--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: When the ferry groaned and lurched away…" description: "\"“When the ferry groaned and lurched away, leaving behind a trail of churned-up water. I thought Madaline would stand at the stern and wave and blow kis..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/835/khaled-hosseini-251_ferry_when-the-ferry-groaned-and-lurched-away_2071451.png" --- # When the ferry groaned and lurched away, leaving behind a… ![“When the ferry groaned and lurched away, leaving behind a trail of churned-up water. I thought Madaline would stand at the stern and wave and blow kisses. But she quickly moved toward the bow and took a seat. She didn’t look our way.” quote by Khaled Hosseini](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/835/khaled-hosseini-251_ferry_when-the-ferry-groaned-and-lurched-away_2071451.png) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/835/khaled-hosseini-251_ferry_when-the-ferry-groaned-and-lurched-away_2071451.png) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/835/khaled-hosseini-251_ferry_when-the-ferry-groaned-and-lurched-away_2071451.png) > ““When the ferry groaned and lurched away, leaving behind a trail of churned-up water. I thought Madaline would stand at the stern and wave and blow kisses. But she quickly moved toward the bow and took a seat. She didn’t look our way.”” [Khaled Hosseini](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/khaled-hosseini/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. A character avoids a comforting gesture, perhaps indicating emotional distance or preoccupation with the journey ahead. **In simple terms:** She avoids a wave and kiss, showing distance. Key Takeaway Notice how actions reveal inner states. Themes relationships emotions travel Mood melancholic introspective Type literary philosophical When to use this quote - family reunions - farewells - personal journeys Key Concepts emotional avoidance narrative tension character development Questions to Reflect On - What does her movement suggest? - How do small actions signal larger feelings? A Different Perspective Interpretation may differ; context is key. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Ferry](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/ferry/) [Ferry Groaned](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/ferry-groaned-4001077/) [Groaned Lurched](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/groaned-lurched-4001079/) [Lurched Away](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/lurched-away-2220178/) [Thought Madaline](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/thought-madaline-4001078/) ## Related quotes > [I lurched away from the table after a few hours feeling like Elvis in Vegas - fat, drugged, and completely out of it.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anthony-bourdain/i-lurched-away-from-the-table-after-a-few-hours-feeling-like-elvis-in/) [Anthony Bourdain](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anthony-bourdain/) > [When a plane lands in the Hudson and there's a Twitter user on the ferry taking a picture of it, Boom. That's it. The…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/biz-stone/when-a-plane-lands-in-the-hudson-and-there-s-a-twitter-user-on-the/) [Biz Stone](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/biz-stone/) > [“Hellooo.” The ferry captain shot a thumb at her Jeep. “Gonna get it off ?” “Oh.” She laughed. “Sorry.” Releasing Nicole, she ran back…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/barbara-delinsky/hellooo-the-ferry-captain-shot-a-thumb-at-her-jeep-gonna-get-it-off/) [Barbara Delinsky](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/barbara-delinsky/) > [I met my wife on a ferry boat, and when we landed she gave me the slip](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/groucho-marx/i-met-my-wife-on-a-ferry-boat-and-when-we-landed-she-gave-me-the-slip/) [Groucho Marx](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/groucho-marx/) > [It was messed up, because in 1947 my family moved to Seattle and I had to get up at 5:00 o'clock in the morning…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/quincy-jones/it-was-messed-up-because-in-1947-my-family-moved-to-seattle-and-i-had/) [Quincy Jones](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/quincy-jones/) > [I grew up in the suburbs of Sydney, an arid kind of place, but every day I took the ferry across the harbour to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/pamela-stephenson/i-grew-up-in-the-suburbs-of-sydney-an-arid-kind-of-place-but-every/) [Pamela Stephenson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/pamela-stephenson/) > [I always remember to go on the Staten Island Ferry because it's the most amazing view of New York. And it's free! You see…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tim-pigott-smith/i-always-remember-to-go-on-the-staten-island-ferry-because-it-s-the/) [Tim Pigott-Smith](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tim-pigott-smith/) > [Many will say, "I can find God without the help of the Bible, or church, or minister." Very well. Do so if you can.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/henry-ward-beecher/many-will-say-i-can-find-god-without-the-help-of-the-bible-or-church/) [Henry Ward Beecher](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/henry-ward-beecher/) > [The waterfront without the Ferry Tower would be like a birthday cake without a candle.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/herb-caen/the-waterfront-without-the-ferry-tower-would-be-like-a-birthday-cake/) [Herb Caen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/herb-caen/) > [“If we buy a bike, will you travel? Will you brave the ferry?”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rosalie-marsh/if-we-buy-a-bike-will-you-travel-will-you-brave-the-ferry/) [Rosalie Marsh](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rosalie-marsh/) > [There's two kinds of dirty - dirty and sewer-dirty. Danny Ferry is sewer-dirty and has been ever since he was at Duke.