---
title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: But what distressed him greatly was not…"
description: "\"“But what distressed him greatly was not having another hermit there to confess him and to receive consolation from; and so he solaced himself with pac..."
image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/4f4/miguel-de-cervantes-saavedra-1_poetry_but-what-distressed-him-greatly-was-not_854730.jpg"
---

#  But what distressed him greatly was not having another…

![“But what distressed him greatly was not having another hermit there to confess him and to receive consolation from; and so he solaced himself with pacing up and down the little meadow, and writing and carving on the bark of trees and on the fine sand a multitude of verses all in harmony with his…” quote by Miguel de Cervantes Saavedra](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/4f4/miguel-de-cervantes-saavedra-1_poetry_but-what-distressed-him-greatly-was-not_854730.jpg)   [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/4f4/miguel-de-cervantes-saavedra-1_poetry_but-what-distressed-him-greatly-was-not_854730.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/4f4/miguel-de-cervantes-saavedra-1_poetry_but-what-distressed-him-greatly-was-not_854730.jpg)

> ““But what distressed him greatly was not having another hermit there to confess him and to receive consolation from; and so he solaced himself with pacing up and down the little meadow, and writing and carving on the bark of trees and on the fine sand a multitude of verses all in harmony with his sadness””

[Miguel de Cervantes Saavedra](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/miguel-de-cervantes-saavedra/)

## About This Quote

This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation.

Isolation leads him to seek solace in nature and creative expression, turning sadness into verses.

**In simple terms:** He copes with loneliness by writing poetry in nature.

Key Takeaway

Channel solitude into creative outlets.

Themes

loneliness creativity solace nature expression

Mood

melancholic hopeful

Type

literary inspirational

When to use this quote

- walking in nature
- writing poetry
- carving verses
- self‑reflection

Key Concepts

psychology of grief artistic catharsis spiritual seeking

Questions to Reflect On

- How do you transform sadness into art?
- What role does nature play in healing?

A Different Perspective

Isolation can also foster deeper insight; not all solitude is negative.

★ ★ ★ ★ ★   No ratings yet

[Consolation](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/consolation/) [Consolation Solaced](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/consolation-solaced-786876/) [Distressed Greatly](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/distressed-greatly-786879/) [Hermit Confess](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/hermit-confess-786877/) [Mind](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/mind/) [Poetry](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/poetry/) [Receive Consolation](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/receive-consolation-786878/) [Sadness](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/sadness/) [Writing](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/writing/)

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> [The day has the color and the sound of winter. Thoughts turn to chowder...chowder breathes reassurance. It steams consolation.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/clementine-paddleford/the-day-has-the-color-and-the-sound-of-winter-thoughts-turn-to/)

[Clementine Paddleford](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/clementine-paddleford/)

> [Books, which we mistake for consolation, only add depth to our sorrow.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/orhan-pamuk/books-which-we-mistake-for-consolation-only-add-depth-to-our-sorrow/)

[Orhan Pamuk](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/orhan-pamuk/)

> [Perhaps the greatest consolation of the oppressed is to consider themselves superior to their tyrants.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/julien-green/perhaps-the-greatest-consolation-of-the-oppressed-is-to-consider/)

[Julien Green](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/julien-green/)

> [The slave and those whose present life is miserable and who can find no consolation in the heavens are assured that at least the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/albert-camus/the-slave-and-those-whose-present-life-is-miserable-and-who-can-find/)

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> [But there are times when men have serious thoughts, and it is at such times, when they begin to think, that they begin to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/thomas-paine/but-there-are-times-when-men-have-serious-thoughts-and-it-is-at-such/)

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> [It is part of God's plan for us that Christ shall come to us in everyone; it is in their particular role that we…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/caryll-houselander/it-is-part-of-god-s-plan-for-us-that-christ-shall-come-to-us-in/)

[Caryll Houselander](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/caryll-houselander/)

> [I had thought that growing up's consolation was that you could escape from the arbitrariness of things, that somehow one acquired more control. Now…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/janice-galloway/i-had-thought-that-growing-up-s-consolation-was-that-you-could-escape/)

[Janice Galloway](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/janice-galloway/)

