--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: That's why we have memory. And the…" description: "\"That's why we have memory. And the opposite of memory— hope. So things that are gone can still matter. So we can built off our pasts and make future.\" ..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/2a4/isaac-marion-1033_gone_that-s-why-we-have-memory-and-the-opposi_2903495.png" --- # That's why we have memory. And the opposite of memory… ![“That's why we have memory. And the opposite of memory— hope. So things that are gone can still matter. So we can built off our pasts and make future.” quote by Isaac Marion](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/2a4/isaac-marion-1033_gone_that-s-why-we-have-memory-and-the-opposi_2903495.png) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/2a4/isaac-marion-1033_gone_that-s-why-we-have-memory-and-the-opposi_2903495.png) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/2a4/isaac-marion-1033_gone_that-s-why-we-have-memory-and-the-opposi_2903495.png) > “That's why we have memory. And the opposite of memory— hope. So things that are gone can still matter. So we can built off our pasts and make future.” [Isaac Marion](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/isaac-marion/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Memory preserves the past; hope lets us build future meaning from what’s lost. **In simple terms:** Memory holds past, hope builds future. Key Takeaway Use memory and hope together to shape tomorrow. Themes memory hope legacy Mood reflective optimistic Type philosophical inspirational When to use this quote - grief counseling - creative projects - personal growth Key Concepts psychology future orientation Questions to Reflect On - What past can you honor while hoping forward? - How does hope transform loss? A Different Perspective Hope may be fragile when memories are painful. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Gone](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/gone/) [Hope](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/hope/) [Matter](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/matter/) [Memories](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/memories/) [Memory](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/memory/) [Memory Hope](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/memory-hope-922995/) [Memory Opposite](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/memory-opposite-922996/) [Opposite Memory](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/opposite-memory-1460718/) [Opposites](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/opposites/) [Our past](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/our-past/) [Past](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/past/) [Pasts](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/pasts-539475/) [Stills](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/stills/) [Time](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/time/) ## Related quotes > [“My mom used to say that’s why we have memory. And the opposite of memory—hope. So things that are gone can still matter. So…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/isaac-marion/my-mom-used-to-say-that-s-why-we-have-memory-and-the-opposite-of/) [Isaac Marion](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/isaac-marion/) > [“The opposite of memory--hope. SO things that are gone can still matter. So we can build off our pasts and make futures.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/isaac-marion/the-opposite-of-memory-hope-so-things-that-are-gone-can-still-matter/) [Isaac Marion](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/isaac-marion/) > [“So if existence was just binary, dead or alive, here or not here, what would be the fucking point in anything? My mom used…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/isaac-marion/so-if-existence-was-just-binary-dead-or-alive-here-or-not-here-what/) [Isaac Marion](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/isaac-marion/) > [For me, the Internet is the opposite of memory; the Internet is amnesia, it's about today and tomorrow is another day. Printed issues are…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/olivier-zahm/for-me-the-internet-is-the-opposite-of-memory-the-internet-is-amnesia/) [Olivier Zahm](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/olivier-zahm/) > [If you leave, we lose and our pasts win.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sylvia-day/if-you-leave-we-lose-and-our-pasts-win/) [Sylvia Day](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sylvia-day/) > [Memory and hope constantly incite us to the extensions of the self which play so large a part in our daily life.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/josiah-royce/memory-and-hope-constantly-incite-us-to-the-extensions-of-the-self/) [Josiah Royce](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/josiah-royce/) > [And so I write this for you, My Sarah. With the hope that one day, when you’re old enough, this story that lives with…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tatiana-de-rosnay/and-so-i-write-this-for-you-my-sarah-with-the-hope-that-one-day-when/) [Tatiana de Rosnay](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tatiana-de-rosnay/) > [“The bullet is already in the brain; it won’t be outrun forever, or charmed to a halt. In the end it will do its…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tobias-wolff/the-bullet-is-already-in-the-brain-it-won-t-be-outrun-forever-or/) [Tobias Wolff](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tobias-wolff/) > [“It's not so much time is circular as time confuses memory with hope and fear which often looks like the future”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jennifer-nelson/it-s-not-so-much-time-is-circular-as-time-confuses-memory-with-hope/) [Jennifer Nelson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jennifer-nelson/) > [Americans have no past, so they buy the pasts of others.