--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: Caroline Waverly: Sometimes we hurt more…" description: "\"Caroline Waverly: Sometimes we hurt more for what might have been than for what is.\" — Nora Roberts" image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/7f0/nora-roberts-128_caroline_caroline-waverly-sometimes-we-hurt-more_3191415.jpg" --- # Caroline Waverly: Sometimes we hurt more for what might… ![“Caroline Waverly: Sometimes we hurt more for what might have been than for what is.” quote by Nora Roberts](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/7f0/nora-roberts-128_caroline_caroline-waverly-sometimes-we-hurt-more_3191415.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/7f0/nora-roberts-128_caroline_caroline-waverly-sometimes-we-hurt-more_3191415.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/7f0/nora-roberts-128_caroline_caroline-waverly-sometimes-we-hurt-more_3191415.jpg) > “Caroline Waverly: Sometimes we hurt more for what might have been than for what is.” [Nora Roberts](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nora-roberts/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Regret over missed possibilities can cause deeper pain than current reality. **In simple terms:** Missing chances hurt more than present. Key Takeaway Accept the present and let go of imagined regrets. Themes regret love expectation Mood melancholy reflective Type literary emotional When to use this quote - relationship breakup - career decisions - personal reflection Key Concepts counterfactual thinking emotional pain Questions to Reflect On - What possibilities are you clinging to? - How can you honor the present? A Different Perspective Focusing on what could have been may hinder moving forward. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet ## Related quotes > [No second chance?" A wry smile twisted Carrick's lips. "There might have been, had I not waited so long to take it.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nora-roberts/no-second-chance-a-wry-smile-twisted-carrick-s-lips-there-might-have/) [Nora Roberts](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nora-roberts/) > [With live-action I think we'd have lost the universal appeal of the Persepolis story. With live-action, it would have turned into a story of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/marjane-satrapi/with-live-action-i-think-we-d-have-lost-the-universal-appeal-of-the/) [Marjane Satrapi](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/marjane-satrapi/) > [If I'd had a great level of success early on, who knows how I would have responded. I might have been a complete jerk.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/steve-carell/if-i-d-had-a-great-level-of-success-early-on-who-knows-how-i-would/) [Steve Carell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/steve-carell/) > [Harry looked around; there was Ginny running toward him; she had a hard blazing look in her face as she threw her arms around…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/harry-looked-around-there-was-ginny-running-toward-him-she-had-a-hard/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [There's a tradition of reenactment in documentary which is about sort of illustrating what the past might have been like.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joshua-oppenheimer/there-s-a-tradition-of-reenactment-in-documentary-which-is-about-sort/) [Joshua Oppenheimer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joshua-oppenheimer/) > [So I'm an ace?' Will grinned. 'I'm flattered Halt, flattered. I had no idea you regarded me so highly.' Halt gave him a long-suffering…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-flanagan/so-i-m-an-ace-will-grinned-i-m-flattered-halt-flattered-i-had-no-idea/) [John Flanagan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-flanagan/) > [In science, each new result, sometimes quite surprising, heralds a step forward and allows one to discard some hypotheses, even though one or two…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stanley-b-prusiner/in-science-each-new-result-sometimes-quite-surprising-heralds-a-step/) [Stanley B. Prusiner](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stanley-b-prusiner/) > [ Perhaps \[the critics are right and\] the drama is played out now and Jesus is safely dead and buried. Perhaps. It is ironical and… ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dorothy-l-sayers/perhaps-the-critics-are-right-and-the-drama-is-played-out-now-and/) [Dorothy L. Sayers](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dorothy-l-sayers/) > [Yes, Manchester United are the best team in England, but you have to ask how good has the Premier League been since I left?…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jose-mourinho/yes-manchester-united-are-the-best-team-in-england-but-you-have-to/) [Jose Mourinho](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jose-mourinho/) > [There is a wealth of unexpressed love in the world. It is one of the chief causes of sorrow evoked by death: what might…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/arthur-hopkins/there-is-a-wealth-of-unexpressed-love-in-the-world-it-is-one-of-the/) Arthur Hopkins > [The Roman Catholic Church is an institution for whose gains the phrase "ill-gotten" might have been specially invented. And of all its money-making rip-offs,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/richard-dawkins/the-roman-catholic-church-is-an-institution-for-whose-gains-the/) [Richard Dawkins](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/richard-dawkins/) > [The Pink Panther wasn't shown to the press for reasons that soon became apparent when I saw it at a public performance. Two people…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/philip-french/the-pink-panther-wasn-t-shown-to-the-press-for-reasons-that-soon/) [Philip French](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/philip-french/) > [He was obviously dead. But since he was a vampire that wasn't as hopless a thing as it might have been.