--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: He tries to picture how it will end, with…" description: "\"“He tries to picture how it will end, with an empty baseball field, a dark factory, and then over a brook in a dirt road, he doesn’t know. He pictures ..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/d8a/john-updike-396_baseball-field_he-tries-to-picture-how-it-will-end-with_1448662.jpg" --- # He tries to picture how it will end, with an empty… ![“He tries to picture how it will end, with an empty baseball field, a dark factory, and then over a brook in a dirt road, he doesn’t know. He pictures a huge vacant field of cinders and his heart goes hollow.” quote by John Updike](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/d8a/john-updike-396_baseball-field_he-tries-to-picture-how-it-will-end-with_1448662.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/d8a/john-updike-396_baseball-field_he-tries-to-picture-how-it-will-end-with_1448662.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/d8a/john-updike-396_baseball-field_he-tries-to-picture-how-it-will-end-with_1448662.jpg) > ““He tries to picture how it will end, with an empty baseball field, a dark factory, and then over a brook in a dirt road, he doesn’t know. He pictures a huge vacant field of cinders and his heart goes hollow.”” [John Updike](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-updike/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Imagines a bleak, empty future, reflecting existential dread and the unknown of life's conclusion. **In simple terms:** Imagining a desolate future creates emptiness. Key Takeaway Accept uncertainty and find meaning now. Themes existential dread future emptiness Mood reflective somber Type literary philosophical When to use this quote - creative writing - philosophical reflection - personal journaling Key Concepts nihilism anticipation psychology Questions to Reflect On - What does an empty field symbolize for you? - How do you confront unknown futures? A Different Perspective The vivid imagery may be symbolic rather than literal. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Haunting](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/haunting/) ## Related quotes > [Arabic is very twisting, very beautiful. The call to prayer is quite haunting; it almost makes you a believer on the spot.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-updike/arabic-is-very-twisting-very-beautiful-the-call-to-prayer-is-quite/) [John Updike](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-updike/) > [I don't know (if they were men or women running naked across the field). They had bags over their heads.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/yogi-berra/i-don-t-know-if-they-were-men-or-women-running-naked-across-the-field/) [Yogi Berra](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/yogi-berra/) > [“Sir, I think you’d better come with me,” the guard said, grabbing James by the elbow. James wrenched it free and demanded Aaron’s room…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jake-smith/sir-i-think-you-d-better-come-with-me-the-guard-said-grabbing-james/) Jake Smith > [Baseball has marked the time. This field, this game: it's a part of our past, Ray. It reminds of us of all that once…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/terrence-mann/baseball-has-marked-the-time-this-field-this-game-it-s-a-part-of-our/) Terrence Mann > [I'm a baseball player and showing up to a baseball field to not do anything baseball related... It's not fun. It takes its toll…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/chris-sale/i-m-a-baseball-player-and-showing-up-to-a-baseball-field-to-not-do/) [Chris Sale](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/chris-sale/) > [Baseball is the only field of endeavor where a man can succeed three times out of ten and be considered a good performer.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ted-williams/baseball-is-the-only-field-of-endeavor-where-a-man-can-succeed-three/) [Ted Williams](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ted-williams/) > [“I eased to my feet, making a show of a stiff leg. She watched with big eyes. “Did you get shot or something?” “It’s…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/carolyn-hart/i-eased-to-my-feet-making-a-show-of-a-stiff-leg-she-watched-with-big/) [Carolyn Hart](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/carolyn-hart/) > [I truly believe my job starts the minute I leave the baseball field. Going out and catching ground balls and hitting, that's a job,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alex-rodriguez/i-truly-believe-my-job-starts-the-minute-i-leave-the-baseball-field/) [Alex Rodriguez](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alex-rodriguez/) > [“We rarely know when death will come. Some are warned in sickness - like the track of dirt that runs around the edge of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/katie-ganshert/we-rarely-know-when-death-will-come-some-are-warned-in-sickness-like/) [Katie Ganshert](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/katie-ganshert/) > [When you talk about 50 or so grown men in the middle of a baseball field about to break down and cry, it's a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/chipper-jones/when-you-talk-about-50-or-so-grown-men-in-the-middle-of-a-baseball/) [Chipper Jones](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/chipper-jones/) > [With what has occurred in my life, the baseball field is where I feel most comfortable. That's what I feel I was born to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alex-rodriguez/with-what-has-occurred-in-my-life-the-baseball-field-is-where-i-feel/) [Alex Rodriguez](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alex-rodriguez/) > [Don't tell me about the world. Not today. It's springtime and they're knocking baseball around fields where the grass is damp and green in…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/pete-hamill/don-t-tell-me-about-the-world-not-today-it-s-springtime-and-they-re/) [Pete Hamill](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/pete-hamill/) > [I spent a lot of hours on the baseball field doing whatever I could do to get better.