--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: Later, long after my grandfather was…" description: "\"“Later, long after my grandfather was dead, I would regret that I could never be the kind of man that he was. Though I adored him as a child and found ..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/bbf/pat-conroy-768_fellow-travelers_later-long-after-my-grandfather-was-dead_1617422.jpg" --- # Later, long after my grandfather was dead, I would regret… ![“Later, long after my grandfather was dead, I would regret that I could never be the kind of man that he was. Though I adored him as a child and found myself attracted to the safe protectorate of his soft, uncritical maleness, I never wholly appreciated him. I did not know how to cherish sanctity…” quote by Pat Conroy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/bbf/pat-conroy-768_fellow-travelers_later-long-after-my-grandfather-was-dead_1617422.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/bbf/pat-conroy-768_fellow-travelers_later-long-after-my-grandfather-was-dead_1617422.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/bbf/pat-conroy-768_fellow-travelers_later-long-after-my-grandfather-was-dead_1617422.jpg) > ““Later, long after my grandfather was dead, I would regret that I could never be the kind of man that he was. Though I adored him as a child and found myself attracted to the safe protectorate of his soft, uncritical maleness, I never wholly appreciated him. I did not know how to cherish sanctity, and I had no way of honoring, of giving small voice to the praise of such natural innocence, such a generous simplicity. Now I know that a part of me would like to have traveled the world as he traveled it, a jester of burning faith, a fool and a forest prince brimming with the love of God. I would like to walk his southern world, thanking God for oysters and porpoises, praising God for birdsongs and sheet lightning, and seeing God reflected in pools of creekwater and the eyes of stray cats. I would like to have talked to yard dogs and tanagers as if they were my friends and fellow travelers along the sun-tortured highways, intoxicated with a love of God, swollen with charity like a rainbow, in the thoughtless mingling of its hues, connecting two distant fields in its glorious arc. I would like to have seen the world with eyes incapable of anything but wonder, and a tongue fluent only in praise.”” [Pat Conroy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/pat-conroy/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. The narrator reflects on missed connections with his grandfather, yearning for wonder and reverence toward nature and the divine. **In simple terms:** Regret for not fully appreciating a loved one’s simplicity and wonder. Key Takeaway Seek wonder and gratitude in everyday moments. Themes regret wonder spirituality Mood reflective reverent Type philosophical inspirational When to use this quote - hiking - birdwatching - journaling - volunteering withconservation Key Concepts intergenerational bonds nature reverence humility Questions to Reflect On - What simple wonders can you notice today? - How can you honor a mentor’s legacy? A Different Perspective Nostalgia may idealize the past, hindering present growth. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Fellow travelers](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/fellow-travelers/) [God Reflected](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/god-reflected-313968/) [Grandfather](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/grandfather/) [Gratitude](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/gratitude/) [Love](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/love/) [Love of god](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/love-of-god/) [Praise](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/praise/) [Praising](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/praising/) [Praising god](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/praising-god/) [Religion](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/religion/) [Thanking god](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/thanking-god/) [Worship](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/worship/) ## Related quotes > [The deepest level of worship is praising God inspite of the pain,thanking God during the trials,trusting Him when we're tempted to lose Hope and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mariane-corbito/the-deepest-level-of-worship-is-praising-god-inspite-of-the-pain/) [Mariane Corbito](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mariane-corbito/) > [Respect for life and for the dignity of the human person also extends to the rest of creation, which is called to join man…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/pope-john-paul-ii/respect-for-life-and-for-the-dignity-of-the-human-person-also-extends/) [Pope John Paul II](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/pope-john-paul-ii/) > [Suddenly a great company of the heavenly host appeared with the angel, praising God and saying, 'Glory to God in the highest, and on…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bible/suddenly-a-great-company-of-the-heavenly-host-appeared-with-the-angel/) [Bible](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bible/) > [Praising God is one of the highest and purest acts of religion. In prayer we act like men; in praise we act like angels.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/thomas-watson/praising-god-is-one-of-the-highest-and-purest-acts-of-religion-in/) [Thomas Watson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/thomas-watson/) > [“A mouth full of complaining is praising Satan for his works. A mouth full of thanksgiving is praising God for His works.