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jean-luc-godard/americans-have-no-past-so-they-buy-the-pasts-of-others/) [Jean-Luc Godard](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jean-luc-godard/) > [We all have our painful pasts we have to get through.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/valerie-bertinelli/we-all-have-our-painful-pasts-we-have-to-get-through/) [Valerie Bertinelli](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/valerie-bertinelli/) > [The lessons of the pasts are meant to create a better future, not to chain us all to re-live and re-create a second history.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/the-lessons-of-the-pasts-are-meant-to-create-a-better-future-not-to/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [“We’re grown-ups, sugar. We all have pasts. I bet even you do. But those don’t much matter compared to the present, right?”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/we-re-grown-ups-sugar-we-all-have-pasts-i-bet-even-you-do-but-those/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [“We should kill our pasts with each passing day. Blot them out, so that they will not hurt. Each present day could thus be…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/me-a-selimovi/we-should-kill-our-pasts-with-each-passing-day-blot-them-out-so-that/) [Meša Selimović](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/me-a-selimovi/) > [“We remember the pains of our pasts, so we don't make the same mistakes in our futures.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-archambault/we-remember-the-pains-of-our-pasts-so-we-don-t-make-the-same-mistakes/) [Michael Archambault](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michael-archambault/) ## More by Isaac Marion > [“Our cadaverous cadre has been walking for little over a day...”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/isaac-marion/our-cadaverous-cadre-has-been-walking-for-little-over-a-day/) [Isaac Marion](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/isaac-marion/) > [“These people, these beautiful Living women, they don't seem to make the connection between me and the creatures that keep killing everything they love.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/isaac-marion/these-people-these-beautiful-living-women-they-don-t-seem-to-make-the/) [Isaac Marion](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/isaac-marion/) > [“Good people see past their own fucking lives.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/isaac-marion/good-people-see-past-their-own-fucking-lives/) [Isaac Marion](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/isaac-marion/) > [My favorite songs change every year.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/isaac-marion/my-favorite-songs-change-every-year/) [Isaac Marion](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/isaac-marion/) > [“You and I are victims of the same disease. We're fighting the same war, just different battles in different theaters, and it's way too…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/isaac-marion/you-and-i-are-victims-of-the-same-disease-we-re-fighting-the-same-war/) [Isaac Marion](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/isaac-marion/) > [“She looks at her wrist, those thin scars like an entry stamp for some horrible concert. 'All the shitty stuff people do to themselves...…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/isaac-marion/she-looks-at-her-wrist-those-thin-scars-like-an-entry-stamp-for-some/) [Isaac Marion](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/isaac-marion/) > [“I guess I talk a lot of shit about Perry, but it's not like I'm such a shiny happy person either, you know? I'm…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/isaac-marion/i-guess-i-talk-a-lot-of-shit-about-perry-but-it-s-not-like-i-m-such-a/) [Isaac Marion](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/isaac-marion/) > [I want to change my punctuation. I long for exclamation marks, but I'm drowning in ellipses.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/isaac-marion/i-want-to-change-my-punctuation-i-long-for-exclamation-marks-but-i-m/) [Isaac Marion](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/isaac-marion/) > [I feel the flatline of my existence disrupting, forming heartbeat hills and valleys](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/isaac-marion/i-feel-the-flatline-of-my-existence-disrupting-forming-heartbeat/) [Isaac Marion](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/isaac-marion/) > [But it does make me sad that we've forgotten our names. Out of everything, this seems to me the most tragic. I miss my…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/isaac-marion/but-it-does-make-me-sad-that-we-ve-forgotten-our-names-out-of/) [Isaac Marion](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/isaac-marion/) > [It's not like I'm such a shiny happy person either, you know? I'm a wreck too, I'm just... still alive.