--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: It's a small reminder now that memory is…" description: "\"“It's a small reminder now that memory is not so much a camera as a filter. The particulates it holds on to are nothing compared to what leaks through...." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/168/john-green-12_leaks_it-s-a-small-reminder-now-that-memory-is_660395.jpg" --- # It's a small reminder now that memory is not so much a… ![“It's a small reminder now that memory is not so much a camera as a filter. The particulates it holds on to are nothing compared to what leaks through.” quote by John Green](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/168/john-green-12_leaks_it-s-a-small-reminder-now-that-memory-is_660395.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/168/john-green-12_leaks_it-s-a-small-reminder-now-that-memory-is_660395.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/168/john-green-12_leaks_it-s-a-small-reminder-now-that-memory-is_660395.jpg) > ““It's a small reminder now that memory is not so much a camera as a filter. The particulates it holds on to are nothing compared to what leaks through.”” [John Green](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-green/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Memory acts more like a filter than a camera, retaining some details while letting many slip away. **In simple terms:** Memory filters information, not records everything. Key Takeaway Accept that memory is selective. Themes psychology memory perception literature Mood reflective thoughtful Type philosophical inspirational When to use this quote - studying for exams - recalling personal events - creative writing Key Concepts cognitive filtering subjective recollection information loss Questions to Reflect On - How does this view affect how you record experiences? - Can you improve memory retention? A Different Perspective May underestimate the value of forgotten details. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Leaks](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/leaks/) [Memory](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/memory/) [Memory Camera](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/memory-camera-3602875/) [Memory-quote](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/memory-quote/) [Particulates Holds](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/particulates-holds-5263802/) [Reminder Memory](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/reminder-memory-5263801/) [Small Reminder](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/small-reminder-3774039/) ## Related quotes > [To wish for the crazy times one last time and freeze it in the memory of a camera is the least a great artist…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lou-reed/to-wish-for-the-crazy-times-one-last-time-and-freeze-it-in-the-memory/) [Lou Reed](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lou-reed/) > [A small reminder came to me, a touch a kiss to the neck, nothing else I could give, nothing else I want more, a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/a-small-reminder-came-to-me-a-touch-a-kiss-to-the-neck-nothing-else-i/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [Some people just shouldn't be disturbed in their inclinations, whether large or small. A reminder can instantly turn enthusiasm into aversion and spoil everything.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tove-jansson/some-people-just-shouldn-t-be-disturbed-in-their-inclinations-whether/) [Tove Jansson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tove-jansson/) > [“Every quote, every book, every film seemed to suggest that ‘one day’ someone would come into my life and love me with an intensity…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ranata-suzuki/every-quote-every-book-every-film-seemed-to-suggest-that-one-day/) [Ranata Suzuki](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ranata-suzuki/) > [“For a brokenhearted person memories are the vital parts of misery”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/munia-khan/for-a-brokenhearted-person-memories-are-the-vital-parts-of-misery/) [Munia Khan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/munia-khan/) > [“The immortality of the soul is that there is no death without life and there is no life after death. Life goes on.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mwanandeke-kindembo/the-immortality-of-the-soul-is-that-there-is-no-death-without-life/) [Mwanandeke Kindembo](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mwanandeke-kindembo/) > [“When I was with him suddenly I wasn’t this broken person anymore. I was just me. I was whole again. I was just a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ranata-suzuki/when-i-was-with-him-suddenly-i-wasn-t-this-broken-person-anymore-i/) [Ranata Suzuki](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ranata-suzuki/) > [“Mercy lets a man sleep. Memory binds him to the tiller, rowing through grief’s endless stream.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/erica-m-goros/mercy-lets-a-man-sleep-memory-binds-him-to-the-tiller-rowing-through/) [Erica M. Goros](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/erica-m-goros/) > [“If you cannot hold me in your arms, then hold my memory in high regard. And if I cannot be in your life, then…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ranata-suzuki/if-you-cannot-hold-me-in-your-arms-then-hold-my-memory-in-high-regard/) [Ranata Suzuki](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ranata-suzuki/) > [“we take pictures and videos as love letters to our future selves - reminders of who we are, where we've been and what we're…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/malebo-sephodi/we-take-pictures-and-videos-as-love-letters-to-our-future-selves/) [Malebo Sephodi](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/malebo-sephodi/) > [“For you are you, and I am I, and once we were we… but as long as I exist and so do you –…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ranata-suzuki/for-you-are-you-and-i-am-i-and-once-we-were-we-but-as-long-as-i-exist/) [Ranata Suzuki](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ranata-suzuki/) > [“We regard our own memories as truths, when they are often just the stories we have told ourselves over time. They become the truth…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/guy-gavriel-kay/we-regard-our-own-memories-as-truths-when-they-are-often-just-the/) [Guy Gavriel Kay](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/guy-gavriel-kay/) > [“Every stitch is a prayer, and every thread—a blessing.