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/shaquille-o-neal/there-s-two-kinds-of-dirty-dirty-and-sewer-dirty-danny-ferry-is-sewer/) [Shaquille O'Neal](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/shaquille-o-neal/) > [“Enjoy the console and speed of the Road Town Fast Ferry as we acquire you from the heart of St. Thomas, Charlotte Amalie, to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/road-town-fast-ferry/enjoy-the-console-and-speed-of-the-road-town-fast-ferry-as-we-acquire/) [Road Town Fast Ferry](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/road-town-fast-ferry/) > [We have long had emigration in Ireland. But the nature of emigration has changed. With ferries to Britain and the continent, as well as…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mary-robinson/we-have-long-had-emigration-in-ireland-but-the-nature-of-emigration/) [Mary Robinson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mary-robinson/) > [“For all symbols are fluxional; all language is vehicular and transitive, and is good, as ferries and houses are, for conveyance, not as farms…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ralph-waldo-emerson/for-all-symbols-are-fluxional-all-language-is-vehicular-and/) [Ralph Waldo Emerson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ralph-waldo-emerson/) > [The church of the elect, which is partly militant on earth, and partly triumphant in heaven, resembles a city built on both sides of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/augustus-toplady/the-church-of-the-elect-which-is-partly-militant-on-earth-and-partly/) [Augustus Toplady](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/augustus-toplady/) ## More by Khaled Hosseini > [“Winter was every kid’s favorite season in Kabul, at least those whose fathers could afford to buy a good iron stove. The reason was…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/khaled-hosseini/winter-was-every-kid-s-favorite-season-in-kabul-at-least-those-whose/) [Khaled Hosseini](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/khaled-hosseini/) > [“Their fights didn’t so much end as dissipate, like a drop of ink in a bowl of water, with a residual taint that lingered.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/khaled-hosseini/their-fights-didn-t-so-much-end-as-dissipate-like-a-drop-of-ink-in-a/) [Khaled Hosseini](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/khaled-hosseini/) > [“I think that everything he did, feeding the poor, giving money to friends in need, it was all a way of redeeming himself. And…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/khaled-hosseini/i-think-that-everything-he-did-feeding-the-poor-giving-money-to/) [Khaled Hosseini](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/khaled-hosseini/) > [“it always falls on the sober to pay for the sins of the drunk.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/khaled-hosseini/it-always-falls-on-the-sober-to-pay-for-the-sins-of-the-drunk/) [Khaled Hosseini](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/khaled-hosseini/) > [“Mariam knew that life for the most part had been unkind to her. But as she walked the final twenty paces, she could not…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/khaled-hosseini/mariam-knew-that-life-for-the-most-part-had-been-unkind-to-her-but-as/) [Khaled Hosseini](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/khaled-hosseini/) > [“I pray. I pray that my sins have not caught up with me the way I'd always feared they would.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/khaled-hosseini/i-pray-i-pray-that-my-sins-have-not-caught-up-with-me-the-way-i-d/) [Khaled Hosseini](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/khaled-hosseini/) > [“shoes: that putting them on a bed invited death into the family, that a quarrel would follow if one put on the left shoe…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/khaled-hosseini/shoes-that-putting-them-on-a-bed-invited-death-into-the-family-that-a/) [Khaled Hosseini](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/khaled-hosseini/) > [I have a theory about marriage, Monsieur Boustouler. And it's that nearly always you will know within two weeks if it's going to work.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/khaled-hosseini/i-have-a-theory-about-marriage-monsieur-boustouler-and-it-s-that/) [Khaled Hosseini](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/khaled-hosseini/) > [The short of it is, as an aspiring writer, there is nothing as damaging to your credibility as saying that you don't like to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/khaled-hosseini/the-short-of-it-is-as-an-aspiring-writer-there-is-nothing-as-damaging/) [Khaled Hosseini](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/khaled-hosseini/) > [Throughout the last century there were multiple attempts at giving Afghan women more autonomy, to change marriage laws, to abolish the practice of bride…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/khaled-hosseini/throughout-the-last-century-there-were-multiple-attempts-at-giving/) [Khaled Hosseini](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/khaled-hosseini/) > [At that moment, she cannot think of a more reckless, irrational thing than choosing to become a parent.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/khaled-hosseini/at-that-moment-she-cannot-think-of-a-more-reckless-irrational-thing/) [Khaled Hosseini](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/khaled-hosseini/) > [“He says this is war. There is no shame in war. Tell him he's wrong. War doesn't negate decency. It demands it, even more…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/khaled-hosseini/he-says-this-is-war-there-is-no-shame-in-war-tell-him-he-s-wrong-war/) [Khaled Hosseini](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/khaled-hosseini/) > [For many people in the west, Afghanistan is synonymous with the Soviet war and the Taliban. I wanted to remind people that Afghans had…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/khaled-hosseini/for-many-people-in-the-west-afghanistan-is-synonymous-with-the-soviet/) [Khaled Hosseini](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/khaled-hosseini/) > [Educate yourself, learn about what refugees face when they don't have homes, after they have lost everything.