--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: Water was a strange substance, like…" description: "\"“Water was a strange substance, like memory - much to push against, but nothing solid to hang on to.”\" — Miranda Beverly-Whittemore" image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/55a/miranda-beverly-whittemore-463_memory_water-was-a-strange-substance-like-memor_1223783.jpg" --- # Water was a strange substance, like memory - much to push… ![“Water was a strange substance, like memory - much to push against, but nothing solid to hang on to.” quote by Miranda Beverly-Whittemore](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/55a/miranda-beverly-whittemore-463_memory_water-was-a-strange-substance-like-memor_1223783.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/55a/miranda-beverly-whittemore-463_memory_water-was-a-strange-substance-like-memor_1223783.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/55a/miranda-beverly-whittemore-463_memory_water-was-a-strange-substance-like-memor_1223783.jpg) > ““Water was a strange substance, like memory - much to push against, but nothing solid to hang on to.”” [Miranda Beverly-Whittemore](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/miranda-beverly-whittemore/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Memory is likened to water: fluid, elusive, and difficult to grasp, offering resistance without solidity. **In simple terms:** Memory is fluid and hard to hold onto. Key Takeaway Accept the fleeting nature of memory. Themes memory perception fluidity Mood thoughtful philosophical Type literary metaphorical When to use this quote - Learning - therapy - creative writing - personal reflection Key Concepts Ephemerality cognitive psychology metaphor Questions to Reflect On - How do you anchor ideas when memory is unstable? A Different Perspective Can fluid memory be a source of strength? ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Memory](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/memory/) [Water](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/water/) ## Related quotes > [“Water is strange stuff. It is formless and transparent, and yet we long to be beside it. It has no taste and yet we…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bill-bryson/water-is-strange-stuff-it-is-formless-and-transparent-and-yet-we-long/) [Bill Bryson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bill-bryson/) > [Memory is like fiction; or else it's fiction that's like memory. This really came home to me once I started writing fiction, that memory…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/haruki-murakami/memory-is-like-fiction-or-else-it-s-fiction-that-s-like-memory-this/) [Haruki Murakami](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/haruki-murakami/) > [Nothing prevents happiness like the memory of happiness.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/andre-gide/nothing-prevents-happiness-like-the-memory-of-happiness/) [Andre Gide](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/andre-gide/) > [Literature, like memory, selects only the vivid patches.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/t-e-hulme/literature-like-memory-selects-only-the-vivid-patches/) [T. E. Hulme](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/t-e-hulme/) > [I'd like the memory of me to be a happy one. I'd like to leave an afterglow of smiles when life is done. I'd…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/helen-lowrie-marshall/i-d-like-the-memory-of-me-to-be-a-happy-one-i-d-like-to-leave-an/) Helen Lowrie Marshall > [The human brain is like a memory system that records every thing that happens to us and makes intelligent predictions based on those experiences.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/daniel-tammet/the-human-brain-is-like-a-memory-system-that-records-every-thing-that/) [Daniel Tammet](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/daniel-tammet/) > [“Imagination, like memory, can transform lies to truth.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/christina-garcia/imagination-like-memory-can-transform-lies-to-truth/) Christina Garcia > [“There’s nothing like the memory of a lost friend to remind a man of his own mortality.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-j-winters/there-s-nothing-like-the-memory-of-a-lost-friend-to-remind-a-man-of/) John J. Winters > [Memory is like fiction; or else it's fiction that's like memory.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/haruki-murakami/memory-is-like-fiction-or-else-it-s-fiction-that-s-like-memory/) [Haruki Murakami](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/haruki-murakami/) > [I always find that nostalgia is sort of like memory without the pain. And that's why it feels so good to kind of bask…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/carrie-brownstein/i-always-find-that-nostalgia-is-sort-of-like-memory-without-the-pain/) [Carrie Brownstein](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/carrie-brownstein/) > [“Memory is like fiction; or else it's fiction that's like memory. This really came home to me once I started writing fiction, that memory…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/haruki-murakami/memory-is-like-fiction-or-else-it-s-fiction-that-s-like-memory-this-2/) [Haruki Murakami](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/haruki-murakami/) > [“But