--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: Midnight passes and I'm twenty-five days…" description: "\"Midnight passes and I'm twenty-five days and a million years from becoming a man.\" — Patrick Ness" image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/444/patrick-ness-449_becoming_midnight-passes-and-i-m-twenty-five-days_2387575.jpg" --- # Midnight passes and I'm twenty-five days and a million… ![“Midnight passes and I'm twenty-five days and a million years from becoming a man.” quote by Patrick Ness](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/444/patrick-ness-449_becoming_midnight-passes-and-i-m-twenty-five-days_2387575.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/444/patrick-ness-449_becoming_midnight-passes-and-i-m-twenty-five-days_2387575.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/444/patrick-ness-449_becoming_midnight-passes-and-i-m-twenty-five-days_2387575.jpg) > “Midnight passes and I'm twenty-five days and a million years from becoming a man.” [Patrick Ness](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/patrick-ness/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. The speaker feels time is both fleeting and endless as they transition into adulthood, emphasizing the paradox of youthful perception. **In simple terms:** Time feels both short and long during growth. Key Takeaway Embrace the paradox of growing up. Themes growth time adolescence Mood poetic introspective melancholic Type literary philosophical When to use this quote - school life - personal milestones - creative writing Key Concepts existential reflection coming‑of‑age psychological development Questions to Reflect On - What does “midnight” symbolize for you? - How do you reconcile fleeting and endless moments? A Different Perspective The line may romanticize struggle rather than offering guidance. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Becoming](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/becoming/) [Becoming a man](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/becoming-a-man/) [Days Million](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/days-million-5080317/) [Men](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/men/) [Midnight](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/midnight/) [Midnight Passes](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/midnight-passes-5935411/) [Passes Days](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/passes-days-5935412/) [Twenties](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/twenties/) [Years](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/years/) [Years Man](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/years-man-689909/) ## Related quotes > [These days, we have a million things to do and usually one day to do them in.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jenna-morasca/these-days-we-have-a-million-things-to-do-and-usually-one-day-to-do/) [Jenna Morasca](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jenna-morasca/) > [Even on your weakest days, find a million reasons to smile because there are so many.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/even-on-your-weakest-days-find-a-million-reasons-to-smile-because/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [The monster showed up just after midnight. As they do.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/patrick-ness/the-monster-showed-up-just-after-midnight-as-they-do/) [Patrick Ness](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/patrick-ness/) > [It has been 20,000 years since man and dog formed their partnership.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/donald-mccaig/it-has-been-20-000-years-since-man-and-dog-formed-their-partnership/) [Donald McCaig](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/donald-mccaig/) > [“A man doesn't have time in his life to have time for everything. He doesn't have seasons enough to have a season for every…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/yehuda-amichai/a-man-doesn-t-have-time-in-his-life-to-have-time-for-everything-he/) [Yehuda Amichai](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/yehuda-amichai/) > [“New landscapes, new customs. The accumulation of memories. A long life is not a question of years. A man without memories might reach the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/graham-greene/new-landscapes-new-customs-the-accumulation-of-memories-a-long-life/) [Graham Greene](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/graham-greene/) > [“...your twenties are the years when a man wends and wanders, searching for who knows what - we say money or love or adventure,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/brian-doyle/your-twenties-are-the-years-when-a-man-wends-and-wanders-searching/) [Brian Doyle](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/brian-doyle/) > [“A man doesn’t grow old because he has lived a certain number of years. A man grows old when he deserts his ideal.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/brennan-manning/a-man-doesn-t-grow-old-because-he-has-lived-a-certain-number-of-years-2/) [Brennan Manning](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/brennan-manning/) > [I spent thirty-three years in another man's shadow. I went everywhere he went, I helped him with everything he did. I was in a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/haruki-murakami/i-spent-thirty-three-years-in-another-man-s-shadow-i-went-everywhere/) [Haruki Murakami](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/haruki-murakami/) > [There are parts of Texas where a fly lives ten thousand years and a man can't die soon enough. Time gets strange there from…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/katherine-dunn/there-are-parts-of-texas-where-a-fly-lives-ten-thousand-years-and-a/) [Katherine Dunn](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/katherine-dunn/) > [If entertainment years were dog years, man, Id be like Gandhi. Id be like 250 years old.