---
title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: Highs and lows make you feel that things…"
description: "\"“Highs and lows make you feel that things matter, but they're nothing.”\" — Jonathan Safran Foer"
image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/3c2/jonathan-safran-foer-136_feel_highs-and-lows-make-you-feel-that-things_1304676.png"
---

#  Highs and lows make you feel that things matter, but…

![“Highs and lows make you feel that things matter, but they're nothing.” quote by Jonathan Safran Foer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/3c2/jonathan-safran-foer-136_feel_highs-and-lows-make-you-feel-that-things_1304676.png)   [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/3c2/jonathan-safran-foer-136_feel_highs-and-lows-make-you-feel-that-things_1304676.png) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/3c2/jonathan-safran-foer-136_feel_highs-and-lows-make-you-feel-that-things_1304676.png)

> ““Highs and lows make you feel that things matter, but they're nothing.””

[Jonathan Safran Foer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jonathan-safran-foer/)

## About This Quote

This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation.

It reflects that emotional extremes give a sense of significance, yet ultimately they are insignificant.

**In simple terms:** Highs and lows feel important but are ultimately meaningless.

Key Takeaway

Seek steadiness beyond emotional swings.

Themes

meaning emotion existence

Mood

thoughtful philosophical

Type

reflective inspirational

When to use this quote

- mental health
- creative work
- decision making

Key Concepts

philosophy psychology

Questions to Reflect On

- How do you find meaning beyond emotional highs?
- What role do lows play in personal growth?

A Different Perspective

Emotions can also provide motivation and insight.

★ ★ ★ ★ ★   No ratings yet

[Highs and lows](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/highs-and-lows/) [Life](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/life/) [Nothing](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/nothing/) [Truth](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/truth/)

## Related quotes

> [Highs and lows make you feel that things matter, but they're nothing." "So what's something?" "Being reliable is something. Being good.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jonathan-safran-foer/highs-and-lows-make-you-feel-that-things-matter-but-they-re-nothing/)

[Jonathan Safran Foer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jonathan-safran-foer/)

> [Highs and lows come around all the time on the field of play.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jozy-altidore/highs-and-lows-come-around-all-the-time-on-the-field-of-play/)

[Jozy Altidore](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jozy-altidore/)

> [Working in Hollywood can be tumultuous, with incredible highs and lows and you need to be grounded.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/douglas-wood/working-in-hollywood-can-be-tumultuous-with-incredible-highs-and-lows/)

[Douglas Wood](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/douglas-wood/)

> [There are going to be highs and lows throughout a career, and you have to try and level it out. Don't get too high…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jordan-henderson/there-are-going-to-be-highs-and-lows-throughout-a-career-and-you-have/)

[Jordan Henderson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jordan-henderson/)

> [You just go through highs and lows as an individual payer and as a team.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ben-zobrist/you-just-go-through-highs-and-lows-as-an-individual-payer-and-as-a/)

[Ben Zobrist](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ben-zobrist/)

> [I've been through my fair share of highs and lows. Yes, I've been written off, and it amazes me, and it amuses me, also,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/shilpa-shetty/i-ve-been-through-my-fair-share-of-highs-and-lows-yes-i-ve-been/)

[Shilpa Shetty](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/shilpa-shetty/)

> [I've had highs and lows.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jackie-coogan/i-ve-had-highs-and-lows/)

[Jackie Coogan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jackie-coogan/)

> [Nothing is ever going to be as important or as exciting as a baby. Everyone has their highs and lows, but if you've got…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/catherine-tate/nothing-is-ever-going-to-be-as-important-or-as-exciting-as-a-baby/)

[Catherine Tate](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/catherine-tate/)

> [We all know baseball has its highs and lows.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ronald-acuna-jr/we-all-know-baseball-has-its-highs-and-lows/)

[Ronald Acuna Jr](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ronald-acuna-jr/)

> [I embody highs and lows.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ayo-edebiri/i-embody-highs-and-lows/)

[Ayo Edebiri](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ayo-edebiri/)

> [This game has such extreme highs and lows.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/matt-serra/this-game-has-such-extreme-highs-and-lows/)

[Matt Serra](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/matt-serra/)

> [You're going to have highs and lows, but it's how you get through the lows.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/deandre-yedlin/you-re-going-to-have-highs-and-lows-but-it-s-how-you-get-through-the/)

[DeAndre Yedlin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/deandre-yedlin/)

> [I still have highs and lows, just like any other person. What's missing is the lack of control over the super highs, which became…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/patty-duke/i-still-have-highs-and-lows-just-like-any-other-person-what-s-missing/)

[Patty Duke](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/patty-duke/)

> [My twenties were amazing. My thirties were all highs and lows.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/zoe-ball/my-twenties-were-amazing-my-thirties-were-all-highs-and-lows/)

[Zoe Ball](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/zoe-ball/)

