--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: I used to think that once you really knew…" description: "\"I used to think that once you really knew a thing, its truth would shine on forever. Now it's pretty obvious to me that more often than not the batteri..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/1b6/lucy-grealy-24985_bangs_i-used-to-think-that-once-you-really-kne_1979289.jpg" --- # I used to think that once you really knew a thing, its… ![“I used to think that once you really knew a thing, its truth would shine on forever. Now it's pretty obvious to me that more often than not the batteries fade, and sometimes what you knew even goes out with a bang when you try and call on it, just like a light bulb cracking off when you throw the…” quote by Lucy Grealy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/1b6/lucy-grealy-24985_bangs_i-used-to-think-that-once-you-really-kne_1979289.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/1b6/lucy-grealy-24985_bangs_i-used-to-think-that-once-you-really-kne_1979289.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/1b6/lucy-grealy-24985_bangs_i-used-to-think-that-once-you-really-kne_1979289.jpg) > “I used to think that once you really knew a thing, its truth would shine on forever. Now it's pretty obvious to me that more often than not the batteries fade, and sometimes what you knew even goes out with a bang when you try and call on it, just like a light bulb cracking off when you throw the switch.” [Lucy Grealy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lucy-grealy/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Knowledge can fade; what once seemed certain may suddenly break. **In simple terms:** Truths can lose power and collapse unexpectedly. Key Takeaway Accept impermanence and adapt to changing understanding. Themes knowledge impermanence illusion Mood reflective inspirational Type philosophical motivational When to use this quote - learning - career shifts - personal growth - creative projects Key Concepts epistemology psychology change management Questions to Reflect On - How do you handle sudden loss of certainty? - What strategies keep you resilient? A Different Perspective Overreliance on static knowledge is risky. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Bulbs](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/bulbs/) [Light](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/light/) [Light bulb](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/light-bulb/) [Shining](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/shining/) [Thinking](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/thinking/) [Truth](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/truth/) ## Related quotes > [That is one thing I've learned, that it is possible to really understand things at certain points, and not be able to retain them,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ann-patchett/that-is-one-thing-i-ve-learned-that-it-is-possible-to-really/) [Ann Patchett](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ann-patchett/) > [“Nobody would ever be like Fade. That much, I knew.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ann-aguirre/nobody-would-ever-be-like-fade-that-much-i-knew/) [Ann Aguirre](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ann-aguirre/) > [The first time we went to the ACMs, no one really knew who we were.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/matthew-ramsey/the-first-time-we-went-to-the-acms-no-one-really-knew-who-we-were/) [Matthew Ramsey](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/matthew-ramsey/) > [If we really knew who God created us to be we would never want to be someone else.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bill-johnson/if-we-really-knew-who-god-created-us-to-be-we-would-never-want-to-be/) [Bill Johnson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bill-johnson/) > [I miss those days when I could just walk around under the radar and no one really knew who I was until I wanted…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ej-johnson/i-miss-those-days-when-i-could-just-walk-around-under-the-radar-and/) [EJ Johnson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ej-johnson/) > [“If I thought you really cared, I’d tell you. And if you really knew me, you wouldn’t have to ask.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kate-roth/if-i-thought-you-really-cared-i-d-tell-you-and-if-you-really-knew-me/) [Kate Roth](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kate-roth/) > [In the ring, I never really knew fear.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rocky-marciano/in-the-ring-i-never-really-knew-fear/) [Rocky Marciano](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rocky-marciano/) > [“It wasn’t really, he knew, about less fear. It was about more courage.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/louise-penny/it-wasn-t-really-he-knew-about-less-fear-it-was-about-more-courage/) [Louise Penny](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/louise-penny/) > [If we really knew what God had for us, we would pray more.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/karen-wheaton/if-we-really-knew-what-god-had-for-us-we-would-pray-more/) [Karen Wheaton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/karen-wheaton/) > [“Sometimes you can love someone that you never really knew.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nancy-ann-healy/sometimes-you-can-love-someone-that-you-never-really-knew/) [Nancy Ann Healy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nancy-ann-healy/) > [Anybody that really knew Tupac will tell you the same thing. That he was just a dude that was full of life, full of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ice-cube/anybody-that-really-knew-tupac-will-tell-you-the-same-thing-that-he/) [Ice Cube](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ice-cube/) > [Perhaps if one really knew when one was happy one would know the things that were necessary in one's life.