri-nouwen-600_forget_people-forget-ideas-they-don-t-forget-th_204476.png) > “People forget ideas; they don't forget the real presence.” [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. Ideas fade, but the lived experience of a person remains unforgettable. **In simple terms:** People remember presence, not ideas. Key Takeaway Focus on being present. Themes presence memory human connection Mood reflective introspective Type philosophical spiritual When to use this quote - relationships - teaching - leadership - counseling Key Concepts existentialism authenticity Questions to Reflect On - How can you make your presence more meaningful? - What does “real presence” look like in daily life? A Different Perspective Presence alone may not convey complex thoughts. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Ideas](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/ideas/) [People](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/people/) ## Related quotes > [Elvis is this thing, this commodity, and people forget that he was a real person.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/evan-peters/elvis-is-this-thing-this-commodity-and-people-forget-that-he-was-a/) [Evan Peters](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/evan-peters/) > [“It is only when we forget the ideas behind building something wonderful that we can actually do the building that makes things wonderful.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/richard-p-gabriel/it-is-only-when-we-forget-the-ideas-behind-building-something/) Richard P. Gabriel > [The most dangerous ideas are not those that challenge the status quo. The most dangerous ideas are those so embedded in the status quo,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jacob-m-appel/the-most-dangerous-ideas-are-not-those-that-challenge-the-status-quo/) [Jacob M. Appel](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jacob-m-appel/) > [“Forget ideas, Mr. Author. What kind of pen do you use?”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stephen-fry/forget-ideas-mr-author-what-kind-of-pen-do-you-use/) [Stephen Fry](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stephen-fry/) > [As you strive to be good, don't forget to be real.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/terry-mark/as-you-strive-to-be-good-don-t-forget-to-be-real/) [Terry Mark](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/terry-mark/) > [All I see is your picture and cant keep my eyes off from it... I even forget if real you exists as I am…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nidhi-saini/all-i-see-is-your-picture-and-cant-keep-my-eyes-off-from-it-i-even/) [Nidhi Saini](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nidhi-saini/) > [“Sometimes lost in a book, you forget which is the real world and which is fiction.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gurnam-singh-sodhi/sometimes-lost-in-a-book-you-forget-which-is-the-real-world-and-which/) [Gurnam Singh Sodhi](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gurnam-singh-sodhi/) > [“Music makes me forget my real situation. It transports me into a state which is not my own. Under the influence of music I…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/leo-tolstoy/music-makes-me-forget-my-real-situation-it-transports-me-into-a-state/) [Leo Tolstoy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/leo-tolstoy/) > [We have a very real God with a very real presence.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/beth-moore/we-have-a-very-real-god-with-a-very-real-presence/) [Beth Moore](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/beth-moore/) > [It is called the real presence, not in an exclusive sense, as though other forms of presence were not real, but by reason of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/pope-paul-vi/it-is-called-the-real-presence-not-in-an-exclusive-sense-as-though/) [Pope Paul VI](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/pope-paul-vi/) > [It is only by grounding our awareness in the living sensation of our bodies that the 'I Am,' our real presence, can awaken.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/g-i-gurdjieff/it-is-only-by-grounding-our-awareness-in-the-living-sensation-of-our/) [G. I. Gurdjieff](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/g-i-gurdjieff/) > [ Initially, it connected with me when I was a kid, seeing a lot of movies while growing up in Los Angeles. And Sam's \[Fuller\]… ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/curtis-hanson/initially-it-connected-with-me-when-i-was-a-kid-seeing-a-lot-of/) [Curtis Hanson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/curtis-hanson/) > [“...the most real presence of all is the abscence of those we love.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gina-nahai/the-most-real-presence-of-all-is-the-abscence-of-those-we-love/) Gina Nahai > [There's a real presence with Angelina, and it was a privilege to watch her - she's a force of nature.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/harris-dickinson/there-s-a-real-presence-with-angelina-and-it-was-a-privilege-to-watch/) [Harris Dickinson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/harris-dickinson/) > [The Eucharist becomes a microcosmic moment of belief and power in which we say we believe in the real presence of God in Jesus,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/richard-rohr/the-eucharist-becomes-a-microcosmic-moment-of-belief-and-power-in/) [Richard Rohr](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/richard-rohr/) ## 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 Forget quotes > [I Never met her,i never talked to her,but in my whole day I am either thinking about her or trying to forget her.