--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: Suddenly I realize that this is what I've…" description: "\"Suddenly I realize that this is what I've been waiting for - a man who depends entirely on me... I dreamed for years of a man who couldn't live without..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/67b/jodi-picoult-45_birth_suddenly-i-realize-that-this-is-what-i-v_2011332.jpg" --- # Suddenly I realize that this is what I've been waiting for… ![“Suddenly I realize that this is what I've been waiting for - a man who depends entirely on me... I dreamed for years of a man who couldn't live without me, a man who pictured my face when he closed his eyes, who loved me when I was a mess in the morning and when dinner was late and even when I…” quote by Jodi Picoult](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/67b/jodi-picoult-45_birth_suddenly-i-realize-that-this-is-what-i-v_2011332.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/67b/jodi-picoult-45_birth_suddenly-i-realize-that-this-is-what-i-v_2011332.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/67b/jodi-picoult-45_birth_suddenly-i-realize-that-this-is-what-i-v_2011332.jpg) > “Suddenly I realize that this is what I've been waiting for - a man who depends entirely on me... I dreamed for years of a man who couldn't live without me, a man who pictured my face when he closed his eyes, who loved me when I was a mess in the morning and when dinner was late and even when I overloaded the washing machine and burned out the motor. \[My son\] stares up at me as if I can do no wrong. I have always wanted someone who treats me the way he does; I just didn't know that I'd have to give birth to him.” [Jodi Picoult](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jodi-picoult/) ## 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 discovers that the ideal partner she imagined is actually her own child, highlighting the deep bond and dependence between mother and child. **In simple terms:** She realizes her longing for a dependent partner is fulfilled by her son. Key Takeaway Embrace the unique love and responsibility of motherhood. Themes parenthood dependence expectations Mood introspective emotional Type narrative reflective When to use this quote - new motherhood - single parenting - caregiver support Key Concepts psychology family dynamics Questions to Reflect On - How does this realization reshape your view of relationships? - What expectations do you have for yourself as a parent? A Different Perspective Idealizing romantic partners can overlook the profound fulfillment found in parental love. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Birth](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/birth/) [Burned out](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/burned-out/) [Dinner](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/dinner/) [Faces](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/faces/) [Giving](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/giving/) [Machines](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/machines/) [Men](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/men/) [Morning](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/morning/) [Son](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/son/) [Staring](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/staring/) [Wanted someone](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/wanted-someone/) ## Related quotes > [But I don't know, maybe it's just as well I never got there. I dreamed about it for so many years. I used to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/helene-hanff/but-i-don-t-know-maybe-it-s-just-as-well-i-never-got-there-i-dreamed/) [Helene Hanff](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/helene-hanff/) > [I have dreamed of this for years! Can it possibly be coming true?](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/i-have-dreamed-of-this-for-years-can-it-possibly-be-coming-true/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [Who am I just to give up on track? This is something I've dreamed about since I was 9 years old, being an Olympic champion.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/marquise-goodwin/who-am-i-just-to-give-up-on-track-this-is-something-i-ve-dreamed/) [Marquise Goodwin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/marquise-goodwin/) > [“The night he and Julia had was amazing, and something he'd dreamed about for you years. Up until that night, she'd only been a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sarah-addison-allen/the-night-he-and-julia-had-was-amazing-and-something-he-d-dreamed/) [Sarah Addison Allen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sarah-addison-allen/) > [Dreamed about it for five years straight. Finally I got a break and cut my first plate. The road ain't yellow and there ain't…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kool-g-rap/dreamed-about-it-for-five-years-straight-finally-i-got-a-break-and/) [Kool G Rap](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kool-g-rap/) > [Anger, though, is too fierce a flame to last for long, and when it burned out, I was left numb and wondering.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jodi-picoult/anger-though-is-too-fierce-a-flame-to-last-for-long-and-when-it/) [Jodi Picoult](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jodi-picoult/) > [The intellectual advancement of man depends on how often he can exchange an old superstition for a new truth.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robert-green-ingersoll/the-intellectual-advancement-of-man-depends-on-how-often-he-can/) [Robert Green Ingersoll](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robert-green-ingersoll/) > [Whatever a man depends upon, whatever rules his mind, whatever governs his affections, whatever is the chief object of his delight, is his god.