--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: Whenever my patient begins to count the…" description: "\"Whenever my patient begins to count the carriages in her funeral procession I subtract 50 per cent from the curative power of medicines.\" — O. Henry" image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/13b/o-henry-3281_carriages_whenever-my-patient-begins-to-count-the_644840.jpg" --- # Whenever my patient begins to count the carriages in her… ![“Whenever my patient begins to count the carriages in her funeral procession I subtract 50 per cent from the curative power of medicines.” quote by O. Henry](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/13b/o-henry-3281_carriages_whenever-my-patient-begins-to-count-the_644840.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/13b/o-henry-3281_carriages_whenever-my-patient-begins-to-count-the_644840.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/13b/o-henry-3281_carriages_whenever-my-patient-begins-to-count-the_644840.jpg) > “Whenever my patient begins to count the carriages in her funeral procession I subtract 50 per cent from the curative power of medicines.” [O. Henry](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/o-henry/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. The doctor doubts medicine's effectiveness when faced with the inevitability of death. **In simple terms:** Doctor doubts medicine when death is near. Key Takeaway Recognize limits of treatment. Themes mortality medicine skepticism Mood somber reflective Type philosophical inspirational When to use this quote - end‑of‑life care - palliative decisions - doctor‑patient communication Key Concepts clinical humility patient perception Questions to Reflect On - How do you balance hope and realism with patients? - When is it appropriate to shift focus from cure to comfort? A Different Perspective Medicine cannot reverse death; it only eases suffering. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Carriages](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/carriages/) [Cent Curative](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/cent-curative-5169614/) [Cents](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/cents/) [Curative Power](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/curative-power-3630640/) [Funeral](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/funeral/) [Medicine](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/medicine/) [Patience](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/patience/) [Patient](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/patient/) [Power Medicines](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/power-medicines-5169615/) [Procession](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/procession/) [Procession Subtract](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/procession-subtract-5169613/) [Subtract 50](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/subtract-50-5169612/) ## Related quotes > [The power in which we must have faith if we would be well, is the creative and curative power which exists in every living…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-harvey-kellogg/the-power-in-which-we-must-have-faith-if-we-would-be-well-is-the/) [John Harvey Kellogg](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-harvey-kellogg/) > [War has always been the grand sagacity of every spirit which has grown too inward and too profound; its curative power lies even in…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/friedrich-nietzsche/war-has-always-been-the-grand-sagacity-of-every-spirit-which-has/) [Friedrich Nietzsche](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/friedrich-nietzsche/) > [“There were many who went in huddled procession, They knew not wither, But, at any rate, success or calamity Would attend all in equality.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stephen-crane/there-were-many-who-went-in-huddled-procession-they-knew-not-wither/) [Stephen Crane](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stephen-crane/) > [A dance is the devil's procession, and he that entereth into a dance, entereth into his possession.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/saint-francis-de-sales/a-dance-is-the-devil-s-procession-and-he-that-entereth-into-a-dance/) [Saint Francis de Sales](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/saint-francis-de-sales/) > [Every age has its dreams, its symbols of romance. Past generations were moved by the graceful power of the great windjammers, by the distant…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/arthur-c-clarke/every-age-has-its-dreams-its-symbols-of-romance-past-generations-were/) [Arthur C. Clarke](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/arthur-c-clarke/) > [Life set itself to new processions of seed-time and harvest, the skin newly turned to seasonal variations, the very blood humming to new altitudes.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mary-hunter-austin/life-set-itself-to-new-processions-of-seed-time-and-harvest-the-skin/) [Mary Hunter Austin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mary-hunter-austin/) > [In the streets of New York between seven and nine in the morning you will see the slow procession of dog and downer proceeding…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-steinbeck/in-the-streets-of-new-york-between-seven-and-nine-in-the-morning-you/) [John Steinbeck](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-steinbeck/) > [“God is coming to intersect us in our funeral processions”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/louie-giglio/god-is-coming-to-intersect-us-in-our-funeral-processions/) [Louie Giglio](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/louie-giglio/) > [We must shine with hope, stained glass windows that shape light into icons, glow like lanterns borne before a procession. Who can bear hope…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/marge-piercy/we-must-shine-with-hope-stained-glass-windows-that-shape-light-into/) [Marge