--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: It was the absences that had made her…" description: "\"“It was the absences that had made her think, not the presences.”\" — Nick Hornby" image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/b5f/nick-hornby-325_absences_it-was-the-absences-that-had-made-her-th_1339109.png" --- # It was the absences that had made her think, not the… ![“It was the absences that had made her think, not the presences.” quote by Nick Hornby](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/b5f/nick-hornby-325_absences_it-was-the-absences-that-had-made-her-th_1339109.png) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/b5f/nick-hornby-325_absences_it-was-the-absences-that-had-made-her-th_1339109.png) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/b5f/nick-hornby-325_absences_it-was-the-absences-that-had-made-her-th_1339109.png) > ““It was the absences that had made her think, not the presences.”” [Nick Hornby](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nick-hornby/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Absence can be more powerful than presence in shaping thoughts and feelings. **In simple terms:** Missing something can affect you more than having it. Key Takeaway Notice how lack influences perception. Themes relationships perception memory psychology Mood reflective melancholic Type literary philosophical When to use this quote - romantic relationships - friendships - creative work Key Concepts absence presence cognitive bias Questions to Reflect On - What absences shape your decisions? - Do you overvalue what you lack? A Different Perspective Absence may be misinterpreted as indifference. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Absences](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/absences/) [Heart](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/heart/) ## Related quotes > [I think there are presences out there that we can't see or directly communicate with that have benevolent influence on us. Whether they're angels…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/misha-collins/i-think-there-are-presences-out-there-that-we-can-t-see-or-directly/) [Misha Collins](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/misha-collins/) > [“There were absences in my life which were a comfort, then were was a presence that ruined me.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robert-pinget/there-were-absences-in-my-life-which-were-a-comfort-then-were-was-a/) Robert Pinget > [I was nerdy and really into computers. I was a good student until my senior year, when I started traveling and had a lot…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tony-hawk/i-was-nerdy-and-really-into-computers-i-was-a-good-student-until-my/) [Tony Hawk](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tony-hawk/) > [“The world we have created does not encourage or promote leave-of-absences. It does not promote deep contemplation, especially the type with no time-frame.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jane-meredith/the-world-we-have-created-does-not-encourage-or-promote-leave-of/) [Jane Meredith](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jane-meredith/) > [Because it is senior year I have begun to see things as potential absences. The things I love will become the things I'll miss.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-levithan/because-it-is-senior-year-i-have-begun-to-see-things-as-potential/) [David Levithan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-levithan/) > [I was a shy, awkward sort of a boy and my father's frequent absences from home, along with my hero worship for him, made…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/douglas-fairbanks-jr/i-was-a-shy-awkward-sort-of-a-boy-and-my-father-s-frequent-absences/) [Douglas Fairbanks, Jr](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/douglas-fairbanks-jr/) > [“In a strange way', she thought, 'these absences suit my nature though not my heart. I love him, I miss him, but I have…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/enid-bagnold/in-a-strange-way-she-thought-these-absences-suit-my-nature-though-not/) [Enid Bagnold](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/enid-bagnold/) > [With her high pale brow under her faded brown hair, she was like a rock washed clean by years of her husband's absences at…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/louis-auchincloss/with-her-high-pale-brow-under-her-faded-brown-hair-she-was-like-a/) [Louis Auchincloss](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/louis-auchincloss/) > [“There were some notable absences. Orlant. Aimeric. Jord. The”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/c-s-pacat/there-were-some-notable-absences-orlant-aimeric-jord-the/) [C.S. Pacat](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/c-s-pacat/) > [“I am not constructed for continued absences; I have never claimed to be constructed for them.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/j-d-salinger/i-am-not-constructed-for-continued-absences-i-have-never-claimed-to/) [J.D. Salinger](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/j-d-salinger/) > [That's what all painting is about, it”s space and light occupied by human presences.