--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: I have always pondered a tragic law of…" description: "\"“I have always pondered a tragic law of adolescence. (On second thought, the law probably applies to all ages to some extent). That law: People fall in..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/1af/robert-cormier-6436_different-times_i-have-always-pondered-a-tragic-law-of-a_2134327.jpg" --- # I have always pondered a tragic law of adolescence. (On… ![“I have always pondered a tragic law of adolescence. (On second thought, the law probably applies to all ages to some extent). That law: People fall in love at the same time—often at the same stunning moment—but they fall out of love at different times. One is left sadly juggling the pieces of a…” quote by Robert Cormier](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/1af/robert-cormier-6436_different-times_i-have-always-pondered-a-tragic-law-of-a_2134327.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/1af/robert-cormier-6436_different-times_i-have-always-pondered-a-tragic-law-of-a_2134327.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/1af/robert-cormier-6436_different-times_i-have-always-pondered-a-tragic-law-of-a_2134327.jpg) > ““I have always pondered a tragic law of adolescence. (On second thought, the law probably applies to all ages to some extent). That law: People fall in love at the same time—often at the same stunning moment—but they fall out of love at different times. One is left sadly juggling the pieces of a fractured heart while the other has danced away.”” [Robert Cormier](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robert-cormier/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Love often begins simultaneously for two people but ends at different moments, leaving one partner to cope alone while the other moves on. **In simple terms:** Love starts together, ends apart. Key Takeaway Accept the timing of love’s end. Themes love timing heartbreak Mood sad reflective Type narrative emotional When to use this quote - breakups - dating - post‑relationship healing - self‑care Key Concepts relationship dynamics emotional asymmetry Questions to Reflect On - How do you navigate uneven emotional timelines? - What helps you heal when love ends for you alone? A Different Perspective One may feel abandoned while the other feels free, complicating closure. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Adolescence Second](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/adolescence-second-4413609/) [Different times](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/different-times/) [Fall in love](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/fall-in-love/) [Fall Love](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/fall-love/) [Fall out of love](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/fall-out-of-love/) [Law Adolescence](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/law-adolescence-4413607/) [Love](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/love/) [Moment Fall](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/moment-fall-662395/) [Tragic Law](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/tragic-law-4413608/) [Youth](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/youth/) ## Related quotes > [It's interesting because the first batch of really struggling with control and escape and all that happened when I was nearing adolescence, and the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/marti-noxon/it-s-interesting-because-the-first-batch-of-really-struggling-with/) [Marti Noxon](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/marti-noxon/) > [In an individual moment, a young adult female's voice fades within the wind. No one is listening. Can you hear her voice? A young…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/brooke-t-ryman/in-an-individual-moment-a-young-adult-female-s-voice-fades-within-the/) [Brooke T Ryman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/brooke-t-ryman/) > [“It is a frightening thought, that in one fraction of a moment you can fall in the kind of love that takes a lifetime…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/beau-taplin/it-is-a-frightening-thought-that-in-one-fraction-of-a-moment-you-can/) [Beau Taplin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/beau-taplin/) > [“What is it about the moment you fall in love? How can such a small measure of time contain such enormity?”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-levithan/what-is-it-about-the-moment-you-fall-in-love-how-can-such-a-small/) [David Levithan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-levithan/) > [That awkward moment when you fall in love with your bestfreind.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/strawberry/that-awkward-moment-when-you-fall-in-love-with-your-bestfreind/) [Strawberry](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/strawberry/) > [“What is it about the moment you fall in love? haw can such a small measure of time contain such enormity? I suddenly realize…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-levithan/what-is-it-about-the-moment-you-fall-in-love-haw-can-such-a-small/) [David Levithan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-levithan/) > [That awkward moment when you fall for your best friends ex.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/that-awkward-moment-when-you-fall-for-your-best-friends-ex/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [Being single doesn't mean you're alone. There may be someone behind you watching your back and willing to catch you the moment you fall.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/being-single-doesn-t-mean-you-re-alone-there-may-be-someone-behind/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [“She stands, her skirt taking a moment to fall down her leg, and I follow her, because right now she's my white rabbit...”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lia-hills/she-stands-her-skirt-taking-a-moment-to-fall-down-her-leg-and-i/) [Lia Hills](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lia-hills/) > [The moment I stop giving Him the glory is the moment I will fall, and I will fail, and I know that. Because I've…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ainsley-earhardt/the-moment-i-stop-giving-him-the-glory-is-the-moment-i-will-fall-and/) [Ainsley Earhardt](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ainsley-earhardt/) > [There's a moment for everyone when you fall into your own shadow and the fact is that it's your shadow and you're forced to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robert-rauschenberg/there-s-a-moment-for-everyone-when-you-fall-into-your-own-shadow-and/) [Robert Rauschenberg](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robert-rauschenberg/) > [“What is it about the moment you fall in love? How can such small measure of time contain such enormity? I suddenly realize why…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-levithan/what-is-it-about-the-moment-you-fall-in-love-how-can-such-small/) [David Levithan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-levithan/) > [When you are in a relationship, you are aware that it might end. You might grow apart, find someone else, simply fall out of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/emily-giffin/when-you-are-in-a-relationship-you-are-aware-that-it-might-end-you/) [Emily Giffin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/emily-giffin/) > [“It had just hit her why and how people could fall in love with Istanbul, in spite of all the sorrow it might cause…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/elif-shafak/it-had-just-hit-her-why-and-how-people-could-fall-in-love-with/) [Elif Shafak](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/elif-shafak/) > [“A man thinks it quite natural that he should fall out of love with a woman, but it never strikes him for a moment…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/w-somerset-maugham/a-man-thinks-it-quite-natural-that-he-should-fall-out-of-love-with-a/) [W. Somerset Maugham](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/w-somerset-maugham/) ## More by Robert Cormier > [“Eric Poole began with cats. Or, to be more exact, kittens.