--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: How memories lie to us. How time coats…" description: "\"How memories lie to us. How time coats the ordinary with gold. How it breaks the heart to go back and attempt to re-live them. How crushed we are when ..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/46e/henry-rollins-170_break_how-memories-lie-to-us-how-time-coats-th_2086528.png" --- # How memories lie to us. How time coats the ordinary with… ![“How memories lie to us. How time coats the ordinary with gold. How it breaks the heart to go back and attempt to re-live them. How crushed we are when we discover that the gold was merely gold-plating thinly coated over lead, chalk and peeling paint.” quote by Henry Rollins](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/46e/henry-rollins-170_break_how-memories-lie-to-us-how-time-coats-th_2086528.png) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/46e/henry-rollins-170_break_how-memories-lie-to-us-how-time-coats-th_2086528.png) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/46e/henry-rollins-170_break_how-memories-lie-to-us-how-time-coats-th_2086528.png) > “How memories lie to us. How time coats the ordinary with gold. How it breaks the heart to go back and attempt to re-live them. How crushed we are when we discover that the gold was merely gold-plating thinly coated over lead, chalk and peeling paint.” [Henry Rollins](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/henry-rollins/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. The passage reflects on memory’s deceptive nature, how time romanticizes the past, and the painful realization that cherished memories are often superficial. **In simple terms:** Memories can be romanticized and misleading. Key Takeaway Question the authenticity of nostalgic memories. Themes memory nostalgia illusion time pain Mood reflective melancholic Type introspective poetic When to use this quote - personal reflection - historical analysis - therapy - creative writing Key Concepts psychology philosophy literature Questions to Reflect On - What memories have you idealized? - How does nostalgia affect your present decisions? A Different Perspective It may romanticize the past without acknowledging its flaws. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Gold](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/gold/) [Heart](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/heart/) [Leadership](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/leadership/) [Lying](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/lying/) [Memories](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/memories/) [Memory](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/memory/) [Time](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/time/) ## Related quotes > [“But the fact is that writing is the only way in which I am able to cope with the memories which overwhelm me so…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/but-the-fact-is-that-writing-is-the-only-way-in-which-i-am-able-to/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [“My words and my stories are merely just memories that already lie, dormant, in your mind. It is my sole purpose to awaken them;…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jos-n-harris/my-words-and-my-stories-are-merely-just-memories-that-already-lie/) [José N. Harris](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jos-n-harris/) > [Human memory is a marvelous but fallacious instrument. The memories which lie within us are not carved in stone; not only do they tend…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/primo-levi/human-memory-is-a-marvelous-but-fallacious-instrument-the-memories/) [Primo Levi](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/primo-levi/) > [“The memories which lie within us are not carved in stone; not only do they tend to becomeerased as the years go by, but…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/primo-levi/the-memories-which-lie-within-us-are-not-carved-in-stone-not-only-do/) [Primo Levi](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/primo-levi/) > [It's strange indeed how memories can lie dormant in a man's mind for so many years. Yet those memories can be awakened and brought…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/wilson-rawls/it-s-strange-indeed-how-memories-can-lie-dormant-in-a-man-s-mind-for/) [Wilson Rawls](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/wilson-rawls/) > [“Trying to live in the past didn't work for me, and it's only now that I fully realize I'm incredibly lucky it didn't. Because…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rob-sheffield/trying-to-live-in-the-past-didn-t-work-for-me-and-it-s-only-now-that/) [Rob Sheffield](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rob-sheffield/) > [“Feathers!" spluttered Sargatanas. "Feathers are for the birds, my boy. Flaking, peeling, scale-ridden wings, now that's what real beings wear. I'll tell you a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-pendle/feathers-spluttered-sargatanas-feathers-are-for-the-birds-my-boy/) [George Pendle](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-pendle/) > [The stripping away of illusion and the struggle to find personal reality can be likened to the peeling of an apple. As one peels…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/meredith-l-young-sowers/the-stripping-away-of-illusion-and-the-struggle-to-find-personal/) [Meredith L. Young-Sowers](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/meredith-l-young-sowers/) > [Telling Sam and Daneca feels like peeling off my own skin to expose everything underneath. It hurts.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/holly-black/telling-sam-and-daneca-feels-like-peeling-off-my-own-skin-to-expose/) [Holly Black](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/holly-black/) > [A lot of chefs don't have a natural sense of economy. I was with one guy the other day, and I had to show…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/daniel-boulud/a-lot-of-chefs-don-t-have-a-natural-sense-of-economy-i-was-with-one/) [Daniel Boulud](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/daniel-boulud/) > [A good or great performance is like peeling an onion; in every scene you reveal another layer, something the audience hasn't seen until then.