Piercy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/marge-piercy/) > [“Some people are born with a vital and responsive energy. It not only enables them to keep abreast of the times; it qualifies them…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kate-chopin/some-people-are-born-with-a-vital-and-responsive-energy-it-not-only/) [Kate Chopin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kate-chopin/) > [Our idea of what constitutes social good has advanced with the procession of the ages, from those desperate times when just to keep body…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/frances-perkins/our-idea-of-what-constitutes-social-good-has-advanced-with-the/) [Frances Perkins](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/frances-perkins/) > [All finite things have their roots in the infinite, and if you wish to understand life at all, you cannot tear out its context.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-macneile-dixon/all-finite-things-have-their-roots-in-the-infinite-and-if-you-wish-to/) [William Macneile Dixon](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-macneile-dixon/) > [It is difficult to believe that even idiots ever succumbed to such transparent contradictions, to such gaudy processions of mere counter-words, to so vast…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/h-l-mencken/it-is-difficult-to-believe-that-even-idiots-ever-succumbed-to-such/) [H. L. Mencken](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/h-l-mencken/) > [“A procession is a participants' journey, while a parade is a performance with an audience.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rebecca-solnit/a-procession-is-a-participants-journey-while-a-parade-is-a/) [Rebecca Solnit](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rebecca-solnit/) > [The triumphal-procession-air which, in our manners and customs, is given to marriage at the outset - that singing of Te Deum before the battle…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jane-welsh-carlyle/the-triumphal-procession-air-which-in-our-manners-and-customs-is/) [Jane Welsh Carlyle](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jane-welsh-carlyle/) ## More by O. Henry > [He seemed to be made of sunshine and blood-red tissue and clear weather.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/o-henry/he-seemed-to-be-made-of-sunshine-and-blood-red-tissue-and-clear/) [O. Henry](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/o-henry/) > [My advice to you, if you should ever be in a hold up, is to line up with the cowards and save your bravery…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/o-henry/my-advice-to-you-if-you-should-ever-be-in-a-hold-up-is-to-line-up/) [O. Henry](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/o-henry/) > [“It did not exactly beggar description, but it certainly had that word on the lookout for the mendicancy squad.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/o-henry/it-did-not-exactly-beggar-description-but-it-certainly-had-that-word/) [O. Henry](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/o-henry/) > [Fortune is a prize to be won. Adventure is the road to it. Chance is what may lurk in the shadows at the roadside.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/o-henry/fortune-is-a-prize-to-be-won-adventure-is-the-road-to-it-chance-is/) [O. Henry](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/o-henry/) > [She plucked from my lapel the invisible strand of lint (the universal act of woman to proclaim ownership).](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/o-henry/she-plucked-from-my-lapel-the-invisible-strand-of-lint-the-universal/) [O. Henry](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/o-henry/) > [There is no well defined boundary line between honesty and dishonesty. The frontiers of one blend with the outside limits of the other, and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/o-henry/there-is-no-well-defined-boundary-line-between-honesty-and-dishonesty/) [O. Henry](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/o-henry/) > [All great men have declared that they owe their sucess to the aid and encouragement of some brilliant woman.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/o-henry/all-great-men-have-declared-that-they-owe-their-sucess-to-the-aid-and/) [O. Henry](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/o-henry/) > [Those whom we first love we seldom marry](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/o-henry/those-whom-we-first-love-we-seldom-marry/) [O. Henry](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/o-henry/) > [Young artists must pave their way to Art by drawing pictures for magazine stories that young authors write to pave their way to Literature.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/o-henry/young-artists-must-pave-their-way-to-art-by-drawing-pictures-for/) [O. Henry](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/o-henry/) > [A good story is like a bitter pill, with the sugar coating inside of it.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/o-henry/a-good-story-is-like-a-bitter-pill-with-the-sugar-coating-inside-of-it/) [O. Henry](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/o-henry/) > [I've got some of my best yarns from park benches, lamp posts and newspaper stands.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/o-henry/i-ve-got-some-of-my-best-yarns-from-park-benches-lamp-posts-and/) [O. Henry](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/o-henry/) > [There are stories in everything. I've got some of my best yarns from park benches, lampposts, and newspaper stands.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/o-henry/there-are-stories-in-everything-i-ve-got-some-of-my-best-yarns-from/) [O. Henry](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/o-henry/) > [I never have time to read now. I did all my reading before I was twenty.