--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: It was about the preciousness of that…" description: "\"It was about the preciousness of that, and how they viewed those birds as art, as something valuable. I didn't care one way or another back then, but n..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/64a/nick-cave-1153_alive_it-was-about-the-preciousness-of-that-an_2855303.jpg" --- # It was about the preciousness of that, and how they viewed… ![“It was about the preciousness of that, and how they viewed those birds as art, as something valuable. I didn't care one way or another back then, but now, thinking about my grandparents - who are still alive but getting older - I see the birds as sort of time capsules. Now I go home during the…” quote by Nick Cave](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/64a/nick-cave-1153_alive_it-was-about-the-preciousness-of-that-an_2855303.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/64a/nick-cave-1153_alive_it-was-about-the-preciousness-of-that-an_2855303.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/64a/nick-cave-1153_alive_it-was-about-the-preciousness-of-that-an_2855303.jpg) > “It was about the preciousness of that, and how they viewed those birds as art, as something valuable. I didn't care one way or another back then, but now, thinking about my grandparents - who are still alive but getting older - I see the birds as sort of time capsules. Now I go home during the holidays and they hold a lot of weight in terms of nostalgia and memory. Now they mean everything.” [Nick Cave](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nick-cave/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. The speaker reflects on how birds, once seen as mere art, become treasured symbols of memory and family legacy over time. **In simple terms:** Birds become cherished symbols of family and memory. Key Takeaway Value memories and share them with loved ones. Themes nostalgia family memory legacy art Mood reflective sentimental warm Type personal emotional philosophical When to use this quote - holiday gatherings - family storytelling - preserving heirlooms - reflecting on aging relatives - creating personal rituals Key Concepts symbolism time emotional attachment Questions to Reflect On - How do you keep memories alive without clinging to the past? - What rituals help you honor aging relatives? A Different Perspective Nostalgia can idealize the past, obscuring present realities. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Alive](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/alive/) [Art](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/art/) [Bird](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/bird/) [Birds Art](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/birds-art-2151594/) [Care](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/care/) [Getting old](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/getting-old/) [Getting older](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/getting-older/) [Grandparent](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/grandparent/) [Holiday](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/holiday/) [Home](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/home/) [Mean](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/mean/) [Memories](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/memories/) [Nostalgia](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/nostalgia/) [Older Birds](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/older-birds-3822062/) [One way](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/one-way/) [Stills](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/stills/) [Term](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/term/) [Thinking](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/thinking/) [Thinking Grandparents](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/thinking-grandparents-1884212/) [Time](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/time/) [Time capsules](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/time-capsules/) [Valuable](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/valuable/) [Viewed Birds](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/viewed-birds-3822063/) [Way](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/way/) [Weight](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/weight/) ## Related quotes > [When you hear about people in the '50s getting married at 20, you're like, What were they thinking? My grandparents were together for over…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/justin-theroux/when-you-hear-about-people-in-the-50s-getting-married-at-20-you-re/) [Justin Theroux](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/justin-theroux/) > [I was just thinking about how my grandparents, who raised me, would be considered "white trash," whatever that means - mostly for being racists,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/shane-mccrae/i-was-just-thinking-about-how-my-grandparents-who-raised-me-would-be/) [Shane McCrae](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/shane-mccrae/) > [“Flying is not only the art of the birds, but it is also the art of the artists!”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mehmet-murat-ildan/flying-is-not-only-the-art-of-the-birds-but-it-is-also-the-art-of-the/) [Mehmet Murat ildan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mehmet-murat-ildan/) > [It's impossible for me to hear the words quadruple murder suicide without thinking of my grandparents.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anthony-jeselnik/it-s-impossible-for-me-to-hear-the-words-quadruple-murder-suicide/) [Anthony Jeselnik](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anthony-jeselnik/) > [We had to get out of Chicago so quick. Election night happens, suddenly I'm talking to Ben Bernanke and Hank Paulson and trying to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/barack-obama/we-had-to-get-out-of-chicago-so-quick-election-night-happens-suddenly/) [Barack Obama](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/barack-obama/) > [Short of climbing aboard a time capsule and peeling back eight and one-half decades, James Cameron's magnificent Titanic is the closest any of us…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/james-berardinelli/short-of-climbing-aboard-a-time-capsule-and-peeling-back-eight-and/) [James Berardinelli](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/james-berardinelli/) > [You have to realize that, about 20,000 years ago, there was a cataclysmic event when an entire rock face collapsed and sealed off the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/werner-herzog/you-have-to-realize-that-about-20-000-years-ago-there-was-a/) [Werner Herzog](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/werner-herzog/) > [It's like the time capsule with everything in it. Or like the seed that when you plant it, becomes the enormous tree with leaves…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-balanchine/it-s-like-the-time-capsule-with-everything-in-it-or-like-the-seed/) [George Balanchine](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-balanchine/) > [Our system of education is locked in a time capsule. You want to say to the people in charge, 'You're not using today's tools!