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/khaled-hosseini/educate-yourself-learn-about-what-refugees-face-when-they-don-t-have/) [Khaled Hosseini](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/khaled-hosseini/) > [“Rahim Khan laughed. “Children aren’t coloring books. You don’t get to fill them with your favorite colors.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/khaled-hosseini/rahim-khan-laughed-children-aren-t-coloring-books-you-don-t-get-to/) [Khaled Hosseini](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/khaled-hosseini/) [Explore all 697 Khaled Hosseini quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/khaled-hosseini/) ## More Ferry quotes > [When a plane lands in the Hudson and there's a Twitter user on the ferry taking a picture of it, Boom. That's it. The…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/biz-stone/when-a-plane-lands-in-the-hudson-and-there-s-a-twitter-user-on-the/) [Biz Stone](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/biz-stone/) > [“For all symbols are fluxional; all language is vehicular and transitive, and is good, as ferries and houses are, for conveyance, not as farms…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ralph-waldo-emerson/for-all-symbols-are-fluxional-all-language-is-vehicular-and/) [Ralph Waldo Emerson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ralph-waldo-emerson/) > [We have long had emigration in Ireland. But the nature of emigration has changed. With ferries to Britain and the continent, as well as…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mary-robinson/we-have-long-had-emigration-in-ireland-but-the-nature-of-emigration/) [Mary Robinson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mary-robinson/) > [“Enjoy the console and speed of the Road Town Fast Ferry as we acquire you from the heart of St. Thomas, Charlotte Amalie, to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/road-town-fast-ferry/enjoy-the-console-and-speed-of-the-road-town-fast-ferry-as-we-acquire/) [Road Town Fast Ferry](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/road-town-fast-ferry/) > [There's two kinds of dirty - dirty and sewer-dirty. Danny Ferry is sewer-dirty and has been ever since he was at Duke.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/shaquille-o-neal/there-s-two-kinds-of-dirty-dirty-and-sewer-dirty-danny-ferry-is-sewer/) [Shaquille O'Neal](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/shaquille-o-neal/) > [“If we buy a bike, will you travel? Will you brave the ferry?”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rosalie-marsh/if-we-buy-a-bike-will-you-travel-will-you-brave-the-ferry/) [Rosalie Marsh](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rosalie-marsh/) > [The waterfront without the Ferry Tower would be like a birthday cake without a candle.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/herb-caen/the-waterfront-without-the-ferry-tower-would-be-like-a-birthday-cake/) [Herb Caen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/herb-caen/) > [Many will say, "I can find God without the help of the Bible, or church, or minister." Very well. Do so if you can.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/henry-ward-beecher/many-will-say-i-can-find-god-without-the-help-of-the-bible-or-church/) [Henry Ward Beecher](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/henry-ward-beecher/) > [I always remember to go on the Staten Island Ferry because it's the most amazing view of New York. And it's free! You see…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tim-pigott-smith/i-always-remember-to-go-on-the-staten-island-ferry-because-it-s-the/) [Tim Pigott-Smith](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tim-pigott-smith/) > [I grew up in the suburbs of Sydney, an arid kind of place, but every day I took the ferry across the harbour to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/pamela-stephenson/i-grew-up-in-the-suburbs-of-sydney-an-arid-kind-of-place-but-every/) [Pamela Stephenson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/pamela-stephenson/) > [It was messed up, because in 1947 my family moved to Seattle and I had to get up at 5:00 o'clock in the morning…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/quincy-jones/it-was-messed-up-because-in-1947-my-family-moved-to-seattle-and-i-had/) [Quincy Jones](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/quincy-jones/) > [I met my wife on a ferry boat, and when we landed she gave me the slip](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/groucho-marx/i-met-my-wife-on-a-ferry-boat-and-when-we-landed-she-gave-me-the-slip/) [Groucho Marx](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/groucho-marx/) > [“Hellooo.” The ferry captain shot a thumb at her Jeep. “Gonna get it off ?” “Oh.” She laughed. “Sorry.” Releasing Nicole, she ran back…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/barbara-delinsky/hellooo-the-ferry-captain-shot-a-thumb-at-her-jeep-gonna-get-it-off/) [Barbara Delinsky](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/barbara-delinsky/) > [The church of the elect, which is partly militant on earth, and partly triumphant in heaven, resembles a city built on both sides of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/augustus-toplady/the-church-of-the-elect-which-is-partly-militant-on-earth-and-partly/) [Augustus Toplady](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/augustus-toplady/) > [“For a second I thought about saying, "Yes, please, let's catch the next ferry out of this freak show.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rachel-hawkins/for-a-second-i-thought-about-saying-yes-please-let-s-catch-the-next/) [Rachel Hawkins](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rachel-hawkins/) [Browse all 39 Ferry quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/ferry/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "“When the ferry groaned and lurched away, leaving behind a trail of churned-up water. 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