---
title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: My father lost an eye to a snapped cable…"
description: "\"My father lost an eye to a snapped cable while trying to rescue trapped miners, though he kept on working for fifteen years afterward.\" — Homer Hickam"
image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/32f/homer-hickam-10698_eye_my-father-lost-an-eye-to-a-snapped-cable_405981.jpg"
---

#  My father lost an eye to a snapped cable while trying to…

![“My father lost an eye to a snapped cable while trying to rescue trapped miners, though he kept on working for fifteen years afterward.” quote by Homer Hickam](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/32f/homer-hickam-10698_eye_my-father-lost-an-eye-to-a-snapped-cable_405981.jpg)   [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/32f/homer-hickam-10698_eye_my-father-lost-an-eye-to-a-snapped-cable_405981.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/32f/homer-hickam-10698_eye_my-father-lost-an-eye-to-a-snapped-cable_405981.jpg)

> “My father lost an eye to a snapped cable while trying to rescue trapped miners, though he kept on working for fifteen years afterward.”

[Homer Hickam](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/homer-hickam/)

## About This Quote

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

Resilience can persist despite severe injury, showing dedication and perseverance over long periods.

**In simple terms:** Enduring hardship shows true dedication.

Key Takeaway

Keep working despite setbacks.

Themes

resilience dedication hardship perseverance

Mood

determined reflective

Type

inspirational realistic

When to use this quote

- construction work
- family support
- personal recovery
- career continuity

Key Concepts

post-traumatic growth work ethic long-term commitment

Questions to Reflect On

- How do you maintain purpose after a life‑changing injury?
- What support systems help sustain long‑term effort?

A Different Perspective

Physical injury may limit capacity, requiring adaptation.

★ ★ ★ ★ ★   No ratings yet

[Father](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/father/) [Fifteen years](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/fifteen-years/) [Parenting](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/parenting/)

## Related quotes

> [The eye on the hand can see to you all. It is normally for your life. They don't want lost eye. If your eye…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mayte/the-eye-on-the-hand-can-see-to-you-all-it-is-normally-for-your-life/)

[Mayte](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mayte/)

> [“They, the men, were saving with the mind what they lost with the eye.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/zora-neale-hurston/they-the-men-were-saving-with-the-mind-what-they-lost-with-the-eye/)

[Zora Neale Hurston](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/zora-neale-hurston/)

> [“reason, then why were you still living with your father afterward? You didn’t move, did you?” I shook my head. “No, my father lost…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/annabel-chase/reason-then-why-were-you-still-living-with-your-father-afterward-you/)

Annabel Chase

> [My father lost his business. Our house was locked up, and we had to leave.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kumar-pallana/my-father-lost-his-business-our-house-was-locked-up-and-we-had-to/)

[Kumar Pallana](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kumar-pallana/)

> [If you're a father of a child who dies, it's an experience that never leaves you. It scars you forever and ever and ever.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/frank-deford/if-you-re-a-father-of-a-child-who-dies-it-s-an-experience-that-never/)

[Frank Deford](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/frank-deford/)

> [My father lost a lung in a chemical accident at General Motors, and after a while, he got a settlement that sort of changed…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kenya-barris/my-father-lost-a-lung-in-a-chemical-accident-at-general-motors-and/)

[Kenya Barris](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kenya-barris/)

> [“Please, I know nothing of the world, except my father is lost in it.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gregory-maguire/please-i-know-nothing-of-the-world-except-my-father-is-lost-in-it/)

[Gregory Maguire](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gregory-maguire/)

> [“I've grown up alongside Corr. My father rode him and my father lost him, and then I found him again. He's the only family…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/maggie-stiefvater/i-ve-grown-up-alongside-corr-my-father-rode-him-and-my-father-lost/)

[Maggie Stiefvater](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/maggie-stiefvater/)

