--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: They left no books , Memorial to their…" description: "\"They left no books , Memorial to their lonely thought In grey parishes: rather they wrote On men's hearts and in the minds Of young children sublime wo..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/a46/r-s-thomas-17783_book_they-left-no-books-memorial-to-their-lon_2395299.jpg" --- # They left no books , Memorial to their lonely thought In… ![“They left no books , Memorial to their lonely thought In grey parishes: rather they wrote On men's hearts and in the minds Of young children sublime words Too soon forgotten. God in his time Or out of time will correct this.” quote by R. S. Thomas](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/a46/r-s-thomas-17783_book_they-left-no-books-memorial-to-their-lon_2395299.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/a46/r-s-thomas-17783_book_they-left-no-books-memorial-to-their-lon_2395299.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/a46/r-s-thomas-17783_book_they-left-no-books-memorial-to-their-lon_2395299.jpg) > “They left no books , Memorial to their lonely thought In grey parishes: rather they wrote On men's hearts and in the minds Of young children sublime words Too soon forgotten. God in his time Or out of time will correct this.” [R. S. Thomas](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/r-s-thomas/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. The poet laments that society neglects intellectual and spiritual depth, focusing on superficial matters while divine timing will eventually set things right. **In simple terms:** Society forgets deep thought; God will correct it. Key Takeaway Value deep ideas and trust in eventual justice. Themes spiritual neglect memory divine justice Mood melancholic reflective Type poetic philosophical When to use this quote - education reform - literary criticism - personal reflection - community building Key Concepts existentialism poetry cultural critique Questions to Reflect On - How can we preserve profound ideas in everyday life? - What role does faith play in correcting cultural loss? A Different Perspective May overlook the immediate of and lead to stagnation. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Book](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/book/) [Books](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/books/) [Children](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/children/) [Grey](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/grey/) [Heart](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/heart/) [Lonely](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/lonely/) [Memorial](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/memorial/) [Men](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/men/) [Mind](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/mind/) [Psychology](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/psychology/) [Sublime](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/sublime/) [Young children](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/young-children/) ## Related quotes > [“I have read in some of the old histories that in early times the Greeks did not know how to write until two men,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ibn-al-nadim/i-have-read-in-some-of-the-old-histories-that-in-early-times-the/) Ibn Al-Nadim > [In spite of what Thomas Jefferson wrote, all men may be created equal, but not to all women.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bill-cosby/in-spite-of-what-thomas-jefferson-wrote-all-men-may-be-created-equal/) [Bill Cosby](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bill-cosby/) > [In my early teens, I read every bound volume of the magazine Punch. Every writer of any distinction in the English language, and I…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/terry-pratchett/in-my-early-teens-i-read-every-bound-volume-of-the-magazine-punch/) [Terry Pratchett](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/terry-pratchett/) > [The world in books seemed so much more alive to me than anything outside. I could see things I'd never seen before. Books and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/haruki-murakami/the-world-in-books-seemed-so-much-more-alive-to-me-than-anything-2/) [Haruki Murakami](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/haruki-murakami/) > [“He was lonely because he could imagine himself as anything but himself and as anywhere but where he was. 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It is only by not paying one's bills that one can hope to live…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gyles-brandreth/those-who-pay-their-bills-on-time-are-soon-forgotten-it-is-only-by/) [Gyles Brandreth](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gyles-brandreth/) > [If an enterprise does not aspire to be the best of its kind, it will attract second-rate employees, and it will be soon forgotten.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mihaly-csikszentmihalyi/if-an-enterprise-does-not-aspire-to-be-the-best-of-its-kind-it-will/) [Mihaly Csikszentmihalyi](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mihaly-csikszentmihalyi/) > [“Memory of the elderly monk survived in the accounts of some of the greatest leaders in medieval Europe, along with lengthy accounts in the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-rank/memory-of-the-elderly-monk-survived-in-the-accounts-of-some-of-the/) [Michael Rank](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michael-rank/) ## More by R. S. Thomas > [Is there a place here for the spirit ? Is there time on this brief platform for anything other than mind 's failure to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/r-s-thomas/is-there-a-place-here-for-the-spirit-is-there-time-on-this-brief/) [R. S. Thomas](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/r-s-thomas/) > [Now the power of the imagination is a unifying power, hence the force of metaphor; and the poet is the supreme manipulator of metaphor...