> [I've had my highs and had my lows but you can't tell me that I am not the baddest chick.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nicki-minaj/i-ve-had-my-highs-and-had-my-lows-but-you-can-t-tell-me-that-i-am-not/)

[Nicki Minaj](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nicki-minaj/)

## More by Jonathan Safran Foer

> [This brings me back to the image of Kafka standing before a fish in the Berlin aquarium, a fish on which his gaze fell…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jonathan-safran-foer/this-brings-me-back-to-the-image-of-kafka-standing-before-a-fish-in/)

[Jonathan Safran Foer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jonathan-safran-foer/)

> [I try not to remember the life that I didn’t want to lose but lost and have to remember](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jonathan-safran-foer/i-try-not-to-remember-the-life-that-i-didn-t-want-to-lose-but-lost/)

[Jonathan Safran Foer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jonathan-safran-foer/)

> [“I have an aristocratic smile and like to punch people.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jonathan-safran-foer/i-have-an-aristocratic-smile-and-like-to-punch-people/)

[Jonathan Safran Foer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jonathan-safran-foer/)

> [He removed several pages of death certificates, which were picked up by another breeze and sent into the trees. Some would fall with the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jonathan-safran-foer/he-removed-several-pages-of-death-certificates-which-were-picked-up/)

[Jonathan Safran Foer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jonathan-safran-foer/)

> [I would have done anything for him. Maybe that was my sickness. We made love in nothing places and turned the lights off. It…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jonathan-safran-foer/i-would-have-done-anything-for-him-maybe-that-was-my-sickness-we-made/)

[Jonathan Safran Foer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jonathan-safran-foer/)

> [“One day I wandered away from her and hid. I liked the way it felt to have someone look for me, to hear my…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jonathan-safran-foer/one-day-i-wandered-away-from-her-and-hid-i-liked-the-way-it-felt-to/)

[Jonathan Safran Foer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jonathan-safran-foer/)

> [If nothing matters, there's nothing to save.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jonathan-safran-foer/if-nothing-matters-there-s-nothing-to-save/)

[Jonathan Safran Foer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jonathan-safran-foer/)

> [“It was one of the best days of my life, a day during which I lived my life and didn't think about it at…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jonathan-safran-foer/it-was-one-of-the-best-days-of-my-life-a-day-during-which-i-lived-my/)

[Jonathan Safran Foer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jonathan-safran-foer/)

> [“The appearance was misleading- human dreams; rubbish heaps abundant yet ephemeral sudden and splendid, only to wilt and perish”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jonathan-safran-foer/the-appearance-was-misleading-human-dreams-rubbish-heaps-abundant-yet/)

[Jonathan Safran Foer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jonathan-safran-foer/)

> [“the entirety of human society and moral progress represents an explicit transcendence of what’s “natural.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jonathan-safran-foer/the-entirety-of-human-society-and-moral-progress-represents-an/)

[Jonathan Safran Foer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jonathan-safran-foer/)

> [“Food is not so much a symbol of freedom as the first requirement of freedom. We eat foods that are native to America on…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jonathan-safran-foer/food-is-not-so-much-a-symbol-of-freedom-as-the-first-requirement-of/)

[Jonathan Safran Foer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jonathan-safran-foer/)

> [“Rationally, factory farming is so obviously wrong, in so many ways. In all of my reading and conversations, I’ve yet to find a credible…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jonathan-safran-foer/rationally-factory-farming-is-so-obviously-wrong-in-so-many-ways-in/)

[Jonathan Safran Foer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jonathan-safran-foer/)

> [Just because you're an atheist, that doesn't mean you wouldn't love for things to have reasons for why they are.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jonathan-safran-foer/just-because-you-re-an-atheist-that-doesn-t-mean-you-wouldn-t-love/)

[Jonathan Safran Foer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jonathan-safran-foer/)

> [Do you think I'm wonderful? she asked him one day as they leaned against the trunk of a petrified maple. No, he said. Why?…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jonathan-safran-foer/do-you-think-i-m-wonderful-she-asked-him-one-day-as-they-leaned/)

[Jonathan Safran Foer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jonathan-safran-foer/)

> [My insides don't match up with my outsides. -Do anyone's inside and outsides match up? -I don't know. I'm only me. -Maybe that's what…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jonathan-safran-foer/my-insides-don-t-match-up-with-my-outsides-do-anyone-s-inside-and/)

[Jonathan Safran Foer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jonathan-safran-foer/)

[Explore all 1,117 Jonathan Safran Foer quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jonathan-safran-foer/)

## More Feel quotes

> [I feel like I definitely have a real sporty style, more so than a lot of people in G.O.O.D. Music.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/big-sean/i-feel-like-i-definitely-have-a-real-sporty-style-more-so-than-a-lot/)

[Big Sean](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/big-sean/)

> [This may sound strange, but although I feel like I know everything about my characters, the brand of shampoo they use, how many cavities…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gail-honeyman/this-may-sound-strange-but-although-i-feel-like-i-know-everything/)