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/evan-longoria/i-spent-a-lot-of-hours-on-the-baseball-field-doing-whatever-i-could/) [Evan Longoria](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/evan-longoria/) > [If you could equate the amount of time and effort put in mentally and physically into succeeding on the baseball field and measured it…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mike-schmidt/if-you-could-equate-the-amount-of-time-and-effort-put-in-mentally-and/) [Mike Schmidt](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mike-schmidt/) > [There was but one question he left unasked, and it vibrated between his lines: if gross miscalculations of a person's value could occur on…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-lewis/there-was-but-one-question-he-left-unasked-and-it-vibrated-between/) [Michael Lewis](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michael-lewis/) ## More by John Updike > [Life is a roller coaster, you have your ups and downs unless you fall off.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-updike/life-is-a-roller-coaster-you-have-your-ups-and-downs-unless-you-fall/) [John Updike](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-updike/) > [Children are not a zoo of entertainingly exotic creatures, but an array of mirrors in which the human predicament leaps out at us.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-updike/children-are-not-a-zoo-of-entertainingly-exotic-creatures-but-an/) [John Updike](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-updike/) > [I assume my stance, and take back the club, low, slowly; at the top, my eyes fog over, and my joints dip and swirl…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-updike/i-assume-my-stance-and-take-back-the-club-low-slowly-at-the-top-my/) [John Updike](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-updike/) > [The New England spirit does not seek solutions in a crowd; raw light and solitariness are less dreaded than welcomed as enhancers of our…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-updike/the-new-england-spirit-does-not-seek-solutions-in-a-crowd-raw-light/) [John Updike](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-updike/) > [I imagine most of that stuff on the information highway is roadkill anyway.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-updike/i-imagine-most-of-that-stuff-on-the-information-highway-is-roadkill/) [John Updike](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-updike/) > [Families, doing everything for each other out of imagined obligation and always getting in each other's way, what a tangle.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-updike/families-doing-everything-for-each-other-out-of-imagined-obligation/) [John Updike](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-updike/) > [“The fucking world is running out of gas.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-updike/the-fucking-world-is-running-out-of-gas/) [John Updike](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-updike/) > [The theme of old age doesn't seem to fascinate Hollywood.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-updike/the-theme-of-old-age-doesn-t-seem-to-fascinate-hollywood/) [John Updike](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-updike/) > [“The mind cannot fall asleep as long as it watches itself. Only when the mind moves unwatched and becomes absorbed in images that tug…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-updike/the-mind-cannot-fall-asleep-as-long-as-it-watches-itself-only-when/) [John Updike](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-updike/) > [“it was somehow wonderful of her to be, in every detail, herself.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-updike/it-was-somehow-wonderful-of-her-to-be-in-every-detail-herself/) [John Updike](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-updike/) > [In fiction, imaginary people become realer to us than any named celebrity glimpsed in a series of rumored events, whose causes and subtler ramifications…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-updike/in-fiction-imaginary-people-become-realer-to-us-than-any-named/) [John Updike](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-updike/) > [“Her hair had been going gray as long as he could remember; she bundled it behind in a bun held with hairpins that he…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-updike/her-hair-had-been-going-gray-as-long-as-he-could-remember-she-bundled/) [John Updike](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-updike/) > [Possession diminishes perception of value, immediately](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-updike/possession-diminishes-perception-of-value-immediately/) [John Updike](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-updike/) > [I can't bear to finish things, beyond a certain point they get heavy. There's something so dead about a finished painting.