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/subhananda/i-never-met-her-i-never-talked-to-her-but-in-my-whole-day-i-am-either/) [Subhananda](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/subhananda/) > [What people tend to forget is the journey that I had getting to Formula One. There were plenty of years where I had to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lewis-hamilton/what-people-tend-to-forget-is-the-journey-that-i-had-getting-to/) [Lewis Hamilton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lewis-hamilton/) > [Once upon a time. Ah forget it.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/once-upon-a-time-ah-forget-it/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [Forget the credit, they (male actors) take all the money as well. We don't get paid even one-third of what male actors get. It's…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kangana-ranaut/forget-the-credit-they-male-actors-take-all-the-money-as-well-we-don/) [Kangana Ranaut](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kangana-ranaut/) > [It goes to show you how we in the press so often miss the big stories that are right under our noses. There is…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/roger-ebert/it-goes-to-show-you-how-we-in-the-press-so-often-miss-the-big-stories/) [Roger Ebert](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/roger-ebert/) > [Your memory is a monster; you forget - it doesn't. It simply files things away. It keeps things for you, or hides things from…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-irving/your-memory-is-a-monster-you-forget-it-doesn-t-it-simply-files-things/) [John Irving](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-irving/) > [“Which people take the time to care for their souls, these days? I reckon not many. But...hear this: I think that maybe in our…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/susan-fletcher/which-people-take-the-time-to-care-for-their-souls-these-days-i/) [Susan Fletcher](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/susan-fletcher/) > [The problem with people is they forget that most of the time it's the small things that count.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jennifer-niven/the-problem-with-people-is-they-forget-that-most-of-the-time-it-s-the/) [Jennifer Niven](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jennifer-niven/) > [Remind a man of what he remembers, and you will make him forget it.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/plautus/remind-a-man-of-what-he-remembers-and-you-will-make-him-forget-it/) [Plautus](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/plautus/) > [“So you try, and try, to move past it and forget about them, but it's like they're stuck in your head -- you can't…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/abby-mcdonald/so-you-try-and-try-to-move-past-it-and-forget-about-them-but-it-s/) [Abby McDonald](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/abby-mcdonald/) > [People forget that there is a big difference between coercion and persuasion. The idea that evangelism is coercive is nonsense.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mark-dever/people-forget-that-there-is-a-big-difference-between-coercion-and/) [Mark Dever](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mark-dever/) > [People are disturbed not by things but by the view they take of them. They may forget what you said, but they will never…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/frederick-buechner/people-are-disturbed-not-by-things-but-by-the-view-they-take-of-them/) [Frederick Buechner](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/frederick-buechner/) > [I don't think people will ever forget I was an 'Angel,' anymore than they'll forget Sally Field was 'The Flying Nun.'](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/cheryl-ladd/i-don-t-think-people-will-ever-forget-i-was-an-angel-anymore-than/) [Cheryl Ladd](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/cheryl-ladd/) > [If God knows me I will never forget him](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/trunxbeats/if-god-knows-me-i-will-never-forget-him/) Trunxbeats > [Our memory is a monster; you forget it - it does not.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-irving/our-memory-is-a-monster-you-forget-it-it-does-not/) [John Irving](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-irving/) Browse all 11,315 Forget quotes ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "People forget ideas; they don't forget the real presence.", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "Henri Nouwen" }, "isPartOf": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website" }, "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/henri-nouwen/people-forget-ideas-they-don-t-forget-the-real-presence/", "about": { "@type": "Thing", "name": "Forget" }, "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/henri-nouwen/people-forget-ideas-they-don-t-forget-the-real-presence/#quotation", "image": { "@type": "ImageObject", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/d20/henri-nouwen-600_forget_people-forget-ideas-they-don-t-forget-th_204476.png", "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/d20/henri-nouwen-600_forget_people-forget-ideas-they-don-t-forget-th_204476.png", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/d20/henri-nouwen-600_forget_people-forget-ideas-they-don-t-forget-th_204476.png", "width": 1080, "height": 1080, "caption": "“People forget ideas; they don't forget the real presence.” — 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": "People forget ideas; they don't forget...", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/henri-nouwen/people-forget-ideas-they-don-t-forget-the-real-presence/" } ], "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/henri-nouwen/people-forget-ideas-they-don-t-forget-the-real-presence/#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 } } ] } ```