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lina-sol/every-stitch-is-a-prayer-and-every-thread-a-blessing/) [Lina Sol](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lina-sol/) > [“I miss that feeling of connection. Knowing he was out there somewhere thinking about me at the same time I was thinking about him.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ranata-suzuki/i-miss-that-feeling-of-connection-knowing-he-was-out-there-somewhere/) [Ranata Suzuki](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ranata-suzuki/) > [“I had always wanted to hear those words. I had always wanted to be your girl.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ranata-suzuki/i-had-always-wanted-to-hear-those-words-i-had-always-wanted-to-be/) [Ranata Suzuki](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ranata-suzuki/) ## More by John Green > [Issac:"I dislike living in a world without Augustus Waters." Computer: "I don't understand-" Issac: "Me neither. Pause](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-green/issac-i-dislike-living-in-a-world-without-augustus-waters-computer-i/) [John Green](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-green/) > [“I just want to stay away from people and read books and think”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-green/i-just-want-to-stay-away-from-people-and-read-books-and-think/) [John Green](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-green/) > [She smiled with all the delight of a kid on Christmas morning and said, "Y'all smoke to enjoy it. I smoke to die." -…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-green/she-smiled-with-all-the-delight-of-a-kid-on-christmas-morning-and/) [John Green](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-green/) > [A Margo for each of us--and each more mirror than window.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-green/a-margo-for-each-of-us-and-each-more-mirror-than-window/) [John Green](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-green/) > [“No one ever says good-bye unless they want to see you again.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-green/no-one-ever-says-good-bye-unless-they-want-to-see-you-again/) [John Green](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-green/) > [Neither novels or their readers benefit from any attempts to divine whether any facts hide inside a story. Such efforts attack the very idea…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-green/neither-novels-or-their-readers-benefit-from-any-attempts-to-divine/) [John Green](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-green/) > [“Traffic's not too bad on Sheridan, and I'm cornering the car like it's the Indy 500, and we're listening to my favorite NMH song,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-green/traffic-s-not-too-bad-on-sheridan-and-i-m-cornering-the-car-like-it-s/) [John Green](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-green/) > [“Praise God for good nurses.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-green/praise-god-for-good-nurses/) [John Green](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-green/) > [So I was ugly. I was never fat, really, and I never wore headgear or had zits or anything. But I was ugly. I…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-green/so-i-was-ugly-i-was-never-fat-really-and-i-never-wore-headgear-or-had/) [John Green](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-green/) > [Nothing has ever looked like that ever in all of human history.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-green/nothing-has-ever-looked-like-that-ever-in-all-of-human-history/) [John Green](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-green/) > [“said to him quietly, as if I couldn’t hear or something. Dad was about to respond but I interrupted.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-green/said-to-him-quietly-as-if-i-couldn-t-hear-or-something-dad-was-about/) [John Green](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-green/) > [I believe humans have souls, and I believe in the conservation of souls.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-green/i-believe-humans-have-souls-and-i-believe-in-the-conservation-of-souls/) [John Green](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-green/) > [“He was hot. A nonhotboy stares at you relentlessly and it is, at best, awkward and, at worst, a form of assault. But a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-green/he-was-hot-a-nonhotboy-stares-at-you-relentlessly-and-it-is-at-best/) [John Green](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-green/) > [I think if you keep the box closed long enough you do kill the cat, actually.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-green/i-think-if-you-keep-the-box-closed-long-enough-you-do-kill-the-cat/) [John Green](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-green/) > [Imagining the future is a kind of nostalgia. (...) You spend your whole life stuck in the labyrinth, thinking about how you'll escape it…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-green/imagining-the-future-is-a-kind-of-nostalgia-you-spend-your-whole-life/) [John Green](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-green/) [Explore all 3,614 John Green quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-green/) ## More Leaks quotes > [Behind every word flows energy. If you use your words to gossip or babble about what you are going to do before you do…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sonia-choquette/behind-every-word-flows-energy-if-you-use-your-words-to-gossip-or/) [Sonia Choquette](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sonia-choquette/) > [Little leaks sink the ship.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/benjamin-franklin/little-leaks-sink-the-ship/) [Benjamin Franklin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/benjamin-franklin/) > [A government is the only vessel that leaks from the top.