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/larry-moss/a-good-or-great-performance-is-like-peeling-an-onion-in-every-scene/) [Larry Moss](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/larry-moss/) > [The pattern of a newspaperman's life is like the plot of 'Black Beauty.' Sometimes he finds a kind master who gives him a dry…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/a-j-liebling/the-pattern-of-a-newspaperman-s-life-is-like-the-plot-of-black-beauty/) [A. J. Liebling](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/a-j-liebling/) > [With women, the best part is the discovery. There's nothing like the first time, nothing. You don't know what life is until you undress…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/carlos-ruiz-zafon/with-women-the-best-part-is-the-discovery-there-s-nothing-like-the/) [Carlos Ruiz Zafon](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/carlos-ruiz-zafon/) > [Some think love can be measured by the amount of butterflies in their tummy. Others think love can be measured in bunches of flowers,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/marian-keyes/some-think-love-can-be-measured-by-the-amount-of-butterflies-in-their/) [Marian Keyes](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/marian-keyes/) > [Acting is like peeling an onion. You have to peel away each layer to reveal another.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/juliette-binoche/acting-is-like-peeling-an-onion-you-have-to-peel-away-each-layer-to/) [Juliette Binoche](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/juliette-binoche/) ## More by Henry Rollins > [I believe that one defines oneself by reinvention.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/henry-rollins/i-believe-that-one-defines-oneself-by-reinvention/) [Henry Rollins](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/henry-rollins/) > [I think that one of the hardest things in the world to be is a black male. I mean everyone hates your guts. White…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/henry-rollins/i-think-that-one-of-the-hardest-things-in-the-world-to-be-is-a-black/) [Henry Rollins](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/henry-rollins/) > [In the summer of '84, you just couldn't escape the Born in the USA record.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/henry-rollins/in-the-summer-of-84-you-just-couldn-t-escape-the-born-in-the-usa/) [Henry Rollins](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/henry-rollins/) > [We spend millions of dollars to remove pain from our lives. It's why so many people get hooked on painkillers. The body becomes addicted…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/henry-rollins/we-spend-millions-of-dollars-to-remove-pain-from-our-lives-it-s-why/) [Henry Rollins](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/henry-rollins/) > [Sleep is for squares.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/henry-rollins/sleep-is-for-squares/) [Henry Rollins](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/henry-rollins/) > [There's a lot of mountain climbers trapped inside of bodies of people behind the counter at Kinko's.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/henry-rollins/there-s-a-lot-of-mountain-climbers-trapped-inside-of-bodies-of-people/) [Henry Rollins](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/henry-rollins/) > [If I lose the light of the sun, I will write by candlelight, moonlight, no light. If I lose paper and ink, I will…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/henry-rollins/if-i-lose-the-light-of-the-sun-i-will-write-by-candlelight-moonlight/) [Henry Rollins](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/henry-rollins/) > [I was raised in Washington, DC, very violent place. I grew up with violence. My introduction to music was violent. The years I've spent…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/henry-rollins/i-was-raised-in-washington-dc-very-violent-place-i-grew-up-with/) [Henry Rollins](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/henry-rollins/) > [I feel pain everyday of my life. When you see me perform, it's that pain you're seeing coming out. I put all my emotions,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/henry-rollins/i-feel-pain-everyday-of-my-life-when-you-see-me-perform-it-s-that/) [Henry Rollins](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/henry-rollins/) > [I feel close to people like Jimi Hendrix because I connect with his music. Not the man but what he did.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/henry-rollins/i-feel-close-to-people-like-jimi-hendrix-because-i-connect-with-his/) [Henry Rollins](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/henry-rollins/) > [I don't believe in fate or destiny. I believe in various degrees of hatred, paranoia, and abandonment. However much of that gets heaped upon…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/henry-rollins/i-don-t-believe-in-fate-or-destiny-i-believe-in-various-degrees-of/) [Henry Rollins](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/henry-rollins/) > [Young, gay and stuck in Arkansas? Sounds like a horror flick.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/henry-rollins/young-gay-and-stuck-in-arkansas-sounds-like-a-horror-flick/) [Henry Rollins](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/henry-rollins/) > [I was never told to "Get up, get out there, get a job." It was never a thing either parent ever said I had…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/henry-rollins/i-was-never-told-to-get-up-get-out-there-get-a-job-it-was-never-a/) [Henry Rollins](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/henry-rollins/) > [There's no retirement, there's just a few years of non-work by the fire with someone bringing you some tea and relative peace and playing…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/henry-rollins/there-s-no-retirement-there-s-just-a-few-years-of-non-work-by-the/) [Henry Rollins](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/henry-rollins/) > [I love being a storyteller. I love telling stories.