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/terry-dean/a-mouth-full-of-complaining-is-praising-satan-for-his-works-a-mouth/) [Terry Dean](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/terry-dean/) > [“The value of Our Lord’s actions was always infinite and he gave the same glory to his Father when he was sawing wood as…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/francis-fernandez/the-value-of-our-lord-s-actions-was-always-infinite-and-he-gave-the/) [Francis Fernandez](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/francis-fernandez/) > [Even if God never did another good thing in our lives, we could spend the rest of this life praising Him for what He…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dillon-burroughs/even-if-god-never-did-another-good-thing-in-our-lives-we-could-spend/) [Dillon Burroughs](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dillon-burroughs/) > [The moment when you take your first step through the gates of hell, the only thing you will hear is all of creation standing…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/paul-washer/the-moment-when-you-take-your-first-step-through-the-gates-of-hell/) [Paul Washer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/paul-washer/) > [“When the glory of God is the treasure of our lives, we will not lay up treasures on earth, but spend them for the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-piper/when-the-glory-of-god-is-the-treasure-of-our-lives-we-will-not-lay-up/) [John Piper](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-piper/) > [“When you understand the power of praise, you cannot waste precious time on cursing the enemy, but rather be steadfast in praising God for…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gift-gugu-mona/when-you-understand-the-power-of-praise-you-cannot-waste-precious/) [Gift Gugu Mona](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gift-gugu-mona/) > [“The bearing for praising God is Christ our righteousness(2 Chr 5:12)”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joel-nyarangi-akoya/the-bearing-for-praising-god-is-christ-our-righteousness-2-chr-5-12/) [JOEL NYARANGI AKOYA](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joel-nyarangi-akoya/) > [“There’s no storm too big to praise your way through. You might not feel like it, but praising God in the middle of the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/janice-thompson/there-s-no-storm-too-big-to-praise-your-way-through-you-might-not/) [Janice Thompson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/janice-thompson/) > [“To me, every day of life is a good day. Of course there are people & situations thrown on your path, only as a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lanina-king/to-me-every-day-of-life-is-a-good-day-of-course-there-are-people/) [LaNina King](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lanina-king/) > [I think that's a struggle of every Christian, to be able to get to that point where they're in constant prayer with God -…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/troy-polamalu/i-think-that-s-a-struggle-of-every-christian-to-be-able-to-get-to/) [Troy Polamalu](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/troy-polamalu/) > [The Lord wants double edged artistry, praising God's name and setting things straight.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/calvin-seerveld/the-lord-wants-double-edged-artistry-praising-god-s-name-and-setting/) [Calvin Seerveld](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/calvin-seerveld/) ## More by Pat Conroy > [A recipe is a story that ends with a good meal.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/pat-conroy/a-recipe-is-a-story-that-ends-with-a-good-meal/) [Pat Conroy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/pat-conroy/) > [Except for memory, time would have no meaning at all.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/pat-conroy/except-for-memory-time-would-have-no-meaning-at-all/) [Pat Conroy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/pat-conroy/) > [It's an article of faith that the novels I've loved will live inside me forever.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/pat-conroy/it-s-an-article-of-faith-that-the-novels-i-ve-loved-will-live-inside/) [Pat Conroy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/pat-conroy/) > [“my folks wouldn't read a book if you put a gun to their dicks. but they read people all day long and always get…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/pat-conroy/my-folks-wouldn-t-read-a-book-if-you-put-a-gun-to-their-dicks-but/) [Pat Conroy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/pat-conroy/) > [Cameras are a lifesaver for very shy people who have nowhere else to hide. Behind a lens they can disguise the fact that they…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/pat-conroy/cameras-are-a-lifesaver-for-very-shy-people-who-have-nowhere-else-to/) [Pat Conroy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/pat-conroy/) > [Carolina beach music," Dupree said, coming up on the porch. "The holiest sound on earth.