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/isaac-marion/it-s-not-like-i-m-such-a-shiny-happy-person-either-you-know-i-m-a/) [Isaac Marion](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/isaac-marion/) > [“I run through the dark entry corridor toward the light on the other end, wondering if this is a birth canal or the tunnel…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/isaac-marion/i-run-through-the-dark-entry-corridor-toward-the-light-on-the-other/) [Isaac Marion](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/isaac-marion/) > [“I want the pain of knowing them, and by extension myself: who and what I really am. Maybe with that scalpel, red-hot and sterilized…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/isaac-marion/i-want-the-pain-of-knowing-them-and-by-extension-myself-who-and-what/) [Isaac Marion](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/isaac-marion/) > [Just... ate," M says, frowning at me a little. "Two days...ago." I grab my stomach again. "Feel empty. Feel... dead." He nods. "Marr...iage.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/isaac-marion/just-ate-m-says-frowning-at-me-a-little-two-days-ago-i-grab-my/) [Isaac Marion](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/isaac-marion/) > [It’s sad to see them staring wistfully through the window when the door isn’t locked.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/isaac-marion/it-s-sad-to-see-them-staring-wistfully-through-the-window-when-the/) [Isaac Marion](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/isaac-marion/) [Explore all 273 Isaac Marion quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/isaac-marion/) ## More Gone 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/) > [“I notice when you’re gone. Or do I? How can I observe something that isn’t there?”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jarod-kintz/i-notice-when-you-re-gone-or-do-i-how-can-i-observe-something-that/) [Jarod Kintz](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jarod-kintz/) > [You're getting into some kind of shape, cop." Aw, come on, now." Butch grinned. "Don't let that shower we took go to your head."…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/j-r-ward/you-re-getting-into-some-kind-of-shape-cop-aw-come-on-now-butch/) [J.R. Ward](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/j-r-ward/) > [Would she understand that time had stopped while she was gone.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/miranda-july/would-she-understand-that-time-had-stopped-while-she-was-gone/) [Miranda July](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/miranda-july/) > [From the bitter cold winter at Valley Forge, to the mountains of Afghanistan and the deserts of Iraq, our soldiers have courageously answered when…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/solomon-ortiz/from-the-bitter-cold-winter-at-valley-forge-to-the-mountains-of/) [Solomon Ortiz](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/solomon-ortiz/) > [They paved paradise and put up a parkin lot With a pink hotel, a boutique, and a swingin' hot spot Don't it always seem…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joni-mitchell/they-paved-paradise-and-put-up-a-parkin-lot-with-a-pink-hotel-a/) [Joni Mitchell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joni-mitchell/) > [The amazing thing is that we live our lives with the hope that things will go right, that things will happen. And all along…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/laurel-nakadate/the-amazing-thing-is-that-we-live-our-lives-with-the-hope-that-things/) [Laurel Nakadate](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/laurel-nakadate/) > [I think I need the demons in order to write, but the demons have gone. It bothers me a lot. I've tried and tried,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/brian-wilson/i-think-i-need-the-demons-in-order-to-write-but-the-demons-have-gone/) [Brian Wilson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/brian-wilson/) > [I'm in a business where there's complete anarchy. You can't control it - you can only react to it. The control that people traditionally…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/martin-sorrell/i-m-in-a-business-where-there-s-complete-anarchy-you-can-t-control-it/) [Martin Sorrell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/martin-sorrell/) > [“I am disappearing, maybe I'm already gone.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jennifer-niven/i-am-disappearing-maybe-i-m-already-gone/) [Jennifer Niven](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jennifer-niven/) > [“This spending of the best part of one's life earning money in order to enjoy a questionable liberty during the least valuable part of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/henry-david-thoreau/this-spending-of-the-best-part-of-one-s-life-earning-money-in-order/) [Henry David Thoreau](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/henry-david-thoreau/) > [After a few mouthfuls of moon-flavored air, even the stubbornly drowsy can find themselves wide-eyed.. 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