--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: I was visiting my mother in Florida when…" description: "\"I was visiting my mother in Florida when the September 11, 2001 attacks happened. I was working on The Tale of Despereaux at that point. I had already ..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/be2/kate-dicamillo-599_already-gone_i-was-visiting-my-mother-in-florida-when_1202402.png" --- # I was visiting my mother in Florida when the September 11… ![“I was visiting my mother in Florida when the September 11, 2001 attacks happened. I was working on The Tale of Despereaux at that point. I had already gone into writing it with a great deal of trepidation and fear, and then this God-awful thing happens and it was really hard to even get back home…” quote by Kate DiCamillo](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/be2/kate-dicamillo-599_already-gone_i-was-visiting-my-mother-in-florida-when_1202402.png) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/be2/kate-dicamillo-599_already-gone_i-was-visiting-my-mother-in-florida-when_1202402.png) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/be2/kate-dicamillo-599_already-gone_i-was-visiting-my-mother-in-florida-when_1202402.png) > “I was visiting my mother in Florida when the September 11, 2001 attacks happened. I was working on The Tale of Despereaux at that point. I had already gone into writing it with a great deal of trepidation and fear, and then this God-awful thing happens and it was really hard to even get back home to Minneapolis.” [Kate DiCamillo](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kate-dicamillo/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. She recounts being in Florida during 9/11 while working on a book, describing heightened fear and difficulty returning home. **In simple terms:** 9/11 disrupted her writing and travel. Key Takeaway Acknowledge trauma’s impact on creativity. Themes writing trauma history travel Mood somber reflective Type personal narrative When to use this quote - publishing deadlines - personal safety - emotional health Key Concepts grief processing creative block author resilience Questions to Reflect On - How do external crises affect artistic work? - What coping strategies help writers during upheaval? A Different Perspective Trauma can stall creative momentum. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [2001 Attacks](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/2001-attacks-287364/) [Already gone](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/already-gone/) [Attacks Happened](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/attacks-happened-1830095/) [Awful](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/awful/) [Back home](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/back-home/) [Deals](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/deals/) [Despereaux](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/despereaux/) [Fear](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/fear/) [Florida](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/florida/) [Get back](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/get-back/) [Gone](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/gone/) [Happened](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/happened/) [Happens](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/happens/) [Hard](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/hard/) [Home](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/home/) [Israel](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/israel/) [Minneapolis](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/minneapolis/) [Mother](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/mother/) [Parenting](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/parenting/) [September](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/september/) [September 11](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/september-11/) [September 11 2001](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/september-11-2001/) [Storytelling](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/storytelling/) [Tale Of Despereaux](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/tale-of-despereaux-224830/) [Tales](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/tales/) [Things happen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/things-happen/) [Trepidation](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/trepidation/) [Trepidation Fear](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/trepidation-fear-3611006/) [Visiting](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/visiting/) [Writing](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/writing/) ## Related quotes > [The Tale of Despereaux came at the request of Luke, my friend's then-eight-year-old son, who asked, "Write for me the story of an unlikely…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kate-dicamillo/the-tale-of-despereaux-came-at-the-request-of-luke-my-friend-s-then/) [Kate DiCamillo](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kate-dicamillo/) > [In The Tale of Despereaux, there is a lot of darkness, a lot of despair. There's also a lot of light, redemption, hope. There's…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kate-dicamillo/in-the-tale-of-despereaux-there-is-a-lot-of-darkness-a-lot-of-despair/) [Kate DiCamillo](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kate-dicamillo/) > [The Tale of Despereaux is the story of an unlikely hero, a mouse, who falls in love with a princess and then must save…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kate-dicamillo/the-tale-of-despereaux-is-the-story-of-an-unlikely-hero-a-mouse-who/) [Kate DiCamillo](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kate-dicamillo/) > [“Why would you save me? Because you, mouse, can tell Gregory a story. Stories are light. Light is precious in a world so dark.