…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/r-s-thomas/now-the-power-of-the-imagination-is-a-unifying-power-hence-the-force/) [R. S. Thomas](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/r-s-thomas/) > [The deep spaces between stars , Fathomless as the cold shadow His mind cast.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/r-s-thomas/the-deep-spaces-between-stars-fathomless-as-the-cold-shadow-his-mind/) [R. S. Thomas](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/r-s-thomas/) > [To live in Wales is to be conscious at dusk of the spilled blood that went into the making of the wild sky](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/r-s-thomas/to-live-in-wales-is-to-be-conscious-at-dusk-of-the-spilled-blood-that/) [R. S. Thomas](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/r-s-thomas/) > [Deliver me from the long drought of the mind. Let leaves from the deciduous Cross fall on us, washing us clean, turning our autumn…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/r-s-thomas/deliver-me-from-the-long-drought-of-the-mind-let-leaves-from-the/) [R. S. Thomas](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/r-s-thomas/) > [Art is recuperation from time. I lie back convalescing upon the prospect of a harvest already at hand.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/r-s-thomas/art-is-recuperation-from-time-i-lie-back-convalescing-upon-the/) [R. S. Thomas](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/r-s-thomas/) > [I'm obviously not orthodox, I don't know how many real poets have ever been orthodox.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/r-s-thomas/i-m-obviously-not-orthodox-i-don-t-know-how-many-real-poets-have-ever/) [R. S. Thomas](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/r-s-thomas/) > [I have been all men known to history, Wondering at the world and at time passing; I have seen evil, and the light blessing…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/r-s-thomas/i-have-been-all-men-known-to-history-wondering-at-the-world-and-at/) [R. S. Thomas](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/r-s-thomas/) > [I have nowhere to go. The swift satellites show The clock of my whole being is slow.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/r-s-thomas/i-have-nowhere-to-go-the-swift-satellites-show-the-clock-of-my-whole/) [R. S. Thomas](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/r-s-thomas/) > [I turn now not to the Bible but to Wallace Stevens.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/r-s-thomas/i-turn-now-not-to-the-bible-but-to-wallace-stevens/) [R. S. Thomas](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/r-s-thomas/) > [Imaginative truth is the most immediate way of presenting ultimate reality to a human being... ultimate reality is what we call God.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/r-s-thomas/imaginative-truth-is-the-most-immediate-way-of-presenting-ultimate/) [R. S. Thomas](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/r-s-thomas/) > [I am left alone on the surface of a turning planet.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/r-s-thomas/i-am-left-alone-on-the-surface-of-a-turning-planet/) [R. S. Thomas](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/r-s-thomas/) > [Poetry is that / which arrives at the intellect / by way of the heart.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/r-s-thomas/poetry-is-that-which-arrives-at-the-intellect-by-way-of-the-heart/) [R. S. Thomas](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/r-s-thomas/) > [The silence holds with its gloved hand the wild hawk of the mind.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/r-s-thomas/the-silence-holds-with-its-gloved-hand-the-wild-hawk-of-the-mind/) [R. S. Thomas](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/r-s-thomas/) > [Verse should be as natural As the small tuber that feeds on muck And grows slowly from obtuse soil To the white flower of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/r-s-thomas/verse-should-be-as-natural-as-the-small-tuber-that-feeds-on-muck-and/) [R. S. Thomas](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/r-s-thomas/) [Explore all 36 R. S. Thomas quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/r-s-thomas/) ## More Book quotes > [I think a new world will arise out of the religious mists when we approach our Bible with the idea that it is not…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/aiden-wilson-tozer/i-think-a-new-world-will-arise-out-of-the-religious-mists-when-we/) [Aiden Wilson Tozer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/aiden-wilson-tozer/) > [If I had a dollar for every time I couldn’t sleep, I could buy a billion locks and finally read a book in peace.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/aesop-rock/if-i-had-a-dollar-for-every-time-i-couldn-t-sleep-i-could-buy-a/) [Aesop Rock](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/aesop-rock/) > [Young men, especially in America, write to me and ask me to recommend “a course of reading.” Distrust a course of reading! 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