--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: There would be love, and while it was…" description: "\"“There would be love, and while it was mine, I could cling to it. I could rejoice -- in life, in the existence of love. In the existence of people like..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/8bc/jacqueline-carey-1938_aspire_there-would-be-love-and-while-it-was-min_1992056.png" --- # There would be love, and while it was mine, I could cling… ![“There would be love, and while it was mine, I could cling to it. I could rejoice -- in life, in the existence of love. In the existence of people like Phedre and Joscelin. Although the standards they set were impossibly high, still, I could rejoice that such courage and compassion existed in the…” quote by Jacqueline Carey](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/8bc/jacqueline-carey-1938_aspire_there-would-be-love-and-while-it-was-min_1992056.png) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/8bc/jacqueline-carey-1938_aspire_there-would-be-love-and-while-it-was-min_1992056.png) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/8bc/jacqueline-carey-1938_aspire_there-would-be-love-and-while-it-was-min_1992056.png) > ““There would be love, and while it was mine, I could cling to it. I could rejoice -- in life, in the existence of love. In the existence of people like Phedre and Joscelin. Although the standards they set were impossibly high, still, I could rejoice that such courage and compassion existed in the world. I could hope and aspire.”” [Jacqueline Carey](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jacqueline-carey/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. The narrator finds joy and hope in love and the courageous, compassionate people she admires, despite their unattainably high standards. **In simple terms:** Love and admiration inspire hope even when ideals seem impossible. Key Takeaway Seek inspiration from those who embody courage and compassion. Themes love hope courage compassion idealism Mood reflective inspirational optimistic Type philosophical emotional When to use this quote - personal relationships - creative writing - self‑reflection - community building Key Concepts literary inspiration emotional resilience human aspiration Questions to Reflect On - Who in your life embodies the courage you admire? - How can you honor high ideals without feeling inadequate? A Different Perspective Idealized standards can cause discouragement if not balanced with self‑acceptance. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Hope](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/hope/) [Life](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/life/) [Love](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/love/) ## Related quotes > [You can't love anyone or anything until you love your own existence first. Love can only grow out of a respect for your own…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/terry-goodkind/you-can-t-love-anyone-or-anything-until-you-love-your-own-existence/) [Terry Goodkind](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/terry-goodkind/) > [“You don't love me, Sebastian. You don't have any idea what love really is. You can't love anyone or anything until you love your…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/terry-goodkind/you-don-t-love-me-sebastian-you-don-t-have-any-idea-what-love-really/) [Terry Goodkind](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/terry-goodkind/) > [“Gone was the slightest implication of compassion if it had ever existed before. “I have seen young boys burned alive,” he said. “I have…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kanan-makiya/gone-was-the-slightest-implication-of-compassion-if-it-had-ever/) [Kanan Makiya](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kanan-makiya/) > [Humility is the time that you spend in love with existence.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/frederick-lenz/humility-is-the-time-that-you-spend-in-love-with-existence/) [Frederick Lenz](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/frederick-lenz/) > [Through your love existence and nonexistence merge. All opposites unite. All that is profane becomes sacred again.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rumi/through-your-love-existence-and-nonexistence-merge-all-opposites/) [Rumi](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rumi/) > [We are not here to love just one person, we are here to love everything in existence.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ralph-smart/we-are-not-here-to-love-just-one-person-we-are-here-to-love/) [Ralph Smart](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ralph-smart/) > [What would have to occur or to have occurred to constitute for you a disproof of the love of, or the existence of, God?](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/antony-flew/what-would-have-to-occur-or-to-have-occurred-to-constitute-for-you-a/) [Antony Flew](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/antony-flew/) > [May my soul bloom in love for all existence.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rudolf-steiner/may-my-soul-bloom-in-love-for-all-existence/) [Rudolf Steiner](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rudolf-steiner/) > [Perhaps we always want the person we love, to have the existence of a ghost.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/adolfo-bioy-casares/perhaps-we-always-want-the-person-we-love-to-have-the-existence-of-a/) [Adolfo Bioy Casares](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/adolfo-bioy-casares/) > [You see how it is godlike to love the being of someone. Your existence is a delight to us. I hope you never have…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/marilynne-robinson/you-see-how-it-is-godlike-to-love-the-being-of-someone-your-existence/) [Marilynne Robinson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/marilynne-robinson/) > [The whole purpose of existence is to bring love into existence where it is needed.