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/o-henry/i-never-have-time-to-read-now-i-did-all-my-reading-before-i-was-twenty/) [O. Henry](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/o-henry/) > [Bride knoweth bride at the glance of an eye. And between them swiftly passes comfort and meaning in a language that man and widows…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/o-henry/bride-knoweth-bride-at-the-glance-of-an-eye-and-between-them-swiftly/) [O. Henry](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/o-henry/) > [No friendship is an accident.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/o-henry/no-friendship-is-an-accident/) [O. Henry](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/o-henry/) [Explore all 135 O. Henry quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/o-henry/) ## More Carriages quotes > [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/) > [Iron and coal dominated everywhere, from grey to black: the black boots, the black stove-pipe hat, the black coach or carriage, the black iron…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lewis-mumford/iron-and-coal-dominated-everywhere-from-grey-to-black-the-black-boots/) [Lewis Mumford](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lewis-mumford/) > [Are you implying that shreds of my reputation remain intact?" Will demanded with mock horror. "Clearly I have been doing something wrong. Or not…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/cassandra-clare/are-you-implying-that-shreds-of-my-reputation-remain-intact-will/) [Cassandra Clare](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/cassandra-clare/) > [On the day long after childhood when I suddenly heard of his death, the sky grew dark above my head. I was walking on…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/margaret-elizabeth-sangster/on-the-day-long-after-childhood-when-i-suddenly-heard-of-his-death/) [Margaret Elizabeth Sangster](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/margaret-elizabeth-sangster/) > [That man over there says that women need to be helped into carriages, and lifted over ditches, and to have the best place everywhere.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sojourner-truth/that-man-over-there-says-that-women-need-to-be-helped-into-carriages/) [Sojourner Truth](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sojourner-truth/) > [A swift carriage, of a dark night, rattling with four horses over roads that one can’t see--that’s my idea of happiness.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/henry-james/a-swift-carriage-of-a-dark-night-rattling-with-four-horses-over-roads/) [Henry James](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/henry-james/) > [But we were talking about me and my problems." Sophronia looked Monique up and down gravely. "I don't think we're going to solve those…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gail-carriger/but-we-were-talking-about-me-and-my-problems-sophronia-looked-monique/) [Gail Carriger](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gail-carriger/) > [Just as the sentence contains one idea in all its fullness, so the paragraph should embrace a distinct episode; and as sentences should follow…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/winston-churchill/just-as-the-sentence-contains-one-idea-in-all-its-fullness-so-the/) [Winston Churchill](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/winston-churchill/) > [A woman of haughty and fierce carriage, of a nimble wit and active spirit, a very voluble tongue, more bold than a man.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/a-woman-of-haughty-and-fierce-carriage-of-a-nimble-wit-and-active/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [In one of the Welsh counties is a small village called A-----. It is somewhat removed from the high road, and is, therefore, but…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/edward-bulwer-lytton-1st-baron-lytton/in-one-of-the-welsh-counties-is-a-small-village-called-a-it-is/) [Edward Bulwer-Lytton, 1st Baron Lytton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/edward-bulwer-lytton-1st-baron-lytton/) > [He banged on the side of the carriage. "Thomas! We must away at once to the nearest brothel. I seek scandal and low companionship.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/cassandra-clare/he-banged-on-the-side-of-the-carriage-thomas-we-must-away-at-once-to/) [Cassandra Clare](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/cassandra-clare/) > [Ma'am," Magnus said, advancing. "I must counsel you not to exit the carriage while a demon-slaying is in progress.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/cassandra-clare/ma-am-magnus-said-advancing-i-must-counsel-you-not-to-exit-the/) [Cassandra Clare](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/cassandra-clare/) > [The separate parts make no carriage.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/laozi/the-separate-parts-make-no-carriage/) [Laozi](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/laozi/) > [Pot came first when I was young. But I did the work. It wasn't a battle of what came first. They went together like…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-waters/pot-came-first-when-i-was-young-but-i-did-the-work-it-wasn-t-a-battle/) [John Waters](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-waters/) > [As the Dauphine stepped out of her carriage on to the ceremonial carpet that had been laid down, it was the Duc de Choiseul…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/antonia-fraser/as-the-dauphine-stepped-out-of-her-carriage-on-to-the-ceremonial/) [Antonia Fraser](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/antonia-fraser/) [Browse all 175 Carriages quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/carriages/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "Whenever my patient begins to count the carriages in her funeral procession I subtract 50 per cent from the curative power of medicines.", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "O. 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