--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: I take something that happened to me in…" description: "\"I take something that happened to me in 1983, and I make it happen to somebody else in 1943. I pick my life apart that way, try to understand it better..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/938/rainbow-rowell-135_life_i-take-something-that-happened-to-me-in_357108.jpg" --- # I take something that happened to me in 1983, and I make… ![“I take something that happened to me in 1983, and I make it happen to somebody else in 1943. I pick my life apart that way, try to understand it better by writing straight through it.” quote by Rainbow Rowell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/938/rainbow-rowell-135_life_i-take-something-that-happened-to-me-in_357108.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/938/rainbow-rowell-135_life_i-take-something-that-happened-to-me-in_357108.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/938/rainbow-rowell-135_life_i-take-something-that-happened-to-me-in_357108.jpg) > “I take something that happened to me in 1983, and I make it happen to somebody else in 1943. I pick my life apart that way, try to understand it better by writing straight through it.” [Rainbow Rowell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rainbow-rowell/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. She rewrites personal history by shifting timelines, using past events to illuminate present understanding through narrative. **In simple terms:** She uses past events to understand herself. Key Takeaway Use temporal perspective to gain insight. Themes self‑reflection storytelling time identity Mood introspective thoughtful Type literary psychological When to use this quote - writing - therapy - personal growth - creative projects Key Concepts narrative therapy psychology temporal framing Questions to Reflect On - How does changing a timeline alter meaning? - What limits exist in re‑imagining personal history? A Different Perspective May oversimplify complex causality. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Life](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/life/) [Writing](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/writing/) ## Related quotes > [This conducting thing happened. In 1983 I was sucked into this international career, which was a very scary experience.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/esa-pekka-salonen/this-conducting-thing-happened-in-1983-i-was-sucked-into-this/) [Esa-Pekka Salonen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/esa-pekka-salonen/) > [“Some things don’t just happen, they happen because somebody decided to make them happen.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/d-s-mashego/some-things-don-t-just-happen-they-happen-because-somebody-decided-to/) [D.S. Mashego](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/d-s-mashego/) > [“If you sit around and wait for it to happen, its going to happen.. its just going to happen for somebody else”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lonnie-scruggs/if-you-sit-around-and-wait-for-it-to-happen-its-going-to-happen-its/) Lonnie Scruggs > [Interesting things did seem to happen, but always to somebody else.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/diana-wynne-jones/interesting-things-did-seem-to-happen-but-always-to-somebody-else/) [Diana Wynne Jones](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/diana-wynne-jones/) > [I now believe that there's only a certain amount of good luck in the world, and so if something good happens to me, that…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/marshall-brickman/i-now-believe-that-there-s-only-a-certain-amount-of-good-luck-in-the/) [Marshall Brickman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/marshall-brickman/) > [“Heroes happen because somebody made a mistake.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-ringo/heroes-happen-because-somebody-made-a-mistake/) [John Ringo](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-ringo/) > [“You took my life apart and put it back together.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/cassandra-clare/you-took-my-life-apart-and-put-it-back-together/) [Cassandra Clare](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/cassandra-clare/) > [There's not much to complain about in life - apart from bad Wi-Fi, of course!](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jofra-archer/there-s-not-much-to-complain-about-in-life-apart-from-bad-wi-fi-of/) [Jofra Archer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jofra-archer/) > [When you realise everything is play. And you're apart of the brahman, or the unknown fabric of the universe that is woven in and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jeremy-limn/when-you-realise-everything-is-play-and-you-re-apart-of-the-brahman/) [Jeremy Limn](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jeremy-limn/) > [I had done this. I had pulled my life apart. I would never, ever be safe again.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ruth-reichl/i-had-done-this-i-had-pulled-my-life-apart-i-would-never-ever-be-safe/) [Ruth Reichl](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ruth-reichl/) > [I could see no other way of doing something with my life apart from music.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/andrew-ridgeley/i-could-see-no-other-way-of-doing-something-with-my-life-apart-from/) [Andrew Ridgeley](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/andrew-ridgeley/) > [“You both think I know not what,' said I. 'Have the goodness to make me as little the subject of your mutual talk and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/charlotte-bronte/you-both-think-i-know-not-what-said-i-have-the-goodness-to-make-me-as/) [Charlotte Bronte](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/charlotte-bronte/) > [In about 1975-76, I lived with a woman in a little hut with some fruit trees, and I had some of the most extraordinary,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/peter-carey/in-about-1975-76-i-lived-with-a-woman-in-a-little-hut-with-some-fruit/) [Peter Carey](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/peter-carey/) > [We do not aspire to communal life but to a life apart.