--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: The worst part was that, as the years…" description: "\"“The worst part was that, as the years passed, these memories became, in the way you kept them in a secret box in your head, taking them out every so o..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/daa/jeffrey-eugenides-462_memories_the-worst-part-was-that-as-the-years-pas_426096.png" --- # The worst part was that, as the years passed, these… ![“The worst part was that, as the years passed, these memories became, in the way you kept them in a secret box in your head, taking them out every so often to turn them over and over, something like dear possessions. They were the key to your unhappiness. They were the evidence that life wasn’t…” quote by Jeffrey Eugenides](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/daa/jeffrey-eugenides-462_memories_the-worst-part-was-that-as-the-years-pas_426096.png) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/daa/jeffrey-eugenides-462_memories_the-worst-part-was-that-as-the-years-pas_426096.png) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/daa/jeffrey-eugenides-462_memories_the-worst-part-was-that-as-the-years-pas_426096.png) > ““The worst part was that, as the years passed, these memories became, in the way you kept them in a secret box in your head, taking them out every so often to turn them over and over, something like dear possessions. They were the key to your unhappiness. They were the evidence that life wasn’t fair. If you weren’t a lucky child, you didn’t know you weren’t lucky until you got older. And then it was all you ever thought about.”” [Jeffrey Eugenides](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jeffrey-eugenides/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Memories can become treasured but painful secrets that trap us in unhappiness and a sense of injustice. **In simple terms:** Memories can imprison us in sadness. Key Takeaway Recognize and release harmful memory patterns. Themes memory unhappiness fairness self‑awareness Mood melancholic introspective Type literary psychological When to use this quote - grief counseling - therapy - self‑reflection - writing - mindfulness Key Concepts psychology nostalgia cognitive bias Questions to Reflect On - What memories keep you stuck? - How can you transform painful memories into growth? A Different Perspective Memories may also hold valuable lessons; discarding them entirely can be harmful. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Memories](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/memories/) [Memory](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/memory/) ## Related quotes > [“If you grew up in a house where you weren't loved, you didn't know there was an alternative. If you grew up with emotionally…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jeffrey-eugenides/if-you-grew-up-in-a-house-where-you-weren-t-loved-you-didn-t-know/) [Jeffrey Eugenides](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jeffrey-eugenides/) > [“Garraty thought that memories were like a line drawn in the dirt. The further back you went the scuffier and harder to see that…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/richard-bachman/garraty-thought-that-memories-were-like-a-line-drawn-in-the-dirt-the/) [Richard Bachman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/richard-bachman/) > [“Human unhappiness is evidence of our immortality.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/richard-rodriguez/human-unhappiness-is-evidence-of-our-immortality/) [Richard Rodriguez](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/richard-rodriguez/) > [Think about way back then...turn your thoughts way back then...remember the essence way back then...treasured the memories way back then...Feel free to embrace the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/louaiq8/think-about-way-back-then-turn-your-thoughts-way-back-then-remember/) Louaiq8 > [The worst years of my life were the first two years I was doing standup. You're learning how to do, and you're going on…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bill-maher/the-worst-years-of-my-life-were-the-first-two-years-i-was-doing/) [Bill Maher](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bill-maher/) > [I don't really have any childhood memories of my dad, unfortunately, ... I was 10 years old when he passed, so my memories are…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lalah-hathaway/i-don-t-really-have-any-childhood-memories-of-my-dad-unfortunately-i/) [Lalah Hathaway](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lalah-hathaway/) > [Years passed by but her memories never did..](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/samuel-jebaraj/years-passed-by-but-her-memories-never-did/) [Samuel Jebaraj](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/samuel-jebaraj/) > [“And, as Rhonda told the story, she thought: this is how the past gets passed down. This is how memories are made. Half-invented, embellished,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jennifer-mcmahon/and-as-rhonda-told-the-story-she-thought-this-is-how-the-past-gets/) [Jennifer McMahon](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jennifer-mcmahon/) > [Most women want their youth back again; but I wouldn't have mine back at any price. The worst years of my life are behind…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ellen-glasgow/most-women-want-their-youth-back-again-but-i-wouldn-t-have-mine-back/) [Ellen Glasgow](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ellen-glasgow/) > [There are times in our lives when we have trouble recognizing perfect moments until we realize they have passed us by and become memories.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jeremiah-martey/there-are-times-in-our-lives-when-we-have-trouble-recognizing-perfect/) Jeremiah Martey > [“Voted worst in show the last two years got a refill on my tears another bottle of foam yellowed clear. Old man twitching on…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/brendan-kelly/voted-worst-in-show-the-last-two-years-got-a-refill-on-my-tears/) Brendan Kelly > [I was 21 and looking for work in 1932, one of the worst years of the Great Depression. And I can remember one bleak…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ronald-reagan/i-was-21-and-looking-for-work-in-1932-one-of-the-worst-years-of-the/) [Ronald Reagan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ronald-reagan/) > [“Our culture is an edifice built of external memories, a way of fending off mortality.