> [I understand that it's the music that keeps me alive... That's my lifeblood. And to give that up for, like, the TV, the cars,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bruce-springsteen/i-understand-that-it-s-the-music-that-keeps-me-alive-that-s-my/)

[Bruce Springsteen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bruce-springsteen/)

## More by Miguel de Cervantes Saavedra

> [“Whether thus adorned she would have been beautiful or not, and what she must have been in her prosperity, may be imagined from the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/miguel-de-cervantes-saavedra/whether-thus-adorned-she-would-have-been-beautiful-or-not-and-what/)

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> [“To give expression to humour, and write in a strain of graceful pleasantry, is the gift of great geniuses. The cleverest character in comedy…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/miguel-de-cervantes-saavedra/to-give-expression-to-humour-and-write-in-a-strain-of-graceful/)

[Miguel de Cervantes Saavedra](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/miguel-de-cervantes-saavedra/)

> [“Rocinante felt the desire to pleasure himself with the ladies, and as soon as he picked up their scent he abandoned his natural ways…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/miguel-de-cervantes-saavedra/rocinante-felt-the-desire-to-pleasure-himself-with-the-ladies-and-as/)

[Miguel de Cervantes Saavedra](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/miguel-de-cervantes-saavedra/)

> [“If all, or almost all, the plays that are popular now, imaginative works as well as historical ones, are known to be nonsense and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/miguel-de-cervantes-saavedra/if-all-or-almost-all-the-plays-that-are-popular-now-imaginative-works/)

[Miguel de Cervantes Saavedra](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/miguel-de-cervantes-saavedra/)

> [“... truth, whose mother is history, who is the rival of time, depository of deeds, witness of the past, example and lesson to the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/miguel-de-cervantes-saavedra/truth-whose-mother-is-history-who-is-the-rival-of-time-depository-of/)

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> [“his wits being quite gone, he hit upon the strangest notion that ever madman in this world hit upon, and that was that he…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/miguel-de-cervantes-saavedra/his-wits-being-quite-gone-he-hit-upon-the-strangest-notion-that-ever/)

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> [“Ésa es natural condición de mujeres -dijo don Quijote-: desdeñar a quien las quiere y amar a quien las aborrece. Pasa adelante, Sancho.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/miguel-de-cervantes-saavedra/sa-es-natural-condici-n-de-mujeres-dijo-don-quijote-desde-ar-a-quien/)

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> [“…que hay dos maneras de hermosura: una del alma y otra del cuerpo; la del alma campea y se muestra en el entendimiento, en…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/miguel-de-cervantes-saavedra/que-hay-dos-maneras-de-hermosura-una-del-alma-y-otra-del-cuerpo-la/)

[Miguel de Cervantes Saavedra](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/miguel-de-cervantes-saavedra/)

> [“But what made him still more fortunate, as he said himself, was having a daughter of such exceeding beauty, rare intelligence, gracefulness, and virtue,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/miguel-de-cervantes-saavedra/but-what-made-him-still-more-fortunate-as-he-said-himself-was-having/)

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[Miguel De Cervantes Saavedra](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/miguel-de-cervantes-saavedra/)

> [“A good joke, that!" returned Don Quixote. "Books that have been printed with the king's licence, and with the approbation of those to whom…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/miguel-de-cervantes-saavedra/a-good-joke-that-returned-don-quixote-books-that-have-been-printed/)

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[Thomas Cogswell Upham](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/thomas-cogswell-upham/)

> [Solitude was my only consolation - deep, dark, deathlike solitude.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/solitude-was-my-only-consolation-deep-dark-deathlike-solitude/)

[Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/)

> [I have the consolation of leaving your kingdom in the highest degree of glory and of reputation.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/cardinal-richelieu/i-have-the-consolation-of-leaving-your-kingdom-in-the-highest-degree/)

[Cardinal Richelieu](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/cardinal-richelieu/)

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[Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/)

> [Thinking about suicide is a potent consolation: it helps us to get through many a bad night.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/friedrich-nietzsche/thinking-about-suicide-is-a-potent-consolation-it-helps-us-to-get/)

[Friedrich Nietzsche](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/friedrich-nietzsche/)

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