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/marion-milner/perhaps-if-one-really-knew-when-one-was-happy-one-would-know-the/) [Marion Milner](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/marion-milner/) > [“You never really knew a man, he said, until you saw him die”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/willa-cather/you-never-really-knew-a-man-he-said-until-you-saw-him-die/) [Willa Cather](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/willa-cather/) > [“Only Sebastian really knew what she was going through. Her demons, as she called them. Jessica never stopped chattering whenever they were on their…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jeffrey-archer/only-sebastian-really-knew-what-she-was-going-through-her-demons-as/) [Jeffrey Archer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jeffrey-archer/) > [“At the time no one really knew for sure that John Cropsey was more than the stuff of campfire stories. Not the townspeople, who…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stefan-dziemianowicz/at-the-time-no-one-really-knew-for-sure-that-john-cropsey-was-more/) Stefan Dziemianowicz ## More by Lucy Grealy > [Does something which exists on the edge have no true relevance to the stable center, or does it, by being on the edge, become…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lucy-grealy/does-something-which-exists-on-the-edge-have-no-true-relevance-to-the/) [Lucy Grealy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lucy-grealy/) > [“When dealing with my mother, one always had to act in a delicate and prescribed way, though the exact rules of protocol seemed to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lucy-grealy/when-dealing-with-my-mother-one-always-had-to-act-in-a-delicate-and/) [Lucy Grealy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lucy-grealy/) > [The general plot of life is sometimes shaped by the different ways genuine intelligence combines with equally genuine ignorance.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lucy-grealy/the-general-plot-of-life-is-sometimes-shaped-by-the-different-ways/) [Lucy Grealy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lucy-grealy/) > [ Through \[my friends\] I discovered what it was to love people. There was an art to it...which was not really all that different from… ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lucy-grealy/through-my-friends-i-discovered-what-it-was-to-love-people-there-was/) [Lucy Grealy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lucy-grealy/) > [Anxiety and anticipation, I was to learn, are the essential ingredients in suffering from pain, as opposed to feeling pain pure and simple.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lucy-grealy/anxiety-and-anticipation-i-was-to-learn-are-the-essential-ingredients/) [Lucy Grealy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lucy-grealy/) > [All narratives, even the confusing, are implicitly hopeful; they speak of a world that can be ordered, and thus understood.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lucy-grealy/all-narratives-even-the-confusing-are-implicitly-hopeful-they-speak/) [Lucy Grealy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lucy-grealy/) > [Partly I was honing my self-consciousness into a torture device, sharp and efficient enough to last me the rest of my life.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lucy-grealy/partly-i-was-honing-my-self-consciousness-into-a-torture-device-sharp/) [Lucy Grealy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lucy-grealy/) > [Sometimes the briefest moments capture us, force us to take them in, and demand that we live the rest of our lives in reference…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lucy-grealy/sometimes-the-briefest-moments-capture-us-force-us-to-take-them-in/) [Lucy Grealy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lucy-grealy/) > [“Reinforced to me again and again was how I was a ‘brave girl’ for not crying, a ‘good girl’ for not complaining, and soon…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lucy-grealy/reinforced-to-me-again-and-again-was-how-i-was-a-brave-girl-for-not/) [Lucy Grealy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lucy-grealy/) > [Animals were both the lives I took care of and the lives who took care of me.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lucy-grealy/animals-were-both-the-lives-i-took-care-of-and-the-lives-who-took/) [Lucy Grealy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lucy-grealy/) > [Beauty, as defined by society at large, seemed to be only about who was best at looking like everyone else.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lucy-grealy/beauty-as-defined-by-society-at-large-seemed-to-be-only-about-who-was/) [Lucy Grealy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lucy-grealy/) > [I used to think truth was eternal, that once I knew, once I saw, it would be with me forever, a constant by which…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lucy-grealy/i-used-to-think-truth-was-eternal-that-once-i-knew-once-i-saw-it/) [Lucy Grealy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lucy-grealy/) > [This singularity of meaning--I was my face, I was ugliness--though sometimes unbearable, also offered a possible point of escape. It became the launching pad…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lucy-grealy/this-singularity-of-meaning-i-was-my-face-i-was-ugliness-though/) [Lucy Grealy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lucy-grealy/) > [Part of the job of being human is to consistently underestimate our effect on other people...](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lucy-grealy/part-of-the-job-of-being-human-is-to-consistently-underestimate-our/) [Lucy