…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-lucas/our-system-of-education-is-locked-in-a-time-capsule-you-want-to-say/) [George Lucas](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-lucas/) > [The memory of some bottles can stay with your for life. While the wine doesn't have to be old and rare, a great old…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mireille-guiliano/the-memory-of-some-bottles-can-stay-with-your-for-life-while-the-wine/) [Mireille Guiliano](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mireille-guiliano/) > [It's great to get insight into the era of 80's rock-n-roll via a treasure trove of photographs skillfully captured in front of Mark Weiss'…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/phil-collen/it-s-great-to-get-insight-into-the-era-of-80-s-rock-n-roll-via-a/) [Phil Collen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/phil-collen/) > [Music is my time capsule. Each album reflects what I'm going through or what's going on in my life at that moment.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/eminem/music-is-my-time-capsule-each-album-reflects-what-i-m-going-through/) [Eminem](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/eminem/) > [Film is a time capsule. If I have a lack of dedication or focus, it's permanently there as a negative reminder.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/adrien-brody/film-is-a-time-capsule-if-i-have-a-lack-of-dedication-or-focus-it-s/) [Adrien Brody](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/adrien-brody/) > [If you're making a time capsule you have to throw my album in there.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kanye-west/if-you-re-making-a-time-capsule-you-have-to-throw-my-album-in-there/) [Kanye West](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kanye-west/) > [Disneyland celebrated its 40th anniversary by burying a time capsule. They say it will be dug up in 50 years - or when the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jay-leno/disneyland-celebrated-its-40th-anniversary-by-burying-a-time-capsule/) [Jay Leno](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jay-leno/) ## More by Nick Cave > [Texting is apocalyptic on some level. It's a reduction of things.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nick-cave/texting-is-apocalyptic-on-some-level-it-s-a-reduction-of-things/) [Nick Cave](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nick-cave/) > [“And I know why our friendship must be kept a secret. Or they will kill You like they killed You in the Bible. And…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nick-cave/and-i-know-why-our-friendship-must-be-kept-a-secret-or-they-will-kill/) [Nick Cave](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nick-cave/) > [I want to write songs that are so sad, the kind of sad where you take someone's little finger and break it in three…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nick-cave/i-want-to-write-songs-that-are-so-sad-the-kind-of-sad-where-you-take/) [Nick Cave](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nick-cave/) > [“Through these days Bunny made increasingly frequent and protracted visits to the bathroom, beating off with a single-minded savagery intense even by Bunny's standards.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nick-cave/through-these-days-bunny-made-increasingly-frequent-and-protracted/) [Nick Cave](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nick-cave/) > [Personally I find the story of Christ incredibly moving.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nick-cave/personally-i-find-the-story-of-christ-incredibly-moving/) [Nick Cave](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nick-cave/) > [ That's what we \[outsiders\] feel America is really about - the kind of crazed ravings of the Christian right - when it's probably something… ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nick-cave/that-s-what-we-outsiders-feel-america-is-really-about-the-kind-of/) [Nick Cave](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nick-cave/) > [“My relationship with my muse is a delicate one at the best of times and I feel that it is my duty to protect…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nick-cave/my-relationship-with-my-muse-is-a-delicate-one-at-the-best-of-times/) [Nick Cave](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nick-cave/) > [I'm kind of old-school and love nothing more than sitting, opening a book, and reading it. But I also love listening to audio books.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nick-cave/i-m-kind-of-old-school-and-love-nothing-more-than-sitting-opening-a/) [Nick Cave](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nick-cave/) > [Early on I realized when you write a song about someone, it flatters them on some level, and gives you a lot of room…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nick-cave/early-on-i-realized-when-you-write-a-song-about-someone-it-flatters/) [Nick Cave](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nick-cave/) > [My father was a teacher and my mother also worked in the school, so the family has a background in education.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nick-cave/my-father-was-a-teacher-and-my-mother-also-worked-in-the-school-so/) [Nick Cave](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nick-cave/) > [I think it's an essential fact for any performer or artist to fail as poignantly as they can succeed.