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/max-stirner/we-do-not-aspire-to-communal-life-but-to-a-life-apart/) [Max Stirner](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/max-stirner/) > [I had just begun an M.A. in Creative Writing, and I had to write a novel, so I began writing a novel that later…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/neel-mukherjee/i-had-just-begun-an-m-a-in-creative-writing-and-i-had-to-write-a/) [Neel Mukherjee](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/neel-mukherjee/) ## More by Rainbow Rowell > [Reagan was sitting up at Cath's desk when Cath woke up. "Are you awake?" "Have you been watching me sleep?" "Yes, Bella. Are you…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rainbow-rowell/reagan-was-sitting-up-at-cath-s-desk-when-cath-woke-up-are-you-awake/) [Rainbow Rowell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rainbow-rowell/) > [“Are you awake?” “Have you been watching me sleep?” “Yes, Bella. Are you awake?” “No.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rainbow-rowell/are-you-awake-have-you-been-watching-me-sleep-yes-bella-are-you-awake/) [Rainbow Rowell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rainbow-rowell/) > [“Someone was knocking on her windshield. Georgie lifted her head off the steering wheel. It was Kendrick. She couldn’t really hear what he was…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rainbow-rowell/someone-was-knocking-on-her-windshield-georgie-lifted-her-head-off/) [Rainbow Rowell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rainbow-rowell/) > [Maybe Park had paralyzed her with his ninja magic, his Vulcan handhold, and now he was going to eat her. That would be awesome.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rainbow-rowell/maybe-park-had-paralyzed-her-with-his-ninja-magic-his-vulcan-handhold/) [Rainbow Rowell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rainbow-rowell/) > [“She wouldn't pick up a fight him just because she was bored.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rainbow-rowell/she-wouldn-t-pick-up-a-fight-him-just-because-she-was-bored/) [Rainbow Rowell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rainbow-rowell/) > [“That person thought that wearing an ugly dress on the happiest day of someone else's life was just the beginning-the line you have to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rainbow-rowell/that-person-thought-that-wearing-an-ugly-dress-on-the-happiest-day-of/) [Rainbow Rowell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rainbow-rowell/) > [“Is this where you tell me that I'm a scoundrel, and I say that I think you like me because I'm a scoundrel? Because…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rainbow-rowell/is-this-where-you-tell-me-that-i-m-a-scoundrel-and-i-say-that-i-think/) [Rainbow Rowell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rainbow-rowell/) > [“Te informo de que mi respuesta a tus próximas doce afirmaciones va a ser: «¿Cómo dices?»”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rainbow-rowell/te-informo-de-que-mi-respuesta-a-tus-pr-ximas-doce-afirmaciones-va-a/) [Rainbow Rowell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rainbow-rowell/) > [“Dude. Let it go. Good riddance to bad rubbers.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rainbow-rowell/dude-let-it-go-good-riddance-to-bad-rubbers/) [Rainbow Rowell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rainbow-rowell/) > [He looked exactly like a rat. Like the human being version of a rat. Like the villain in a Don Bluth movie.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rainbow-rowell/he-looked-exactly-like-a-rat-like-the-human-being-version-of-a-rat/) [Rainbow Rowell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rainbow-rowell/) > [“Tell me more about the mountains, Georgie said, because she wasn't really sure what to ask. Because ' tell me where I went wrong'…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rainbow-rowell/tell-me-more-about-the-mountains-georgie-said-because-she-wasn-t/) [Rainbow Rowell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rainbow-rowell/) > [God, his chin. She wanted to make an honest woman of his chin. She wanted to lock it down.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rainbow-rowell/god-his-chin-she-wanted-to-make-an-honest-woman-of-his-chin-she/) [Rainbow Rowell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rainbow-rowell/) > [“Wait, I really do need your help with this." He turned his computer monitor toward her and pointed. "Is this funny? It's a Snoopy/Snoop…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rainbow-rowell/wait-i-really-do-need-your-help-with-this-he-turned-his-computer/) [Rainbow Rowell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rainbow-rowell/) > [“You need to cool down first.” “I’m cool.” “Simon. You’re never cool.” “That hurts, Penny.” “It shouldn’t. It’s one of the reasons I love…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rainbow-rowell/you-need-to-cool-down-first-i-m-cool-simon-you-re-never-cool-that/) [Rainbow Rowell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rainbow-rowell/) > [“She'd get out of the shower the next morning, and it would be written in the steam on the mirror. Dance. Dress. Try a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rainbow-rowell/she-d-get-out-of-the-shower-the-next-morning-and-it-would-be-written/) [Rainbow Rowell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rainbow-rowell/) [Explore all 1,108 Rainbow Rowell quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rainbow-rowell/) ## More Life quotes > [Of all the people who have affected my life and influenced the choices I've made, none has been more important than my father. I…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/teddy-atlas/of-all-the-people-who-have-affected-my-life-and-influenced-the/) [Teddy Atlas](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/teddy-atlas/) > [What sets worlds in motion is the interplay of differences, their attractions and repulsions. Life is plurality, death is uniformity. By suppressing differences and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/octavio-paz/what-sets-worlds-in-motion-is-the-interplay-of-differences-their/) [Octavio Paz](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/octavio-paz/) > [Life is full of change. That's how we learn and grow.