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jonathan-foer/our-culture-is-an-edifice-built-of-external-memories-a-way-of-fending/) Jonathan Foer > [Some of my relatives held on to imagined memories the way homeless people hold onto lottery tickets. Nostalgia was their crack cocaine, if you…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mohsin-hamid/some-of-my-relatives-held-on-to-imagined-memories-the-way-homeless/) [Mohsin Hamid](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mohsin-hamid/) > [Our memories, the way we tend to experience them, are sort of fuzzy around the edges, like a watercolor that has bled into the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lisa-joy/our-memories-the-way-we-tend-to-experience-them-are-sort-of-fuzzy/) [Lisa Joy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lisa-joy/) ## More by Jeffrey Eugenides > [“Only the Lisbon house remained dark, a tunnel, an emptiness, past our smoke and flames.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jeffrey-eugenides/only-the-lisbon-house-remained-dark-a-tunnel-an-emptiness-past-our/) [Jeffrey Eugenides](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jeffrey-eugenides/) > [“She had just started living like a grown-up and she'd never felt more vulnerable, frightened or confused in her life.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jeffrey-eugenides/she-had-just-started-living-like-a-grown-up-and-she-d-never-felt-more/) [Jeffrey Eugenides](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jeffrey-eugenides/) > [It's often said that a traumatic experience early in life marks a person forever, pulls her out of line, saying, "Stay there. Don't move.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jeffrey-eugenides/it-s-often-said-that-a-traumatic-experience-early-in-life-marks-a/) [Jeffrey Eugenides](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jeffrey-eugenides/) > [“Adolescents tend to seek love where they can find it.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jeffrey-eugenides/adolescents-tend-to-seek-love-where-they-can-find-it/) [Jeffrey Eugenides](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jeffrey-eugenides/) > [“The window was still open,” Mr Lisbon said. “I don’t think we’d ever remembered to shut it. It was all clear to me. I…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jeffrey-eugenides/the-window-was-still-open-mr-lisbon-said-i-don-t-think-we-d-ever/) [Jeffrey Eugenides](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jeffrey-eugenides/) > [I was aware that you weren't supposed to write about suburbia, that it was undignified in some way, the subject matter not momentous enough.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jeffrey-eugenides/i-was-aware-that-you-weren-t-supposed-to-write-about-suburbia-that-it/) [Jeffrey Eugenides](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jeffrey-eugenides/) > [“Dr. Armonson stitched up her wrist wounds. Within five minutes of the transfusion he declared her out of danger. Chucking her under the chin,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jeffrey-eugenides/dr-armonson-stitched-up-her-wrist-wounds-within-five-minutes-of-the/) [Jeffrey Eugenides](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jeffrey-eugenides/) > [“I don't approve of women driving, mind you. And now they get to vote!" He grumbled to himself. "Remember that play we saw ("The…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jeffrey-eugenides/i-don-t-approve-of-women-driving-mind-you-and-now-they-get-to-vote-he/) [Jeffrey Eugenides](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jeffrey-eugenides/) > [“Her face was calm, but inside she was tense.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jeffrey-eugenides/her-face-was-calm-but-inside-she-was-tense/) [Jeffrey Eugenides](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jeffrey-eugenides/) > [I know that attaching memories to books may be going out of the world, but while it lasts, it's a strong record of your…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jeffrey-eugenides/i-know-that-attaching-memories-to-books-may-be-going-out-of-the-world/) [Jeffrey Eugenides](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jeffrey-eugenides/) > [I spend most of every day writing. I like to write every day if I can. I don't start extremely early.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jeffrey-eugenides/i-spend-most-of-every-day-writing-i-like-to-write-every-day-if-i-can/) [Jeffrey Eugenides](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jeffrey-eugenides/) > [Maybe the best proof that the language is patriarchal is that it oversimplifies feeling.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jeffrey-eugenides/maybe-the-best-proof-that-the-language-is-patriarchal-is-that-it/) [Jeffrey Eugenides](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jeffrey-eugenides/) > [We knew that Cecilia had killed herself because she was a misfit, because the beyond called to her, and we knew that her sisters,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jeffrey-eugenides/we-knew-that-cecilia-had-killed-herself-because-she-was-a-misfit/) [Jeffrey Eugenides](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jeffrey-eugenides/) > [You can tell when something's not moving forward anymore. When the doubts you have about it don't go away.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jeffrey-eugenides/you-can-tell-when-something-s-not-moving-forward-anymore-when-the/) [Jeffrey Eugenides](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jeffrey-eugenides/) > [Normality wasn't normal. It couldn't be. If normality were normal, everybody could leave it alone. They could sit back and let normality manifest itself.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jeffrey-eugenides/normality-wasn-t-normal-it-couldn-t-be-if-normality-were-normal/) [Jeffrey Eugenides](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jeffrey-eugenides/) [Explore all 516 Jeffrey Eugenides quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jeffrey-eugenides/) ## More Memories quotes > [I was 3-years-old - to this day it is a vivid memory. My family and I were on a boat, catching fish. As one…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joaquin-phoenix/i-was-3-years-old-to-this-day-it-is-a-vivid-memory-my-family-and-i/) [Joaquin Phoenix](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joaquin-phoenix/) > [In literature and art memory is a synonym for invention. It is the life-blood of imagination, which faints and dies when the veins are…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robert-aris-willmott/in-literature-and-art-memory-is-a-synonym-for-invention-it-is-the/) [Robert Aris Willmott](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robert-aris-willmott/) > [I am told many children block out the memory of trauma. In fact, the healing process can only truly begin when we are willing…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/phoebe-stone/i-am-told-many-children-block-out-the-memory-of-trauma-in-fact-the/) [Phoebe Stone](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/phoebe-stone/) > [The cooler days have brought a wistful mood upon him. The smell of coalsmoke in the air at night. Old times, dead years. For…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/cormac-mccarthy/the-cooler-days-have-brought-a-wistful-mood-upon-him-the-smell-of/) [Cormac McCarthy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/cormac-mccarthy/) > [I have a memory like an elephant. I remember every elephant I've ever met.