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/barry-long/the-whole-purpose-of-existence-is-to-bring-love-into-existence-where/) [Barry Long](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/barry-long/) > [“And actually it's not at all you I love, but rather the existence you have bestowed on me.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/franz-kafka/and-actually-it-s-not-at-all-you-i-love-but-rather-the-existence-you/) [Franz Kafka](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/franz-kafka/) > [“Does God know the number of kisses before we fall in love? Yesterday, I was nobody and I believed myself important. Today, I feel…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kamand-kojouri/does-god-know-the-number-of-kisses-before-we-fall-in-love-yesterday-i/) [Kamand Kojouri](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kamand-kojouri/) > [For a man who is in love with the existence, nothing is ordinary in life!](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mehmet-murat-ildan/for-a-man-who-is-in-love-with-the-existence-nothing-is-ordinary-in/) [Mehmet Murat Ildan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mehmet-murat-ildan/) > [You are...Well, not exactly the love of my life, because I expect to love you for much longer than that. The love of my…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stephenie-meyer/you-are-well-not-exactly-the-love-of-my-life-because-i-expect-to-love/) [Stephenie Meyer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stephenie-meyer/) ## More by Jacqueline Carey > [“A pretty sight; it would have surprised me, if my capacity for surprise wasn't flattened.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jacqueline-carey/a-pretty-sight-it-would-have-surprised-me-if-my-capacity-for-surprise/) [Jacqueline Carey](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jacqueline-carey/) > [“Never before had I used my service to escape any woes that troubled me, but I did that day.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jacqueline-carey/never-before-had-i-used-my-service-to-escape-any-woes-that-troubled/) [Jacqueline Carey](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jacqueline-carey/) > [“Young men," Melisande murmured after they had left, smiling faintly. "Such a sense of honor. Is he a little bit in love with you,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jacqueline-carey/young-men-melisande-murmured-after-they-had-left-smiling-faintly-such/) [Jacqueline Carey](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jacqueline-carey/) > [For this too I learned, that a storyteller's tale may end, but history goes on always. These events, so distant in legend, play a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jacqueline-carey/for-this-too-i-learned-that-a-storyteller-s-tale-may-end-but-history/) [Jacqueline Carey](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jacqueline-carey/) > [“for the keeping of secrets from adults is oft the only power a child may hope to possess.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jacqueline-carey/for-the-keeping-of-secrets-from-adults-is-oft-the-only-power-a-child/) [Jacqueline Carey](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jacqueline-carey/) > [Happiness is the highest form of wisdom.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jacqueline-carey/happiness-is-the-highest-form-of-wisdom/) [Jacqueline Carey](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jacqueline-carey/) > [“If I have one pride in my calling, it is that I have never judged a patron wrongly - and I have never failed…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jacqueline-carey/if-i-have-one-pride-in-my-calling-it-is-that-i-have-never-judged-a/) [Jacqueline Carey](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jacqueline-carey/) > [A little truth seasons a lie like salt.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jacqueline-carey/a-little-truth-seasons-a-lie-like-salt/) [Jacqueline Carey](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jacqueline-carey/) > [I had begun to think my ripening body would wither untasted on the vine.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jacqueline-carey/i-had-begun-to-think-my-ripening-body-would-wither-untasted-on-the/) [Jacqueline Carey](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jacqueline-carey/) > [Garner knowledge, by any means possible](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jacqueline-carey/garner-knowledge-by-any-means-possible/) [Jacqueline Carey](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jacqueline-carey/) > [Pain obliterates everything else. In pain, there is only the eternal present.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jacqueline-carey/pain-obliterates-everything-else-in-pain-there-is-only-the-eternal/) [Jacqueline Carey](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jacqueline-carey/) > [I would that I could have stopped time and preserved that day forever. It was a perfect day. There was the shadow of sorrow,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jacqueline-carey/i-would-that-i-could-have-stopped-time-and-preserved-that-day-forever/) [Jacqueline Carey](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jacqueline-carey/) > [To recongnize that the treachery of one member of a house does not taint all born within it](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jacqueline-carey/to-recongnize-that-the-treachery-of-one-member-of-a-house-does-not/) [Jacqueline Carey](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jacqueline-carey/) > [Grief heals ... unshed tears fester like a canker in the soul.