--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: When we lost something precious, and we'd…" description: "\"“When we lost something precious, and we'd looked and looked and still couldn't find it, then we didn't have to be completely heartbroken. We still had..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/388/kazuo-ishiguro-1029_comfort_when-we-lost-something-precious-and-we-d_2291305.jpg" --- # When we lost something precious, and we'd looked and… ![“When we lost something precious, and we'd looked and looked and still couldn't find it, then we didn't have to be completely heartbroken. We still had that last bit of comfort, thinking one day, when we were grown up, and we were free to travel the country, we could always go and find it again in…” quote by Kazuo Ishiguro](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/388/kazuo-ishiguro-1029_comfort_when-we-lost-something-precious-and-we-d_2291305.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/388/kazuo-ishiguro-1029_comfort_when-we-lost-something-precious-and-we-d_2291305.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/388/kazuo-ishiguro-1029_comfort_when-we-lost-something-precious-and-we-d_2291305.jpg) > ““When we lost something precious, and we'd looked and looked and still couldn't find it, then we didn't have to be completely heartbroken. We still had that last bit of comfort, thinking one day, when we were grown up, and we were free to travel the country, we could always go and find it again in Norfolk.”” [Kazuo Ishiguro](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kazuo-ishiguro/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Loss of something cherished leaves a lingering hope that it can be rediscovered later, offering comfort despite grief. **In simple terms:** Even after loss, hope that we can find it again remains. Key Takeaway Hold onto hope that lost things may be recovered. Themes grief hope memory search comfort Mood melancholic hopeful Type literary philosophical When to use this quote - personal loss - travel journeys - search for meaning - reunion plans Key Concepts resilience longing nostalgia Questions to Reflect On - What does the imagined reunion symbolize? - How does hope affect coping with loss? A Different Perspective Hope may delay acceptance of loss. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Comfort](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/comfort/) ## Related quotes > [When we lost something precious, and we'd looked and looked and still couldn't find it, then we didn't have to be completely heartbroken. We…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kazuo-ishiguro/when-we-lost-something-precious-and-we-d-looked-and-looked-and-still/) [Kazuo Ishiguro](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kazuo-ishiguro/) > [“Might as well tell you. In that shop we were in, they had this shelf with loads of records and tapes. So I was…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kazuo-ishiguro/might-as-well-tell-you-in-that-shop-we-were-in-they-had-this-shelf/) [Kazuo Ishiguro](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kazuo-ishiguro/) > [“I press my back against the wall and feel the pressure of it against my whole body. I want to feel enclosed again, protected,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/brigid-pasulka/i-press-my-back-against-the-wall-and-feel-the-pressure-of-it-against/) [Brigid Pasulka](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/brigid-pasulka/) > [“Never Doubt Yourself, Everything Happens for a Reason When we look back on our lives and think honestly about everything we have been through,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jan-jansen-easy-branches/never-doubt-yourself-everything-happens-for-a-reason-when-we-look/) [Jan Jansen Easy Branches](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jan-jansen-easy-branches/) > [But I really wanted to find it for you. And when it looked in the end like it wasn't going to turn up, I…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kazuo-ishiguro/but-i-really-wanted-to-find-it-for-you-and-when-it-looked-in-the-end/) [Kazuo Ishiguro](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kazuo-ishiguro/) > [“The point is, there was a gap in Miss Emily's calendar collection: none of them had a single picture of Norfolk. I'd always wonder…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kazuo-ishiguro/the-point-is-there-was-a-gap-in-miss-emily-s-calendar-collection-none/) [Kazuo Ishiguro](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kazuo-ishiguro/) > [“We were just trying to create a place for ourselves in a world that didn’t want us.