--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: (my whole life a holding pattern, some…" description: "\"“(my whole life a holding pattern, some variation on wait and see)”\" — Katie Cotugno" image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/52d/katie-cotugno-14235_life_my-whole-life-a-holding-pattern-some-var_2683685.jpg" --- # (my whole life a holding pattern, some variation on wait… ![“(my whole life a holding pattern, some variation on wait and see)” quote by Katie Cotugno](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/52d/katie-cotugno-14235_life_my-whole-life-a-holding-pattern-some-var_2683685.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/52d/katie-cotugno-14235_life_my-whole-life-a-holding-pattern-some-var_2683685.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/52d/katie-cotugno-14235_life_my-whole-life-a-holding-pattern-some-var_2683685.jpg) > ““(my whole life a holding pattern, some variation on wait and see)”” [Katie Cotugno](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/katie-cotugno/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. The speaker feels stuck in a state of waiting, unable to move forward. **In simple terms:** Feeling stuck in a holding pattern. Key Takeaway Recognize the pattern and seek change. Themes stagnation waiting self‑awareness Mood reflective melancholic Type personal philosophical When to use this quote - career decisions - relationship choices - creative projects Key Concepts life cycles personal growth Questions to Reflect On - What would you do if you stopped waiting? - How can you create momentum? A Different Perspective Change may be hindered by fear of uncertainty. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Life](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/life/) [Pattern](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/pattern/) ## Related quotes > [“When God puts us in a holy holding pattern, it can feel like forever, but God doesn't hold us back to make us suffer.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lee-w-merrill/when-god-puts-us-in-a-holy-holding-pattern-it-can-feel-like-forever/) Lee W. Merrill > [Life is about holding on and letting go.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/keith-urban/life-is-about-holding-on-and-letting-go/) [Keith Urban](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/keith-urban/) > [Letting go something, that is never meant to be there anymore is a love for life…but holding on to it is, the life we…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/santanu-mishra/letting-go-something-that-is-never-meant-to-be-there-anymore-is-a/) [Santanu Mishra](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/santanu-mishra/) > [Photography takes an instant out of time, altering life by holding it still.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dorothea-lange/photography-takes-an-instant-out-of-time-altering-life-by-holding-it/) [Dorothea Lange](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dorothea-lange/) > [“Whatever the scenario, our need for love and belonging can be so strong that it blinds us to our most valuable talents and qualities.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/marsha-sinetar/whatever-the-scenario-our-need-for-love-and-belonging-can-be-so/) [Marsha Sinetar](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/marsha-sinetar/) > [Nothing is more creative than death, since it has the whole secret of life. It means that the past must be abandoned, that the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alan-watts/nothing-is-more-creative-than-death-since-it-has-the-whole-secret-of/) [Alan Watts](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alan-watts/) > [“Sometimes, I think my whole life has been about holding onto you.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jodi-picoult/sometimes-i-think-my-whole-life-has-been-about-holding-onto-you/) [Jodi Picoult](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jodi-picoult/) > [Sometimes I think my whole life has been about holding on to you.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jodi-picoult/sometimes-i-think-my-whole-life-has-been-about-holding-on-to-you/) [Jodi Picoult](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jodi-picoult/) > [You can spend your life holding on, or you can show that idiot who broke your heart what he is missing.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jean-norvy/you-can-spend-your-life-holding-on-or-you-can-show-that-idiot-who/) [Jean Norvy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jean-norvy/) > [I've learned that one of the biggest mistakes in life is holding onto something that was lost a long time ago.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nishan-panwar/i-ve-learned-that-one-of-the-biggest-mistakes-in-life-is-holding-onto/) [Nishan Panwar](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nishan-panwar/) > [“I can either spend the rest of my life holding on to hope that everything will fall into place...or I can shove two middle…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lauren-asher/i-can-either-spend-the-rest-of-my-life-holding-on-to-hope-that/) Lauren Asher > [Life's about holding onto the good memories and not letting the bad ones define you.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/paige-kadau/life-s-about-holding-onto-the-good-memories-and-not-letting-the-bad/) Paige Kadau > [“Dear Superwoman, The best way to make it in life, is by holding on to the Way Maker.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gift-gugu-mona/dear-superwoman-the-best-way-to-make-it-in-life-is-by-holding-on-to/) [Gift Gugu Mona](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gift-gugu-mona/) > [“Shy hasn’t exactly lived his life holding it precious waiting for the one ”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kristen-ashley/shy-hasn-t-exactly-lived-his-life-holding-it-precious-waiting-for-the/) [Kristen Ashley](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kristen-ashley/) > [I don't like working all hours of the night and having an unreliable working pattern.