--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: Desire is an appetite, quickly sated…" description: "\"Desire is an appetite, quickly sated. Longing is a wound, an opening in the heart or the spirit. Whatever the cause, whatever the duration, it almost a..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/863/philip-sington-26781_appetite_desire-is-an-appetite-quickly-sated-long_268041.png" --- # Desire is an appetite, quickly sated. Longing is a wound… ![“Desire is an appetite, quickly sated. Longing is a wound, an opening in the heart or the spirit. Whatever the cause, whatever the duration, it almost always leaves a scar.” quote by Philip Sington](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/863/philip-sington-26781_appetite_desire-is-an-appetite-quickly-sated-long_268041.png) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/863/philip-sington-26781_appetite_desire-is-an-appetite-quickly-sated-long_268041.png) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/863/philip-sington-26781_appetite_desire-is-an-appetite-quickly-sated-long_268041.png) > “Desire is an appetite, quickly sated. Longing is a wound, an opening in the heart or the spirit. Whatever the cause, whatever the duration, it almost always leaves a scar.” [Philip Sington](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/philip-sington/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Desire provides quick satisfaction while longing creates deep, lasting wounds that often scar the heart or spirit. **In simple terms:** Desire is fleeting; longing hurts. Key Takeaway Recognize and heal lingering wounds. Themes desire longing scar emotions Mood reflective melancholic Type philosophical poetic When to use this quote - relationships - personal growth - grief counseling - creative writing Key Concepts psychology human nature pain Questions to Reflect On - What wounds do you carry from unfulfilled longing? - How can you transform desire into lasting fulfillment? A Different Perspective Healing may require confronting the underlying cause of longing. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Appetite](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/appetite/) [Desire](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/desire/) [Heart](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/heart/) [Longing](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/longing/) [Nostalgia](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/nostalgia/) [Religion](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/religion/) [Scar](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/scar/) [Spirit](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/spirit/) [Wounds](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/wounds/) ## Related quotes > [Desire can't be sated, because if it is, the longing disappears and then we've failed, because desire is the state we seek.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/seth-godin/desire-can-t-be-sated-because-if-it-is-the-longing-disappears-and/) [Seth Godin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/seth-godin/) > [Every relationship comes with a shelf life; that duration could be a minute or even a lifetime. If, for whatever reasons, a relationship cannot…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kabir-bedi/every-relationship-comes-with-a-shelf-life-that-duration-could-be-a/) [Kabir Bedi](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kabir-bedi/) > [Nevertheless so profound is our ignorance, and so high our presumption, that we marvel when we hear of the extinction of an organic being;…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/charles-darwin/nevertheless-so-profound-is-our-ignorance-and-so-high-our-presumption/) [Charles Darwin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/charles-darwin/) > [I think a Moon base is not necessary to get to Mars, but I think it will be helpful. It would give you a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/charles-duke/i-think-a-moon-base-is-not-necessary-to-get-to-mars-but-i-think-it/) [Charles Duke](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/charles-duke/) > [So you find yourself surrounded by death and horror in the world, and you escape it into lust. 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Jay Olshansky](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/s-jay-olshansky/) > [Without morals a republic cannot subsist any length of time; they therefore who are decrying the Christian religion, whose morality is so sublime and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/charles-carroll-of-carrollton/without-morals-a-republic-cannot-subsist-any-length-of-time-they/) Charles Carroll of Carrollton > [By heaven we understand a state of happiness infinite in degree, and endless in duration.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/benjamin-franklin/by-heaven-we-understand-a-state-of-happiness-infinite-in-degree-and/) [Benjamin Franklin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/benjamin-franklin/) ## More by Philip Sington > [I have found that in fiction one is freer to speak the truth, if only because in fiction the truth is not expected or…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/philip-sington/i-have-found-that-in-fiction-one-is-freer-to-speak-the-truth-if-only/) [Philip Sington](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/philip-sington/) > [We drank our coffee the Russian way. That is to say we had vodka before it and vodka afterwards.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/philip-sington/we-drank-our-coffee-the-russian-way-that-is-to-say-we-had-vodka/) [Philip Sington](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/philip-sington/) > [“Her hair, just long enough now to tie back in a knot, had a coppery sheen, a hint of fire in the darkness.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/philip-sington/her-hair-just-long-enough-now-to-tie-back-in-a-knot-had-a-coppery/) [Philip Sington](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/philip-sington/) > [“…it seemed to Kirsch that the most reliable guide to the mental landscape of a patient was the patient himself. He was better placed…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/philip-sington/it-seemed-to-kirsch-that-the-most-reliable-guide-to-the-mental/) [Philip Sington](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/philip-sington/) > [One of the joys of being in love is that it clarifies your priorities. Complication arises from not knowing what you want.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/philip-sington/one-of-the-joys-of-being-in-love-is-that-it-clarifies-your-priorities/) [Philip Sington](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/philip-sington/) > [“The wind funnelled down the covered platform, jostling the passengers and tearing at their clothes. A woman's scarf whipped by overhead, somersaulting as if…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/philip-sington/the-wind-funnelled-down-the-covered-platform-jostling-the-passengers/) [Philip Sington](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/philip-sington/) > [And then they would watch her closely as the dark, coagulated masses took form before her eyes, became flesh and bone, became gradually human.