you play that passage like it's the -memory- of love. You're so young, yet you know desertion, abandonment. That's why you play that…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kazuo-ishiguro/but-you-play-that-passage-like-it-s-the-memory-of-love-you-re-so/) [Kazuo Ishiguro](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kazuo-ishiguro/) > [In the morning, when the nothing vase casts a something shadow, like the memory of someone you've lost, what can you say about that?](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jonathan-safran-foer/in-the-morning-when-the-nothing-vase-casts-a-something-shadow-like/) [Jonathan Safran Foer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jonathan-safran-foer/) > [ “\[HAMILTON\] I imagine death so much it feels more like a memory” ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lin-manuel-miranda/hamilton-i-imagine-death-so-much-it-feels-more-like-a-memory/) [Lin-Manuel Miranda](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lin-manuel-miranda/) > [One can say that the city itself is the collective memory of its people, and like memory it is associated with objects and places.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/aldo-rossi/one-can-say-that-the-city-itself-is-the-collective-memory-of-its/) Aldo Rossi ## More by Miranda Beverly-Whittemore > [“Most people believe the apple merely represented Knowledge. But we know better. It was the Fruit of the Tree of Knowledge of Good and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/miranda-beverly-whittemore/most-people-believe-the-apple-merely-represented-knowledge-but-we/) [Miranda Beverly-Whittemore](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/miranda-beverly-whittemore/) > [“No pierdas el tiempo teniendo miedo del amor.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/miranda-beverly-whittemore/no-pierdas-el-tiempo-teniendo-miedo-del-amor/) [Miranda Beverly-Whittemore](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/miranda-beverly-whittemore/) > [“I had no idea everyone feels this way—that the most essential part of growing up is figuring out where your empty places are and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/miranda-beverly-whittemore/i-had-no-idea-everyone-feels-this-way-that-the-most-essential-part-of/) [Miranda Beverly-Whittemore](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/miranda-beverly-whittemore/) > [“The truth is neither good nor bad. It is above evil. Above morality. It doesn’t offer anything besides itself.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/miranda-beverly-whittemore/the-truth-is-neither-good-nor-bad-it-is-above-evil-above-morality-it/) [Miranda Beverly-Whittemore](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/miranda-beverly-whittemore/) > [“Don’t feel ashamed, girl,” she said, answering my thoughts. “The truth is a noble grail to seek. But if you’re after it, you must…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/miranda-beverly-whittemore/don-t-feel-ashamed-girl-she-said-answering-my-thoughts-the-truth-is-a/) [Miranda Beverly-Whittemore](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/miranda-beverly-whittemore/) [Explore all 6 Miranda Beverly-Whittemore quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/miranda-beverly-whittemore/) ## More Memory quotes > [I was 3-years-old - to this day it is a vivid memory. My family and I were on a boat, catching fish. As one…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joaquin-phoenix/i-was-3-years-old-to-this-day-it-is-a-vivid-memory-my-family-and-i/) [Joaquin Phoenix](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joaquin-phoenix/) > [“Maybe there is something when it all ends. Maybe there is memory, memory of the person you loved, when you lived. Maybe this is…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kate-ellison/maybe-there-is-something-when-it-all-ends-maybe-there-is-memory/) [Kate Ellison](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kate-ellison/) > [In literature and art memory is a synonym for invention. It is the life-blood of imagination, which faints and dies when the veins are…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robert-aris-willmott/in-literature-and-art-memory-is-a-synonym-for-invention-it-is-the/) [Robert Aris Willmott](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robert-aris-willmott/) > [Memory is funny. Once you hit a vein the problem is not how to remember but how to control the flow.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tobias-wolff/memory-is-funny-once-you-hit-a-vein-the-problem-is-not-how-to/) [Tobias Wolff](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tobias-wolff/) > [Once upon a time. Ah forget it.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/once-upon-a-time-ah-forget-it/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [I am told many children block out the memory of trauma. In fact, the healing process can only truly begin when we are willing…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/phoebe-stone/i-am-told-many-children-block-out-the-memory-of-trauma-in-fact-the/) [Phoebe Stone](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/phoebe-stone/) > [“The whole town rushed outside to celebrate this crowded minute when the time of suffering had ended and the time of forgetting had not…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/albert-camus/the-whole-town-rushed-outside-to-celebrate-this-crowded-minute-when/) [Albert Camus](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/albert-camus/) > [I have a memory like an elephant. I remember every elephant I've ever met.