--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: That was half a year and a lifetime ago…" description: "\"“That was half a year and a lifetime ago. For a second I feel a rush of sadness: for the horizons that vanish behind us, for the people we leave behind..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/75a/lauren-oliver-109_buried_that-was-half-a-year-and-a-lifetime-ago_978804.png" --- # That was half a year and a lifetime ago. For a second I… ![“That was half a year and a lifetime ago. For a second I feel a rush of sadness: for the horizons that vanish behind us, for the people we leave behind, the tiny-doll selves that get stored away and ultimately buried.” quote by Lauren Oliver](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/75a/lauren-oliver-109_buried_that-was-half-a-year-and-a-lifetime-ago_978804.png) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/75a/lauren-oliver-109_buried_that-was-half-a-year-and-a-lifetime-ago_978804.png) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/75a/lauren-oliver-109_buried_that-was-half-a-year-and-a-lifetime-ago_978804.png) > ““That was half a year and a lifetime ago. For a second I feel a rush of sadness: for the horizons that vanish behind us, for the people we leave behind, the tiny-doll selves that get stored away and ultimately buried.”” [Lauren Oliver](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lauren-oliver/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. The passage reflects on fleeting time, loss, and the bittersweet feeling of moving past cherished moments and people. **In simple terms:** Time passes, leaving behind loss and nostalgia. Key Takeaway Acknowledge fleeting moments. Themes nostalgia loss time self‑reflection Mood melancholic reflective Type literary philosophical When to use this quote - personal essays - fiction writing - grief counseling Key Concepts impermanence memory identity Questions to Reflect On - What can you cherish now? - How do you honor past selves? A Different Perspective Focusing on loss may hinder present joy. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Sadness](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/sadness/) ## Related quotes > [For a second I feel a rush of sadness: for the horizons that vanish behind us, for the people we leave behind, the tiny-doll…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lauren-oliver/for-a-second-i-feel-a-rush-of-sadness-for-the-horizons-that-vanish/) [Lauren Oliver](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lauren-oliver/) > [I feel an overwhelming rush of sadness... I'm just struck with a sense of time passing so quickly, rushing forward. 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And sometimes remembering will lead to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tim-o-brien/forty-three-years-old-and-the-war-occurred-half-a-lifetime-ago-and/) [Tim O'Brien](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tim-o-brien/) > [That's when I realized that certain moments go on forever. Even after they're over they still go on, even after you're dead and buried,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lauren-oliver/that-s-when-i-realized-that-certain-moments-go-on-forever-even-after/) [Lauren Oliver](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lauren-oliver/) > [Some things are better left buried and forgotten.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lauren-oliver/some-things-are-better-left-buried-and-forgotten/) [Lauren Oliver](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lauren-oliver/) > [The first men who set out for Mars had better make sure they leave everything at home in apple-pie order. They won't get back…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/wernher-von-braun/the-first-men-who-set-out-for-mars-had-better-make-sure-they-leave/) [Wernher von Braun](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/wernher-von-braun/) > [I spent 24 and a half years in prison](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ahmed-ben-bella/i-spent-24-and-a-half-years-in-prison/) [Ahmed Ben Bella](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ahmed-ben-bella/) ## More by Lauren Oliver > [“My aunt Carol hasn’t heard her say a word in the whole six years and three months of Grace’s life—not a single syllable. Carol…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lauren-oliver/my-aunt-carol-hasn-t-heard-her-say-a-word-in-the-whole-six-years-and/) [Lauren Oliver](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lauren-oliver/) > [This is what happens when you try to help people. You get screwed.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lauren-oliver/this-is-what-happens-when-you-try-to-help-people-you-get-screwed/) [Lauren Oliver](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lauren-oliver/) > [We'll walk together holding hands, and kiss in broad daylight, and love each other as much as we want to, and no one will…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lauren-oliver/we-ll-walk-together-holding-hands-and-kiss-in-broad-daylight-and-love/) [Lauren Oliver](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lauren-oliver/) > [“It seem absurd to me that they don't know, haven't felt any change or tremor, even as my life has been completely turned upside…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lauren-oliver/it-seem-absurd-to-me-that-they-don-t-know-haven-t-felt-any-change-or/) [Lauren Oliver](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lauren-oliver/) > [“At least when I'm sleeping I can dream myself back to Alex, can dream myself into a different world.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lauren-oliver/at-least-when-i-m-sleeping-i-can-dream-myself-back-to-alex-can-dream/) [Lauren Oliver](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lauren-oliver/) > [People are like ants: Just a few of them give all the orders. 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He releases me and I stumble backward. “Alex is dead, do you hear me?…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lauren-oliver/stop-his-voice-rings-out-sharply-hard-as-a-slap-he-releases-me-and-i/) [Lauren Oliver](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lauren-oliver/) > [..in that moment i realize how much i love the little everyday routines of my life..the details that are my life's special pattern, like…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lauren-oliver/in-that-moment-i-realize-how-much-i-love-the-little-everyday-routines/) [Lauren Oliver](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lauren-oliver/) > [“You can't judge a book by its steel-toed combat boots.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lauren-oliver/you-can-t-judge-a-book-by-its-steel-toed-combat-boots/) [Lauren Oliver](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lauren-oliver/) [Explore all 1,181 Lauren Oliver quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lauren-oliver/) ## More Buried quotes > [Palindrome as well. My sister's name is Hannah. Father liked word games. 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