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kate-dicamillo/why-would-you-save-me-because-you-mouse-can-tell-gregory-a-story/) [Kate DiCamillo](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kate-dicamillo/) > [the story is not a pretty one. there is violence in it. And cruelty. But stories that are not pretty have a certain value,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kate-dicamillo/the-story-is-not-a-pretty-one-there-is-violence-in-it-and-cruelty-but/) [Kate DiCamillo](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kate-dicamillo/) > [Once upon a time," he said out loud to the darkness. He said these words because they were the best, the most powerful words…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kate-dicamillo/once-upon-a-time-he-said-out-loud-to-the-darkness-he-said-these-words/) [Kate DiCamillo](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kate-dicamillo/) > [I think that that's part of how people have responded to The Tiger Rising. It's what I call my dark child. It's gotten sandwiched…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kate-dicamillo/i-think-that-that-s-part-of-how-people-have-responded-to-the-tiger/) [Kate DiCamillo](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kate-dicamillo/) > [At the thought of being eaten by rats, Despereaux forgot about being brave. He forgot about not being a disappointment. He felt himself heading…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kate-dicamillo/at-the-thought-of-being-eaten-by-rats-despereaux-forgot-about-being/) [Kate DiCamillo](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kate-dicamillo/) > [But still, here are the words Despereaux Tilling spoke to his father. He said, "I forgive you, Pa!" And he said those words because…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kate-dicamillo/but-still-here-are-the-words-despereaux-tilling-spoke-to-his-father/) [Kate DiCamillo](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kate-dicamillo/) > [“Despereaux was reading the story out loud to himself. He was reading from the beginning so that he could get to the end...”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kate-dicamillo/despereaux-was-reading-the-story-out-loud-to-himself-he-was-reading/) [Kate DiCamillo](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kate-dicamillo/) > [“There is somebody who loves me," said Despereaux. "And I love her and that is the only thing that matters to me.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kate-dicamillo/there-is-somebody-who-loves-me-said-despereaux-and-i-love-her-and/) [Kate DiCamillo](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kate-dicamillo/) > [So here I am, sending a two-ounce mouse down into a dungeon with a sewing needle to save a human princess, and I don't…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kate-dicamillo/so-here-i-am-sending-a-two-ounce-mouse-down-into-a-dungeon-with-a/) [Kate DiCamillo](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kate-dicamillo/) > [The sound of the king's music made Despereaux's soul grow large and light inside of him.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kate-dicamillo/the-sound-of-the-king-s-music-made-despereaux-s-soul-grow-large-and/) [Kate DiCamillo](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kate-dicamillo/) > [Love is ridiculous. But love is also wonderful. And powerful. And Despereaux's love for the Princess Pea would prove, in time, to be all…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kate-dicamillo/love-is-ridiculous-but-love-is-also-wonderful-and-powerful-and/) [Kate DiCamillo](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kate-dicamillo/) > [In luggage claim at the Minneapolis airport, the guy came up to me and said, "Maybe you're wrong, maybe stories do matter." I wrote…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kate-dicamillo/in-luggage-claim-at-the-minneapolis-airport-the-guy-came-up-to-me-and/) [Kate DiCamillo](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kate-dicamillo/) ## More by Kate DiCamillo > [In luggage claim at the Minneapolis airport, the guy came up to me and said, "Maybe you're wrong, maybe stories do matter." I wrote…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kate-dicamillo/in-luggage-claim-at-the-minneapolis-airport-the-guy-came-up-to-me-and/) [Kate DiCamillo](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kate-dicamillo/) > [“If every babe who cried were still alive, well, then, the world would be a very crowded place, indeed.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kate-dicamillo/if-every-babe-who-cried-were-still-alive-well-then-the-world-would-be/) [Kate DiCamillo](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kate-dicamillo/) > [My father leaving the family shaped who I was and how I looked at the world. By the same token, my father telling me…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kate-dicamillo/my-father-leaving-the-family-shaped-who-i-was-and-how-i-looked-at-the/) [Kate DiCamillo](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kate-dicamillo/) > [Reader, you may ask this queston. In fact, you must ask this question. Is it ridiculous for a very small, sickly, big-eared mouse to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kate-dicamillo/reader-you-may-ask-this-queston-in-fact-you-must-ask-this-question-is/) [Kate DiCamillo](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kate-dicamillo/) > [It wasn't until my fifth or sixth book where I realized I'm trying to do the same thing in every story I tell, which…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kate-dicamillo/it-wasn-t-until-my-fifth-or-sixth-book-where-i-realized-i-m-trying-to/) [Kate DiCamillo](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kate-dicamillo/) > [ \[He\] had the soul of a poet, and because of this, he liked very much to consider questions that had no answers. ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kate-dicamillo/he-had-the-soul-of-a-poet-and-because-of-this-he-liked-very-much-to/) [Kate DiCamillo](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kate-dicamillo/) > [Everything about writing is hard for me except for that - the names pop into my head. That's one of the reasons why I…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kate-dicamillo/everything-about-writing-is-hard-for-me-except-for-that-the-names-pop/) [Kate DiCamillo](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kate-dicamillo/) > [Reading a story should be a fabulous, wonderful thing. The most important thing that parents can do for kids is to read with them…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kate-dicamillo/reading-a-story-should-be-a-fabulous-wonderful-thing-the-most/) [Kate DiCamillo](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kate-dicamillo/) > [You have to learn how to write each book.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kate-dicamillo/you-have-to-learn-how-to-write-each-book/) [Kate DiCamillo](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kate-dicamillo/) > [“If you have no intention of loving or being loved then the whole journey is pointless”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kate-dicamillo/if-you-have-no-intention-of-loving-or-being-loved-then-the-whole/) [Kate DiCamillo](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kate-dicamillo/) > [I feel like the luckiest person in the world to have found what I am supposed to do and to get to do it.