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/charles-spurgeon/whatever-a-man-depends-upon-whatever-rules-his-mind-whatever-governs/) [Charles Spurgeon](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/charles-spurgeon/) > [The soul and eternity of one man depends upon the voice of another](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/horatius-bonar/the-soul-and-eternity-of-one-man-depends-upon-the-voice-of-another/) [Horatius Bonar](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/horatius-bonar/) > [See it all. See it fairly. Be truthful, be sensible and be careful with language. When nothing depends on man, everything depends on him.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/henry-grunwald/see-it-all-see-it-fairly-be-truthful-be-sensible-and-be-careful-with/) [Henry Grunwald](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/henry-grunwald/) > [Every man depends on the quantity of sense, wit, or good manners he brings into society for the reception he meets with in it.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-hazlitt/every-man-depends-on-the-quantity-of-sense-wit-or-good-manners-he/) [William Hazlitt](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-hazlitt/) > [What a man is depends on his character; but what he does, and what we think of what he does, depends on his circumstances.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-bernard-shaw/what-a-man-is-depends-on-his-character-but-what-he-does-and-what-we/) [George Bernard Shaw](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-bernard-shaw/) > [In civilized life, where the happiness and indeed almost the existence of man, depends on the opinion of his fellow men. He is constantly…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jeremy-collier/in-civilized-life-where-the-happiness-and-indeed-almost-the-existence-2/) [Jeremy Collier](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jeremy-collier/) > [In civilized life, where the happiness, and indeed almost the existence, of man depends so much upon the opinion of his fellow men, he…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/washington-irving/in-civilized-life-where-the-happiness-and-indeed-almost-the-existence/) [Washington Irving](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/washington-irving/) > [Luck always seems to be against the man who depends on it](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/luck-always-seems-to-be-against-the-man-who-depends-on-it/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) ## More by Jodi Picoult > [You get through it, you just never get over it](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jodi-picoult/you-get-through-it-you-just-never-get-over-it/) [Jodi Picoult](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jodi-picoult/) > [“Let me guess," Eric says, "You never meant for it to happen." "Hell, yes, I did. I've wanted her since you two started dating."…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jodi-picoult/let-me-guess-eric-says-you-never-meant-for-it-to-happen-hell-yes-i/) [Jodi Picoult](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jodi-picoult/) > [“It’s the difference between dancing along the eggshell crust of acquaintance and diving into the messy center of a relationship.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jodi-picoult/it-s-the-difference-between-dancing-along-the-eggshell-crust-of/) [Jodi Picoult](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jodi-picoult/) > [Because hate's just the flip side of love. Like heads and tails on a dime. If you don't know what it feels like to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jodi-picoult/because-hate-s-just-the-flip-side-of-love-like-heads-and-tails-on-a/) [Jodi Picoult](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jodi-picoult/) > [Some women are meant to change the world, while others are meant to hold it together. And then there are those of us who…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jodi-picoult/some-women-are-meant-to-change-the-world-while-others-are-meant-to/) [Jodi Picoult](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jodi-picoult/) > [I love feeling loved. I don't love knowing that I will always come in second place. I love the fact that at least sometimes…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jodi-picoult/i-love-feeling-loved-i-don-t-love-knowing-that-i-will-always-come-in/) [Jodi Picoult](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jodi-picoult/) > [“Music is the language of memory”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jodi-picoult/music-is-the-language-of-memory/) [Jodi Picoult](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jodi-picoult/) > [But there is a different between mending someone who's broken and finding someone who makes you complete.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jodi-picoult/but-there-is-a-different-between-mending-someone-who-s-broken-and/) [Jodi Picoult](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jodi-picoult/) > [“sometimes words are not big enough to contain all the feelings you are trying to pour into them. My”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jodi-picoult/sometimes-words-are-not-big-enough-to-contain-all-the-feelings-you/) [Jodi Picoult](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jodi-picoult/) > [“The age wasn't as important as the milestones.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jodi-picoult/the-age-wasn-t-as-important-as-the-milestones/) [Jodi Picoult](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jodi-picoult/) > [The night is falling down around us. Meteors rain like fireworks, quick rips in the seam of the dark... Every second, another streak of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jodi-picoult/the-night-is-falling-down-around-us-meteors-rain-like-fireworks-quick/) [Jodi Picoult](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jodi-picoult/) > [“When she had packed all the artifacts that made up their personal history into liquor store boxes, the house became strictly a feminine place.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jodi-picoult/when-she-had-packed-all-the-artifacts-that-made-up-their-personal/) [Jodi Picoult](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jodi-picoult/) > [“Maybe who we are isn't so much about what we do, but rather what we're capable of when we least expect it.