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/herb-caen/i-have-a-memory-like-an-elephant-i-remember-every-elephant-i-ve-ever/) [Herb Caen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/herb-caen/) > [Your memory is a monster; you forget - it doesn't. It simply files things away. It keeps things for you, or hides things from…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-irving/your-memory-is-a-monster-you-forget-it-doesn-t-it-simply-files-things/) [John Irving](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-irving/) > [My first Olympics memory was watching Haile Gebrselassie in Sydney 2000. His sprint finish to defend his title really moved me.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mo-farah/my-first-olympics-memory-was-watching-haile-gebrselassie-in-sydney/) [Mo Farah](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mo-farah/) > [That old man dies prematurely whose memory records no benefits conferred. They only have lived long who have lived virtuously.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/richard-brinsley-sheridan/that-old-man-dies-prematurely-whose-memory-records-no-benefits/) [Richard Brinsley Sheridan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/richard-brinsley-sheridan/) > [My greatest memories as a kid were playing sports with my dad and watching sports with my dad.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mark-teixeira/my-greatest-memories-as-a-kid-were-playing-sports-with-my-dad-and/) [Mark Teixeira](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mark-teixeira/) > [What’s the use of remembering anything? If it was unpleasant it was unpleasant and if it was pleasant it’s over.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/elaine-dundy/what-s-the-use-of-remembering-anything-if-it-was-unpleasant-it-was/) [Elaine Dundy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/elaine-dundy/) > [Always remember a little thing can change everything.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/always-remember-a-little-thing-can-change-everything/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [If God knows me I will never forget him](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/trunxbeats/if-god-knows-me-i-will-never-forget-him/) Trunxbeats [Browse all 12,248 Memory quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/memory/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "“Water was a strange substance, like memory - much to push against, but nothing solid to hang on to.”", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "Miranda Beverly-Whittemore" }, "isPartOf": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website" }, "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/miranda-beverly-whittemore/water-was-a-strange-substance-like-memory-much-to-push-against-but/", "about": { "@type": "Thing", "name": "Memory" }, "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/miranda-beverly-whittemore/water-was-a-strange-substance-like-memory-much-to-push-against-but/#quotation", "image": { "@type": "ImageObject", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/55a/miranda-beverly-whittemore-463_memory_water-was-a-strange-substance-like-memor_1223783.jpg", "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/55a/miranda-beverly-whittemore-463_memory_water-was-a-strange-substance-like-memor_1223783.jpg", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/55a/miranda-beverly-whittemore-463_memory_water-was-a-strange-substance-like-memor_1223783.jpg", "width": 1080, "height": 1080, "caption": "“Water was a strange substance, like memory - much to push against, but nothing solid to hang on to.” — Miranda Beverly-Whittemore", "creditText": "SMS4Smile Quotes", "creator": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization" } } }, { "@type": "BreadcrumbList", "itemListElement": [ { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 1, "name": "Home", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 2, "name": "Quotes", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 3, "name": "Miranda Beverly-Whittemore", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/miranda-beverly-whittemore/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 4, "name": "“Water was a strange substance, like...", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/miranda-beverly-whittemore/water-was-a-strange-substance-like-memory-much-to-push-against-but/" } ], "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/miranda-beverly-whittemore/water-was-a-strange-substance-like-memory-much-to-push-against-but/#breadcrumb" }, { "@type": "WebSite", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website", "name": "SMS4Smile Quotes", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/", "publisher": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization" } }, { "@type": "Organization", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization", "name": "SMS4Smile Quotes", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/", "logo": { "@type": "ImageObject", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/wp-content/themes/sq/assets/icons/icon-512.png", "width": 512, "height": 512 } } ] } ```