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-giacchino/i-don-t-like-working-all-hours-of-the-night-and-having-an-unreliable/) [Michael Giacchino](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michael-giacchino/) ## More by Katie Cotugno > [“Kissing him feels familiar but also new, a song they haven’t played on the radio in a really long time.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/katie-cotugno/kissing-him-feels-familiar-but-also-new-a-song-they-haven-t-played-on/) [Katie Cotugno](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/katie-cotugno/) > [“...as if there's some invisible string that kept us tethered the entire time he was away and that's tightening now...”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/katie-cotugno/as-if-there-s-some-invisible-string-that-kept-us-tethered-the-entire/) [Katie Cotugno](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/katie-cotugno/) > [“It felt like he could open up my head and see inside.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/katie-cotugno/it-felt-like-he-could-open-up-my-head-and-see-inside/) [Katie Cotugno](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/katie-cotugno/) > [“Wait, I almost shouted, but didn't, and that would be my burden to bear.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/katie-cotugno/wait-i-almost-shouted-but-didn-t-and-that-would-be-my-burden-to-bear/) [Katie Cotugno](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/katie-cotugno/) > [“A future as lonely as the surface of the moon and still just the sight of him feels like a homecoming, like a song…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/katie-cotugno/a-future-as-lonely-as-the-surface-of-the-moon-and-still-just-the/) [Katie Cotugno](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/katie-cotugno/) > [“I like him so stupidly much.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/katie-cotugno/i-like-him-so-stupidly-much/) [Katie Cotugno](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/katie-cotugno/) > [“I know it's only a matter of time before she gets to preschool and starts asking her teacher why today's snack is so shitty.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/katie-cotugno/i-know-it-s-only-a-matter-of-time-before-she-gets-to-preschool-and/) [Katie Cotugno](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/katie-cotugno/) > [“I just didn't know how to do this, ...the clang and chatter... . And more than that, I didn't particularly want to learn.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/katie-cotugno/i-just-didn-t-know-how-to-do-this-the-clang-and-chatter-and-more-than/) [Katie Cotugno](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/katie-cotugno/) > [“There's no limit to the ways that we have managed to fail each other as best friends.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/katie-cotugno/there-s-no-limit-to-the-ways-that-we-have-managed-to-fail-each-other/) [Katie Cotugno](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/katie-cotugno/) > [“I'm so hugely tired of carrying all of this inside me, all my guilt and anger and loneliness.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/katie-cotugno/i-m-so-hugely-tired-of-carrying-all-of-this-inside-me-all-my-guilt/) [Katie Cotugno](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/katie-cotugno/) > [“...the feeling of standing on the edge of a canyon and screaming, waiting for an echo that refused to come.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/katie-cotugno/the-feeling-of-standing-on-the-edge-of-a-canyon-and-screaming-waiting/) [Katie Cotugno](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/katie-cotugno/) > [“...I hate myself for letting him know that I still think about him, that I carry him around inside my skin.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/katie-cotugno/i-hate-myself-for-letting-him-know-that-i-still-think-about-him-that/) [Katie Cotugno](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/katie-cotugno/) > [“I wasn’t unpopular, exactly. I was just . . . unequipped.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/katie-cotugno/i-wasn-t-unpopular-exactly-i-was-just-unequipped/) [Katie Cotugno](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/katie-cotugno/) > [“The hideous thing is this: I want to forgive him. Even after everything, I do. A baby before my 17th birthday and a future…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/katie-cotugno/the-hideous-thing-is-this-i-want-to-forgive-him-even-after-everything/) [Katie Cotugno](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/katie-cotugno/) > [“ "Hey, Sawyer?" "Yeah? What’s up?" " I love you, you know that?" "I-…I do know that, actually. But- Jesus, Reena.” He laughs a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/katie-cotugno/hey-sawyer-yeah-what-s-up-i-love-you-you-know-that-i-i-do-know-that/) [Katie Cotugno](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/katie-cotugno/) [Explore all 47 Katie Cotugno quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/katie-cotugno/) ## More Life quotes > [Of all the people who have affected my life and influenced the choices I've made, none has been more important than my father. I…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/teddy-atlas/of-all-the-people-who-have-affected-my-life-and-influenced-the/) [Teddy Atlas](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/teddy-atlas/) > [What sets worlds in motion is the interplay of differences, their attractions and repulsions. Life is plurality, death is uniformity. By suppressing differences and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/octavio-paz/what-sets-worlds-in-motion-is-the-interplay-of-differences-their/) [Octavio Paz](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/octavio-paz/) > [Life is full of change. That's how we learn and grow.