--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: Some events are so harrowing, they either…" description: "\"“Some events are so harrowing, they either shape who we become or we move past them. They either break us entirely, or we pick up the pieces and put ou..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/741/rachel-thompson-32777_shattered_some-events-are-so-harrowing-they-either_2256339.jpg" --- # Some events are so harrowing, they either shape who we… ![“Some events are so harrowing, they either shape who we become or we move past them. They either break us entirely, or we pick up the pieces and put ourselves back together, altered but not shattered.” quote by Rachel Thompson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/741/rachel-thompson-32777_shattered_some-events-are-so-harrowing-they-either_2256339.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/741/rachel-thompson-32777_shattered_some-events-are-so-harrowing-they-either_2256339.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/741/rachel-thompson-32777_shattered_some-events-are-so-harrowing-they-either_2256339.jpg) > ““Some events are so harrowing, they either shape who we become or we move past them. They either break us entirely, or we pick up the pieces and put ourselves back together, altered but not shattered.”” [Rachel Thompson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rachel-thompson/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Intense experiences either define us or we overcome them, rebuilding ourselves changed but intact. **In simple terms:** Hard events reshape us or we recover. Key Takeaway Embrace growth after trauma. Themes resilience identity transformation Mood reflective hopeful Type narrative inspirational When to use this quote - personal crisis - therapy - recovery - life transitions Key Concepts psychology post‑traumatic growth Questions to Reflect On - How do you rebuild after a crisis? - What parts of yourself remain unchanged? A Different Perspective Healing may be painful and not guaranteed. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet ## Related quotes > [I love my job, but it's intense, and it's serious, and it's straight, and it can be really harrowing.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stacey-dooley/i-love-my-job-but-it-s-intense-and-it-s-serious-and-it-s-straight-and/) [Stacey Dooley](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stacey-dooley/) > [What harrowing is after sowing, the same is meditation after hearing--it hides the word.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/matthew-henry/what-harrowing-is-after-sowing-the-same-is-meditation-after-hearing/) [Matthew Henry](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/matthew-henry/) > [“I don’t think my journey has to be harrowing to be important. Simply doing the tasks of the day is enough. Such as getting…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mike-ericksen/i-don-t-think-my-journey-has-to-be-harrowing-to-be-important-simply/) [Mike Ericksen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mike-ericksen/) > [Through the documentaries I make, my job is to talk to people and make them feel comfortable and listen to really harrowing stories about…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/zara-mcdermott/through-the-documentaries-i-make-my-job-is-to-talk-to-people-and-make/) [Zara McDermott](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/zara-mcdermott/) > [“They too, knew this beautiful and harrowing landscape; they'd had the same experience of looking up from their books with fifth-century eyes and finding…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/donna-tartt/they-too-knew-this-beautiful-and-harrowing-landscape-they-d-had-the/) [Donna Tartt](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/donna-tartt/) > [Drudgery is as necessary to call out the treasures of the mind, as harrowing and planting those of the earth.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/margaret-fuller/drudgery-is-as-necessary-to-call-out-the-treasures-of-the-mind-as/) [Margaret Fuller](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/margaret-fuller/) > [I'd been to Mosul and back and forth to Iraq and Latin America, and it was all quite harrowing... and I felt like I…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stacey-dooley/i-d-been-to-mosul-and-back-and-forth-to-iraq-and-latin-america-and-it/) [Stacey Dooley](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stacey-dooley/) > [“Strange and harrowing must be his story; frightful the storm which embraced the gallant vessel on its course, and wrecked it--thus!”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mary-shelley/strange-and-harrowing-must-be-his-story-frightful-the-storm-which/) [Mary Shelley](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mary-shelley/) > [“They, too, knew this beautiful and harrowing landscape, centuries dead; they'd had the experience of looking up from their books with fifth-century eyes and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/donna-tartt/they-too-knew-this-beautiful-and-harrowing-landscape-centuries-dead/) [donna tartt](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/donna-tartt/) > [Secret of life is to go through something harrowing that doesnt kill you...and to love one woman for the rest of your life.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/garrison-keillor/secret-of-life-is-to-go-through-something-harrowing-that-doesnt-kill/) [Garrison Keillor](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/garrison-keillor/) > [The harrowing of the soul can be like the harrowing of the soil; to increase the yield, things are turned upside down.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/neal-a-maxwell/the-harrowing-of-the-soul-can-be-like-the-harrowing-of-the-soil-to/) [Neal A. Maxwell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/neal-a-maxwell/) > [A haunting, harrowing punch to the heart, Among the Missing is flat-out brilliant. About the secrets we keep, the lives we are desperate to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/caroline-leavitt/a-haunting-harrowing-punch-to-the-heart-among-the-missing-is-flat-out/) [Caroline Leavitt](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/caroline-leavitt/) > [“It has been fun and harrowing.