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/patricia-briggs/he-was-obviously-dead-but-since-he-was-a-vampire-that-wasn-t-as/) [Patricia Briggs](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/patricia-briggs/) > [But the effect of her being on those around her was incalculably diffusive: for the growing good of the world is partly dependent on…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-eliot/but-the-effect-of-her-being-on-those-around-her-was-incalculably/) [George Eliot](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-eliot/) > [Very good in the Back to the Future movies, but was born to play Caroline in the City.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lea-thompson/very-good-in-the-back-to-the-future-movies-but-was-born-to-play/) [Lea Thompson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lea-thompson/) ## More by Nora Roberts > [“Why stop now? Seduce me, Brian.I dare you." "I've always found it hard to turn aside a dare.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nora-roberts/why-stop-now-seduce-me-brian-i-dare-you-i-ve-always-found-it-hard-to/) [Nora Roberts](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nora-roberts/) > [“Flowers that had bloomed brilliant from spring through autumn blackened under the killing frost.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nora-roberts/flowers-that-had-bloomed-brilliant-from-spring-through-autumn/) [Nora Roberts](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nora-roberts/) > [“He's back in Maine now.She did say he badgered her with questions. Of course, she didn't have the answer until she spoke to me…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nora-roberts/he-s-back-in-maine-now-she-did-say-he-badgered-her-with-questions-of/) [Nora Roberts](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nora-roberts/) > [“Every professor worth his PhD should have a fireplace in his study.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nora-roberts/every-professor-worth-his-phd-should-have-a-fireplace-in-his-study/) [Nora Roberts](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nora-roberts/) > [“Sorry, bad wing." When Theo kissed him, surprise and pleasure flustered him. He couldn't remember the last time this boy, this young man, had…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nora-roberts/sorry-bad-wing-when-theo-kissed-him-surprise-and-pleasure-flustered/) [Nora Roberts](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nora-roberts/) > [“Because it's hard not to matter, even to someone you dislike.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nora-roberts/because-it-s-hard-not-to-matter-even-to-someone-you-dislike/) [Nora Roberts](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nora-roberts/) > [“No point in wishing for what you can't have. - Blair What's the point in wishing for what you can and do? - Larken”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nora-roberts/no-point-in-wishing-for-what-you-can-t-have-blair-what-s-the-point-in/) [Nora Roberts](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nora-roberts/) > [“Grayson: Fiction is just a lie anyway. Brianna: But it's not - it's a different kind of truth - it would be your truth…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nora-roberts/grayson-fiction-is-just-a-lie-anyway-brianna-but-it-s-not-it-s-a/) [Nora Roberts](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nora-roberts/) > [“I was going to make a confession. Then I remembered I don't make them very well. We still need to see the monkeys." "You…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nora-roberts/i-was-going-to-make-a-confession-then-i-remembered-i-don-t-make-them/) [Nora Roberts](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nora-roberts/) > [I've wanted to be with you when I didn't have the right to.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nora-roberts/i-ve-wanted-to-be-with-you-when-i-didn-t-have-the-right-to/) [Nora Roberts](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nora-roberts/) > [You can't write well what you don't read for pleasure. If it doesn't entertain you, it's not going to entertain anyone else.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nora-roberts/you-can-t-write-well-what-you-don-t-read-for-pleasure-if-it-doesn-t/) [Nora Roberts](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nora-roberts/) > [You can't edit a blank page](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nora-roberts/you-can-t-edit-a-blank-page/) [Nora Roberts](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nora-roberts/) > [“There was a boy down at the stables." She laughed suddenly with her back comfortably nestled against Grant's chest. "Oh,Lord,he was a bit like…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nora-roberts/there-was-a-boy-down-at-the-stables-she-laughed-suddenly-with-her/) [Nora Roberts](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nora-roberts/) > [“Some people refuse to take the next step. You could refuse to take what you wanted most, because you're afraid someday you might lost…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nora-roberts/some-people-refuse-to-take-the-next-step-you-could-refuse-to-take/) [Nora Roberts](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nora-roberts/) > [“Oh, i'm going to kick his ass, and when i'm done, i'm going to squeeze his balls blue.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nora-roberts/oh-i-m-going-to-kick-his-ass-and-when-i-m-done-i-m-going-to-squeeze/) [Nora Roberts](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nora-roberts/) [Explore all 1,138 Nora Roberts quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nora-roberts/) ## More Caroline quotes > [Very good in the Back to the Future movies, but was born to play Caroline in the City.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lea-thompson/very-good-in-the-back-to-the-future-movies-but-was-born-to-play/) [Lea Thompson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lea-thompson/) > [“I must try to be charitable, Caroline thought: probably she doesn't mean to sound as if she is continually translating from Latin.