--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: When he thought of her, it rather amazed…" description: "\"When he thought of her, it rather amazed him, that he had let that girl with her violin go. Now, of course, he saw that her self-effacing proposal was ..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/6dd/ian-mcewan-494_amazed_when-he-thought-of-her-it-rather-amazed_492689.jpg" --- # When he thought of her, it rather amazed him, that he had… ![“When he thought of her, it rather amazed him, that he had let that girl with her violin go. Now, of course, he saw that her self-effacing proposal was quite irrelevant. All she had needed was the certainty of his love, and his reassurance that there was no hurry when a lifetime lay ahead of them…” quote by Ian Mcewan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/6dd/ian-mcewan-494_amazed_when-he-thought-of-her-it-rather-amazed_492689.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/6dd/ian-mcewan-494_amazed_when-he-thought-of-her-it-rather-amazed_492689.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/6dd/ian-mcewan-494_amazed_when-he-thought-of-her-it-rather-amazed_492689.jpg) > “When he thought of her, it rather amazed him, that he had let that girl with her violin go. Now, of course, he saw that her self-effacing proposal was quite irrelevant. All she had needed was the certainty of his love, and his reassurance that there was no hurry when a lifetime lay ahead of them. Love and patience- if only he had had them both at once- would surely have seen them both through.” [Ian Mcewan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ian-mcewan/) ## 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 missed emotional connection, emphasizing that love and patience together could have guided the characters through challenges. **In simple terms:** Love and patience together could have helped them. Key Takeaway Cultivate love and patience simultaneously. Themes love patience regret Mood reflective melancholic Type literary romantic When to use this quote - romantic relationships - family conflicts - personal growth Key Concepts emotional intelligence relationship dynamics timing Questions to Reflect On - What role does timing play in love? - How can one balance love with patience? A Different Perspective Patience alone may not compensate for lack of love, and vice versa. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Certainty](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/certainty/) [Girl](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/girl/) [Heart](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/heart/) [Lifetime](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/lifetime/) [Love](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/love/) [Patience and love](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/patience-and-love/) [Reassurance](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/reassurance/) [Self](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/self/) [Violin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/violin/) ## Related quotes > [All she had needed was the certainty of his love, and his reassurance that there was no hurry when a lifetime lay ahead of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ian-mcewan/all-she-had-needed-was-the-certainty-of-his-love-and-his-reassurance/) [Ian Mcewan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ian-mcewan/) > [He must love me, i thought, amazed. 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I'm many things and not all…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sandra-marton/i-am-what-you-see-a-woman-flawed-imperfect-you-can-t-label-me-i-m-not/) [Sandra Marton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sandra-marton/) > [“I can only say, with one hundred percent certainty that I love you. That I live and breathe for you. That I would lay…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/a-meredith-walters/i-can-only-say-with-one-hundred-percent-certainty-that-i-love-you/) [A. Meredith Walters](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/a-meredith-walters/) > [What I most wanted even at that early age, was to capture and hold the truth, with the certainty and love that it brings.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/neil-turok/what-i-most-wanted-even-at-that-early-age-was-to-capture-and-hold-the/) [Neil Turok](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/neil-turok/) > [“It's a promise ring. A long time ago, they would be engraved with the words Pour route ma vie, de tout mon coeur, For…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/a-meredith-walters/it-s-a-promise-ring-a-long-time-ago-they-would-be-engraved-with-the/) [A. Meredith Walters](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/a-meredith-walters/) > [“Be patient and wait for God to direct your path. God loves you. He has a plan and a purpose for your life. The…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lydia-marshall/be-patient-and-wait-for-god-to-direct-your-path-god-loves-you-he-has/) Lydia Marshall > [“having patience always gives you what you deserve.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/fatma-alfalasi/having-patience-always-gives-you-what-you-deserve/) Fatma Alfalasi > [There are few husbands whom the wife cannot win in the long run, by patience and love.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/margaret-of-valois/there-are-few-husbands-whom-the-wife-cannot-win-in-the-long-run-by/) [Margaret of Valois](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/margaret-of-valois/) > [Broken by hardships, disappointments and tragedy, people can become discouraged and cynical. But lives can also be mended. 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My reason for life.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ian-mcewan/i-ve-never-had-a-moment-s-doubt-i-love-you-i-believe-in-you/) [Ian Mcewan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ian-mcewan/) > [“It is shaming sometimes, how the body will not, or cannot, lie about emotions.