--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: When all is said and done, what is clear…" description: "\"When all is said and done, what is clear is that all lives end before their time.\" — Jose Saramago" image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/dd9/jos-saramago-208_clear_when-all-is-said-and-done-what-is-clear_2289191.png" --- # When all is said and done, what is clear is that all lives… ![“When all is said and done, what is clear is that all lives end before their time.” quote by Jose Saramago](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/dd9/jos-saramago-208_clear_when-all-is-said-and-done-what-is-clear_2289191.png) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/dd9/jos-saramago-208_clear_when-all-is-said-and-done-what-is-clear_2289191.png) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/dd9/jos-saramago-208_clear_when-all-is-said-and-done-what-is-clear_2289191.png) > “When all is said and done, what is clear is that all lives end before their time.” [Jose Saramago](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jos-saramago/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Life is finite and often ends unexpectedly, reminding us of mortality. **In simple terms:** All lives end early. Key Takeaway Embrace the present. Themes mortality existence impermanence Mood somber thoughtful Type philosophical literary When to use this quote - health crises - aging - career planning - relationship milestones Key Concepts existentialism philosophy of time Questions to Reflect On - What would you change if you knew your time was limited? - How does this perspective affect daily choices? A Different Perspective Cannot predict exact timing of death. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Clear](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/clear/) [Clear Lives](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/clear-lives-1603031/) [Death](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/death/) [Done](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/done/) [End time](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/end-time/) [Ends](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/ends/) [Lives End](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/lives-end-753281/) [Said](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/said/) [Said and done](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/said-and-done/) [Said Clear](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/said-clear-3348931/) [Time](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/time/) ## Related quotes > [We are clear that all lives matter, but we live in a world where that's not actually happening in practice. So if we want…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alicia-garza/we-are-clear-that-all-lives-matter-but-we-live-in-a-world-where-that/) [Alicia Garza](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alicia-garza/) > [“Harry, I promised you something. I said I'd clear it with you before I asked your mom to marry me. 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Knitter](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/paul-f-knitter/) > [All lives end. All hearts are broken. Caring is not an advantage.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/steven-moffat/all-lives-end-all-hearts-are-broken-caring-is-not-an-advantage/) [Steven Moffat](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/steven-moffat/) > [“Each dog marks a section of our lives, and in the end, we feed them to the dark, burying them there while we carry…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/toby-barlow/each-dog-marks-a-section-of-our-lives-and-in-the-end-we-feed-them-to/) [Toby Barlow](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/toby-barlow/) > [“I understand,” she said. “Truly, I do. I asked myself the same questions. It’s like walking out of a movie. Being made to walk…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lee-child/i-understand-she-said-truly-i-do-i-asked-myself-the-same-questions-it/) [Lee Child](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lee-child/) > [They always talk about teenagers thinking their lives will never end. 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The second option is always available.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/m-f-moonzajer/either-i-would-change-lives-or-end-them-the-second-option-is-always/) [M.F. Moonzajer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/m-f-moonzajer/) > [We can't choose how we die, but we can choose how we live. So we need to make every moment count because we never…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nishan-panwar/we-can-t-choose-how-we-die-but-we-can-choose-how-we-live-so-we-need/) [Nishan Panwar](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nishan-panwar/) > [“All lives end; all hearts are broken. Caring is not an advantage, Sherlock.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mycroft-holmes/all-lives-end-all-hearts-are-broken-caring-is-not-an-advantage-2/) [Mycroft Holmes](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mycroft-holmes/) > [“One of the most significant facts about us may finally be that we all begin with the natural equipment to live a thousand kinds…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/clifford-geertz/one-of-the-most-significant-facts-about-us-may-finally-be-that-we-all/) [Clifford Geertz](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/clifford-geertz/) ## More by Jose Saramago > [“We are born, and at that moment, it is as if we had signed a pact for the rest of our life, but a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jos-saramago/we-are-born-and-at-that-moment-it-is-as-if-we-had-signed-a-pact-for/) [José Saramago](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jos-saramago/) > [It takes little or nothing to undo reputations, the merest trifle makes and remakes them, it is simply a question of finding the best…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jos-saramago/it-takes-little-or-nothing-to-undo-reputations-the-merest-trifle/) [Jose Saramago](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jos-saramago/) > [One can show no greater respect than to weep for a stranger.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jos-saramago/one-can-show-no-greater-respect-than-to-weep-for-a-stranger/) [Jose Saramago](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jos-saramago/) > [I am not a prophet.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jos-saramago/i-am-not-a-prophet/) [Jose Saramago](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jos-saramago/) > [With the passage of time, as well as the social evolution and genetic exchange, we ended up putting our conscience in the color of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jos-saramago/with-the-passage-of-time-as-well-as-the-social-evolution-and-genetic/) [Jose Saramago](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jos-saramago/) > [“Al día siguiente no murió nadie.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jos-saramago/al-d-a-siguiente-no-muri-nadie/) [José Saramago](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jos-saramago/) > [“E se as histórias para crianças passassem a ser de leitura obrigatória para os adultos? 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Blind people who can see, but do not see.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jos-saramago/i-think-we-are-blind-blind-people-who-can-see-but-do-not-see/) [Jose Saramago](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jos-saramago/) > [...you have to leave the island in order to see the island, that we can't see ourselves unless we become free of ourselves, Unless…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jos-saramago/you-have-to-leave-the-island-in-order-to-see-the-island-that-we-can-t/) [Jose Saramago](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jos-saramago/) > [anyone who gets up early by inclination or has been forced to rise early out of necessity finds it intolerable that others should go…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jos-saramago/anyone-who-gets-up-early-by-inclination-or-has-been-forced-to-rise/) [Jose Saramago](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jos-saramago/) > [Society has to change, but the political powers we have at the moment are not enough to effect this change. 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