Grealy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lucy-grealy/) > [“The school year progressed slowly. I felt as if I had been in the sixth grade for years, yet it was only October. Halloween…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lucy-grealy/the-school-year-progressed-slowly-i-felt-as-if-i-had-been-in-the/) [Lucy Grealy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lucy-grealy/) [Explore all 23 Lucy Grealy quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lucy-grealy/) ## More Bangs quotes > [The very first company I started failed with a great bang. The second one failed a little bit less, but still failed. The third…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/max-levchin/the-very-first-company-i-started-failed-with-a-great-bang-the-second/) [Max Levchin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/max-levchin/) > [Between the idea And the reality Between the motion And the act Falls the Shadow For Thine is the Kingdom Between the conception And…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/between-the-idea-and-the-reality-between-the-motion-and-the-act-falls/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [About 120 million of us place the big bang 2,500 years after the Babylonians and Sumerians learned to brew beer. If our polls are…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sam-harris/about-120-million-of-us-place-the-big-bang-2-500-years-after-the/) [Sam Harris](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sam-harris/) > [And you've actually watched it yourself?' I asked. 'Willingly?' Sure. I had to see it, you know? Besides we should be safe. Only one…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/scott-westerfeld/and-you-ve-actually-watched-it-yourself-i-asked-willingly-sure-i-had/) [Scott Westerfeld](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/scott-westerfeld/) > [He owned an expensive camera that required thought before you pressed the shutter, and I quickly became his favorite subject, round-faced, missing teeth, my…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jhumpa-lahiri/he-owned-an-expensive-camera-that-required-thought-before-you-pressed/) [Jhumpa Lahiri](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jhumpa-lahiri/) > [Tune your television to any channel it doesn't receive and about 1 percent of the dancing static you see is accounted for by this…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bill-bryson/tune-your-television-to-any-channel-it-doesn-t-receive-and-about-1/) [Bill Bryson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bill-bryson/) > [Insect politics, indifferent universe. Bang your head against the wall, but apathy is worse.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/don-henley/insect-politics-indifferent-universe-bang-your-head-against-the-wall/) [Don Henley](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/don-henley/) > [When people can't abide things as they are, when they can't abide the present, they do one of two things ... either they ...…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/edward-albee/when-people-can-t-abide-things-as-they-are-when-they-can-t-abide-the/) [Edward Albee](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/edward-albee/) > [I give money to Unicef because I like the 'bang for your buck' aspect. Here's $10, go and save 1,000 kids from blindness!](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/emo-philips/i-give-money-to-unicef-because-i-like-the-bang-for-your-buck-aspect/) [Emo Philips](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/emo-philips/) > [how can he love me then not? He went,he ran. And I cannot bring him back. Yet I left the door metaphorically wide open,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/freya-north/how-can-he-love-me-then-not-he-went-he-ran-and-i-cannot-bring-him/) [Freya North](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/freya-north/) > [ Bill Prady and Chuck Lorre, the guys who run that show \[Big Bang Theory\], are really funny and really smart, and the cast is… ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/brent-spiner/bill-prady-and-chuck-lorre-the-guys-who-run-that-show-big-bang-theory/) [Brent Spiner](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/brent-spiner/) > [Working on television is like being shot out of a cannon. They cram you all up with rehearsals, then someone lights a fuse and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tallulah-bankhead/working-on-television-is-like-being-shot-out-of-a-cannon-they-cram/) [Tallulah Bankhead](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tallulah-bankhead/) > [Everybody was going along thinking that it was a day like any other day, and bang, down went the Twin Towers. Changed everything. So…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/margaret-atwood/everybody-was-going-along-thinking-that-it-was-a-day-like-any-other/) [Margaret Atwood](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/margaret-atwood/) > [I don't trust anyone who hasn't been self-destructiv e in some way, and who hasn't gone through some sort of bout of self-loathing. You've…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/johnny-depp/i-don-t-trust-anyone-who-hasn-t-been-self-destructiv-e-in-some-way/) [Johnny Depp](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/johnny-depp/) > [She folded her arms and then shouted, "Right you thieving scunners! How dare you steal Miss Treason's funeral meats!" "Oh, waily, waily, it's the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/terry-pratchett/she-folded-her-arms-and-then-shouted-right-you-thieving-scunners-how/) [Terry Pratchett](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/terry-pratchett/) Browse all 462 Bangs quotes ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "I used to think that once you really knew a thing, its truth would shine on forever. 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