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-updike/i-can-t-bear-to-finish-things-beyond-a-certain-point-they-get-heavy/) [John Updike](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-updike/) > [“Some people find fall depressing, others hate spring. I've always been a spring person myself. All that growth, you can feel Nature groaning, the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-updike/some-people-find-fall-depressing-others-hate-spring-i-ve-always-been/) [John Updike](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-updike/) [Explore all 592 John Updike quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-updike/) ## More Baseball field quotes > [There was but one question he left unasked, and it vibrated between his lines: if gross miscalculations of a person's value could occur on…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-lewis/there-was-but-one-question-he-left-unasked-and-it-vibrated-between/) [Michael Lewis](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michael-lewis/) > [If you could equate the amount of time and effort put in mentally and physically into succeeding on the baseball field and measured it…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mike-schmidt/if-you-could-equate-the-amount-of-time-and-effort-put-in-mentally-and/) [Mike Schmidt](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mike-schmidt/) > [I spent a lot of hours on the baseball field doing whatever I could do to get better.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/evan-longoria/i-spent-a-lot-of-hours-on-the-baseball-field-doing-whatever-i-could/) [Evan Longoria](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/evan-longoria/) > [Don't tell me about the world. Not today. It's springtime and they're knocking baseball around fields where the grass is damp and green in…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/pete-hamill/don-t-tell-me-about-the-world-not-today-it-s-springtime-and-they-re/) [Pete Hamill](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/pete-hamill/) > [With what has occurred in my life, the baseball field is where I feel most comfortable. That's what I feel I was born to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alex-rodriguez/with-what-has-occurred-in-my-life-the-baseball-field-is-where-i-feel/) [Alex Rodriguez](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alex-rodriguez/) > [When you talk about 50 or so grown men in the middle of a baseball field about to break down and cry, it's a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/chipper-jones/when-you-talk-about-50-or-so-grown-men-in-the-middle-of-a-baseball/) [Chipper Jones](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/chipper-jones/) > [“We rarely know when death will come. Some are warned in sickness - like the track of dirt that runs around the edge of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/katie-ganshert/we-rarely-know-when-death-will-come-some-are-warned-in-sickness-like/) [Katie Ganshert](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/katie-ganshert/) > [I truly believe my job starts the minute I leave the baseball field. Going out and catching ground balls and hitting, that's a job,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alex-rodriguez/i-truly-believe-my-job-starts-the-minute-i-leave-the-baseball-field/) [Alex Rodriguez](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alex-rodriguez/) > [“I eased to my feet, making a show of a stiff leg. She watched with big eyes. “Did you get shot or something?” “It’s…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/carolyn-hart/i-eased-to-my-feet-making-a-show-of-a-stiff-leg-she-watched-with-big/) [Carolyn Hart](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/carolyn-hart/) > [Baseball is the only field of endeavor where a man can succeed three times out of ten and be considered a good performer.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ted-williams/baseball-is-the-only-field-of-endeavor-where-a-man-can-succeed-three/) [Ted Williams](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ted-williams/) > [I'm a baseball player and showing up to a baseball field to not do anything baseball related... It's not fun. It takes its toll…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/chris-sale/i-m-a-baseball-player-and-showing-up-to-a-baseball-field-to-not-do/) [Chris Sale](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/chris-sale/) > [Baseball has marked the time. This field, this game: it's a part of our past, Ray. It reminds of us of all that once…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/terrence-mann/baseball-has-marked-the-time-this-field-this-game-it-s-a-part-of-our/) Terrence Mann > [“Sir, I think you’d better come with me,” the guard said, grabbing James by the elbow. James wrenched it free and demanded Aaron’s room…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jake-smith/sir-i-think-you-d-better-come-with-me-the-guard-said-grabbing-james/) Jake Smith > [I don't know (if they were men or women running naked across the field). They had bags over their heads.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/yogi-berra/i-don-t-know-if-they-were-men-or-women-running-naked-across-the-field/) [Yogi Berra](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/yogi-berra/) > [I've never felt overmatched on the baseball field. I've always been a very strong, dominant position. And I felt that if I did my…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alex-rodriguez/i-ve-never-felt-overmatched-on-the-baseball-field-i-ve-always-been-a/) [Alex Rodriguez](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alex-rodriguez/) Browse all 52 Baseball field quotes ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "“He tries to picture how it will end, with an empty baseball field, a dark factory, and then over a brook in a dirt road, he doesn’t know. 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