---
title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: when we were strangers, I liked you from…"
description: "\"“when we were strangers, I liked you from afar when we were lovers, I loved you with all my heart”\" — neil young"
image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/cf7/neil-young-969_love_when-we-were-strangers-i-liked-you-from_1311732.jpg"
---

#  when we were strangers, I liked you from afar when we were…

![“when we were strangers, I liked you from afar when we were lovers, I loved you with all my heart” quote by neil young](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/cf7/neil-young-969_love_when-we-were-strangers-i-liked-you-from_1311732.jpg)   [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/cf7/neil-young-969_love_when-we-were-strangers-i-liked-you-from_1311732.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/cf7/neil-young-969_love_when-we-were-strangers-i-liked-you-from_1311732.jpg)

> ““when we were strangers, I liked you from afar when we were lovers, I loved you with all my heart””

[neil young](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/neil-young/)

## About This Quote

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

Love evolves from distant admiration to deep affection over time.

**In simple terms:** Love deepens with closeness.

Key Takeaway

Cherish growing connections.

Themes

love growth relationship

Mood

nostalgic romantic

Type

lyyrical reflective

When to use this quote

- personal relationships
- long‑term partnerships

Key Concepts

emotional development romantic journey

Questions to Reflect On

- What triggers the shift from admiration to love?
- How can you nurture evolving relationships?

★ ★ ★ ★ ★   No ratings yet

[Love](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/love/)

## Related quotes

> [“Lovers had loved before, and lovers would love again; but no lover had ever loved, might, could, would, or should ever love, as I…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/charles-dickens/lovers-had-loved-before-and-lovers-would-love-again-but-no-lover-had/)

[Charles Dickens](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/charles-dickens/)

> [Your own love story? Your paramour may have had lovers before you. But no one has ever loved him the way you do. No…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/emma-forrest/your-own-love-story-your-paramour-may-have-had-lovers-before-you-but/)

[Emma Forrest](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/emma-forrest/)

> [“my mind whispers to itself all those lovers but none of them loved you”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/r-h-sin/my-mind-whispers-to-itself-all-those-lovers-but-none-of-them-loved-you/)

[R.H. Sin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/r-h-sin/)

> [“Even if she loved him with all her heart, it would still be the love of a dead woman.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jean-paul-sartre/even-if-she-loved-him-with-all-her-heart-it-would-still-be-the-love/)

[Jean-Paul Sartre](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jean-paul-sartre/)

> [I have loved another with all my heart, and for me that has always been enough.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nicholas-sparks/i-have-loved-another-with-all-my-heart-and-for-me-that-has-always/)

[Nicholas Sparks](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nicholas-sparks/)

> [“If he never loved her the way she loved him, it was going to be okay. It was truly better to have loved and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lori-wilde/if-he-never-loved-her-the-way-she-loved-him-it-was-going-to-be-okay/)

[Lori Wilde](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lori-wilde/)

> [Don't panic to love and to be loved though heart been broken once, may be someday you gonna find the person who joins every…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gyalbu-lama/don-t-panic-to-love-and-to-be-loved-though-heart-been-broken-once-may/)

Gyalbu Lama

> [Every person that you love takes a piece of your heart with you when they leave. That's why your first love is the realest…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/emily-ruth-penning/every-person-that-you-love-takes-a-piece-of-your-heart-with-you-when/)

Emily Ruth Penning

> [“Anyone i had ever loved-in my heart,not just in my flesh or in my mind,i still loved.They had remained with me in some way…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/anyone-i-had-ever-loved-in-my-heart-not-just-in-my-flesh-or-in-my/)

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

> [“She had never seen a man become truly choked up with emotion, but her beautiful music destroyed Riley’s tough steel walls. Right now, with…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/leslie-d-stuart/she-had-never-seen-a-man-become-truly-choked-up-with-emotion-but-her/)

Leslie D. Stuart

> [I loved you with all my heart. I would have walked the end of the world for you, to show you my strong love…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lana-goodrich/i-loved-you-with-all-my-heart-i-would-have-walked-the-end-of-the/)

Lana Goodrich

> [The only part of me I ever loved was the heart that you're in.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/caitlin-b/the-only-part-of-me-i-ever-loved-was-the-heart-that-you-re-in/)

Caitlin B

> [“I loved Jem- she said- I love him still, and he loved me, but i'm nobody's Will. My heart is my own. It is…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/cassandra-clare/i-loved-jem-she-said-i-love-him-still-and-he-loved-me-but-i-m-nobody/)

[Cassandra Clare](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/cassandra-clare/)