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/leon-kossoff/that-s-what-all-painting-is-about-it-s-space-and-light-occupied-by/) Leon Kossoff > [People have presences, both online and in real life. You can choose to show everything, meaning all sides of you, or you can choose…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kevin-systrom/people-have-presences-both-online-and-in-real-life-you-can-choose-to/) [Kevin Systrom](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kevin-systrom/) > [“there are moments when we understand that the earth and the sky and the presences that may lie behind them are always with us.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/james-lee-burke/there-are-moments-when-we-understand-that-the-earth-and-the-sky-and/) [James Lee Burke](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/james-lee-burke/) > [“What explanation does Ibn Arabi give for these phenomena ? A first explanation invokes the hierarchical planes of being, the Hadarat, or "Presences." There…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/henry-corbin/what-explanation-does-ibn-arabi-give-for-these-phenomena-a-first/) [Henry Corbin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/henry-corbin/) > [When I am alone the flowers are really seen; I can pay attention to them. They are felt as presences. Without them I would…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/may-sarton/when-i-am-alone-the-flowers-are-really-seen-i-can-pay-attention-to/) [May Sarton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/may-sarton/) ## More by Nick Hornby > [You can wait forever for the muse to sit on your shoulder, but most of the time you know what has to be done…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nick-hornby/you-can-wait-forever-for-the-muse-to-sit-on-your-shoulder-but-most-of/) [Nick Hornby](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nick-hornby/) > […I've had a bad week." What's happened?" Nothing's happened. I've had a bad week in my head, is all.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nick-hornby/i-ve-had-a-bad-week-what-s-happened-nothing-s-happened-i-ve-had-a-bad/) [Nick Hornby](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nick-hornby/) > [“When they – I cannot bring myself to use the first-person plural in this instance.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nick-hornby/when-they-i-cannot-bring-myself-to-use-the-first-person-plural-in/) [Nick Hornby](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nick-hornby/) > [“What you don't ever catch a glimpse of on your wedding day - because how could you? - is that some days you will…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nick-hornby/what-you-don-t-ever-catch-a-glimpse-of-on-your-wedding-day-because/) [Nick Hornby](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nick-hornby/) > [A good compilation tape, like breaking up, is hard to do and takes ages longer than it might seem. You've got to kick off…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nick-hornby/a-good-compilation-tape-like-breaking-up-is-hard-to-do-and-takes-ages/) [Nick Hornby](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nick-hornby/) > [I'm still not a very good white wine, but I'm drinkable - you could put me in a punch, anyway.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nick-hornby/i-m-still-not-a-very-good-white-wine-but-i-m-drinkable-you-could-put/) [Nick Hornby](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nick-hornby/) > [I never mind the accusations of domesticity, as long as people recognise that all of us, even the luckiest, will live lives in which…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nick-hornby/i-never-mind-the-accusations-of-domesticity-as-long-as-people/) [Nick Hornby](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nick-hornby/) > [I wasted the 1980s. I wasted every minute at Cambridge talking to people who knew more about music than I did.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nick-hornby/i-wasted-the-1980s-i-wasted-every-minute-at-cambridge-talking-to/) [Nick Hornby](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nick-hornby/) > [“I took her outside on to a little roof terrace that looked like it never got the sun at nay time of the day…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nick-hornby/i-took-her-outside-on-to-a-little-roof-terrace-that-looked-like-it/) [Nick Hornby](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nick-hornby/) > [“I feel as though I have been having conversations like this all my life. None of us is young anymore, but what has just…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nick-hornby/i-feel-as-though-i-have-been-having-conversations-like-this-all-my/) [Nick Hornby](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nick-hornby/) > [“I'm OK. Really. I can find people. I'll be all right.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nick-hornby/i-m-ok-really-i-can-find-people-i-ll-be-all-right/) [Nick Hornby](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nick-hornby/) > [“Read any women's magazine and you'll see the same complaint over and over again: men - those little boys ten or twenty or thirty…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nick-hornby/read-any-women-s-magazine-and-you-ll-see-the-same-complaint-over-and/) [Nick Hornby](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nick-hornby/) > [“Defansçılar her zaman forvetçilerden daha iyi analizcilerdir.