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-nicholls/it-has-been-fun-and-harrowing/) [David Nicholls](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-nicholls/) > [Excuse me for harrowing you with this picture of war. But I am very full of it at present.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/edward-wadsworth/excuse-me-for-harrowing-you-with-this-picture-of-war-but-i-am-very/) Edward Wadsworth > [I have much to say about the pain I've felt and seen inside of prison. It has been an eye-opening and harrowing experience.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lane-garrison/i-have-much-to-say-about-the-pain-i-ve-felt-and-seen-inside-of-prison/) [Lane Garrison](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lane-garrison/) ## More by Rachel Thompson > [“My world, created by glass and flame in the birth of your heat, implodes inside the shadowed walls of my heart. I swallowed the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rachel-thompson/my-world-created-by-glass-and-flame-in-the-birth-of-your-heat/) [Rachel Thompson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rachel-thompson/) > [“Like a butterfly in glass, I want to fly away to you but the invisible walls contain me. It’s not time. Hard to accept…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rachel-thompson/like-a-butterfly-in-glass-i-want-to-fly-away-to-you-but-the-invisible/) [Rachel Thompson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rachel-thompson/) > [“In a surreal gift from the universe, time both stands still and flies past you in that singular moment when you find out someone…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rachel-thompson/in-a-surreal-gift-from-the-universe-time-both-stands-still-and-flies/) [Rachel Thompson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rachel-thompson/) > [“Silence is one of worst, most vocal enemies, yet people go through many bouts of depression not sharing what is happening. People don’t understand…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rachel-thompson/silence-is-one-of-worst-most-vocal-enemies-yet-people-go-through-many/) [Rachel Thompson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rachel-thompson/) > [“She wondered If I had woken up, would I have smelled his sadness, his desperation, and his detachment? His death, her breath. He told…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rachel-thompson/she-wondered-if-i-had-woken-up-would-i-have-smelled-his-sadness-his/) [Rachel Thompson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rachel-thompson/) > [“If a man changes a toilet paper roll & no one is around to see it, did it really happen? #Mancode question of the day.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rachel-thompson/if-a-man-changes-a-toilet-paper-roll-no-one-is-around-to-see-it-did/) [Rachel Thompson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rachel-thompson/) > [“I own my fear, but my fear does not own me.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rachel-thompson/i-own-my-fear-but-my-fear-does-not-own-me/) [Rachel Thompson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rachel-thompson/) > [“This is a book about fracture. About the experiences that make up a life. About the pieces of me. Delving into naked emotion is…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rachel-thompson/this-is-a-book-about-fracture-about-the-experiences-that-make-up-a/) [Rachel Thompson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rachel-thompson/) > [“Women have rooms inside of us men cannot fathom. It’s where we store the depths of the hurt we’ve been dealt. Where we store…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rachel-thompson/women-have-rooms-inside-of-us-men-cannot-fathom-it-s-where-we-store/) [Rachel Thompson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rachel-thompson/) > [“Distance and time don't diminish, can't change, trauma. You don't wake up one day done with it. It haunts you, as a ghost glides…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rachel-thompson/distance-and-time-don-t-diminish-can-t-change-trauma-you-don-t-wake/) [Rachel Thompson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rachel-thompson/) > [“I still can’t wrap my mind around crossing that line of human behavior – civilized people punching and fighting, making violence their communication of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rachel-thompson/i-still-can-t-wrap-my-mind-around-crossing-that-line-of-human/) [Rachel Thompson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rachel-thompson/) > [“I only wish I’d known night would fall on our tomorrows.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rachel-thompson/i-only-wish-i-d-known-night-would-fall-on-our-tomorrows/) [Rachel Thompson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rachel-thompson/) > [“Listen as much, if not more, than you talk.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rachel-thompson/listen-as-much-if-not-more-than-you-talk/) [Rachel Thompson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rachel-thompson/) > [“I gave my heart to a man who loved me, who wanted to be with me. Who ultimately was afraid of all I offered.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rachel-thompson/i-gave-my-heart-to-a-man-who-loved-me-who-wanted-to-be-with-me-who/) [Rachel Thompson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rachel-thompson/) [Explore all 15 Rachel Thompson quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rachel-thompson/) ## More Shattered quotes > [Our communications reflect in our countenance. Therefore, we must be careful not only what we communicate, but also how we do so. Souls can…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/l-lionel-kendrick/our-communications-reflect-in-our-countenance-therefore-we-must-be/) [L. Lionel Kendrick](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/l-lionel-kendrick/) > [Saiman picked up a coffee mug, stared at it, and hurled it against the wall. It shattered into a dozen pieces. We looked at…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ilona-andrews/saiman-picked-up-a-coffee-mug-stared-at-it-and-hurled-it-against-the/) [Ilona Andrews](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ilona-andrews/) > [“His lips twitched, but he didn’t say no. I took that as ‘Oh, you sexy devil, Austin, I want to do you right here,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dani-alexander/his-lips-twitched-but-he-didn-t-say-no-i-took-that-as-oh-you-sexy/) [Dani Alexander](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dani-alexander/) > [“A shooting star, a cloud, or some sign from the Goddess…? One second later, the world shattered. Her father's grumbling voice was suddenly cut…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/t-l-shreffler/a-shooting-star-a-cloud-or-some-sign-from-the-goddess-one-second/) [T.L. Shreffler](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/t-l-shreffler/) > [I hear the ruin of all space, shattered glass and toppled masonry, and time one livid final flame.