---
title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: Here's a secret: Everyone, if they live…"
description: "\"“Here's a secret: Everyone, if they live long enough, will lose their way at some point. You will lose your way, you will wake up one morning and find ..."
image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/cf3/nick-flynn-8678_143_here-s-a-secret-everyone-if-they-live-lo_2112664.jpg"
---

#  Here's a secret: Everyone, if they live long enough, will…

![“Here's a secret: Everyone, if they live long enough, will lose their way at some point. You will lose your way, you will wake up one morning and find yourself lost. This is a hard, simple truth. If it hasn't happened to you yet, consider yourself lucky. When it does, when one day you look around…” quote by Nick Flynn](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/cf3/nick-flynn-8678_143_here-s-a-secret-everyone-if-they-live-lo_2112664.jpg)   [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/cf3/nick-flynn-8678_143_here-s-a-secret-everyone-if-they-live-lo_2112664.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/cf3/nick-flynn-8678_143_here-s-a-secret-everyone-if-they-live-lo_2112664.jpg)

> ““Here's a secret: Everyone, if they live long enough, will lose their way at some point. You will lose your way, you will wake up one morning and find yourself lost. This is a hard, simple truth. If it hasn't happened to you yet, consider yourself lucky. When it does, when one day you look around and nothing is recognizable, when you find yourself alone in a dark wood having lost the way, you may find it easier to blame it on someone else -- an errant lover, a missing father, a bad childhood -- or it may be easier to blame the map you were given -- folded too many times, out-of-date, tiny print -- but mostly, if you are honest, you will only be able to blame yourself. One day I'll tell my daughter a story about a dark time, the dark days before she was born, and how her coming was a ray of light. We got lost for a while, the story will begin, but then we found our way.””

[Nick Flynn](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nick-flynn/)

## About This Quote

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

Life often leads us into confusion; acknowledging personal responsibility is essential for growth and healing

**In simple terms:** We get lost and must own our mistakes to find light

Key Takeaway

Own your missteps and seek inner guidance

Themes

self‑responsibility growth hope

Mood

reflective hopeful

Type

narrative inspirational

When to use this quote

- midlife crisis
- career setbacks
- relationship breakdowns
- spiritual doubt

Key Concepts

personal accountability resilience redemption

Questions to Reflect On

- What personal patterns keep you stuck?
- How can you turn loss into a guiding light?

A Different Perspective

Blaming external factors can delay healing and self‑discovery

★ ★ ★ ★ ★   No ratings yet

[Dark days](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/dark-days/) [Life](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/life/) [Simple truth](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/simple-truth/) [Torture](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/torture/)

## Related quotes

> [“143" I love you”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/cody/143-i-love-you/)

cody

> [This wasn't the way he had expected his life to be. It worked, but that was about all. Happiness had got lost somewhere along…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-ajvide-lindqvist/this-wasn-t-the-way-he-had-expected-his-life-to-be-it-worked-but-that/)

[John Ajvide Lindqvist](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-ajvide-lindqvist/)

> [Have you lost your way? Don't be sad; be happy, because you will see new places, places that you have never been to! It…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mehmet-murat-ildan/have-you-lost-your-way-don-t-be-sad-be-happy-because-you-will-see-new/)

[Mehmet Murat Ildan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mehmet-murat-ildan/)

> [Growing up, I didn't know about families who were missing a father, because there weren't any in our neighborhood. Today over a third of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/timothy-j-russert/growing-up-i-didn-t-know-about-families-who-were-missing-a-father/)

Timothy J. Russert

> [“I questioned what was missing in my father’s make-up that rendered him unable to keep hold of Doreen.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-marrs/i-questioned-what-was-missing-in-my-father-s-make-up-that-rendered/)

[John Marrs](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-marrs/)

> [Here's a secret: Everyone, if they live long enough, will lose their way at some point. You will lose your way; you will wake…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nick-flynn/here-s-a-secret-everyone-if-they-live-long-enough-will-lose-their-way-2/)

[Nick Flynn](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nick-flynn/)

> [After having lost their lives on this land they have become our sons as well.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mustafa-kemal-ataturk/after-having-lost-their-lives-on-this-land-they-have-become-our-sons/)