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jodi-picoult/maybe-who-we-are-isn-t-so-much-about-what-we-do-but-rather-what-we-re/) [Jodi Picoult](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jodi-picoult/) > [“Here's what I hadn't realized : the mother you haven't seen for almost 36 years isn't your mother. She is a stranger. Sharing DNA…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jodi-picoult/here-s-what-i-hadn-t-realized-the-mother-you-haven-t-seen-for-almost/) [Jodi Picoult](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jodi-picoult/) > [My brother believed in all sorts of mythical creatures: pixies, dragons, werewolves, honest men.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jodi-picoult/my-brother-believed-in-all-sorts-of-mythical-creatures-pixies-dragons/) [Jodi Picoult](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jodi-picoult/) [Explore all 2,062 Jodi Picoult quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jodi-picoult/) ## More Birth quotes > [“Conception is the beginning of human life. From the time that an ovum is fertilized a new life begins that is neither that of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/declaration-on-procured-abortion-congregation-for-the-doctrine-of-the-faith-1974/conception-is-the-beginning-of-human-life-from-the-time-that-an-ovum/) Declaration on Procured Abortion Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith 1974 > [In the entire history of the universe, let alone in your own history, there has never been another day just like today, and there…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/frederick-buechner/in-the-entire-history-of-the-universe-let-alone-in-your-own-history/) [Frederick Buechner](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/frederick-buechner/) > [The greatest mystery in life is not life itself, but death. Death is the culmination of life, the ultimate blossoming of life. In death…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rajneesh/the-greatest-mystery-in-life-is-not-life-itself-but-death-death-is/) [Rajneesh](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rajneesh/) > [Guns have little or nothing to do with juvenile violence. The causes of youth violence are working parents who put their kids into daycare,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tom-delay/guns-have-little-or-nothing-to-do-with-juvenile-violence-the-causes/) [Tom DeLay](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tom-delay/) > [“Every child is born as angel.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lailah-gifty-akita/every-child-is-born-as-angel/) [Lailah Gifty Akita](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lailah-gifty-akita/) > [Nirvana is a word that means enlightenment, being beyond the illusion of birth and death, the illusion of pain, the illusion of love, the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/frederick-lenz/nirvana-is-a-word-that-means-enlightenment-being-beyond-the-illusion/) [Frederick Lenz](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/frederick-lenz/) > [It was no accident, no coincidence, that the seasons came round and round year after year. It was the Lord speaking to us all…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/francine-rivers/it-was-no-accident-no-coincidence-that-the-seasons-came-round-and/) [Francine Rivers](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/francine-rivers/) > [We do not want to be reminded that it is we, the indigenous people, who are poor and exploited in the land of our…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/steven-biko/we-do-not-want-to-be-reminded-that-it-is-we-the-indigenous-people-who/) [Steven Biko](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/steven-biko/) > [There are two kinds of beauty; there is a beauty which God gives at birth, and which withers as a flower. And there is…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/abraham-kuyper/there-are-two-kinds-of-beauty-there-is-a-beauty-which-god-gives-at/) [Abraham Kuyper](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/abraham-kuyper/) > [Always keep the smile, because the smile is the beginning of love.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/adam-imad/always-keep-the-smile-because-the-smile-is-the-beginning-of-love/) Adam Imad > [The wailing of the newborn infant is mingled with the dirge for the dead.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lucretius/the-wailing-of-the-newborn-infant-is-mingled-with-the-dirge-for-the/) [Lucretius](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lucretius/) > [I gave birth to most of them MC's... So when it comes around to the month of May, Send me your royalty check for…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/roxanne-shante/i-gave-birth-to-most-of-them-mc-s-so-when-it-comes-around-to-the/) Roxanne Shante > [“A Beautiful verse takes birth when "U"n"I" VERSE.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rajesh-walecha/a-beautiful-verse-takes-birth-when-u-n-i-verse/) [Rajesh Walecha](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rajesh-walecha/) > [“There is no born evil, only a corruptible canvas darkened by a formidable perpetrator.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/yefon-isabelle/there-is-no-born-evil-only-a-corruptible-canvas-darkened-by-a/) [Yefon Isabelle](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/yefon-isabelle/) > [I've always thought that the most extraordinary special effect you could do is to buy a child at the moment of its birth, sit…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/clive-barker/i-ve-always-thought-that-the-most-extraordinary-special-effect-you/) [Clive Barker](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/clive-barker/) [Browse all 6,183 Birth quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/birth/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "Suddenly I realize that this is what I've been waiting for - a man who depends entirely on me... 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