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/philip-sington/and-then-they-would-watch-her-closely-as-the-dark-coagulated-masses/) [Philip Sington](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/philip-sington/) > [“He reached into the grate, picked out a couple of scraps, smoothed them out, leaning close to the flickering light. He was curious to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/philip-sington/he-reached-into-the-grate-picked-out-a-couple-of-scraps-smoothed-them/) [Philip Sington](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/philip-sington/) > [I was already at an age when putting off anything was a bad idea.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/philip-sington/i-was-already-at-an-age-when-putting-off-anything-was-a-bad-idea/) [Philip Sington](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/philip-sington/) > [The future can always wait so long as the here-and-now is rapturous.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/philip-sington/the-future-can-always-wait-so-long-as-the-here-and-now-is-rapturous/) [Philip Sington](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/philip-sington/) > [All writers are insecure, the male ones especially. It's well known. Why else would they spend so much time on make-believe? They're only happy…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/philip-sington/all-writers-are-insecure-the-male-ones-especially-it-s-well-known-why/) [Philip Sington](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/philip-sington/) > [The railway was part scalpel, part movie camera, slicing the city open, parading its inner workings at fifty frames per second. It was on…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/philip-sington/the-railway-was-part-scalpel-part-movie-camera-slicing-the-city-open/) [Philip Sington](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/philip-sington/) > [One thing I knew about the novelist’s task: when in doubt, write; when empty, write; when afraid, write. Nothing is more impenetrable than the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/philip-sington/one-thing-i-knew-about-the-novelist-s-task-when-in-doubt-write-when/) [Philip Sington](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/philip-sington/) > [“Problems are there to be solved. How dull life would be without them.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/philip-sington/problems-are-there-to-be-solved-how-dull-life-would-be-without-them/) [Philip Sington](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/philip-sington/) > [“Who is the other woman whose photograph I do not have? If my mother was the first in my life, she was the last:…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/philip-sington/who-is-the-other-woman-whose-photograph-i-do-not-have-if-my-mother/) [Philip Sington](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/philip-sington/) [Explore all 21 Philip Sington quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/philip-sington/) ## More Appetite quotes > [I could not limit my values and pursuits to what makes others comfortable. Being possessed by a promise I live without options. I will…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bill-johnson/i-could-not-limit-my-values-and-pursuits-to-what-makes-others/) [Bill Johnson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bill-johnson/) > [the appetite for thinking must be regulated, as all sensible people know, for it may stifle one's life.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/susan-sontag/the-appetite-for-thinking-must-be-regulated-as-all-sensible-people/) [Susan Sontag](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/susan-sontag/) > [The more perfect the sight is the more delightful the beautiful object. The more perfect the appetite, the sweeter the food. The more musical…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/richard-baxter/the-more-perfect-the-sight-is-the-more-delightful-the-beautiful/) [Richard Baxter](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/richard-baxter/) > [“if you cannot control your hunger and appetite, good luck managing your blood chemistry, metabolism, waistline, and, in the bigger picture, the prospect of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-perlmutter/if-you-cannot-control-your-hunger-and-appetite-good-luck-managing/) [David Perlmutter](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-perlmutter/) > [I don't think I've ever bench-pressed anything in my life. Until about two years ago I swam a mile almost every day. Then I…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nick-antosca/i-don-t-think-i-ve-ever-bench-pressed-anything-in-my-life-until-about/) [Nick Antosca](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nick-antosca/) > [If I had been an Italian I am sure that I should have been whole-heartedly with you from the start to finish in your…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/winston-churchill/if-i-had-been-an-italian-i-am-sure-that-i-should-have-been-whole/) [Winston Churchill](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/winston-churchill/) > [It could be my British need for discipline that makes me admire the American appetite for freedom and passion.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/steve-winwood/it-could-be-my-british-need-for-discipline-that-makes-me-admire-the/) [Steve Winwood](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/steve-winwood/) > [My curiosity and my appetite for evolving as an actor is one of the main components of me still working today in the business.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kim-cattrall/my-curiosity-and-my-appetite-for-evolving-as-an-actor-is-one-of-the/) [Kim Cattrall](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kim-cattrall/) > [I have a strong appetite and its not for food.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/i-have-a-strong-appetite-and-its-not-for-food/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [The plain fact is that education is itself a form of propaganda - a deliberate scheme to outfit the pupil, not with the capacity…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/the-plain-fact-is-that-education-is-itself-a-form-of-propaganda-a/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [“You should also eat eggs. Not “one egg per week” or some such non-physiologic restriction. Eat what your body tells you to eat, since…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-davis/you-should-also-eat-eggs-not-one-egg-per-week-or-some-such-non/) [William Davis](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-davis/) > [If your desires are not great, a little will seem much to you; for small appetite makes poverty equivalent to wealth.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/democritus/if-your-desires-are-not-great-a-little-will-seem-much-to-you-for/) [Democritus](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/democritus/) > [When passions and appetites are stronger than the intellect, men are savages; when the intellect governs the passions, when the passions are servants, men…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robert-green-ingersoll/when-passions-and-appetites-are-stronger-than-the-intellect-men-are/) [Robert Green Ingersoll](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robert-green-ingersoll/) > [A pivotal spiritual attribute is that of self-mastery-th e strength to place reason over appetite. 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