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jude-morgan/i-must-try-to-be-charitable-caroline-thought-probably-she-doesn-t/) [Jude Morgan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jude-morgan/) > [“she could begin again and not become so entangled in this long, horrible war, would she watch from the sidelines as a spectator this…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lynn-austin/she-could-begin-again-and-not-become-so-entangled-in-this-long/) [Lynn Austin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lynn-austin/) > [I would enjoy seeing anyone else sing 'Caroline Shut Up.' That would be interesting. I would give that one away, actually, which is funny,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/caroline-polachek/i-would-enjoy-seeing-anyone-else-sing-caroline-shut-up-that-would-be/) [Caroline Polachek](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/caroline-polachek/) > [“I turned to kiss his fingertips. He stared into my eyes again, those sex sapphires doing their voodoo that made me a puddle of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alice-clayton/i-turned-to-kiss-his-fingertips-he-stared-into-my-eyes-again-those/) [Alice Clayton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alice-clayton/) > [“How many miles had they come? Less than halfway, and already Caroline had the sense that a separation such as this could put more…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sarah-miller/how-many-miles-had-they-come-less-than-halfway-and-already-caroline/) [Sarah Miller](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sarah-miller/) > [Not one person has ever sent me a drink because I was Caroline in 'Nick and Norah.' People reference it; people say really nice…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ari-graynor/not-one-person-has-ever-sent-me-a-drink-because-i-was-caroline-in/) [Ari Graynor](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ari-graynor/) > [Caroline was always moody and miserable, but I liked it. I liked feeling as if she had chosen me as the only person in…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-green/caroline-was-always-moody-and-miserable-but-i-liked-it-i-liked/) [John Green](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-green/) > [“I'm not that girl who randomly meets a guy one night and has her life change. I wear cords and flannel shirts. I don't…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rachel-cohn/i-m-not-that-girl-who-randomly-meets-a-guy-one-night-and-has-her-life/) [Rachel Cohn](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rachel-cohn/) > [“Caroline had felt more comfortable thinking of beauty as something separate from her, like a scarf or a coat you could check before going…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/erica-bauermeister/caroline-had-felt-more-comfortable-thinking-of-beauty-as-something/) [Erica Bauermeister](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/erica-bauermeister/) > [“I can’t conceive of what you could possibly want from me, Lord Drake,” Caroline said crisply. “However, I can assure you that you won’t…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lisa-kleypas/i-can-t-conceive-of-what-you-could-possibly-want-from-me-lord-drake/) [Lisa Kleypas](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lisa-kleypas/) > [“Matthew gave her such a hurt, wistful, nobly forbearing, and absolutely infuriating look that if Caroline had been a rich aunt she would have…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jude-morgan/matthew-gave-her-such-a-hurt-wistful-nobly-forbearing-and-absolutely/) [Jude Morgan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jude-morgan/) > [“Caroline, beside herself, dragged me down to her, her breast was against mine, and by a circular movement seemed to caress it. The pretty…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/caroline-beside-herself-dragged-me-down-to-her-her-breast-was-against/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [I read more and more and I came across this character, Caroline Weldon. Sometimes in history, you find these people that no one would…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/steven-knight/i-read-more-and-more-and-i-came-across-this-character-caroline-weldon/) [Steven Knight](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/steven-knight/) > [“No one was more curious and excited about other cultures and peoples than Caroline. She sometimes still remembered facts about cultures, ancient secrets and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bobby-underwood/no-one-was-more-curious-and-excited-about-other-cultures-and-peoples/) [Bobby Underwood](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bobby-underwood/) Browse all 71 Caroline quotes ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "Caroline Waverly: Sometimes we hurt more for what might have been than for what is.", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "Nora Roberts" }, "isPartOf": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website" }, "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nora-roberts/caroline-waverly-sometimes-we-hurt-more-for-what-might-have-been-than/", "about": { "@type": "Thing", "name": "Caroline" }, "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nora-roberts/caroline-waverly-sometimes-we-hurt-more-for-what-might-have-been-than/#quotation", "image": { "@type": "ImageObject", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/7f0/nora-roberts-128_caroline_caroline-waverly-sometimes-we-hurt-more_3191415.jpg", "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/7f0/nora-roberts-128_caroline_caroline-waverly-sometimes-we-hurt-more_3191415.jpg", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/7f0/nora-roberts-128_caroline_caroline-waverly-sometimes-we-hurt-more_3191415.jpg", "width": 1080, "height": 1080, "caption": "“Caroline Waverly: Sometimes we hurt more for what might have been than for what is.” — Nora Roberts", "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": "Nora Roberts", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nora-roberts/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 4, "name": "Caroline Waverly: Sometimes we hurt more...", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nora-roberts/caroline-waverly-sometimes-we-hurt-more-for-what-might-have-been-than/" } ], "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nora-roberts/caroline-waverly-sometimes-we-hurt-more-for-what-might-have-been-than/#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 } } ] } ```