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nick-cave/i-think-it-s-an-essential-fact-for-any-performer-or-artist-to-fail-as/) [Nick Cave](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nick-cave/) > [To my undying shame, I do read reviews. I don't read them all, but I like to get some kind of idea how things…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nick-cave/to-my-undying-shame-i-do-read-reviews-i-don-t-read-them-all-but-i/) [Nick Cave](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nick-cave/) > [Brother, be a brother, fill this tiny cup of mine. And please, sir, make it whiskey: I have no head for wine!](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nick-cave/brother-be-a-brother-fill-this-tiny-cup-of-mine-and-please-sir-make/) [Nick Cave](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nick-cave/) > [When you've been initiated, you can stand in the world differently. And I think it is up to all of us, we can have…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nick-cave/when-you-ve-been-initiated-you-can-stand-in-the-world-differently-and/) [Nick Cave](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nick-cave/) > [Polly Jean, I love you. I love the texture of your skin, the taste of your saliva, the softness of your ears. I love…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nick-cave/polly-jean-i-love-you-i-love-the-texture-of-your-skin-the-taste-of/) [Nick Cave](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nick-cave/) [Explore all 280 Nick Cave quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nick-cave/) ## More Alive quotes > [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/) > [I feel very grateful to be alive and well enough to make music.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/adam-ant/i-feel-very-grateful-to-be-alive-and-well-enough-to-make-music/) [Adam Ant](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/adam-ant/) > [I don't crave applause. I'm not one of those guys who comes alive on stage. I'm much more alive at home, I think.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-bowie/i-don-t-crave-applause-i-m-not-one-of-those-guys-who-comes-alive-on/) [David Bowie](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-bowie/) > [We must master our egoism, and through this mastery, step outside ourselves and educate ourselves in giving. Fasting requires that we rediscover all that…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tariq-ramadan/we-must-master-our-egoism-and-through-this-mastery-step-outside/) [Tariq Ramadan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tariq-ramadan/) > [I can't say that there are 'things' that make me come alive. There are thoughts that make me come alive.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/marianne-williamson/i-can-t-say-that-there-are-things-that-make-me-come-alive-there-are/) [Marianne Williamson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/marianne-williamson/) > [We're like the wicked witch. We promise gingerbread, then eat the little brats alive.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/orson-scott-card/we-re-like-the-wicked-witch-we-promise-gingerbread-then-eat-the/) [Orson Scott Card](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/orson-scott-card/) > [If Jovan Belcher didn't possess a gun, he and Kasandra Perkins would both be alive today.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bob-costas/if-jovan-belcher-didn-t-possess-a-gun-he-and-kasandra-perkins-would/) [Bob Costas](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bob-costas/) > [Peace is an ongoing process. It begins with the first step and it does not end. We, all of us alive today, are the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-krieger/peace-is-an-ongoing-process-it-begins-with-the-first-step-and-it-does/) [David Krieger](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-krieger/) > [I think adoption becomes complicated whenever the biological parents are alive.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/james-haven/i-think-adoption-becomes-complicated-whenever-the-biological-parents/) [James Haven](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/james-haven/) > [The pain of love is the pain of being alive. It is a perpetual wound.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/maureen-duffy/the-pain-of-love-is-the-pain-of-being-alive-it-is-a-perpetual-wound/) [Maureen Duffy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/maureen-duffy/) > [I have tried to resign myself, and to console myself; and that, I hope, I may have done imperfectly; but what I cannot firmly…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/charles-dickens/i-have-tried-to-resign-myself-and-to-console-myself-and-that-i-hope-i/) [Charles Dickens](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/charles-dickens/) > [If Melanchthon were alive today, he might not weep because of controversies that surround the Lord's Supper, but he might well sorrow because of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/erwin-w-lutzer/if-melanchthon-were-alive-today-he-might-not-weep-because-of/) [Erwin W. Lutzer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/erwin-w-lutzer/) > [If you’re alive, don’t move, if you’re dead, don’t worry about it.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/laurell-k-hamilton/if-you-re-alive-don-t-move-if-you-re-dead-don-t-worry-about-it/) [Laurell K. Hamilton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/laurell-k-hamilton/) > [Here Greek and Roman find themselves alive along these crowded shelves; and Shakespeare treads again his stage, and Chaucer paints anew his age.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-greenleaf-whittier/here-greek-and-roman-find-themselves-alive-along-these-crowded/) [John Greenleaf Whittier](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-greenleaf-whittier/) > [You're alive!" Fezzik cried. The man in black sat immobile, like a ventriloquist's dummy, just his mouth moving. "That is perhaps the most childishly…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-goldman/you-re-alive-fezzik-cried-the-man-in-black-sat-immobile-like-a/) [William Goldman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-goldman/) [Browse all 7,282 Alive quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/alive/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "It was about the preciousness of that, and how they viewed those birds as art, as something valuable. I didn't care one way or another back then, but now, thinking about my grandparents - who are still alive but getting older - I see the birds as sort of time capsules. Now I go home during the holidays and they hold a lot of weight in terms of nostalgia and memory. 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