--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: I am often drawn to what appear at first…" description: "\"I am often drawn to what appear at first to be 'dark' or 'difficult' subjects, but which, upon further examination, are always and only reflections of ..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/fee/marya-hornbacher-2109_dark_i-am-often-drawn-to-what-appear-at-first_1247594.jpg" --- # I am often drawn to what appear at first to be 'dark' or… ![“I am often drawn to what appear at first to be 'dark' or 'difficult' subjects, but which, upon further examination, are always and only reflections of the ways human beings attempt, however clumsily, badly, or well, to connect with others.” quote by Marya Hornbacher](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/fee/marya-hornbacher-2109_dark_i-am-often-drawn-to-what-appear-at-first_1247594.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/fee/marya-hornbacher-2109_dark_i-am-often-drawn-to-what-appear-at-first_1247594.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/fee/marya-hornbacher-2109_dark_i-am-often-drawn-to-what-appear-at-first_1247594.jpg) > “I am often drawn to what appear at first to be 'dark' or 'difficult' subjects, but which, upon further examination, are always and only reflections of the ways human beings attempt, however clumsily, badly, or well, to connect with others.” [Marya Hornbacher](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/marya-hornbacher/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. The quote highlights that seemingly negative or challenging topics often reveal humanity’s attempts to connect, despite imperfections. **In simple terms:** Hard topics show how we try to relate to others. Key Takeaway Seek empathy in difficult subjects. Themes connection vulnerability humanity psychology Mood thoughtful introspective Type philosophical psychological inspirational When to use this quote - therapy sessions - group discussions - conflict resolution - creative collaborations Key Concepts reflection interpersonal dynamics emotional intelligence Questions to Reflect On - How can we turn difficult topics into bridges? - What does empathy look like in practice? A Different Perspective Some may argue that focusing on darkness can reinforce negativity. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Dark](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/dark/) [Dark Difficult](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/dark-difficult-3919305/) [Difficult](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/difficult/) [Difficult subjects](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/difficult-subjects/) [Examination](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/examination/) [Examination Reflections](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/examination-reflections-3919306/) [Firsts](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/firsts/) [Human beings](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/human-beings/) [Humans](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/humans/) [Reflection](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/reflection/) [Reflections](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/reflections/) [Reflections Ways](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/reflections-ways-3919307/) [Self-Awareness](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/self-awareness-2/) [Subjects](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/subjects/) [Way](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/way/) [Wells](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/wells/) ## Related quotes > [Usually at the core of fiction that has some element of the absurd there tends to be an examination of some societal ills that…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/laurie-foos/usually-at-the-core-of-fiction-that-has-some-element-of-the-absurd/) [Laurie Foos](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/laurie-foos/) > [It's hard to find a book that's safe to write. Because one always goes to dark or difficult places.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joan-didion/it-s-hard-to-find-a-book-that-s-safe-to-write-because-one-always-goes/) [Joan Didion](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joan-didion/) > [“It is easy to have sex in dark but difficult to plug in your charger.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/it-is-easy-to-have-sex-in-dark-but-difficult-to-plug-in-your-charger/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [“Dark and difficult times lie ahead. Soon we must all face the choice between what is RIGHT and what is easy.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/j-k-rowling/dark-and-difficult-times-lie-ahead-soon-we-must-all-face-the-choice/) [J.K. 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Chittister](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joan-d-chittister/) > [Lobbyists are in many cases expert technicians and capable of explaining complex and difficult subjects in a clear, understandable fashion. They engage in personal…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-f-kennedy/lobbyists-are-in-many-cases-expert-technicians-and-capable-of/) [John F. Kennedy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-f-kennedy/) > [Humor is a bit like Mary Poppins' sugar-it helps the medicine go down. 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You have these incredible kids in…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/donald-trump/we-re-going-to-show-great-heart-daca-is-a-very-very-difficult/) [Donald Trump](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/donald-trump/) > [When I have a difficult subject before me - when I find the road narrow, and can see no other way of teaching a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/maimonides/when-i-have-a-difficult-subject-before-me-when-i-find-the-road-narrow/) [Maimonides](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/maimonides/) > [Economics is a very difficult subject. I've compared it to trying to learn how to repair a car when the engine is running.