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kate-dicamillo/i-feel-like-the-luckiest-person-in-the-world-to-have-found-what-i-am/) [Kate DiCamillo](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kate-dicamillo/) > [“Everything, as you well know (having lived in this world long enough to have figured out a thing or two for yourself), cannot always…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kate-dicamillo/everything-as-you-well-know-having-lived-in-this-world-long-enough-to/) [Kate DiCamillo](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kate-dicamillo/) > [“Dear God, thank you for warm summer nights and candlelight and good food. But thank you most of all for friends. We appreciate the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kate-dicamillo/dear-god-thank-you-for-warm-summer-nights-and-candlelight-and-good/) [Kate DiCamillo](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kate-dicamillo/) > [There ain't no point in making soup unless others eat it. Soup needs another mouth to taste it, another heart to be warmed by…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kate-dicamillo/there-ain-t-no-point-in-making-soup-unless-others-eat-it-soup-needs/) [Kate DiCamillo](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kate-dicamillo/) > [ I remember wanting to write a book with someone, the someone being Kate \[DiCamillo\], and we decided to write about two friends. We had… ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kate-dicamillo/i-remember-wanting-to-write-a-book-with-someone-the-someone-being/) [Kate DiCamillo](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kate-dicamillo/) [Explore all 442 Kate DiCamillo quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kate-dicamillo/) ## More Already gone quotes > [She glances back before stepping into the alley, and she catches her grandfather looking at her the way he does sometimes--as if she's already…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/julianna-baggott/she-glances-back-before-stepping-into-the-alley-and-she-catches-her/) [Julianna Baggott](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/julianna-baggott/) > [The past is already gone, the future is not yet here. There's only one moment for you to live, and that is the present…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/the-past-is-already-gone-the-future-is-not-yet-here-there-s-only-one/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [It is very common with artists who are of a generation that has already gone by to get overly concerned with, Oh my God…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/carole-king/it-is-very-common-with-artists-who-are-of-a-generation-that-has/) [Carole King](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/carole-king/) > [Apart altogether from our own vital interests, we cannot and must not desert those other nations who have already gone through so much tragedy…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stafford-cripps/apart-altogether-from-our-own-vital-interests-we-cannot-and-must-not/) [Stafford Cripps](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stafford-cripps/) > [But from what I can see all around me today, that America is fading fast, if it's not already gone.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-ratzenberger/but-from-what-i-can-see-all-around-me-today-that-america-is-fading/) [John Ratzenberger](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-ratzenberger/) > [I'm not blaming men, I'm not blaming women. What's gone by has already gone by. It's history. It's done. There is no right or…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/frederick-lenz/i-m-not-blaming-men-i-m-not-blaming-women-what-s-gone-by-has-already/) [Frederick Lenz](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/frederick-lenz/) > [Like vanishing dew, a passing apparition or the sudden flash of lightning -- already gone -- thus should one regard one's self.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ikkyu/like-vanishing-dew-a-passing-apparition-or-the-sudden-flash-of/) [Ikkyu](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ikkyu/) > [Don't turn around. 'Cuz you will get punched in the face. Don't make this worse. You've already gone and got me mad. It's too…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/avril-lavigne/don-t-turn-around-cuz-you-will-get-punched-in-the-face-don-t-make/) [Avril Lavigne](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/avril-lavigne/) > [Sometimes I look back and I am shocked. Everyday of my life I have prepared for success, worked for it, waited for it, and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/monica-ali/sometimes-i-look-back-and-i-am-shocked-everyday-of-my-life-i-have/) [Monica Ali](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/monica-ali/) > [...and every Wednesday the perfumed young lady slips me a hundred-crown note to leave her alone with the convict. And by Thursday the hundred…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/italo-calvino/and-every-wednesday-the-perfumed-young-lady-slips-me-a-hundred-crown/) [Italo Calvino](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/italo-calvino/) > [But in the end, fighting for a love that was already gone felt like trying to live in the ruins of a lost city.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/paula-mclain/but-in-the-end-fighting-for-a-love-that-was-already-gone-felt-like/) [Paula McLain](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/paula-mclain/) > [If you have to prove you are worthy of credit, your credit is already gone.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/walter-bagehot/if-you-have-to-prove-you-are-worthy-of-credit-your-credit-is-already/) [Walter Bagehot](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/walter-bagehot/) > [It's only a game if there is an absence of meaning. And we've already gone too far for that.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-levithan/it-s-only-a-game-if-there-is-an-absence-of-meaning-and-we-ve-already/) [David Levithan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-levithan/) > [How many together with whom I came into the world are already gone out of it.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/marcus-aurelius/how-many-together-with-whom-i-came-into-the-world-are-already-gone/) [Marcus Aurelius](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/marcus-aurelius/) > [I'm an old guy. I've been doing this a long time. And I don't hustle and I don't bustle. I have seen the people…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kumar-pallana/i-m-an-old-guy-i-ve-been-doing-this-a-long-time-and-i-don-t-hustle/) [Kumar Pallana](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kumar-pallana/) [Browse all 41 Already gone quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/already-gone/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "I was visiting my mother in Florida when the September 11, 2001 attacks happened. I was working on The Tale of Despereaux at that point. 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