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/pat-conroy/carolina-beach-music-dupree-said-coming-up-on-the-porch-the-holiest/) [Pat Conroy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/pat-conroy/) > [“My memory often seems like a city of exiled poets afire with the astonishment of language, each believing in the integrity of his own…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/pat-conroy/my-memory-often-seems-like-a-city-of-exiled-poets-afire-with-the/) [Pat Conroy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/pat-conroy/) > [“We began our life together at a moment of natural self-pity and defeat that left an inimitable impression on both of us. The rejection…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/pat-conroy/we-began-our-life-together-at-a-moment-of-natural-self-pity-and/) [Pat Conroy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/pat-conroy/) > [“I always liked your piety, Jack.” “I’m a lot cuter than the women of your generation,” Betsy said, playing up to Capers and Mike.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/pat-conroy/i-always-liked-your-piety-jack-i-m-a-lot-cuter-than-the-women-of-your/) [Pat Conroy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/pat-conroy/) > [“From the beginning I've searched out those writers unafraid to stir up the emotions, who entrust me with their darkest passions, their most indestructible…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/pat-conroy/from-the-beginning-i-ve-searched-out-those-writers-unafraid-to-stir/) [Pat Conroy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/pat-conroy/) > [“My mother's voice and my father's fists are two bookends of my childhood, and they form the basis of my art.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/pat-conroy/my-mother-s-voice-and-my-father-s-fists-are-two-bookends-of-my/) [Pat Conroy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/pat-conroy/) > [“Over the years, my church gave me passage into a menagerie of exotic words unknown in the South: "introit," "offertory," "liturgy," "movable feast," "the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/pat-conroy/over-the-years-my-church-gave-me-passage-into-a-menagerie-of-exotic/) [Pat Conroy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/pat-conroy/) > [“I have built a city from the books I've read. A good book sings a a timeless music that is heard in the choir…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/pat-conroy/i-have-built-a-city-from-the-books-i-ve-read-a-good-book-sings-a-a/) [Pat Conroy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/pat-conroy/) > [“Time moves funny and it's hard to pin down. Occasionally, time offers you a hundred opportunities to do the right thing. Sometimes, it gives…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/pat-conroy/time-moves-funny-and-it-s-hard-to-pin-down-occasionally-time-offers/) [Pat Conroy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/pat-conroy/) > [“I take it as an article of faith that the novels I've loved will live inside me forever.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/pat-conroy/i-take-it-as-an-article-of-faith-that-the-novels-i-ve-loved-will-live/) [Pat Conroy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/pat-conroy/) [Explore all 371 Pat Conroy quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/pat-conroy/) ## More Fellow travelers quotes > [“You are not special. You're just fucking not. You're a bland, boring motherfucker just like everybody else. You ever been to the mall and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/t-j-kirk/you-are-not-special-you-re-just-fucking-not-you-re-a-bland-boring/) [T.J. Kirk](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/t-j-kirk/) > [Life is perfect for none of us. Rather than being judgmental and critical of each other, may we have the pure love of Christ…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/thomas-s-monson/life-is-perfect-for-none-of-us-rather-than-being-judgmental-and/) [Thomas S. Monson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/thomas-s-monson/) > [“A few weeks later, in the middle of a cold December night, the pair, along with 247 other radicals, were herded onto a freighter…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/james-mcgrath-morris/a-few-weeks-later-in-the-middle-of-a-cold-december-night-the-pair/) [James McGrath Morris](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/james-mcgrath-morris/) > [Nest of Soviet fellow travelers clacking busybodies in a Soviet jellyfish front, sitting here in Leesburg oozing out their funny little propaganda and making…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lyndon-larouche/nest-of-soviet-fellow-travelers-clacking-busybodies-in-a-soviet/) [Lyndon LaRouche](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lyndon-larouche/) > [The doubters are always more blessed than the mere fellow travelers in faith. For they are the only ones who fully learn that their…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/helmut-thielicke/the-doubters-are-always-more-blessed-than-the-mere-fellow-travelers/) [Helmut Thielicke](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/helmut-thielicke/) > [“Enough of this ruminatory bullshit,” Sargent said. “You’d think I had a crystal ball, knew the future. You’d think thee roads couldn’t still fork…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-bain/enough-of-this-ruminatory-bullshit-sargent-said-you-d-think-i-had-a/) [David Bain](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-bain/) > [The scientific approach uncovers, that Communism does not eliminate the inequality between men, the social injustice, exploitation of man by man and other evils…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alexander-zinoviev/the-scientific-approach-uncovers-that-communism-does-not-eliminate/) [Alexander Zinoviev](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alexander-zinoviev/) > [“Like God, you hover above the page staring down on a small town. Outside a window some scenery loafs in a sleepy hammock