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kazuo-ishiguro/we-were-just-trying-to-create-a-place-for-ourselves-in-a-world-that/) [Kazuo Ishiguro](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kazuo-ishiguro/) > [ “You see, because \[Norfolk is\] stuck out here on the east, on this hump jutting into the sea, it's not on the way to… ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kazuo-ishiguro/you-see-because-norfolk-is-stuck-out-here-on-the-east-on-this-hump/) [Kazuo Ishiguro](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kazuo-ishiguro/) > [I keep thinking about this river somewhere, with the water moving really fast. And these two people in the water, trying to hold onto…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kazuo-ishiguro/i-keep-thinking-about-this-river-somewhere-with-the-water-moving-2/) [Kazuo Ishiguro](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kazuo-ishiguro/) > [“I keep thinking about this river somewhere, with the water moving really fast. And these two people in the water, trying to hold onto…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kazuo-ishiguro/i-keep-thinking-about-this-river-somewhere-with-the-water-moving/) [Kazuo Ishiguro](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kazuo-ishiguro/) > [My donors have always tended to do much better than expected.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kazuo-ishiguro/my-donors-have-always-tended-to-do-much-better-than-expected/) [Kazuo Ishiguro](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kazuo-ishiguro/) > [“You have to accept that sometimes that's how things happen in this world. People's opinions, their feelings, they go one way, then the other.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kazuo-ishiguro/you-have-to-accept-that-sometimes-that-s-how-things-happen-in-this/) [Kazuo Ishiguro](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kazuo-ishiguro/) > [The fantasy never got beyond that—I didn’t let it—and though the tears rolled down my face, I wasn’t sobbing or out of control. I…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kazuo-ishiguro/the-fantasy-never-got-beyond-that-i-didn-t-let-it-and-though-the/) [Kazuo Ishiguro](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kazuo-ishiguro/) > [You're always in a rush, or else you're too exhausted to have a proper conversation. Soon enough, the long hours, the traveling, the broken…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kazuo-ishiguro/you-re-always-in-a-rush-or-else-you-re-too-exhausted-to-have-a-proper/) [Kazuo Ishiguro](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kazuo-ishiguro/) > [We believe deep down that we've lost something precious and are seeking it outside ourselves, never realizing that we are carrying it within us…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tsoknyi-rinpoche/we-believe-deep-down-that-we-ve-lost-something-precious-and-are/) [Tsoknyi Rinpoche](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tsoknyi-rinpoche/) ## More by Kazuo Ishiguro > [The evening's the best part of the day. You've done your day's work. Now you can put your feet up and enjoy it.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kazuo-ishiguro/the-evening-s-the-best-part-of-the-day-you-ve-done-your-day-s-work/) [Kazuo Ishiguro](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kazuo-ishiguro/) > [As a writer, I'm more interested in what people tell themselves happened rather than what actually happened.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kazuo-ishiguro/as-a-writer-i-m-more-interested-in-what-people-tell-themselves/) [Kazuo Ishiguro](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kazuo-ishiguro/) > [“About him and his wife voting for different parties. A few years ago that would have been unthinkable.” “No doubt.” “Quite extraordinary the things…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kazuo-ishiguro/about-him-and-his-wife-voting-for-different-parties-a-few-years-ago/) [Kazuo Ishiguro](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kazuo-ishiguro/) > [“But what is the sense in forever speculating what might have happened had such and such a moment turned out differently? One could presumably…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kazuo-ishiguro/but-what-is-the-sense-in-forever-speculating-what-might-have-happened/) [Kazuo Ishiguro](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kazuo-ishiguro/) > [“Silence is just as likely to indicate the most profound ideas forming, the deepest energies being summoned.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kazuo-ishiguro/silence-is-just-as-likely-to-indicate-the-most-profound-ideas-forming/) [Kazuo Ishiguro](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kazuo-ishiguro/) > [“I don't know why, but it didn't seem an option for more than one of us to storm off, and I wanted to make…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kazuo-ishiguro/i-don-t-know-why-but-it-didn-t-seem-an-option-for-more-than-one-of-us/) [Kazuo Ishiguro](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kazuo-ishiguro/) > [Our family arrived in England in 1960. At that time I thought the war was ancient history. But if I think of 15 years…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kazuo-ishiguro/our-family-arrived-in-england-in-1960-at-that-time-i-thought-the-war/) [Kazuo