> [I never knew up to that time that God loved us so much. This heart of mine began to thaw out; I could not…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dwight-l-moody/i-never-knew-up-to-that-time-that-god-loved-us-so-much-this-heart-of/)

[Dwight L. Moody](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dwight-l-moody/)

> [Sweetness of love is to be loved by the one whom your heart desire](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/junior-d-r-l-testament/sweetness-of-love-is-to-be-loved-by-the-one-whom-your-heart-desire/)

Junior Dè Rèál Testament

## More by neil young

> [A lot of people that buy vinyl today don’t realise that they’re listening to CD masters on vinyl and that’s because the record companies…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/neil-young/a-lot-of-people-that-buy-vinyl-today-don-t-realise-that-they-re/)

[Neil Young](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/neil-young/)

> [Let's roll for justice, let's roll for truth. Let's not let our children grow up fearful in their youth.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/neil-young/let-s-roll-for-justice-let-s-roll-for-truth-let-s-not-let-our/)

[Neil Young](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/neil-young/)

> [Don't feel like Satan, but I am to them. And I try to forgive them anyway I can.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/neil-young/don-t-feel-like-satan-but-i-am-to-them-and-i-try-to-forgive-them/)

[Neil Young](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/neil-young/)

> [I never knew a man could tell so many lies, he had a different story for every set of eyes. How can he remember…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/neil-young/i-never-knew-a-man-could-tell-so-many-lies-he-had-a-different-story/)

[Neil Young](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/neil-young/)

> [It's the woman in you that makes you want to play this game.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/neil-young/it-s-the-woman-in-you-that-makes-you-want-to-play-this-game/)

[Neil Young](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/neil-young/)

> [Keep it moving. Don't hoard. Money's no good, get rid of it. Turn it into people doing things. Turn it into jobs. Turn it…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/neil-young/keep-it-moving-don-t-hoard-money-s-no-good-get-rid-of-it-turn-it-into/)

[Neil Young](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/neil-young/)

> [My dad passed away...and suddenly I found myself at the top of the tree and looking at the sky instead of at my mom…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/neil-young/my-dad-passed-away-and-suddenly-i-found-myself-at-the-top-of-the-tree/)

[Neil Young](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/neil-young/)

> [The Arabic states have to be integrated into the Iraqi reconstruction. We need the help of the Arabic community, which understands its culture. Americans…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/neil-young/the-arabic-states-have-to-be-integrated-into-the-iraqi-reconstruction/)

[Neil Young](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/neil-young/)

> [Said the condor to the preying mantis, we're gonna lose this place just like we lost Atlantis.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/neil-young/said-the-condor-to-the-preying-mantis-we-re-gonna-lose-this-place/)

[Neil Young](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/neil-young/)

> [With Crazy Horse, it's all one big, growing, smoldering sound, and I'm part of it. It's like gliding, or some sort of natural surfing.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/neil-young/with-crazy-horse-it-s-all-one-big-growing-smoldering-sound-and-i-m/)

[Neil Young](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/neil-young/)

> [It doesn't mean that much to me to mean that much to you.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/neil-young/it-doesn-t-mean-that-much-to-me-to-mean-that-much-to-you/)

[Neil Young](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/neil-young/)

> [Cocaine eyes won't hide your face.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/neil-young/cocaine-eyes-won-t-hide-your-face/)

[Neil Young](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/neil-young/)

> [Now I'm livin' out here on the beach, but those seagulls are still out of reach.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/neil-young/now-i-m-livin-out-here-on-the-beach-but-those-seagulls-are-still-out/)

[Neil Young](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/neil-young/)

> [I've always been better moving than I am standing still.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/neil-young/i-ve-always-been-better-moving-than-i-am-standing-still/)

[Neil Young](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/neil-young/)

> [Don't think. The worst songs I've ever written happen when I think.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/neil-young/don-t-think-the-worst-songs-i-ve-ever-written-happen-when-i-think/)

[Neil Young](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/neil-young/)

[Explore all 317 neil young quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/neil-young/)

## More Love quotes

> [Whatever meaning 'Annie's Song' had for me on a personal level, there was also a larger context. It could just as easily have been…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-denver/whatever-meaning-annie-s-song-had-for-me-on-a-personal-level-there/)

[John Denver](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-denver/)

> [Life is full of change. That's how we learn and grow.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/life-is-full-of-change-that-s-how-we-learn-and-grow/)

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

> [I need a bath." He chuckled. "You smell of smoke, as do I." The duke turned, leaning heavily on his cane. "Jameson, open the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/karen-hawkins/i-need-a-bath-he-chuckled-you-smell-of-smoke-as-do-i-the-duke-turned/)