> [After the break up of the municipality and the loss of his income my father lost health and spirits.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/catherine-helen-spence/after-the-break-up-of-the-municipality-and-the-loss-of-his-income-my/)

[Catherine Helen Spence](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/catherine-helen-spence/)

> [I lost my biological father when I was 9, I lost my stepfather at 23. Both men had such a deep impact in my…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dia-mirza/i-lost-my-biological-father-when-i-was-9-i-lost-my-stepfather-at-23/)

[Dia Mirza](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dia-mirza/)

> [“My father lost me to the Beast at cards”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/angela-carter/my-father-lost-me-to-the-beast-at-cards/)

[Angela Carter](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/angela-carter/)

> [When I was growing up my mother would say, 'Your dad may have to learn about being a father because he lost his own…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tom-hooper/when-i-was-growing-up-my-mother-would-say-your-dad-may-have-to-learn/)

[Tom Hooper](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tom-hooper/)

> [“When a husband loses his wife, they call him a widower. When a wife loses her husband, they call her a widow. And when…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bhavya-kaushik/when-a-husband-loses-his-wife-they-call-him-a-widower-when-a-wife/)

[Bhavya Kaushik](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bhavya-kaushik/)

> [What thing, in honor, had my father lost, That need to be revived and breathed in me?](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-shakespeare/what-thing-in-honor-had-my-father-lost-that-need-to-be-revived-and/)

[William Shakespeare](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-shakespeare/)

> [My mom was my mother and father. My father lost his mind when I was about 4 years old. And my mom did everything…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anthony-ray-hinton/my-mom-was-my-mother-and-father-my-father-lost-his-mind-when-i-was/)

[Anthony Ray Hinton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anthony-ray-hinton/)

## More by Homer Hickam

> [After marketing surveys by Universal Studios indicated that 'Rocket Boys' as a movie title would not attract the female over-age-thirty demographic, the film was…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/homer-hickam/after-marketing-surveys-by-universal-studios-indicated-that-rocket/)

[Homer Hickam](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/homer-hickam/)

> [As I wrote more I became more critical of myself and I think that you have to be your harshest judge. I don't ever…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/homer-hickam/as-i-wrote-more-i-became-more-critical-of-myself-and-i-think-that-you/)

[Homer Hickam](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/homer-hickam/)

> [Writer's block to me is where you stop because you're afraid to go forward because you're not sure of what really should be happening…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/homer-hickam/writer-s-block-to-me-is-where-you-stop-because-you-re-afraid-to-go/)

[Homer Hickam](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/homer-hickam/)

> [The best way to learn to write is to read in the genre you might be interested in; then, you need to actually sit…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/homer-hickam/the-best-way-to-learn-to-write-is-to-read-in-the-genre-you-might-be/)

[Homer Hickam](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/homer-hickam/)

> [NASA's charter is to give Americans the means to get into the wild, black yonder, beyond even the grasp of the federal government that…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/homer-hickam/nasa-s-charter-is-to-give-americans-the-means-to-get-into-the-wild/)

[Homer Hickam](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/homer-hickam/)

> [If politicians want to save money, that's fine. They can look for all the wasteful spending they want, but not where the lives of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/homer-hickam/if-politicians-want-to-save-money-that-s-fine-they-can-look-for-all/)

[Homer Hickam](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/homer-hickam/)

> [A rocket won't fly unless somebody lights the fuse!](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/homer-hickam/a-rocket-won-t-fly-unless-somebody-lights-the-fuse/)

[Homer Hickam](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/homer-hickam/)

> [When I was a boy, one of my favorite places to go was a pine-filled hollow high on the mountain behind our house. It…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/homer-hickam/when-i-was-a-boy-one-of-my-favorite-places-to-go-was-a-pine-filled/)

[Homer Hickam](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/homer-hickam/)

> [“The way I see it, if everybody ran from bad things instead of trying to stop them, bad things would be all there is.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/homer-hickam/the-way-i-see-it-if-everybody-ran-from-bad-things-instead-of-trying/)