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/life-is-full-of-change-that-s-how-we-learn-and-grow/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [Life works most perfectly when a reciprocal love relationship is in place between man and God.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/beth-moore/life-works-most-perfectly-when-a-reciprocal-love-relationship-is-in/) [Beth Moore](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/beth-moore/) > [I value the experiences that come with life too much to sit by and not put my full effort into them.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jim-miller/i-value-the-experiences-that-come-with-life-too-much-to-sit-by-and/) [Jim Miller](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jim-miller/) > [Entertainment is a sacred pursuit when done well. When done well, it raises the quality of human life.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-chabon/entertainment-is-a-sacred-pursuit-when-done-well-when-done-well-it/) [Michael Chabon](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michael-chabon/) > [“There's more to life than you can see. Your sight is limited.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tammy-kling/there-s-more-to-life-than-you-can-see-your-sight-is-limited/) [Tammy Kling](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tammy-kling/) > [“I've spent much of my life calling my intuition "something wrong with me.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/deanna-l-lawlis/i-ve-spent-much-of-my-life-calling-my-intuition-something-wrong-with/) Deanna L. Lawlis > [When you do things they're absolutely right at that time for you and it can always teach you something about yourself. You can take…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kym-marsh/when-you-do-things-they-re-absolutely-right-at-that-time-for-you-and/) [Kym Marsh](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kym-marsh/) > [The only people who think the Internet is a calamity are people whose lives have been hurt by it; the only people who insist…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/chuck-klosterman/the-only-people-who-think-the-internet-is-a-calamity-are-people-whose/) [Chuck Klosterman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/chuck-klosterman/) > [The one thing that I keep learning over and over again is that I don't know nothing. I mean, that's my life lesson.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dwayne-johnson/the-one-thing-that-i-keep-learning-over-and-over-again-is-that-i-don/) [Dwayne Johnson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dwayne-johnson/) > [“THIS tale of my sore-troubled life I write,    To thank the God of nature, who conveyed    My soul to me, and with such care…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/this-tale-of-my-sore-troubled-life-i-write-to-thank-the-god-of-nature/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [“The future is only an indifferent void no one cares about, but the past is filled with life, and its countenance is irritating, repellent,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/milan-kundera/the-future-is-only-an-indifferent-void-no-one-cares-about-but-the/) [Milan Kundera](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/milan-kundera/) > [Two things revolutionised life: moving to the countryside and falling in love.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nick-love/two-things-revolutionised-life-moving-to-the-countryside-and-falling/) [Nick Love](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nick-love/) > [But just remember, life without me would be even more unbearable.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anne-rice/but-just-remember-life-without-me-would-be-even-more-unbearable/) [Anne Rice](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anne-rice/) [Browse all 265,290 Life quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/life/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "“(my whole life a holding pattern, some variation on wait and see)”", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "Katie Cotugno" }, "isPartOf": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website" }, "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/katie-cotugno/my-whole-life-a-holding-pattern-some-variation-on-wait-and-see/", "about": { "@type": "Thing", "name": "Life" }, "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/katie-cotugno/my-whole-life-a-holding-pattern-some-variation-on-wait-and-see/#quotation", "image": { "@type": "ImageObject", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/52d/katie-cotugno-14235_life_my-whole-life-a-holding-pattern-some-var_2683685.jpg", "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/52d/katie-cotugno-14235_life_my-whole-life-a-holding-pattern-some-var_2683685.jpg", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/52d/katie-cotugno-14235_life_my-whole-life-a-holding-pattern-some-var_2683685.jpg", "width": 1080, "height": 1080, "caption": "“(my whole life a holding pattern, some variation on wait and see)” — Katie Cotugno", "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": "Katie Cotugno", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/katie-cotugno/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 4, "name": "“(my whole life a holding pattern,...", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/katie-cotugno/my-whole-life-a-holding-pattern-some-variation-on-wait-and-see/" } ], "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/katie-cotugno/my-whole-life-a-holding-pattern-some-variation-on-wait-and-see/#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 } } ] } ```