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nick-hornby/defans-lar-her-zaman-forvet-ilerden-daha-iyi-analizcilerdir/) [Nick Hornby](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nick-hornby/) > [On New Year's Eve he ould make a resolution to recover some his previous scepticism, but until then he would do as the Romans…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nick-hornby/on-new-year-s-eve-he-ould-make-a-resolution-to-recover-some-his/) [Nick Hornby](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nick-hornby/) > [It's no good looking to writers for definitions of what constitutes proper writing, because you will drive yourself crazy, and you won't find anything…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nick-hornby/it-s-no-good-looking-to-writers-for-definitions-of-what-constitutes/) [Nick Hornby](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nick-hornby/) [Explore all 645 Nick Hornby quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nick-hornby/) ## More Absences quotes > [“There were absences in my life which were a comfort, then were was a presence that ruined me.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robert-pinget/there-were-absences-in-my-life-which-were-a-comfort-then-were-was-a/) Robert Pinget > [“I am not constructed for continued absences; I have never claimed to be constructed for them.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/j-d-salinger/i-am-not-constructed-for-continued-absences-i-have-never-claimed-to/) [J.D. Salinger](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/j-d-salinger/) > [With her high pale brow under her faded brown hair, she was like a rock washed clean by years of her husband's absences at…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/louis-auchincloss/with-her-high-pale-brow-under-her-faded-brown-hair-she-was-like-a/) [Louis Auchincloss](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/louis-auchincloss/) > [“In a strange way', she thought, 'these absences suit my nature though not my heart. I love him, I miss him, but I have…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/enid-bagnold/in-a-strange-way-she-thought-these-absences-suit-my-nature-though-not/) [Enid Bagnold](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/enid-bagnold/) > [I was a shy, awkward sort of a boy and my father's frequent absences from home, along with my hero worship for him, made…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/douglas-fairbanks-jr/i-was-a-shy-awkward-sort-of-a-boy-and-my-father-s-frequent-absences/) [Douglas Fairbanks, Jr](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/douglas-fairbanks-jr/) > [Because it is senior year I have begun to see things as potential absences. The things I love will become the things I'll miss.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-levithan/because-it-is-senior-year-i-have-begun-to-see-things-as-potential/) [David Levithan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-levithan/) > [“The world we have created does not encourage or promote leave-of-absences. It does not promote deep contemplation, especially the type with no time-frame.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jane-meredith/the-world-we-have-created-does-not-encourage-or-promote-leave-of/) [Jane Meredith](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jane-meredith/) > [I was nerdy and really into computers. I was a good student until my senior year, when I started traveling and had a lot…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tony-hawk/i-was-nerdy-and-really-into-computers-i-was-a-good-student-until-my/) [Tony Hawk](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tony-hawk/) > [“There were some notable absences. Orlant. Aimeric. Jord. The”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/c-s-pacat/there-were-some-notable-absences-orlant-aimeric-jord-the/) [C.S. Pacat](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/c-s-pacat/) [Browse all 10 Absences quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/absences/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "“It was the absences that had made her think, not the presences.”", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "Nick Hornby" }, "isPartOf": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website" }, "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nick-hornby/it-was-the-absences-that-had-made-her-think-not-the-presences/", "about": { "@type": "Thing", "name": "Absences" }, "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nick-hornby/it-was-the-absences-that-had-made-her-think-not-the-presences/#quotation", "image": { "@type": "ImageObject", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/b5f/nick-hornby-325_absences_it-was-the-absences-that-had-made-her-th_1339109.png", "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/b5f/nick-hornby-325_absences_it-was-the-absences-that-had-made-her-th_1339109.png", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/b5f/nick-hornby-325_absences_it-was-the-absences-that-had-made-her-th_1339109.png", "width": 1080, "height": 1080, "caption": "“It was the absences that had made her think, not the presences.” — Nick Hornby", "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 Hornby", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nick-hornby/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 4, "name": "“It was the absences that had...", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nick-hornby/it-was-the-absences-that-had-made-her-think-not-the-presences/" } ], "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nick-hornby/it-was-the-absences-that-had-made-her-think-not-the-presences/#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 } } ] } ```