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jacqueline-carey/grief-heals-unshed-tears-fester-like-a-canker-in-the-soul/) [Jacqueline Carey](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jacqueline-carey/) > [Are you a minor character in my tale, or am I a lesser figure in yours?](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jacqueline-carey/are-you-a-minor-character-in-my-tale-or-am-i-a-lesser-figure-in-yours/) [Jacqueline Carey](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jacqueline-carey/) [Explore all 188 Jacqueline Carey quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jacqueline-carey/) ## More Aspire quotes > [Reader, if you are gifted with nerves like mine, aspire to any character but that of a wit.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/charles-lamb/reader-if-you-are-gifted-with-nerves-like-mine-aspire-to-any/) [Charles Lamb](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/charles-lamb/) > [Vow to be valiant. Resolve to be radiant. Determine to be dynamic. Strive to be sincere. Aspire to be attuned.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-arthur-ward/vow-to-be-valiant-resolve-to-be-radiant-determine-to-be-dynamic/) [William Arthur Ward](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-arthur-ward/) > [“No one has any right to tell you that the way you perceive yourself is wrong. Because by doing so, they also discourage the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kamand-kojouri/no-one-has-any-right-to-tell-you-that-the-way-you-perceive-yourself/) [Kamand Kojouri](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kamand-kojouri/) > [I love it when television is shot in a cinematic way and I think to aspire to that is no bad thing.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/matthew-rhys/i-love-it-when-television-is-shot-in-a-cinematic-way-and-i-think-to/) [Matthew Rhys](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/matthew-rhys/) > [At the end of the day, everyone knows what it is to be loved and to aspire to love someone, to want to be…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-oyelowo/at-the-end-of-the-day-everyone-knows-what-it-is-to-be-loved-and-to/) [David Oyelowo](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-oyelowo/) > [I didn't aspire to be a good sport; 'champion' was good enough for me.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/fred-perry/i-didn-t-aspire-to-be-a-good-sport-champion-was-good-enough-for-me/) [Fred Perry](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/fred-perry/) > [We should all aspire in life to do a multitude of things well - to be a great father, to be a good husband,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/matthew-modine/we-should-all-aspire-in-life-to-do-a-multitude-of-things-well-to-be-a/) [Matthew Modine](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/matthew-modine/) > [We try, we fail, we posture, we aspire, we pontificate - and then we age, shrink, die, and vanish.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-saunders/we-try-we-fail-we-posture-we-aspire-we-pontificate-and-then-we-age/) [George Saunders](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-saunders/) > [I aspire my country eventually has a league where all players play 50 games.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sunil-chhetri/i-aspire-my-country-eventually-has-a-league-where-all-players-play-50/) [Sunil Chhetri](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sunil-chhetri/) > [I'm exceptional in everything that I do and I aspire to do.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/omarosa-manigault-newman/i-m-exceptional-in-everything-that-i-do-and-i-aspire-to-do/) [Omarosa Manigault Newman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/omarosa-manigault-newman/) > [One of the reasons you study at great institutions or aspire to work in great corporations is that you hope to acquire the values…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/harsha-bhogle/one-of-the-reasons-you-study-at-great-institutions-or-aspire-to-work/) [Harsha Bhogle](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/harsha-bhogle/) > [So if you aspire to be a good conversationali st, be an attentive listener. To be interesting, be interested. Ask questions that other persons…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dale-carnegie/so-if-you-aspire-to-be-a-good-conversationali-st-be-an-attentive/) [Dale Carnegie](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dale-carnegie/) > [... the majority of colored men do not yet think it worth while that women aspire to higher education… The three R's, a littlemusic…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anna-julia-cooper/the-majority-of-colored-men-do-not-yet-think-it-worth-while-that/) [Anna Julia Cooper](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anna-julia-cooper/) > [For me, there has always been a disconnect with the sort of elitist structure of the high-art world - and my distaste for that…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/shepard-fairey/for-me-there-has-always-been-a-disconnect-with-the-sort-of-elitist/) [Shepard Fairey](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/shepard-fairey/) > [There is not a right too long denied to which we do not aspire in order to achieve; there is not a wrong too…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/samuel-gompers/there-is-not-a-right-too-long-denied-to-which-we-do-not-aspire-in/) [Samuel Gompers](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/samuel-gompers/) Browse all 650 Aspire quotes ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "“There would be love, and while it was mine, I could cling to it. 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