---
title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: The difficulty is, all swing thoughts…"
description: "\"The difficulty is, all swing thoughts decay, like radium. What burnt up the course on Wednesday has turned to lead on Sunday. Yet it does not do to hav..."
image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/7a6/john-updike-396_balls_the-difficulty-is-all-swing-thoughts-dec_2646686.png"
---

#  The difficulty is, all swing thoughts decay, like radium…

![“The difficulty is, all swing thoughts decay, like radium. What burnt up the course on Wednesday has turned to lead on Sunday. Yet it does not do to have a blank mind: the terrible hugeness of the course will rush into the vacuum and the ball will spray like a thing berserk.” quote by John Updike](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/7a6/john-updike-396_balls_the-difficulty-is-all-swing-thoughts-dec_2646686.png)   [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/7a6/john-updike-396_balls_the-difficulty-is-all-swing-thoughts-dec_2646686.png) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/7a6/john-updike-396_balls_the-difficulty-is-all-swing-thoughts-dec_2646686.png)

> “The difficulty is, all swing thoughts decay, like radium. What burnt up the course on Wednesday has turned to lead on Sunday. Yet it does not do to have a blank mind: the terrible hugeness of the course will rush into the vacuum and the ball will spray like a thing berserk.”

[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.

Thoughts decay over time, and a once‑vivid mind can become empty, allowing chaos to fill the void.

**In simple terms:** Ideas fade, leaving space for disorder.

Key Takeaway

Keep your mind engaged to avoid mental decay.

Themes

creativity decay mindfulness

Mood

contemplative thoughtful

Type

philosophical inspirational

When to use this quote

- writing
- meditation
- problem solving

Key Concepts

philosophy psychology

Questions to Reflect On

- How do you keep your mind active?
- What fills your mental void?

A Different Perspective

An empty mind can invite harmful thoughts.

★ ★ ★ ★ ★   No ratings yet

[Balls](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/balls/) [Berserk](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/berserk/) [Blank](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/blank/) [Blank mind](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/blank-mind/) [Burnt Course](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/burnt-course-2315297/) [Course Rush](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/course-rush-2315298/) [Courses](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/courses/) [Decay](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/decay/) [Difficulty](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/difficulty/) [Difficulty Swing](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/difficulty-swing-2315296/) [Doe](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/doe/) [Golf](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/golf/) [Mind](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/mind/) [Psychology](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/psychology/) [Spray](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/spray/) [Sunday](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/sunday/) [Swing Thoughts](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/swing-thoughts-2209934/) [Swings](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/swings/) [Terrible](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/terrible/) [Thoughts Decay](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/thoughts-decay-2315299/) [Vacuums](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/vacuums/) [Wednesday](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/wednesday/)

## Related quotes

> [I used to get out there and have a thousand swing thoughts. Now I try not to have any.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/davis-love-iii/i-used-to-get-out-there-and-have-a-thousand-swing-thoughts-now-i-try/)

[Davis Love III](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/davis-love-iii/)

> [“Sitting to think of what to write will only set your ass on fire, give you headache, twist your face to look stupid, instead,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-bassey-johnson/sitting-to-think-of-what-to-write-will-only-set-your-ass-on-fire-give/)

[Michael Bassey Johnson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michael-bassey-johnson/)

> [“Step off assuredly into the blank of your own mind. Something will come to you. Although at first You nod through nothing like a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/richard-wilbur/step-off-assuredly-into-the-blank-of-your-own-mind-something-will/)

[Richard Wilbur](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/richard-wilbur/)

> [“We tend to think of imagination and foresight like we are prone to think of life (sometimes) -- as an inscrutable flash of something…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/m/we-tend-to-think-of-imagination-and-foresight-like-we-are-prone-to/)

[M](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/m/)

> [The void is a mouth crying to be filled, a blank mind aching for thought, a cavity desperate for shape. What is not implies…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jack-vance/the-void-is-a-mouth-crying-to-be-filled-a-blank-mind-aching-for/)

[Jack Vance](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jack-vance/)

> [“I respond, thoughts dropping away, like pebbles plopping one by one in water, sinking down, down into dark oblivion.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sophie-jordan/i-respond-thoughts-dropping-away-like-pebbles-plopping-one-by-one-in/)