[Mustafa Kemal Ataturk](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mustafa-kemal-ataturk/)

> [“...and finally, having lost what was to be lost, my torn and black heart rebels saying enough already, enough, this is as low as…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-saunders/and-finally-having-lost-what-was-to-be-lost-my-torn-and-black-heart/)

[George Saunders](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-saunders/)

> [Having lost our present and our future, we had of necessity to bend all our endeavors to the past, which no one could take…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robert-silverberg/having-lost-our-present-and-our-future-we-had-of-necessity-to-bend/)

[Robert Silverberg](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robert-silverberg/)

> [Having lost sight of our goal, we must redouble our efforts!](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/saul-gorn/having-lost-sight-of-our-goal-we-must-redouble-our-efforts/)

[Saul Gorn](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/saul-gorn/)

> [Why are we worn out? Why do we, who start out so passionate, brave, noble, believing, become totally bankrupt by the age of thirty…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anton-chekhov/why-are-we-worn-out-why-do-we-who-start-out-so-passionate-brave-noble/)

[Anton Chekhov](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anton-chekhov/)

> [“And loving a new person might even eventually dull the pain of having lost the people you have loved before, even if it didn't…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bonnie-jo-campbell/and-loving-a-new-person-might-even-eventually-dull-the-pain-of-having/)

[Bonnie Jo Campbell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bonnie-jo-campbell/)

> [Having lost sight of our objectives, we redoubled our efforts.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/walt-kelly/having-lost-sight-of-our-objectives-we-redoubled-our-efforts/)

[Walt Kelly](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/walt-kelly/)

> [Don't regret having lost your money; maybe, if you kept it, it would have lost you.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/vikrant-parsai/don-t-regret-having-lost-your-money-maybe-if-you-kept-it-it-would/)

[Vikrant Parsai](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/vikrant-parsai/)

> [“When we last out at ourselves for having lost control, we are reminded that we never can be in total control, that all life…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mary-balogh/when-we-last-out-at-ourselves-for-having-lost-control-we-are-reminded/)

[Mary Balogh](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mary-balogh/)

## More by Nick Flynn

> [There are many ways to drown, only the most obvious wave their arms as they're going under.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nick-flynn/there-are-many-ways-to-drown-only-the-most-obvious-wave-their-arms-as/)

[Nick Flynn](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nick-flynn/)

> [In life you get one take, and it's perfect.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nick-flynn/in-life-you-get-one-take-and-it-s-perfect/)

[Nick Flynn](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nick-flynn/)

> [We got him to talk to a psych doctor once, the doctor asked if he heard things other people don't. Sure, Paul answered, I…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nick-flynn/we-got-him-to-talk-to-a-psych-doctor-once-the-doctor-asked-if-he/)

[Nick Flynn](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nick-flynn/)

> [Writers, especially poets, are particularly prone to madness.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nick-flynn/writers-especially-poets-are-particularly-prone-to-madness/)

[Nick Flynn](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nick-flynn/)

> [“When I was really drunk, I started that stupid business with the bullet in my guts again. I was the only guy at the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nick-flynn/when-i-was-really-drunk-i-started-that-stupid-business-with-the/)

[Nick Flynn](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nick-flynn/)

> [Memoir is actually the most egoless genre, even though it might seem ostensibly so much ego-driven. In order for it to succeed, you have…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nick-flynn/memoir-is-actually-the-most-egoless-genre-even-though-it-might-seem/)

[Nick Flynn](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nick-flynn/)

> [“He claims not to be drinking, but I don’t think he knows what this means.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nick-flynn/he-claims-not-to-be-drinking-but-i-don-t-think-he-knows-what-this/)

[Nick Flynn](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nick-flynn/)

> [By the time I make my way to the border of Mauritania, to the edge of the Sahara, I see no end to being…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nick-flynn/by-the-time-i-make-my-way-to-the-border-of-mauritania-to-the-edge-of/)

[Nick Flynn](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nick-flynn/)

> [“(2002) In Rome, month upon month, I struggled with how to structure the book about my father (He already had the water, he just…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nick-flynn/2002-in-rome-month-upon-month-i-struggled-with-how-to-structure-the/)