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/life-is-full-of-change-that-s-how-we-learn-and-grow/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [Life works most perfectly when a reciprocal love relationship is in place between man and God.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/beth-moore/life-works-most-perfectly-when-a-reciprocal-love-relationship-is-in/) [Beth Moore](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/beth-moore/) > [I value the experiences that come with life too much to sit by and not put my full effort into them.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jim-miller/i-value-the-experiences-that-come-with-life-too-much-to-sit-by-and/) [Jim Miller](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jim-miller/) > [Entertainment is a sacred pursuit when done well. When done well, it raises the quality of human life.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-chabon/entertainment-is-a-sacred-pursuit-when-done-well-when-done-well-it/) [Michael Chabon](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michael-chabon/) > [“There's more to life than you can see. Your sight is limited.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tammy-kling/there-s-more-to-life-than-you-can-see-your-sight-is-limited/) [Tammy Kling](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tammy-kling/) > [“I've spent much of my life calling my intuition "something wrong with me.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/deanna-l-lawlis/i-ve-spent-much-of-my-life-calling-my-intuition-something-wrong-with/) Deanna L. Lawlis > [When you do things they're absolutely right at that time for you and it can always teach you something about yourself. You can take…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kym-marsh/when-you-do-things-they-re-absolutely-right-at-that-time-for-you-and/) [Kym Marsh](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kym-marsh/) > [The only people who think the Internet is a calamity are people whose lives have been hurt by it; the only people who insist…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/chuck-klosterman/the-only-people-who-think-the-internet-is-a-calamity-are-people-whose/) [Chuck Klosterman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/chuck-klosterman/) > [The one thing that I keep learning over and over again is that I don't know nothing. I mean, that's my life lesson.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dwayne-johnson/the-one-thing-that-i-keep-learning-over-and-over-again-is-that-i-don/) [Dwayne Johnson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dwayne-johnson/) > [“THIS tale of my sore-troubled life I write,    To thank the God of nature, who conveyed    My soul to me, and with such care…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/this-tale-of-my-sore-troubled-life-i-write-to-thank-the-god-of-nature/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [“The future is only an indifferent void no one cares about, but the past is filled with life, and its countenance is irritating, repellent,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/milan-kundera/the-future-is-only-an-indifferent-void-no-one-cares-about-but-the/) [Milan Kundera](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/milan-kundera/) > [Two things revolutionised life: moving to the countryside and falling in love.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nick-love/two-things-revolutionised-life-moving-to-the-countryside-and-falling/) [Nick Love](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nick-love/) > [But just remember, life without me would be even more unbearable.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anne-rice/but-just-remember-life-without-me-would-be-even-more-unbearable/) [Anne Rice](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anne-rice/) [Browse all 265,290 Life quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/life/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "I take something that happened to me in 1983, and I make it happen to somebody else in 1943. I pick my life apart that way, try to understand it better by writing straight through it.", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "Rainbow Rowell" }, "isPartOf": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website" }, "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rainbow-rowell/i-take-something-that-happened-to-me-in-1983-and-i-make-it-happen-to/", "about": { "@type": "Thing", "name": "Life" }, "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rainbow-rowell/i-take-something-that-happened-to-me-in-1983-and-i-make-it-happen-to/#quotation", "image": { "@type": "ImageObject", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/938/rainbow-rowell-135_life_i-take-something-that-happened-to-me-in_357108.jpg", "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/938/rainbow-rowell-135_life_i-take-something-that-happened-to-me-in_357108.jpg", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/938/rainbow-rowell-135_life_i-take-something-that-happened-to-me-in_357108.jpg", "width": 1080, "height": 1080, "caption": "“I take something that happened to me in 1983, and I make it happen to somebody else in 1943. I pick my life…” — Rainbow Rowell", "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": "Rainbow Rowell", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rainbow-rowell/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 4, "name": "I take something that happened to...", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rainbow-rowell/i-take-something-that-happened-to-me-in-1983-and-i-make-it-happen-to/" } ], "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rainbow-rowell/i-take-something-that-happened-to-me-in-1983-and-i-make-it-happen-to/#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 } } ] } ```