[Sophie Jordan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sophie-jordan/)

> [Every morning like a scholar at his first class I prepare a blank mind for the day to write upon.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bruce-lee/every-morning-like-a-scholar-at-his-first-class-i-prepare-a-blank/)

[Bruce Lee](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bruce-lee/)

> [She didn't care anymore... and she got no pleasure from the work she did, but she did it. Everything bored her. She found that…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/louise-fitzhugh/she-didn-t-care-anymore-and-she-got-no-pleasure-from-the-work-she-did/)

[Louise Fitzhugh](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/louise-fitzhugh/)

> [The tourist travels in his own atmosphere like a snail in his shell and stands, as it were, on his own perambulating doorstep to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/freya-stark/the-tourist-travels-in-his-own-atmosphere-like-a-snail-in-his-shell/)

[Freya Stark](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/freya-stark/)

> [The world is unforgiveing it knows no such thing as mercy, To a blind eye no happiness shall be found but with light shead…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nasty-nate/the-world-is-unforgiveing-it-knows-no-such-thing-as-mercy-to-a-blind/)

[Nasty Nate](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nasty-nate/)

> [“Ever been in a spelling bee as a kid? That snowy second after the announcement of the word as you sift your brain to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gillian-flynn/ever-been-in-a-spelling-bee-as-a-kid-that-snowy-second-after-the/)

[Gillian Flynn](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gillian-flynn/)

> [Step off assuredly into the blank of your mind. Something will come to you.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/richard-wilbur/step-off-assuredly-into-the-blank-of-your-mind-something-will-come-to/)

[Richard Wilbur](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/richard-wilbur/)

> [“To awaken quite alone in a strange town is one of the pleasantest sensations in the world. You are surrounded by adventure. You have…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/freya-stark/to-awaken-quite-alone-in-a-strange-town-is-one-of-the-pleasantest/)

[Freya Stark](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/freya-stark/)

> [You have to stay fresh and blank in your mind when you go out to bat. You complicate things, and you're gone.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/virat-kohli/you-have-to-stay-fresh-and-blank-in-your-mind-when-you-go-out-to-bat/)

[Virat Kohli](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/virat-kohli/)

> [“I never think of nothing. The closest I come to a blank mind is when I am counting, fucking, or drinking. The rest of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/megan-hart/i-never-think-of-nothing-the-closest-i-come-to-a-blank-mind-is-when-i/)

[Megan Hart](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/megan-hart/)

## 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 Balls quotes

> [It's a lot harder to play football when you haven't got the ball.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/andy-gray/it-s-a-lot-harder-to-play-football-when-you-haven-t-got-the-ball/)

[Andy Gray](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/andy-gray/)

> [Once you pull the trigger, you've got to throw balls aggressively and with conviction.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alex-smith/once-you-pull-the-trigger-you-ve-got-to-throw-balls-aggressively-and/)

[Alex Smith](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alex-smith/)

> [Thinking about the things that happened, I don't know any other ball player would could have done what he (Jackie Robinson) did. To be…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/pee-wee-reese/thinking-about-the-things-that-happened-i-don-t-know-any-other-ball/)

[Pee Wee Reese](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/pee-wee-reese/)

> [Play small ball. Get back to basics. I would say that you need to be a conservative, but you need to maintain your independent…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/andrea-tantaros/play-small-ball-get-back-to-basics-i-would-say-that-you-need-to-be-a/)

[Andrea Tantaros](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/andrea-tantaros/)

> [Donald Trump is a different ball of wax. I've been trying to say for I don't know how many months now that the traditional…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rush-limbaugh/donald-trump-is-a-different-ball-of-wax-i-ve-been-trying-to-say-for-i/)

[Rush Limbaugh](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rush-limbaugh/)

> [Well, you can certainly teach free-throwing. And you can teach the boys to pass at angles and run in curves. - University of Kansas…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/darryl-dawkins/well-you-can-certainly-teach-free-throwing-and-you-can-teach-the-boys/)

[Darryl Dawkins](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/darryl-dawkins/)