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/herb-caen/i-have-a-memory-like-an-elephant-i-remember-every-elephant-i-ve-ever/) [Herb Caen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/herb-caen/) > [That old man dies prematurely whose memory records no benefits conferred. They only have lived long who have lived virtuously.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/richard-brinsley-sheridan/that-old-man-dies-prematurely-whose-memory-records-no-benefits/) [Richard Brinsley Sheridan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/richard-brinsley-sheridan/) > [My greatest memories as a kid were playing sports with my dad and watching sports with my dad.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mark-teixeira/my-greatest-memories-as-a-kid-were-playing-sports-with-my-dad-and/) [Mark Teixeira](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mark-teixeira/) > [A well-fashioned day - with a beginning and an end, a purpose and a content, a color and a character, a feel and a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jim-rohn/a-well-fashioned-day-with-a-beginning-and-an-end-a-purpose-and-a/) [Jim Rohn](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jim-rohn/) > [What keeps me motivated is not the food itself but all the bonds and memories the food represents.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-chiarello/what-keeps-me-motivated-is-not-the-food-itself-but-all-the-bonds-and/) Michael Chiarello > [Our memory is a monster; you forget it - it does not.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-irving/our-memory-is-a-monster-you-forget-it-it-does-not/) [John Irving](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-irving/) > [In the name of Jerusalem. If I forget the extermination of the Jews, may my right hand wither, may my tongue stick to my…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/menachem-begin/in-the-name-of-jerusalem-if-i-forget-the-extermination-of-the-jews/) [Menachem Begin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/menachem-begin/) > [Memory revises me. Even now a letter comes from a place I don’t know, from someone with my name and postmarked years ago, while…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/li-young-lee/memory-revises-me-even-now-a-letter-comes-from-a-place-i-don-t-know/) [Li-Young Lee](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/li-young-lee/) > [As my films are born at the moment when they are reflected into another person's mind and memories, there are no misconceptions. I totally…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/pirjo-honkasalo/as-my-films-are-born-at-the-moment-when-they-are-reflected-into/) [Pirjo Honkasalo](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/pirjo-honkasalo/) > [Children, Never look Back!" and this meant that we must never allow the future to be weighed down by memory . for children have…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/milan-kundera/children-never-look-back-and-this-meant-that-we-must-never-allow-the/) [Milan Kundera](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/milan-kundera/) > [“ving self and others is an every second of every day of every week, of every month, of every year gift that should not…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sanjo-jendayi/ving-self-and-others-is-an-every-second-of-every-day-of-every-week-of/) [Sanjo Jendayi](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sanjo-jendayi/) [Browse all 11,132 Memories quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/memories/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "“The worst part was that, as the years passed, these memories became, in the way you kept them in a secret box in your head, taking them out every so often to turn them over and over, something like dear possessions. They were the key to your unhappiness. They were the evidence that life wasn’t fair. If you weren’t a lucky child, you didn’t know you weren’t lucky until you got older. And then it was all you ever thought about.”", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "Jeffrey Eugenides" }, "isPartOf": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website" }, "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jeffrey-eugenides/the-worst-part-was-that-as-the-years-passed-these-memories-became-in/", "about": { "@type": "Thing", "name": "Memories" }, "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jeffrey-eugenides/the-worst-part-was-that-as-the-years-passed-these-memories-became-in/#quotation", "image": { "@type": "ImageObject", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/daa/jeffrey-eugenides-462_memories_the-worst-part-was-that-as-the-years-pas_426096.png", "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/daa/jeffrey-eugenides-462_memories_the-worst-part-was-that-as-the-years-pas_426096.png", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/daa/jeffrey-eugenides-462_memories_the-worst-part-was-that-as-the-years-pas_426096.png", "width": 1080, "height": 1080, "caption": "“The worst part was that, as the years passed, these memories became, in the way you kept them in a secret…” — Jeffrey Eugenides", "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": "Jeffrey Eugenides", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jeffrey-eugenides/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 4, "name": "“The worst part was that, as...", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jeffrey-eugenides/the-worst-part-was-that-as-the-years-passed-these-memories-became-in/" } ], "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jeffrey-eugenides/the-worst-part-was-that-as-the-years-passed-these-memories-became-in/#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 } } ] } ```