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/james-reston/a-government-is-the-only-vessel-that-leaks-from-the-top/) [James Reston](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/james-reston/) > [You can't control it once you turn it into the label, so there's the expectation that it'll leak a week before the album comes…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lupe-fiasco/you-can-t-control-it-once-you-turn-it-into-the-label-so-there-s-the/) [Lupe Fiasco](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lupe-fiasco/) > [One little leak becomes a lake, Says the tiny voice in my earpiece](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/thom-yorke/one-little-leak-becomes-a-lake-says-the-tiny-voice-in-my-earpiece/) [Thom Yorke](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/thom-yorke/) > [I'm focused on leaks that hurt the institution of the president and the president himself. I understand we have to leak things to reporters…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anthony-scaramucci/i-m-focused-on-leaks-that-hurt-the-institution-of-the-president-and/) [Anthony Scaramucci](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anthony-scaramucci/) > [We must have infinite faith in each other. If we have not, we must never let it leak out that we have not.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/henry-david-thoreau/we-must-have-infinite-faith-in-each-other-if-we-have-not-we-must/) [Henry David Thoreau](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/henry-david-thoreau/) > [Each petty hand Can steer a ship becalm'd; but he that will Govern and carry her to her ends, must know His tides, his…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ben-jonson/each-petty-hand-can-steer-a-ship-becalm-d-but-he-that-will-govern-and/) [Ben Jonson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ben-jonson/) > [I don't welcome leaks. There's a reason why these programs are classified.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/barack-obama/i-don-t-welcome-leaks-there-s-a-reason-why-these-programs-are/) [Barack Obama](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/barack-obama/) > [In this day and age of texts, Twitter, and Facebook, we are very rarely surprised by anything anymore - something always leaks out and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/brad-goreski/in-this-day-and-age-of-texts-twitter-and-facebook-we-are-very-rarely/) [Brad Goreski](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/brad-goreski/) > [An almost inexorable baseball law: A Red Sox ship with a single leak will always find a way to sink No team is worshipped…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/thomas-boswell/an-almost-inexorable-baseball-law-a-red-sox-ship-with-a-single-leak/) [Thomas Boswell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/thomas-boswell/) > [The sex that is presented to us in everyday culture feels strange to me; its images are fragments, lifeless, removed from normal experience. Real…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sallie-tisdale/the-sex-that-is-presented-to-us-in-everyday-culture-feels-strange-to/) [Sallie Tisdale](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sallie-tisdale/) > [But you know, I'm the negative-Nancy, curmudgeon, glass-half-empty-with-a-leak-in-it guy - which is basically the fuel that fires me up anyway. Without that, we wouldn't…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/maynard-james-keenan/but-you-know-i-m-the-negative-nancy-curmudgeon-glass-half-empty-with/) [Maynard James Keenan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/maynard-james-keenan/) > [When you cut into the present the future leaks out.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-s-burroughs/when-you-cut-into-the-present-the-future-leaks-out/) [William S. Burroughs](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-s-burroughs/) > [The five C's of expanding your capacity. 1. Build your confidence. 2. Expand your connections. 3. Improve your competence. 4. Strengthen your character. If…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sheila-heen/the-five-c-s-of-expanding-your-capacity-1-build-your-confidence-2/) [Sheila Heen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sheila-heen/) [Browse all 211 Leaks quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/leaks/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "“It's a small reminder now that memory is not so much a camera as a filter. The particulates it holds on to are nothing compared to what leaks through.”", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "John Green" }, "isPartOf": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website" }, "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-green/it-s-a-small-reminder-now-that-memory-is-not-so-much-a-camera-as-a/", "about": { "@type": "Thing", "name": "Leaks" }, "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-green/it-s-a-small-reminder-now-that-memory-is-not-so-much-a-camera-as-a/#quotation", "image": { "@type": "ImageObject", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/168/john-green-12_leaks_it-s-a-small-reminder-now-that-memory-is_660395.jpg", "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/168/john-green-12_leaks_it-s-a-small-reminder-now-that-memory-is_660395.jpg", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/168/john-green-12_leaks_it-s-a-small-reminder-now-that-memory-is_660395.jpg", "width": 1080, "height": 1080, "caption": "“It's a small reminder now that memory is not so much a camera as a filter. The particulates it holds on to…” — John Green", "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": "John Green", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-green/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 4, "name": "“It's a small reminder now that...", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-green/it-s-a-small-reminder-now-that-memory-is-not-so-much-a-camera-as-a/" } ], "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-green/it-s-a-small-reminder-now-that-memory-is-not-so-much-a-camera-as-a/#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 } } ] } ```