of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lynn-emanuel/like-god-you-hover-above-the-page-staring-down-on-a-small-town/) [Lynn Emanuel](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lynn-emanuel/) > [I have often been reminded of the wild duck that came down on migration into a barnyard and liked it so well that he…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/vance-havner/i-have-often-been-reminded-of-the-wild-duck-that-came-down-on/) [Vance Havner](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/vance-havner/) > [When we fully understand the brevity of life, its fleeting joys and unavoidable pains; when we accept the facts that all men and women…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/clarence-darrow/when-we-fully-understand-the-brevity-of-life-its-fleeting-joys-and/) [Clarence Darrow](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/clarence-darrow/) > [... you... are stones of the temple of the Father, prepared for the Father's building, and drawn up on high by the instrument of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ignatius-of-antioch/you-are-stones-of-the-temple-of-the-father-prepared-for-the-father-s/) [Ignatius of Antioch](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ignatius-of-antioch/) > [“Life is perfect for none of us. Rather than being judgmental and critical of each other, may we have the pure love of Christ…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/thomas-s-monson/life-is-perfect-for-none-of-us-rather-than-being-judgmental-and-2/) [Thomas S. Monson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/thomas-s-monson/) > [I like to think that Einstein would look at string theory’s journey and smile, enjoying the theory’s remarkable geometrical features while feeling kinship with…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/brian-greene/i-like-to-think-that-einstein-would-look-at-string-theory-s-journey/) [Brian Greene](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/brian-greene/) > [“At moments like this, his misanthropy sensitized him to the people packed tight around him, no longer fellow travelers but adversaries, competitors in a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ian-mcewan/at-moments-like-this-his-misanthropy-sensitized-him-to-the-people/) [Ian McEwan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ian-mcewan/) > [I would like all my friends, followers, fans and fellow travelers to know that I am fighting cancer and will therefore be taking a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jon-lord/i-would-like-all-my-friends-followers-fans-and-fellow-travelers-to/) [Jon Lord](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jon-lord/) [Browse all 38 Fellow travelers quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/fellow-travelers/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "“Later, long after my grandfather was dead, I would regret that I could never be the kind of man that he was. Though I adored him as a child and found myself attracted to the safe protectorate of his soft, uncritical maleness, I never wholly appreciated him. I did not know how to cherish sanctity, and I had no way of honoring, of giving small voice to the praise of such natural innocence, such a generous simplicity. Now I know that a part of me would like to have traveled the world as he traveled it, a jester of burning faith, a fool and a forest prince brimming with the love of God. I would like to walk his southern world, thanking God for oysters and porpoises, praising God for birdsongs and sheet lightning, and seeing God reflected in pools of creekwater and the eyes of stray cats. I would like to have talked to yard dogs and tanagers as if they were my friends and fellow travelers along the sun-tortured highways, intoxicated with a love of God, swollen with charity like a rainbow, in the thoughtless mingling of its hues, connecting two distant fields in its glorious arc. I would like to have seen the world with eyes incapable of anything but wonder, and a tongue fluent only in praise.”", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "Pat Conroy" }, "isPartOf": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website" }, "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/pat-conroy/later-long-after-my-grandfather-was-dead-i-would-regret-that-i-could/", "about": { "@type": "Thing", "name": "Fellow travelers" }, "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/pat-conroy/later-long-after-my-grandfather-was-dead-i-would-regret-that-i-could/#quotation", "image": { "@type": "ImageObject", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/bbf/pat-conroy-768_fellow-travelers_later-long-after-my-grandfather-was-dead_1617422.jpg", "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/bbf/pat-conroy-768_fellow-travelers_later-long-after-my-grandfather-was-dead_1617422.jpg", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/bbf/pat-conroy-768_fellow-travelers_later-long-after-my-grandfather-was-dead_1617422.jpg", "width": 1080, "height": 1080, "caption": "“Later, long after my grandfather was dead, I would regret that I could never be the kind of man that he was…” — Pat Conroy", "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": "Pat Conroy", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/pat-conroy/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 4, "name": "“Later, long after my grandfather was...", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/pat-conroy/later-long-after-my-grandfather-was-dead-i-would-regret-that-i-could/" } ], "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/pat-conroy/later-long-after-my-grandfather-was-dead-i-would-regret-that-i-could/#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 } } ] } ```