Ishiguro](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kazuo-ishiguro/) > [He chose a certain path in life, it proved to be a misguided one, but there, he chose it, he can say that at…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kazuo-ishiguro/he-chose-a-certain-path-in-life-it-proved-to-be-a-misguided-one-but/) [Kazuo Ishiguro](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kazuo-ishiguro/) > [“For however one may come in later years to reassess one’s achievements, it is always a consolation to know that one’s life has contained…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kazuo-ishiguro/for-however-one-may-come-in-later-years-to-reassess-one-s/) [Kazuo Ishiguro](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kazuo-ishiguro/) > [You're always in a rush, or else you're too exhausted to have a proper conversation. Soon enough, the long hours, the traveling, the broken…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kazuo-ishiguro/you-re-always-in-a-rush-or-else-you-re-too-exhausted-to-have-a-proper/) [Kazuo Ishiguro](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kazuo-ishiguro/) > [I don't think it's any fun, even if you are one of the most respected authors in the world like Margaret Atwood, to keep…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kazuo-ishiguro/i-don-t-think-it-s-any-fun-even-if-you-are-one-of-the-most-respected/) [Kazuo Ishiguro](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kazuo-ishiguro/) > [I think it's quite difficult to understand what kind of life a writer leads. They might be millionaires, or they might be starving people.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kazuo-ishiguro/i-think-it-s-quite-difficult-to-understand-what-kind-of-life-a-writer/) [Kazuo Ishiguro](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kazuo-ishiguro/) > [“But this small episode is as good an illustration as any of the hazards of uttering witticisms. By the very nature of a witticism,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kazuo-ishiguro/but-this-small-episode-is-as-good-an-illustration-as-any-of-the/) [Kazuo Ishiguro](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kazuo-ishiguro/) > [There comes a point when you can more or less count the number of books you're going to write before you die.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kazuo-ishiguro/there-comes-a-point-when-you-can-more-or-less-count-the-number-of/) [Kazuo Ishiguro](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kazuo-ishiguro/) > [My wife is the most savage critic. She doesn't feel intimidated by my reputation. As far as she's concerned, she's just criticising a boyfriend…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kazuo-ishiguro/my-wife-is-the-most-savage-critic-she-doesn-t-feel-intimidated-by-my/) [Kazuo Ishiguro](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kazuo-ishiguro/) [Explore all 292 Kazuo Ishiguro quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kazuo-ishiguro/) ## More Comfort quotes > [The house has to serve comfort. The work of art is revolutionary; the house is conservative.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/adolf-loos/the-house-has-to-serve-comfort-the-work-of-art-is-revolutionary-the/) [Adolf Loos](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/adolf-loos/) > [Don't take too much comfort in the fact that you're successful today because tomorrow could bring failure. There's no surety in life.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-savage/don-t-take-too-much-comfort-in-the-fact-that-you-re-successful-today/) [Michael Savage](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michael-savage/) > [For many, the call to be a Christian can seem demanding, even overwhelming. But we need not be afraid or feel inadequate. The Savior…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robert-d-hales/for-many-the-call-to-be-a-christian-can-seem-demanding-even/) [Robert D. Hales](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robert-d-hales/) > [This is no time for ease and comfort. It is time to dare and endure.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/winston-churchill/this-is-no-time-for-ease-and-comfort-it-is-time-to-dare-and-endure/) [Winston Churchill](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/winston-churchill/) > [There is a comfort in rituals, and rituals provide a framework for stability when you are trying to find answers.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/deborah-norville/there-is-a-comfort-in-rituals-and-rituals-provide-a-framework-for/) [Deborah Norville](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/deborah-norville/) > [Now I am in the place I call this wide wide Heaven because it includes all my simplest desires but also the most humble…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alice-sebold/now-i-am-in-the-place-i-call-this-wide-wide-heaven-because-it/) [Alice Sebold](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alice-sebold/) > [“When you get lost in a really strange place, nothing is more comforting than found your friend whom you trust and can show the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/toba-beta/when-you-get-lost-in-a-really-strange-place-nothing-is-more/) [Toba Beta](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/toba-beta/) > [Comfort food is really anything you want at that time. That said, I really love Naple-style pizza.