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ian-mcewan/it-is-shaming-sometimes-how-the-body-will-not-or-cannot-lie-about/) [Ian McEwan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ian-mcewan/) > [“While my friends struggled and calculated, I reached a solution by a set of floating steps that were partly visual, partly just a feeling…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ian-mcewan/while-my-friends-struggled-and-calculated-i-reached-a-solution-by-a/) [Ian McEwan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ian-mcewan/) > [“Once, on a walk by a river- Eskdale in low reddish sunlight, with a dusting of snow- his daughter quoted to him an opening…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ian-mcewan/once-on-a-walk-by-a-river-eskdale-in-low-reddish-sunlight-with-a/) [Ian McEwan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ian-mcewan/) > [“Perhaps it's one of those cases of a microcosm giving you the whole world. Like a spode dinner plate. Or a single cell. Or,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ian-mcewan/perhaps-it-s-one-of-those-cases-of-a-microcosm-giving-you-the-whole/) [Ian McEwan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ian-mcewan/) > [Who you get, and how it works out- there's so much luck involved, as well as the million branching consequences of your conscious choice…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ian-mcewan/who-you-get-and-how-it-works-out-there-s-so-much-luck-involved-as/) [Ian Mcewan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ian-mcewan/) > [“On Chesil Beach he could have called out to Florence, he could have gone after her. He did not know, or would not have…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ian-mcewan/on-chesil-beach-he-could-have-called-out-to-florence-he-could-have/) [Ian McEwan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ian-mcewan/) > [It was always the view of my parents...that hot weather encouraged loose morals among young people.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ian-mcewan/it-was-always-the-view-of-my-parents-that-hot-weather-encouraged/) [Ian Mcewan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ian-mcewan/) > [I apologize for being obvious, but every time I watch the curtain come down on even a halfway decent production of a Shakespeare play…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ian-mcewan/i-apologize-for-being-obvious-but-every-time-i-watch-the-curtain-come/) [Ian Mcewan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ian-mcewan/) > [I would rather be physically disabled obviously than mentally. I would rather be paraplegic than nuts. And it is a terrifying prospect and actually…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ian-mcewan/i-would-rather-be-physically-disabled-obviously-than-mentally-i-would/) [Ian Mcewan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ian-mcewan/) > [“Words, as I'm beginning to appreciate, can make things true.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ian-mcewan/words-as-i-m-beginning-to-appreciate-can-make-things-true/) [Ian McEwan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ian-mcewan/) > [I couldn't think about novels at all. It seemed the only writing that was appropriate to that horrendous event was journalism, reportage. And, in…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ian-mcewan/i-couldn-t-think-about-novels-at-all-it-seemed-the-only-writing-that/) [Ian Mcewan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ian-mcewan/) > [I did not kill my father, but I sometimes felt I had helped him on his way. And but for the fact that it…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ian-mcewan/i-did-not-kill-my-father-but-i-sometimes-felt-i-had-helped-him-on-his/) [Ian Mcewan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ian-mcewan/) [Explore all 496 Ian Mcewan quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ian-mcewan/) ## More Amazed quotes > [You will never cease to be the most amazed person on earth at what God has done for you on the inside.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/oswald-chambers/you-will-never-cease-to-be-the-most-amazed-person-on-earth-at-what/) [Oswald Chambers](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/oswald-chambers/) > [You'd be amazed at pain and tears a single smile hides.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/christian-vasquez/you-d-be-amazed-at-pain-and-tears-a-single-smile-hides/) [Christian Vasquez](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/christian-vasquez/) > [“I am amazed at how being with him changes everything for me, socially speaking.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/cynthia-hand/i-am-amazed-at-how-being-with-him-changes-everything-for-me-socially/) [Cynthia Hand](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/cynthia-hand/) > [I'm endlessly amazed by what people are capable of, and incapable of.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dov-davidoff/i-m-endlessly-amazed-by-what-people-are-capable-of-and-incapable-of/) [Dov Davidoff](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dov-davidoff/) > [Souls love. That’s what souls do. Egos don’t, but souls do. Become a soul, look around, and you’ll be amazed-all the beings around you…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ram-dass/souls-love-that-s-what-souls-do-egos-don-t-but-souls-do-become-a-soul/) [Ram Dass](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ram-dass/) > [Contrary to a common myth, while there are general guidelines, there is no exact 'right' way to run ... I am amazed by the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/grete-waitz/contrary-to-a-common-myth-while-there-are-general-guidelines-there-is/) [Grete Waitz](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/grete-waitz/) > [I'm always amazed by writers who tell me they plan everything at the beginning. I feel their writing days must be very bland.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rose-tremain/i-m-always-amazed-by-writers-who-tell-me-they-plan-everything-at-the/) [Rose Tremain](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rose-tremain/) > [What I am telling you is that you do not need to know to love, and it is right that you feel it all…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ta-nehisi-coates/what-i-am-telling-you-is-that-you-do-not-need-to-know-to-love-and-it/) [Ta-Nehisi Coates](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ta-nehisi-coates/) > [My father was truly a great man. I remember one day putting my feet in my father's shoes. I was amazed at the size.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joseph-b-wirthlin/my-father-was-truly-a-great-man-i-remember-one-day-putting-my-feet-in/) [Joseph B. Wirthlin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joseph-b-wirthlin/) > [J. Budziszewski is perhaps the clearest and most eloquent natural lawyer writing today. 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Consider what you have and be satisfied with…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/luci-swindoll/the-key-to-contentment-is-to-consider-consider-who-you-are-and-be/) [Luci Swindoll](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/luci-swindoll/) Browse all 776 Amazed quotes ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "When he thought of her, it rather amazed him, that he had let that girl with her violin go. Now, of course, he saw that her self-effacing proposal was quite irrelevant. All she had needed was the certainty of his love, and his reassurance that there was no hurry when a lifetime lay ahead of them. 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