[Nick Flynn](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nick-flynn/)

> [In life you get one take, and it's perfect. It's strange, afterwards you might think I shouldn't have reacted that way, but that's the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nick-flynn/in-life-you-get-one-take-and-it-s-perfect-it-s-strange-afterwards-you/)

[Nick Flynn](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nick-flynn/)

> [For years before I became a father, I would try to spend as much time as I could with my friends who were parents…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nick-flynn/for-years-before-i-became-a-father-i-would-try-to-spend-as-much-time/)

[Nick Flynn](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nick-flynn/)

> [“The boat has become supreme isolation, chosen isolation, holding myself apart from the world, which I only dimly understand anyway. I can sit on…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nick-flynn/the-boat-has-become-supreme-isolation-chosen-isolation-holding-myself/)

[Nick Flynn](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nick-flynn/)

> [Sometimes I'd see my father, walking past my building on his way to another nowhere. I could have given him a key, offered a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nick-flynn/sometimes-i-d-see-my-father-walking-past-my-building-on-his-way-to/)

[Nick Flynn](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nick-flynn/)

> [Everything we do, I'd imagine, influences everything we will do.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nick-flynn/everything-we-do-i-d-imagine-influences-everything-we-will-do/)

[Nick Flynn](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nick-flynn/)

> [There is a physics to the world, which non-fiction has a contract to stand in awe of, otherwise it becomes completely self-centered and ego-driven,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nick-flynn/there-is-a-physics-to-the-world-which-non-fiction-has-a-contract-to/)

[Nick Flynn](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nick-flynn/)

[Explore all 79 Nick Flynn quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nick-flynn/)

## More 143 quotes

> [“143" I love you”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/cody/143-i-love-you/)

cody

Browse all 2 143 quotes

```json
{
    "@context": "https://schema.org",
    "@graph": [
        {
            "@type": "Quotation",
            "text": "“Here's a secret: Everyone, if they live long enough, will lose their way at some point. You will lose your way, you will wake up one morning and find yourself lost. This is a hard, simple truth. If it hasn't happened to you yet, consider yourself lucky. When it does, when one day you look around and nothing is recognizable, when you find yourself alone in a dark wood having lost the way, you may find it easier to blame it on someone else -- an errant lover, a missing father, a bad childhood -- or it may be easier to blame the map you were given -- folded too many times, out-of-date, tiny print -- but mostly, if you are honest, you will only be able to blame yourself. One day I'll tell my daughter a story about a dark time, the dark days before she was born, and how her coming was a ray of light. We got lost for a while, the story will begin, but then we found our way.”",
            "creator": {
                "@type": "Person",
                "name": "Nick Flynn"
            },
            "isPartOf": {
                "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website"
            },
            "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nick-flynn/here-s-a-secret-everyone-if-they-live-long-enough-will-lose-their-way/",
            "about": {
                "@type": "Thing",
                "name": "143"
            },
            "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nick-flynn/here-s-a-secret-everyone-if-they-live-long-enough-will-lose-their-way/#quotation",
            "image": {
                "@type": "ImageObject",
                "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/cf3/nick-flynn-8678_143_here-s-a-secret-everyone-if-they-live-lo_2112664.jpg",
                "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/cf3/nick-flynn-8678_143_here-s-a-secret-everyone-if-they-live-lo_2112664.jpg",
                "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/cf3/nick-flynn-8678_143_here-s-a-secret-everyone-if-they-live-lo_2112664.jpg",
                "width": 1080,
                "height": 1080,
                "caption": "“Here's a secret: Everyone, if they live long enough, will lose their way at some point. You will lose your…” — Nick Flynn",
                "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": "Nick Flynn",
                    "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nick-flynn/"
                },
                {
                    "@type": "ListItem",
                    "position": 4,
                    "name": "“Here's a secret: Everyone, if they...",
                    "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nick-flynn/here-s-a-secret-everyone-if-they-live-long-enough-will-lose-their-way/"
                }
            ],
            "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nick-flynn/here-s-a-secret-everyone-if-they-live-long-enough-will-lose-their-way/#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
            }
        }
    ]
}
```