[Gail Honeyman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gail-honeyman/)

> [I think most artists feel like they're outside society - no matter how many accolades they receive, or how much money is in your…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/aaron-rose/i-think-most-artists-feel-like-they-re-outside-society-no-matter-how/)

[Aaron Rose](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/aaron-rose/)

> [I feel I handle the pressure situations well, and that's why I want to be there at the end.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ab-de-villiers/i-feel-i-handle-the-pressure-situations-well-and-that-s-why-i-want-to/)

[AB de Villiers](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ab-de-villiers/)

> [Sometimes we wish for the feel but we never understand that we have to give a lot to get the feel !](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robert-reynolds/sometimes-we-wish-for-the-feel-but-we-never-understand-that-we-have/)

[Robert Reynolds](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robert-reynolds/)

> [There is something magical about being able to feel somebody. And that is something that has always moved me with music.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/maria-brink/there-is-something-magical-about-being-able-to-feel-somebody-and-that/)

[Maria Brink](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/maria-brink/)

> [I feel very grateful to be alive and well enough to make music.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/adam-ant/i-feel-very-grateful-to-be-alive-and-well-enough-to-make-music/)

Adam Ant

> [I feel as though I've fooled the world into thinking I'm an adult and now they're letting me procreate.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-murray/i-feel-as-though-i-ve-fooled-the-world-into-thinking-i-m-an-adult-and/)

[George Murray](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-murray/)

> [I feel like I could eat the world raw.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/madeline-miller/i-feel-like-i-could-eat-the-world-raw/)

[Madeline Miller](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/madeline-miller/)

> [I like to wear bodysuits and things that make me feel really active and athletic and also really sensual.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sophie-hawley-weld/i-like-to-wear-bodysuits-and-things-that-make-me-feel-really-active/)

[Sophie Hawley-Weld](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sophie-hawley-weld/)

> [You can't force people to feel in a certain way, and the sooner you understand that,the better. I feel everything has its way of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sidharth-malhotra/you-can-t-force-people-to-feel-in-a-certain-way-and-the-sooner-you/)

[Sidharth Malhotra](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sidharth-malhotra/)

> [You make me feel brand new today. Even my day is full of trials and pain…Thanks for everything...](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/richard-lantapi/you-make-me-feel-brand-new-today-even-my-day-is-full-of-trials-and/)

[Richard Lantapi](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/richard-lantapi/)

> [I'm an actor, so I'm never going to feel like I've done enough.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/italia-ricci/i-m-an-actor-so-i-m-never-going-to-feel-like-i-ve-done-enough/)

[Italia Ricci](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/italia-ricci/)

> [I don't know how people feel,that's the beauty of TV, is they can see us, but we can't see them.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jon-stewart/i-don-t-know-how-people-feel-that-s-the-beauty-of-tv-is-they-can-see/)

[Jon Stewart](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jon-stewart/)

> [I feel like I'm the best, but you're not going to get me to say that.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jerry-rice/i-feel-like-i-m-the-best-but-you-re-not-going-to-get-me-to-say-that/)

[Jerry Rice](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jerry-rice/)

Browse all 26,675 Feel quotes

```json
{
    "@context": "https://schema.org",
    "@graph": [
        {
            "@type": "Quotation",
            "text": "“Highs and lows make you feel that things matter, but they're nothing.”",
            "creator": {
                "@type": "Person",
                "name": "Jonathan Safran Foer"
            },
            "isPartOf": {
                "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website"
            },
            "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jonathan-safran-foer/highs-and-lows-make-you-feel-that-things-matter-but-they-re-nothing-2/",
            "about": {
                "@type": "Thing",
                "name": "Feel"
            },
            "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jonathan-safran-foer/highs-and-lows-make-you-feel-that-things-matter-but-they-re-nothing-2/#quotation",
            "image": {
                "@type": "ImageObject",
                "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/3c2/jonathan-safran-foer-136_feel_highs-and-lows-make-you-feel-that-things_1304676.png",
                "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/3c2/jonathan-safran-foer-136_feel_highs-and-lows-make-you-feel-that-things_1304676.png",
                "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/3c2/jonathan-safran-foer-136_feel_highs-and-lows-make-you-feel-that-things_1304676.png",
                "width": 1080,
                "height": 1080,
                "caption": "“Highs and lows make you feel that things matter, but they're nothing.” — Jonathan Safran Foer",
                "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": "Jonathan Safran Foer",
                    "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jonathan-safran-foer/"
                },
                {
                    "@type": "ListItem",
                    "position": 4,
                    "name": "“Highs and lows make you feel...",
                    "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jonathan-safran-foer/highs-and-lows-make-you-feel-that-things-matter-but-they-re-nothing-2/"
                }
            ],
            "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jonathan-safran-foer/highs-and-lows-make-you-feel-that-things-matter-but-they-re-nothing-2/#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
            }
        }
    ]
}
```