[Homer Hickam](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/homer-hickam/)

> [When the moon was first visited in 1969, the astronauts brought back a treasure trove of unique minerals. Contained within specimens was an isotope…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/homer-hickam/when-the-moon-was-first-visited-in-1969-the-astronauts-brought-back-a/)

[Homer Hickam](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/homer-hickam/)

> [You must completely dedicate yourselves to it. To do less will be to let down your country, your state, your parents, your teachers, and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/homer-hickam/you-must-completely-dedicate-yourselves-to-it-to-do-less-will-be-to/)

[Homer Hickam](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/homer-hickam/)

> [The key to not getting rejected if you're writing for a magazine, is to know to read that magazine and know everything about them…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/homer-hickam/the-key-to-not-getting-rejected-if-you-re-writing-for-a-magazine-is/)

[Homer Hickam](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/homer-hickam/)

> [Tired of burning fossil fuel and polluting the planet? The moon is covered with helium 3, an isotope from the sun that is the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/homer-hickam/tired-of-burning-fossil-fuel-and-polluting-the-planet-the-moon-is/)

[Homer Hickam](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/homer-hickam/)

> [My father use to say if coal died, the country died. He was right. Our economy rests on the back of the coal miner.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/homer-hickam/my-father-use-to-say-if-coal-died-the-country-died-he-was-right-our/)

[Homer Hickam](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/homer-hickam/)

> [A man can't hit a woman and stay a man. He becomes a loathsome thing, even to himself. But the woman who stays with…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/homer-hickam/a-man-can-t-hit-a-woman-and-stay-a-man-he-becomes-a-loathsome-thing/)

[Homer Hickam](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/homer-hickam/)

[Explore all 64 Homer Hickam quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/homer-hickam/)

## More Eye quotes

> [I need a bath." He chuckled. "You smell of smoke, as do I." The duke turned, leaning heavily on his cane. "Jameson, open the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/karen-hawkins/i-need-a-bath-he-chuckled-you-smell-of-smoke-as-do-i-the-duke-turned/)

[Karen Hawkins](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/karen-hawkins/)

> [If you take your eye off the ball or lose focus for even a minute you can lose a game against any team.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/felipe-anderson/if-you-take-your-eye-off-the-ball-or-lose-focus-for-even-a-minute-you/)

[Felipe Anderson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/felipe-anderson/)

> [“He blinked. His eyes fell as he processed her response. Then he lifted his chin and attempted a grin that was almost painfully dejected.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/marissa-meyer/he-blinked-his-eyes-fell-as-he-processed-her-response-then-he-lifted/)

[Marissa Meyer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/marissa-meyer/)

> [How could anybody confuse truth with beauty, I thought as I looked at him. Truth came with sunken eyes, bony or scarred, decayed. Its…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/janet-fitch/how-could-anybody-confuse-truth-with-beauty-i-thought-as-i-looked-at/)

[Janet Fitch](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/janet-fitch/)

> [I wrote when I was a young teen, but I didn't put an eye on the available markets until I was seventeen. The next…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robert-reed/i-wrote-when-i-was-a-young-teen-but-i-didn-t-put-an-eye-on-the/)

[Robert Reed](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robert-reed/)

> [Changes before your eyes, things you can do and things you can't. My attitude is always let it keep rolling.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/terrence-malick/changes-before-your-eyes-things-you-can-do-and-things-you-can-t-my/)

[Terrence Malick](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/terrence-malick/)

> [But editors are still the world's readers. And thus the eyes of the world.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/betsy-lerner/but-editors-are-still-the-world-s-readers-and-thus-the-eyes-of-the/)

[Betsy Lerner](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/betsy-lerner/)

> [Quotations can be valuable, like raisins in the rice pudding, for adding iron as well as eye appeal.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/peg-bracken/quotations-can-be-valuable-like-raisins-in-the-rice-pudding-for/)