[Karen Hawkins](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/karen-hawkins/)

> [I love going to Columbia, Missouri. That is a really underrated campus. It shocked me when I went there because I really didn't know…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kirk-herbstreit/i-love-going-to-columbia-missouri-that-is-a-really-underrated-campus/)

[Kirk Herbstreit](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kirk-herbstreit/)

> [Life works most perfectly when a reciprocal love relationship is in place between man and God.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/beth-moore/life-works-most-perfectly-when-a-reciprocal-love-relationship-is-in/)

[Beth Moore](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/beth-moore/)

> [We talk to God--that is prayer; God talks to us--that is inspiration.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/h-emilie-cady/we-talk-to-god-that-is-prayer-god-talks-to-us-that-is-inspiration/)

[H. Emilie Cady](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/h-emilie-cady/)

> [I fell in love with social work, and that was my undoing as a poet.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/carl-rakosi/i-fell-in-love-with-social-work-and-that-was-my-undoing-as-a-poet/)

[Carl Rakosi](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/carl-rakosi/)

> [You cant be controlling in improv.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/matt-walsh/you-cant-be-controlling-in-improv/)

[Matt Walsh](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/matt-walsh/)

> [Everyone needs someone to love, and I choose you.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/everyone-needs-someone-to-love-and-i-choose-you/)

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

> [I think, here's what I've realized from interviewing people, and I've been very open about my Catholicism and my love of Christ and I…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jay-mohr/i-think-here-s-what-i-ve-realized-from-interviewing-people-and-i-ve/)

[Jay Mohr](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jay-mohr/)

> [“To be loved by a man, truly loved, made a woman feel as if she could burst. Of course, Lia was strong and could…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/melody-anne/to-be-loved-by-a-man-truly-loved-made-a-woman-feel-as-if-she-could/)

[Melody Anne](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/melody-anne/)

> [So when you take those tears, don't look to see I'm alright. …\*Seal - Violet](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/eric-nickel/so-when-you-take-those-tears-don-t-look-to-see-i-m-alright-seal-violet/)

[Eric Nickel](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/eric-nickel/)

> [Two things revolutionised life: moving to the countryside and falling in love.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nick-love/two-things-revolutionised-life-moving-to-the-countryside-and-falling/)

[Nick Love](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nick-love/)

> [“That horrible stinging sensation returned, the muscles behind my eyes straining as the first tear began to fall. “I’m scared, too. For eighteen months…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/devon-ashley/that-horrible-stinging-sensation-returned-the-muscles-behind-my-eyes/)

[Devon Ashley](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/devon-ashley/)

> [I could program a 'fabulous, I love it' kind of hit season right now. I'm more interested in breaking boundaries, telling a story, defying…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-c-wolfe/i-could-program-a-fabulous-i-love-it-kind-of-hit-season-right-now-i-m/)

[George C. Wolfe](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-c-wolfe/)

[Browse all 233,035 Love quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/love/)

```json
{
    "@context": "https://schema.org",
    "@graph": [
        {
            "@type": "Quotation",
            "text": "“when we were strangers, I liked you from afar when we were lovers, I loved you with all my heart”",
            "creator": {
                "@type": "Person",
                "name": "neil young"
            },
            "isPartOf": {
                "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website"
            },
            "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/neil-young/when-we-were-strangers-i-liked-you-from-afar-when-we-were-lovers-i/",
            "about": {
                "@type": "Thing",
                "name": "Love"
            },
            "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/neil-young/when-we-were-strangers-i-liked-you-from-afar-when-we-were-lovers-i/#quotation",
            "image": {
                "@type": "ImageObject",
                "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/cf7/neil-young-969_love_when-we-were-strangers-i-liked-you-from_1311732.jpg",
                "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/cf7/neil-young-969_love_when-we-were-strangers-i-liked-you-from_1311732.jpg",
                "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/cf7/neil-young-969_love_when-we-were-strangers-i-liked-you-from_1311732.jpg",
                "width": 1080,
                "height": 1080,
                "caption": "“when we were strangers, I liked you from afar when we were lovers, I loved you with all my heart” — neil young",
                "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": "neil young",
                    "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/neil-young/"
                },
                {
                    "@type": "ListItem",
                    "position": 4,
                    "name": "“when we were strangers, I liked...",
                    "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/neil-young/when-we-were-strangers-i-liked-you-from-afar-when-we-were-lovers-i/"
                }
            ],
            "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/neil-young/when-we-were-strangers-i-liked-you-from-afar-when-we-were-lovers-i/#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
            }
        }
    ]
}
```