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/justin-timberlake/if-entertainment-years-were-dog-years-man-id-be-like-gandhi-id-be/) [Justin Timberlake](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/justin-timberlake/) > [A man doesn't grow old because he has lived a certain number of years. A man grows old when he deserts his ideal. The…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/brennan-manning/a-man-doesn-t-grow-old-because-he-has-lived-a-certain-number-of-years/) [Brennan Manning](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/brennan-manning/) > [It requires twenty years for a man to rise from the vegetable state in which he is within his mother's womb, and from the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/voltaire/it-requires-twenty-years-for-a-man-to-rise-from-the-vegetable-state/) [Voltaire](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/voltaire/) > [For 60 years man has been putting plastic into the ocean. And from that day onward we're also taking it back out again.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/boyan-slat/for-60-years-man-has-been-putting-plastic-into-the-ocean-and-from/) [Boyan Slat](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/boyan-slat/) > [Every ten years a man should give himself a good kick in the pants.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/edward-steichen/every-ten-years-a-man-should-give-himself-a-good-kick-in-the-pants/) [Edward Steichen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/edward-steichen/) ## More by Patrick Ness > [“I rub the ears of my dog, my stupid goddam ruddy great dog that I never wanted but who hung around anyway and who…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/patrick-ness/i-rub-the-ears-of-my-dog-my-stupid-goddam-ruddy-great-dog-that-i/) [Patrick Ness](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/patrick-ness/) > [“The Prince had fallen in love. She was only a farmer's daughter, but she was was beautiful, and also smart, as the daughters of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/patrick-ness/the-prince-had-fallen-in-love-she-was-only-a-farmer-s-daughter-but/) [Patrick Ness](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/patrick-ness/) > [Time goes on, even when yer not looking.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/patrick-ness/time-goes-on-even-when-yer-not-looking/) [Patrick Ness](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/patrick-ness/) > [Here is the boy, drowning.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/patrick-ness/here-is-the-boy-drowning/) [Patrick Ness](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/patrick-ness/) > [“This is it. This is goodbye. A goodbye I wasn't even looking for.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/patrick-ness/this-is-it-this-is-goodbye-a-goodbye-i-wasn-t-even-looking-for/) [Patrick Ness](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/patrick-ness/) > [“ But what is a dream, Conor O'Malley? the monster said, bending down so it's face was close to Conor's. Who is to say…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/patrick-ness/but-what-is-a-dream-conor-o-malley-the-monster-said-bending-down-so/) [Patrick Ness](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/patrick-ness/) > [“And I feel her against me - And I think Viola - I think VIOLA! - I think VIOLA!!!! ”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/patrick-ness/and-i-feel-her-against-me-and-i-think-viola-i-think-viola-i-think/) [Patrick Ness](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/patrick-ness/) > [“But I'm still thinking about being born on a spaceship, an honest to badness spaceship. Growing up while flying along the stars, able to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/patrick-ness/but-i-m-still-thinking-about-being-born-on-a-spaceship-an-honest-to/) [Patrick Ness](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/patrick-ness/) > [“When luck ain't with you, it's against you.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/patrick-ness/when-luck-ain-t-with-you-it-s-against-you/) [Patrick Ness](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/patrick-ness/) > [“You starting to feel hope yet?" Viola asks, her voice curious. "No," I say, fuddling my noise. "You?" Her eyebrows are up but she…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/patrick-ness/you-starting-to-feel-hope-yet-viola-asks-her-voice-curious-no-i-say/) [Patrick Ness](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/patrick-ness/) > [“I have two maxims that I believe, dear girl. One, if you can control yourself, you can control others. Two, if you can control…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/patrick-ness/i-have-two-maxims-that-i-believe-dear-girl-one-if-you-can-control/) [Patrick Ness](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/patrick-ness/) > [To live is to fight, to preserve life is to fight everything that man stands for.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/patrick-ness/to-live-is-to-fight-to-preserve-life-is-to-fight-everything-that-man/) [Patrick Ness](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/patrick-ness/) > [Because he KNEW he was doing wrong. He felt the PAIN of his actions'-- 'But he did not amen them,' shows the Sky. 'The…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/patrick-ness/because-he-knew-he-was-doing-wrong-he-felt-the-pain-of-his-actions/) [Patrick Ness](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/patrick-ness/) > [“This was a kingdom. (“What?” Conor said, looking around his backyard. “Here?”) (The monster cocked its head at him curiously. You have not heard…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/patrick-ness/this-was-a-kingdom-what-conor-said-looking-around-his-backyard-here/) [Patrick Ness](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/patrick-ness/) > [If you ever see a war," she says, not looking up from her clipboard, "you'll learn that war only destroys. No one escapes from…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/patrick-ness/if-you-ever-see-a-war-she-says-not-looking-up-from-her-clipboard-you/) [Patrick Ness](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/patrick-ness/) [Explore all 527 Patrick Ness quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/patrick-ness/) ## More Becoming quotes > [Focus on becoming more to achieve more while doing less](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/hal-elrod/focus-on-becoming-more-to-achieve-more-while-doing-less/) [Hal Elrod](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/hal-elrod/) > [If the media is sending girls the message that their value lies in their bodies, this can only leave them feeling disempowered and distract…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jennifer-siebel-newsom/if-the-media-is-sending-girls-the-message-that-their-value-lies-in/) [Jennifer