--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: Torrens kicked at the door until it was…" description: "\"“Torrens kicked at the door until it was finally opened. The farm couple and three youngsters had been eating breakfast in the common room. The yard do..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/c6e/lloyd-alexander-1645_eating-breakfast_torrens-kicked-at-the-door-until-it-was_320410.jpg" --- # Torrens kicked at the door until it was finally opened… ![“Torrens kicked at the door until it was finally opened. The farm couple and three youngsters had been eating breakfast in the common room. The yard dog would have bounded in had not Torrens kicked the door shut. 'I want a bed. Quilts. A hot drink. I am a doctor. This woman is my patient.' The farm…” quote by Lloyd Alexander](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/c6e/lloyd-alexander-1645_eating-breakfast_torrens-kicked-at-the-door-until-it-was_320410.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/c6e/lloyd-alexander-1645_eating-breakfast_torrens-kicked-at-the-door-until-it-was_320410.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/c6e/lloyd-alexander-1645_eating-breakfast_torrens-kicked-at-the-door-until-it-was_320410.jpg) > ““Torrens kicked at the door until it was finally opened. The farm couple and three youngsters had been eating breakfast in the common room. The yard dog would have bounded in had not Torrens kicked the door shut. 'I want a bed. Quilts. A hot drink. I am a doctor. This woman is my patient.' The farm couple was terrified. The look on the face of Torrens cut short any questions. They did as he ordered. One of the children ran to fetch his medical kit from the cart. The woman motioned for Torrens to set Caroline on a straw pallet. The farmer kept his distance, but his wife, shyly, fearffully, ventured closer. She glanced at Torrens, as if requesting his permission to help. Between them, they made Caroline as comfortable as they could. Torrens knelt by the pallet. Caroline reached for his hand. 'Leave while you can. Do not burden yourself with me.' 'A light burden.' 'I wish you to find Augusta.' 'You have my promise.' 'Take this.' Caroline had slipped off a gold ring set with diamonds. 'It was a wedding gift from the king. It has not left my finger since then. I give it to you now - ' Torrens protested, but Caroline went on - 'not as a keepsake. You and I have better keepsakes in our hearts. I wish you to sell it. You will need money, perhaps even more than this will bring. But you must stary alive and find my child. Help her as you have always helped me.' 'We shall talk of this later, when you are better. We shall find her together.' 'You have never lied to me.' Caroline's smile was suddenly flirtacious. 'Sir, if you begin now, I shall take you to task for it.' Her face seemed to grow youthful and earnest for an instant. Torrens realized she held life only by strength of will. 'I am thinking of the Juliana gardens,' Caroline said. 'How lovely they were. The orangerie. And you, my loving friend. Tell me, could we have been happy?' 'Yes.' Torrens raised her hand to his lips. 'Yes. I am certain of it.' Caroline did not speak again. Torrens stayed at her side. She died later that morning. Torrens buried her in the shelter of a hedgerow at the far edge of the field. The farmer offered to help, but Torrens refused and dug the grave himself. Later, in the farmhouse, he slept heavily for the first time since his escape. Mercifully, he did not dream. Next day, he gave the farmer his clothing in trade for peasant garb. He hitched up the cart and drove back to the road. He could have pressed on, lost himself beyond search in the provinces. He was free. Except for his promise. He turned the cart toward Marianstat.”” [Lloyd Alexander](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lloyd-alexander/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. A desperate hero offers help, receives a symbolic gift, and promises to continue the quest, highlighting sacrifice and hope. **In simple terms:** A hero helps, receives a gift, and vows to keep fighting. Key Takeaway Offer help, accept gifts, and stay committed to the mission. Themes sacrifice hope commitment friendship courage Mood hopeful determined empathetic Type narrative inspirational literary When to use this quote - battlefield - medical emergencies - family crises - personal loss - missionary work Key Concepts heroic duty trust legacy Questions to Reflect On - What are you willing to sacrifice for others? - How do you maintain hope in dire situations? A Different Perspective The narrative may romanticize self‑sacrifice, overlooking personal limits. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Eating breakfast](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/eating-breakfast/) [Love](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/love/) [Romance](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/romance/) ## Related quotes > [“I worry about you. Not just about your safety. I worry when you’re stressed. I worry when you’re unhappy.” His words leveled her world.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/amber-a-bardan/i-worry-about-you-not-just-about-your-safety-i-worry-when-you-re/) Amber A. Bardan > [“What are you eating for breakfast? Go get yourself a big bowl of nos! You will be shocked at how big and strong you…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robert-d-smith/what-are-you-eating-for-breakfast-go-get-yourself-a-big-bowl-of-nos/) [Robert D. Smith](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robert-d-smith/) > [“Every time someone makes a choice, a new, parallel world branches off from the existing one. 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But I always loved…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lloyd-alexander/i-came-to-fantasy-fairly-late-for-some-ten-years-i-had-been-happily/) [Lloyd Alexander](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lloyd-alexander/) > [Talented people are finding that writing for young people is as demanding of high quality as writing for adults.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lloyd-alexander/talented-people-are-finding-that-writing-for-young-people-is-as/) [Lloyd Alexander](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lloyd-alexander/) > [“In some cases we learn more by looking for the answer to a question and not finding it than we do from learning the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lloyd-alexander/in-some-cases-we-learn-more-by-looking-for-the-answer-to-a-question/) [Lloyd Alexander](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lloyd-alexander/) > [A crown is more discomfort than adornment. If you have learned that, you have already learned much.