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/geoffrey-zakarian/comfort-food-is-really-anything-you-want-at-that-time-that-said-i/) [Geoffrey Zakarian](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/geoffrey-zakarian/) > [I actually like getting out of my comfort zone. It shakes me up.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gail-sheehy/i-actually-like-getting-out-of-my-comfort-zone-it-shakes-me-up/) [Gail Sheehy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gail-sheehy/) > [A time will come when the science of destruction shall bend before the arts of peace; when the genius which multiplies our powers, which…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/francois-arago/a-time-will-come-when-the-science-of-destruction-shall-bend-before/) [Francois Arago](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/francois-arago/) > [Throughout human history, as our species has faced the frightening, terrorizing fact that we do not know who we are, or where we are…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/timothy-leary/throughout-human-history-as-our-species-has-faced-the-frightening/) [Timothy Leary](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/timothy-leary/) > [Worship is not about personality, temperament, personal limitations, church background, or comfort. It is about God.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-wimber/worship-is-not-about-personality-temperament-personal-limitations/) [John Wimber](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-wimber/) > [May God bless each of us in our calls to serve. May our faith strengthen as we serve in righteousness, faithfully keeping the commandments.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/l-tom-perry/may-god-bless-each-of-us-in-our-calls-to-serve-may-our-faith/) [L. Tom Perry](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/l-tom-perry/) > [Maybe that was why she couldn't cry, she realized, staring dry-eyed at the ceiling. Because what was the point in crying when there was…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/cassandra-clare/maybe-that-was-why-she-couldn-t-cry-she-realized-staring-dry-eyed-at/) [Cassandra Clare](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/cassandra-clare/) > [I think that comfort is underrated in a lot of ways.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/phoebe-robinson/i-think-that-comfort-is-underrated-in-a-lot-of-ways/) [Phoebe Robinson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/phoebe-robinson/) [Browse all 4,542 Comfort quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/comfort/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "“When we lost something precious, and we'd looked and looked and still couldn't find it, then we didn't have to be completely heartbroken. We still had that last bit of comfort, thinking one day, when we were grown up, and we were free to travel the country, we could always go and find it again in Norfolk.”", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "Kazuo Ishiguro" }, "isPartOf": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website" }, "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kazuo-ishiguro/when-we-lost-something-precious-and-we-d-looked-and-looked-and-still-2/", "about": { "@type": "Thing", "name": "Comfort" }, "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kazuo-ishiguro/when-we-lost-something-precious-and-we-d-looked-and-looked-and-still-2/#quotation", "image": { "@type": "ImageObject", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/388/kazuo-ishiguro-1029_comfort_when-we-lost-something-precious-and-we-d_2291305.jpg", "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/388/kazuo-ishiguro-1029_comfort_when-we-lost-something-precious-and-we-d_2291305.jpg", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/388/kazuo-ishiguro-1029_comfort_when-we-lost-something-precious-and-we-d_2291305.jpg", "width": 1080, "height": 1080, "caption": "“When we lost something precious, and we'd looked and looked and still couldn't find it, then we didn't have…” — Kazuo Ishiguro", "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": "Kazuo Ishiguro", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kazuo-ishiguro/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 4, "name": "“When we lost something precious, and...", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kazuo-ishiguro/when-we-lost-something-precious-and-we-d-looked-and-looked-and-still-2/" } ], "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kazuo-ishiguro/when-we-lost-something-precious-and-we-d-looked-and-looked-and-still-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 } } ] } ```