Siebel Newsom](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jennifer-siebel-newsom/) > [But I already saw no great difference between the psyche and spirituality. To amass knowledge without becoming wise is not my idea of progress…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/m-scott-peck/but-i-already-saw-no-great-difference-between-the-psyche-and/) [M. Scott Peck](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/m-scott-peck/) > [It's easy to say, let's go in and get the bad guys. But you have a divided country of Sunnis and Shias. The United…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tulsi-gabbard/it-s-easy-to-say-let-s-go-in-and-get-the-bad-guys-but-you-have-a/) [Tulsi Gabbard](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tulsi-gabbard/) > [The path I choose through the maze makes me what I am. I am not only a thing, but also a way of being--one…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/daniel-keyes/the-path-i-choose-through-the-maze-makes-me-what-i-am-i-am-not-only-a/) [Daniel Keyes](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/daniel-keyes/) > [Becoming famous is a really shocking thing, especially when you don't have aspirations to it. It got to the point where I would try…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alison-moyet/becoming-famous-is-a-really-shocking-thing-especially-when-you-don-t/) [Alison Moyet](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alison-moyet/) > [When other boys dreamt of going to the moon or becoming doctors, I wanted to be a designer.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/olivier-theyskens/when-other-boys-dreamt-of-going-to-the-moon-or-becoming-doctors-i/) [Olivier Theyskens](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/olivier-theyskens/) > [One is not born a genius, one becomes a genius; and the feminine situation has up to the present rendered this becoming practically impossible.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/simone-de-beauvoir/one-is-not-born-a-genius-one-becomes-a-genius-and-the-feminine/) [Simone de Beauvoir](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/simone-de-beauvoir/) > [The dream of coming back is becoming a reality. A lot of the uncertainty about the future has been cleared up. A lot of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/paul-tagliabue/the-dream-of-coming-back-is-becoming-a-reality-a-lot-of-the/) [Paul Tagliabue](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/paul-tagliabue/) > [I'm getting to a point where everything is becoming streamlined in my life. I'm learning how to stand onstage for two hours and play…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-mayer/i-m-getting-to-a-point-where-everything-is-becoming-streamlined-in-my/) [John Mayer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-mayer/) > [The term 'Pre-Raphaelite' is in danger of becoming one of the most misused tags in art history](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/christopher-wood/the-term-pre-raphaelite-is-in-danger-of-becoming-one-of-the-most/) [Christopher Wood](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/christopher-wood/) > [We are somehow the children of the planet, we are somehow its finest hour; we bind time, we bind the past, we anticipate the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/terence-mckenna/we-are-somehow-the-children-of-the-planet-we-are-somehow-its-finest/) [Terence McKenna](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/terence-mckenna/) > [The reason so many of us are obsessed with becoming stars is because we are not yet starring in our own lives. The cosmic…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/marianne-williamson/the-reason-so-many-of-us-are-obsessed-with-becoming-stars-is-because/) [Marianne Williamson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/marianne-williamson/) > [In a personal way, to do with family and the father-son relationship, in a kind of artistic way with regard to him being an…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/andy-serkis/in-a-personal-way-to-do-with-family-and-the-father-son-relationship/) [Andy Serkis](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/andy-serkis/) > [Trying to be perfect may be inevitable for people who are smart and ambitious and interested in the world and its good opinion...What is…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anna-quindlen/trying-to-be-perfect-may-be-inevitable-for-people-who-are-smart-and/) [Anna Quindlen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anna-quindlen/) [Browse all 4,715 Becoming quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/becoming/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "Midnight passes and I'm twenty-five days and a million years from becoming a man.", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "Patrick Ness" }, "isPartOf": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website" }, "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/patrick-ness/midnight-passes-and-i-m-twenty-five-days-and-a-million-years-from/", "about": { "@type": "Thing", "name": "Becoming" }, "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/patrick-ness/midnight-passes-and-i-m-twenty-five-days-and-a-million-years-from/#quotation", "image": { "@type": "ImageObject", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/444/patrick-ness-449_becoming_midnight-passes-and-i-m-twenty-five-days_2387575.jpg", "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/444/patrick-ness-449_becoming_midnight-passes-and-i-m-twenty-five-days_2387575.jpg", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/444/patrick-ness-449_becoming_midnight-passes-and-i-m-twenty-five-days_2387575.jpg", "width": 1080, "height": 1080, "caption": "“Midnight passes and I'm twenty-five days and a million years from becoming a man.” — Patrick Ness", "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": "Patrick Ness", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/patrick-ness/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 4, "name": "Midnight passes and I'm twenty-five days...", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/patrick-ness/midnight-passes-and-i-m-twenty-five-days-and-a-million-years-from/" } ], "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/patrick-ness/midnight-passes-and-i-m-twenty-five-days-and-a-million-years-from/#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 } } ] } ```