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ben-bernanke/economics-is-a-very-difficult-subject-i-ve-compared-it-to-trying-to/) [Ben Bernanke](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ben-bernanke/) > [The most difficult subjects can be explained to the most slow- witted man if he has not formed any idea of them already; but…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/leo-tolstoy/the-most-difficult-subjects-can-be-explained-to-the-most-slow-witted/) [Leo Tolstoy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/leo-tolstoy/) ## More by Marya Hornbacher > [“Something had been confirmed: I was worth giving a shit about; I was getting to be a successful sick person. Sick is when they…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/marya-hornbacher/something-had-been-confirmed-i-was-worth-giving-a-shit-about-i-was/) [Marya Hornbacher](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/marya-hornbacher/) > [Because I'm not, in fact, depressed, Prozac makes me manic and numb - one of the reasons I slice my arm in the first…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/marya-hornbacher/because-i-m-not-in-fact-depressed-prozac-makes-me-manic-and-numb-one/) [Marya Hornbacher](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/marya-hornbacher/) > [“perhaps our purpose is, for the time being, to be human, to live on this earth and in this human community, to receive something…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/marya-hornbacher/perhaps-our-purpose-is-for-the-time-being-to-be-human-to-live-on-this/) [Marya Hornbacher](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/marya-hornbacher/) > [I have never been normal about my body. It has always seemed to me a strange and foreign entity. 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Very…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/marya-hornbacher/at-a-certain-point-an-eating-disorder-ceases-to-be-about-any-one/) [Marya Hornbacher](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/marya-hornbacher/) > [You can't teach an ear, you can't teach talent, but you can teach people who have those things not to just fly by the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/marya-hornbacher/you-can-t-teach-an-ear-you-can-t-teach-talent-but-you-can-teach/) [Marya Hornbacher](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/marya-hornbacher/) > [It's really interesting to me how all of us can experience the exact same event, and yet come away with wildly disparate interpretations of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/marya-hornbacher/it-s-really-interesting-to-me-how-all-of-us-can-experience-the-exact/) [Marya Hornbacher](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/marya-hornbacher/) > [“Being here, living now, recognizing our smallness, is a spiritual practice. It allows us to be at peace with our humanity. It humbles us…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/marya-hornbacher/being-here-living-now-recognizing-our-smallness-is-a-spiritual/) [Marya Hornbacher](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/marya-hornbacher/) > [We think of bulimia and anorexia as either a bizarre psychosis, or as a quirky little habit, a phase, or as a thing that…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/marya-hornbacher/we-think-of-bulimia-and-anorexia-as-either-a-bizarre-psychosis-or-as/) [Marya Hornbacher](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/marya-hornbacher/) > [The anoretic operates under the astounding illusion that she can escape the flesh, and, by association, the realm of emotions.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/marya-hornbacher/the-anoretic-operates-under-the-astounding-illusion-that-she-can/) [Marya Hornbacher](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/marya-hornbacher/) > [If I had been a different sort of person, maybe less impressionable, less intense, less fearful, less utterly dependent upon the perceptions of others…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/marya-hornbacher/if-i-had-been-a-different-sort-of-person-maybe-less-impressionable/) [Marya Hornbacher](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/marya-hornbacher/) > [“Every morning I watched the sun rise and read a highly religious little meditation book and tried having a conversation with God. 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And so, wherever our love goes, there we find our soul.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mary-zimmerman/the-soul-wanders-in-the-dark-until-it-finds-love-and-so-wherever-our/) [Mary Zimmerman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mary-zimmerman/) > [“Men circle like bees around honey, buzzing to communicate their sexual despair.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/carla-h-krueger/men-circle-like-bees-around-honey-buzzing-to-communicate-their-sexual/) [Carla H Krueger](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/carla-h-krueger/) > [All comedy comes from a dark place.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/katt-williams/all-comedy-comes-from-a-dark-place/) [Katt Williams](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/katt-williams/) > [It's a really dark, emotionally wrenching world that we've created on 'The Walking Dead.'](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/laurie-holden/it-s-a-really-dark-emotionally-wrenching-world-that-we-ve-created-on/) [Laurie Holden](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/laurie-holden/) > [I get afraid of the dark if I'm in a great deal of dark, and I have to move around inside of that fear...…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/emil-ferris/i-get-afraid-of-the-dark-if-i-m-in-a-great-deal-of-dark-and-i-have-to/) [Emil Ferris](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/emil-ferris/) > [I guess he'll have to figure out someday that he is supposed to have this dark side, that it is part of what it…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anne-lamott/i-guess-he-ll-have-to-figure-out-someday-that-he-is-supposed-to-have/) [Anne Lamott](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anne-lamott/) > [“Once upon a time, there was a naïve and innocent girl who thought she could tame the beast and live happily ever after. 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