[Peg Bracken](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/peg-bracken/)

> [Clearly, when we baptize, our eyes should gaze beyond the baptismal font to the holy temple. The great garner into which the sheaves should…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/neal-a-maxwell/clearly-when-we-baptize-our-eyes-should-gaze-beyond-the-baptismal/)

[Neal A. Maxwell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/neal-a-maxwell/)

> [At the end of night, before you close your eyes, be content with what you've done and be proud of who you are.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/steve-almond/at-the-end-of-night-before-you-close-your-eyes-be-content-with-what/)

[Steve Almond](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/steve-almond/)

> [Be neither too early in the fashion, nor too long out of it, nor too precisely in it; what custom hath civilized is become…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/francis-quarles/be-neither-too-early-in-the-fashion-nor-too-long-out-of-it-nor-too/)

[Francis Quarles](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/francis-quarles/)

> [It lies around us like a cloud- A world we do not see; Yet the sweet closing of an eye May bring us there…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/harriet-beecher-stowe/it-lies-around-us-like-a-cloud-a-world-we-do-not-see-yet-the-sweet/)

[Harriet Beecher Stowe](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/harriet-beecher-stowe/)

> [A man cannot speak but he judges himself. With his will or against his will he draws his portrait to the eye of his…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ralph-waldo-emerson/a-man-cannot-speak-but-he-judges-himself-with-his-will-or-against-his/)

[Ralph Waldo Emerson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ralph-waldo-emerson/)

> [She'd read once that if you ran into a bear in the woods you should avoid eye contact and you shouldn't run away, but…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anne-ursu/she-d-read-once-that-if-you-ran-into-a-bear-in-the-woods-you-should/)

[Anne Ursu](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anne-ursu/)

> [Liesel observed the strangeness of her foster father's eyes. They were made of kindness, and silver.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/markus-zusak/liesel-observed-the-strangeness-of-her-foster-father-s-eyes-they-were/)

[Markus Zusak](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/markus-zusak/)

Browse all 16,237 Eye quotes

```json
{
    "@context": "https://schema.org",
    "@graph": [
        {
            "@type": "Quotation",
            "text": "My father lost an eye to a snapped cable while trying to rescue trapped miners, though he kept on working for fifteen years afterward.",
            "creator": {
                "@type": "Person",
                "name": "Homer Hickam"
            },
            "isPartOf": {
                "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website"
            },
            "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/homer-hickam/my-father-lost-an-eye-to-a-snapped-cable-while-trying-to-rescue/",
            "about": {
                "@type": "Thing",
                "name": "Eye"
            },
            "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/homer-hickam/my-father-lost-an-eye-to-a-snapped-cable-while-trying-to-rescue/#quotation",
            "image": {
                "@type": "ImageObject",
                "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/32f/homer-hickam-10698_eye_my-father-lost-an-eye-to-a-snapped-cable_405981.jpg",
                "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/32f/homer-hickam-10698_eye_my-father-lost-an-eye-to-a-snapped-cable_405981.jpg",
                "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/32f/homer-hickam-10698_eye_my-father-lost-an-eye-to-a-snapped-cable_405981.jpg",
                "width": 1080,
                "height": 1080,
                "caption": "“My father lost an eye to a snapped cable while trying to rescue trapped miners, though he kept on working…” — Homer Hickam",
                "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": "Homer Hickam",
                    "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/homer-hickam/"
                },
                {
                    "@type": "ListItem",
                    "position": 4,
                    "name": "My father lost an eye to...",
                    "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/homer-hickam/my-father-lost-an-eye-to-a-snapped-cable-while-trying-to-rescue/"
                }
            ],
            "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/homer-hickam/my-father-lost-an-eye-to-a-snapped-cable-while-trying-to-rescue/#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
            }
        }
    ]
}
```