> [Maybe bring in sponge balls to learn the technique and gain that experience of actually challenging for a header.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ryan-mason/maybe-bring-in-sponge-balls-to-learn-the-technique-and-gain-that/)

[Ryan Mason](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ryan-mason/)

> [I like René Descartes' theory about a ball of wax. You can change its form from solid to liquid, but it's still the same…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/emmy-rossum/i-like-ren-descartes-theory-about-a-ball-of-wax-you-can-change-its/)

[Emmy Rossum](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/emmy-rossum/)

> [It wasn't really touching to be young; it was touching not to be young, because you had less of life left. Touching to be…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rose-macaulay/it-wasn-t-really-touching-to-be-young-it-was-touching-not-to-be-young/)

[Rose Macaulay](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rose-macaulay/)

> [This ball was so crowded that it took me - a trained professional journalist with vast experience in this area - forty five minutes…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dave-barry/this-ball-was-so-crowded-that-it-took-me-a-trained-professional/)

[Dave Barry](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dave-barry/)

> [Common sense is the guy who tells you that you ought to have had your brakes relined last week before you smashed a front…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/raymond-chandler/common-sense-is-the-guy-who-tells-you-that-you-ought-to-have-had-your/)

[Raymond Chandler](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/raymond-chandler/)

> [Throwing a ball is not natural, whether it's overhand or underhand.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jennie-finch/throwing-a-ball-is-not-natural-whether-it-s-overhand-or-underhand/)

[Jennie Finch](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jennie-finch/)

> [I don't feel like I have to live up to anything because I've proven that I can play. Give me the ball and let's…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/clinton-portis/i-don-t-feel-like-i-have-to-live-up-to-anything-because-i-ve-proven/)

[Clinton Portis](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/clinton-portis/)

> [And if we seem nutty to you and if we seem like an odd ball to you, just remember one thing. The mighty oak…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/glenn-turner/and-if-we-seem-nutty-to-you-and-if-we-seem-like-an-odd-ball-to-you/)

[Glenn Turner](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/glenn-turner/)

> [You run the football for toughness. You run the ball to tell your opponent that you're as tough as they are. But you throw…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jerry-glanville/you-run-the-football-for-toughness-you-run-the-ball-to-tell-your/)

[Jerry Glanville](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jerry-glanville/)

[Browse all 3,005 Balls quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/balls/)

```json
{
    "@context": "https://schema.org",
    "@graph": [
        {
            "@type": "Quotation",
            "text": "The difficulty is, all swing thoughts decay, like radium. What burnt up the course on Wednesday has turned to lead on Sunday. Yet it does not do to have a blank mind: the terrible hugeness of the course will rush into the vacuum and the ball will spray like a thing berserk.",
            "creator": {
                "@type": "Person",
                "name": "John Updike"
            },
            "isPartOf": {
                "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website"
            },
            "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-updike/the-difficulty-is-all-swing-thoughts-decay-like-radium-what-burnt-up/",
            "about": {
                "@type": "Thing",
                "name": "Balls"
            },
            "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-updike/the-difficulty-is-all-swing-thoughts-decay-like-radium-what-burnt-up/#quotation",
            "image": {
                "@type": "ImageObject",
                "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/7a6/john-updike-396_balls_the-difficulty-is-all-swing-thoughts-dec_2646686.png",
                "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/7a6/john-updike-396_balls_the-difficulty-is-all-swing-thoughts-dec_2646686.png",
                "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/7a6/john-updike-396_balls_the-difficulty-is-all-swing-thoughts-dec_2646686.png",
                "width": 1080,
                "height": 1080,
                "caption": "“The difficulty is, all swing thoughts decay, like radium. What burnt up the course on Wednesday has turned…” — John Updike",
                "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 Updike",
                    "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-updike/"
                },
                {
                    "@type": "ListItem",
                    "position": 4,
                    "name": "The difficulty is, all swing thoughts...",
                    "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-updike/the-difficulty-is-all-swing-thoughts-decay-like-radium-what-burnt-up/"
                }
            ],
            "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-updike/the-difficulty-is-all-swing-thoughts-decay-like-radium-what-burnt-up/#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
            }
        }
    ]
}
```