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lloyd-alexander/a-crown-is-more-discomfort-than-adornment-if-you-have-learned-that/) [Lloyd Alexander](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lloyd-alexander/) [Explore all 220 Lloyd Alexander quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lloyd-alexander/) ## More Eating breakfast quotes > [“I worry about you. Not just about your safety. I worry when you’re stressed. I worry when you’re unhappy.” His words leveled her world.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/amber-a-bardan/i-worry-about-you-not-just-about-your-safety-i-worry-when-you-re/) Amber A. Bardan > [I want to be challenged I want to work and I want to feel that I am not being held back that there is…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sofia-vassilieva/i-want-to-be-challenged-i-want-to-work-and-i-want-to-feel-that-i-am/) [Sofia Vassilieva](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sofia-vassilieva/) > [“A clearing of a gravelly throat pulled him from his thoughts. He turned and looked at Thomas, the boat captain, who was seventy if…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/donna-kauffman/a-clearing-of-a-gravelly-throat-pulled-him-from-his-thoughts-he/) [Donna Kauffman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/donna-kauffman/) > [I'm very good about eating breakfast, lunch and dinner.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/yunjin-kim/i-m-very-good-about-eating-breakfast-lunch-and-dinner/) [Yunjin Kim](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/yunjin-kim/) > [Before you finish eating breakfast in the morning, you've depended on more than half the world. 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And I've also found that eating breakfast, like waking up and actually having…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/hayley-williams/i-stay-away-from-dairy-and-i-drink-almond-milk-now-and-i-ve-also/) [Hayley Williams](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/hayley-williams/) > [“It happened to me. And I'll never forget it. 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And I'm so not marriage material, it's terrible.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/marina-abramovic/of-course-i-dream-to-have-this-perfect-man-who-does-not-want-to/) [Marina Abramovic](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/marina-abramovic/) > [“Every time someone makes a choice, a new, parallel world branches off from the existing one. Eating breakfast or skipping it, turning left instead…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/erica-o-rourke/every-time-someone-makes-a-choice-a-new-parallel-world-branches-off/) [Erica O'Rourke](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/erica-o-rourke/) > [“What are you eating for breakfast? Go get yourself a big bowl of nos! You will be shocked at how big and strong you…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robert-d-smith/what-are-you-eating-for-breakfast-go-get-yourself-a-big-bowl-of-nos/) [Robert D. Smith](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robert-d-smith/) > [Instead of telling the world what you're eating for breakfast, you can use social networking to do something that's meaningful.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/edward-norton/instead-of-telling-the-world-what-you-re-eating-for-breakfast-you-can/) [Edward Norton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/edward-norton/) [Browse all 44 Eating breakfast quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/eating-breakfast/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "“Torrens kicked at the door until it was finally opened. The farm couple and three youngsters had been eating breakfast in the common room. The yard dog would have bounded in had not Torrens kicked the door shut. 'I want a bed. Quilts. A hot drink. I am a doctor. This woman is my patient.' The farm couple was terrified. The look on the face of Torrens cut short any questions. They did as he ordered. One of the children ran to fetch his medical kit from the cart. The woman motioned for Torrens to set Caroline on a straw pallet. The farmer kept his distance, but his wife, shyly, fearffully, ventured closer. She glanced at Torrens, as if requesting his permission to help. Between them, they made Caroline as comfortable as they could. Torrens knelt by the pallet. Caroline reached for his hand. 'Leave while you can. Do not burden yourself with me.' 'A light burden.' 'I wish you to find Augusta.' 'You have my promise.' 'Take this.' Caroline had slipped off a gold ring set with diamonds. 'It was a wedding gift from the king. It has not left my finger since then. I give it to you now - ' Torrens protested, but Caroline went on - 'not as a keepsake. You and I have better keepsakes in our hearts. I wish you to sell it. You will need money, perhaps even more than this will bring. But you must stary alive and find my child. Help her as you have always helped me.' 'We shall talk of this later, when you are better. We shall find her together.' 'You have never lied to me.' Caroline's smile was suddenly flirtacious. 'Sir, if you begin now, I shall take you to task for it.' Her face seemed to grow youthful and earnest for an instant. Torrens realized she held life only by strength of will. 'I am thinking of the Juliana gardens,' Caroline said. 'How lovely they were. The orangerie. And you, my loving friend. Tell me, could we have been happy?' 'Yes.' Torrens raised her hand to his lips. 'Yes. I am certain of it.' Caroline did not speak again. Torrens stayed at her side. She died later that morning. Torrens buried her in the shelter of a hedgerow at the far edge of the field. The farmer offered to help, but Torrens refused and dug the grave himself. Later, in the farmhouse, he slept heavily for the first time since his escape. Mercifully, he did not dream. Next day, he gave the farmer his clothing in trade for peasant garb. He hitched up the cart and drove back to the road. He could have pressed on, lost himself beyond search in the provinces. He was free. Except for his promise. 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