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/james-joyce/i-hear-the-ruin-of-all-space-shattered-glass-and-toppled-masonry-and/) [James Joyce](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/james-joyce/) > [“You told me once dear, you really loved me And no one else could come between. But now you've left me and love another;…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kate-avelynn/you-told-me-once-dear-you-really-loved-me-and-no-one-else-could-come/) [Kate Avelynn](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kate-avelynn/) > [The first rose on my rose-tree Budded, bloomed, and shattered, During sad days when to me Nothing mattered. Grief or grief has drained me…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/edna-st-vincent-millay/the-first-rose-on-my-rose-tree-budded-bloomed-and-shattered-during/) [Edna St. Vincent Millay](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/edna-st-vincent-millay/) > [Since Beau's death, I'm definitely shattered. I feel like a piece of china that's been glued back together again. The cracks may be imperceptible-but…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jill-biden/since-beau-s-death-i-m-definitely-shattered-i-feel-like-a-piece-of/) [Jill Biden](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jill-biden/) > [“He had known. She shattered completely, and launched herself at him.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sarah-j-maas/he-had-known-she-shattered-completely-and-launched-herself-at-him/) [Sarah J. Maas](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sarah-j-maas/) > [Tonight, I ask for your prayers for all those who grieve, for the children whose worlds have been shattered, for all whose sense of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-w-bush/tonight-i-ask-for-your-prayers-for-all-those-who-grieve-for-the/) [George W. Bush](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-w-bush/) > [“An ordinary home about to be shattered. I’d rather cut off my hand than look into Belinda Horner’s eyes and ask her to identify…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/linda-castillo/an-ordinary-home-about-to-be-shattered-i-d-rather-cut-off-my-hand/) [Linda Castillo](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/linda-castillo/) > [The purest evil that human efforts could attain, in other words, was probably achieved by those men who made their wills the same and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/yukio-mishima/the-purest-evil-that-human-efforts-could-attain-in-other-words-was/) [Yukio Mishima](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/yukio-mishima/) > [“My heart feels like a piece of glass that’s been slammed against a ceramic floor. It’s completely and utterly shattered. I’ve hurt the one…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lisa-de-jong/my-heart-feels-like-a-piece-of-glass-that-s-been-slammed-against-a/) [Lisa De Jong](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lisa-de-jong/) > [“Layla, sweetheart, you haven’t had the right experience and apparently were not with the right people.” Garrett -- Shattered”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/c-r-gress/layla-sweetheart-you-haven-t-had-the-right-experience-and-apparently/) C.R. Gress > [“Her touch shattered me. Her touch awoke me. Her touch destroyed me.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/pepper-winters/her-touch-shattered-me-her-touch-awoke-me-her-touch-destroyed-me/) [Pepper Winters](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/pepper-winters/) Browse all 596 Shattered quotes ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "“Some events are so harrowing, they either shape who we become or we move past them. They either break us entirely, or we pick up the pieces and put ourselves back together, altered but not shattered.”", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "Rachel Thompson" }, "isPartOf": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website" }, "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rachel-thompson/some-events-are-so-harrowing-they-either-shape-who-we-become-or-we/", "about": { "@type": "Thing", "name": "Shattered" }, "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rachel-thompson/some-events-are-so-harrowing-they-either-shape-who-we-become-or-we/#quotation", "image": { "@type": "ImageObject", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/741/rachel-thompson-32777_shattered_some-events-are-so-harrowing-they-either_2256339.jpg", "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/741/rachel-thompson-32777_shattered_some-events-are-so-harrowing-they-either_2256339.jpg", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/741/rachel-thompson-32777_shattered_some-events-are-so-harrowing-they-either_2256339.jpg", "width": 1080, "height": 1080, "caption": "“Some events are so harrowing, they either shape who we become or we move past them. They either break us…” — Rachel Thompson", "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": "Rachel Thompson", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rachel-thompson/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 4, "name": "“Some events are so harrowing, they...", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rachel-thompson/some-events-are-so-harrowing-they-either-shape-who-we-become-or-we/" } ], "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rachel-thompson/some-events-are-so-harrowing-they-either-shape-who-we-become-or-we/#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 } } ] } ```