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/henry-rollins/i-love-being-a-storyteller-i-love-telling-stories/) [Henry Rollins](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/henry-rollins/) [Explore all 1,006 Henry Rollins quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/henry-rollins/) ## More Break quotes > [I made, like, five movies while I was in college. I think they just weren't memorable movies. I've taken breaks as the years have…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jodie-foster/i-made-like-five-movies-while-i-was-in-college-i-think-they-just/) [Jodie Foster](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jodie-foster/) > [Things are going well in Germany because the economy is booming and as an export-driven nation, we are profiting from the fact that we…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/martin-schulz/things-are-going-well-in-germany-because-the-economy-is-booming-and/) [Martin Schulz](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/martin-schulz/) > [There were songs that we cut out after we chose the name, because 'Praise Break' turned out to be an underlying concept that I…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/daniel-caesar/there-were-songs-that-we-cut-out-after-we-chose-the-name-because/) [Daniel Caesar](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/daniel-caesar/) > [“He didn't break my heart. No one can break your heart except you.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gabrielle-zevin/he-didn-t-break-my-heart-no-one-can-break-your-heart-except-you/) [Gabrielle Zevin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gabrielle-zevin/) > [“She couldn't break the orbit.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/victoria-schwab/she-couldn-t-break-the-orbit/) [Victoria Schwab](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/victoria-schwab/) > [Your pain is the breaking of the shell that encloses your understanding. Even as the stone of the fruit must break, that its heart…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/khalil-gibran/your-pain-is-the-breaking-of-the-shell-that-encloses-your/) [Khalil Gibran](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/khalil-gibran/) > [Must I go bound while you go free Must I love a manwho doesn't love me Must I be born with so little art…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/cassandra-clare/must-i-go-bound-while-you-go-free-must-i-love-a-manwho-doesn-t-love/) [Cassandra Clare](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/cassandra-clare/) > [I hadn't worked for a year when I had my Prison Break audition and it was the easiest audition I've ever had. I got…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/wentworth-miller/i-hadn-t-worked-for-a-year-when-i-had-my-prison-break-audition-and-it/) [Wentworth Miller](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/wentworth-miller/) > [If you strike upon a thought that baffles you, break off from that entanglement and try another, so shall your wits be fresh to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/aristophanes/if-you-strike-upon-a-thought-that-baffles-you-break-off-from-that/) [Aristophanes](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/aristophanes/) > [“A hole ain’t nothing either, but you can still break your neck in it.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sara-donati/a-hole-ain-t-nothing-either-but-you-can-still-break-your-neck-in-it/) [Sara Donati](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sara-donati/) > [“I break things, a lot of things, but I don’t want one of them to be you.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/patricia-briggs/i-break-things-a-lot-of-things-but-i-don-t-want-one-of-them-to-be-you/) [Patricia Briggs](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/patricia-briggs/) > [Motor racing's less of a sport these days than a commercial break doing 150 mph.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/peter-dunne/motor-racing-s-less-of-a-sport-these-days-than-a-commercial-break/) Peter Dunne > [Much like teaching art to young art students age 10 to 15 or so on, you have to break it down into bite-sized pieces,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kehinde-wiley/much-like-teaching-art-to-young-art-students-age-10-to-15-or-so-on/) [Kehinde Wiley](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kehinde-wiley/) > [The purpose is to be in gratitude forever. Live with applied consciousness, prosperity will break through the walls, flood you with it. You do…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/harbhajan-singh-yogi/the-purpose-is-to-be-in-gratitude-forever-live-with-applied/) [Harbhajan Singh Yogi](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/harbhajan-singh-yogi/) > [Never break another man's rice bowl.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/akio-morita/never-break-another-man-s-rice-bowl/) [Akio Morita](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/akio-morita/) Browse all 8,188 Break quotes ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "How memories lie to us. How time coats the ordinary with gold. How it breaks the heart to go back and attempt to re-live them. How crushed we are when we discover that the gold was merely gold-plating thinly coated over lead, chalk and peeling paint.", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "Henry Rollins" }, "isPartOf": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website" }, "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/henry-rollins/how-memories-lie-to-us-how-time-coats-the-ordinary-with-gold-how-it/", "about": { "@type": "Thing", "name": "Break" }, "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/henry-rollins/how-memories-lie-to-us-how-time-coats-the-ordinary-with-gold-how-it/#quotation", "image": { "@type": "ImageObject", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/46e/henry-rollins-170_break_how-memories-lie-to-us-how-time-coats-th_2086528.png", "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/46e/henry-rollins-170_break_how-memories-lie-to-us-how-time-coats-th_2086528.png", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/46e/henry-rollins-170_break_how-memories-lie-to-us-how-time-coats-th_2086528.png", "width": 1080, "height": 1080, "caption": "“How memories lie to us. How time coats the ordinary with gold. How it breaks the heart to go back and…” — Henry Rollins", "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": "Henry Rollins", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/henry-rollins/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 4, "name": "How memories lie to us. How...", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/henry-rollins/how-memories-lie-to-us-how-time-coats-the-ordinary-with-gold-how-it/" } ], "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/henry-rollins/how-memories-lie-to-us-how-time-coats-the-ordinary-with-gold-how-it/#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 } } ] } ```