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robert-cormier/eric-poole-began-with-cats-or-to-be-more-exact-kittens/) [Robert Cormier](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robert-cormier/) > [...pain reaches a certain point and does not get worse but remains in all its intensity and you can survive it.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robert-cormier/pain-reaches-a-certain-point-and-does-not-get-worse-but-remains-in/) [Robert Cormier](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robert-cormier/) > [It came to me that hell would not be fire and smoke after all but arctic, everything white and frigid. Hell would be not…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robert-cormier/it-came-to-me-that-hell-would-not-be-fire-and-smoke-after-all-but/) [Robert Cormier](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robert-cormier/) > [I don't like to think in terms of writing ten or twelve pages a day. Usually I'm writing a scene, and it's always with…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robert-cormier/i-don-t-like-to-think-in-terms-of-writing-ten-or-twelve-pages-a-day/) [Robert Cormier](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robert-cormier/) > [“Mr. Sinclair once asked the class to make a list of the ten most beautiful words in the English language, and the only word…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robert-cormier/mr-sinclair-once-asked-the-class-to-make-a-list-of-the-ten-most/) [Robert Cormier](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robert-cormier/) > [The earliest influence on me was the movies of the thirties when I was growing up. Those were stories. If you look at them…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robert-cormier/the-earliest-influence-on-me-was-the-movies-of-the-thirties-when-i/) [Robert Cormier](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robert-cormier/) > [“He was afraid that his body would come loose, all his bones spilling out like a building collapsing, like a picket fence clattering apart.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robert-cormier/he-was-afraid-that-his-body-would-come-loose-all-his-bones-spilling/) [Robert Cormier](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robert-cormier/) > [I have always had a sense that we are all pretty much alone in life, particularly in adolescence.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robert-cormier/i-have-always-had-a-sense-that-we-are-all-pretty-much-alone-in-life/) [Robert Cormier](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robert-cormier/) > [I don't mean to be insolent. I'm truthful. I tell the truth and the truth sometimes hurts. For instance, you have bad breath, Lieutenant.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robert-cormier/i-don-t-mean-to-be-insolent-i-m-truthful-i-tell-the-truth-and-the/) [Robert Cormier](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robert-cormier/) > [The beautiful part of writing is that you don't have to get it right the first time, unlike, say, a brain surgeon. You can…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robert-cormier/the-beautiful-part-of-writing-is-that-you-don-t-have-to-get-it-right/) [Robert Cormier](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robert-cormier/) > [That's what Archie did - built a house nobody could anticipate a need for, except himself, a house that was invisible to everyone else.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robert-cormier/that-s-what-archie-did-built-a-house-nobody-could-anticipate-a-need/) [Robert Cormier](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robert-cormier/) > [“They tell you to do your own thing but they don't mean it. They don't want you to do your thing, not unless it…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robert-cormier/they-tell-you-to-do-your-own-thing-but-they-don-t-mean-it-they-don-t/) [Robert Cormier](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robert-cormier/) > [I've had aunts and uncles who not only haven't read my books but could hardly believe that I was a writer.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robert-cormier/i-ve-had-aunts-and-uncles-who-not-only-haven-t-read-my-books-but/) [Robert Cormier](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robert-cormier/) > [You bring up your children to be self-reliant and independent and they double-cross you and become self-reliant and independent.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robert-cormier/you-bring-up-your-children-to-be-self-reliant-and-independent-and/) [Robert Cormier](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robert-cormier/) > [“We just might make a quarterback out of you yet, you skinny little son of a bitch.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robert-cormier/we-just-might-make-a-quarterback-out-of-you-yet-you-skinny-little-son/) [Robert Cormier](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robert-cormier/) [Explore all 99 Robert Cormier quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robert-cormier/) ## More Different times quotes > [People go through different stages of their lives at different times. If you're out of sync with your friend group, that gets exploded once…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jon-hamm/people-go-through-different-stages-of-their-lives-at-different-times/) [Jon Hamm](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jon-hamm/) > [“Life is like a game of cards. It deals you different hands at different times. You don’t have that old hand anymore, Leo. Look…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/barbara-delinsky/life-is-like-a-game-of-cards-it-deals-you-different-hands-at/) [Barbara Delinsky](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/barbara-delinsky/) > [“He remembered the good times with them all, and the quarrels. They always picked the finest places to have the quarrels. And why had…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ernest-hemingway/he-remembered-the-good-times-with-them-all-and-the-quarrels-they/) [Ernest Hemingway](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ernest-hemingway/) > [At different times and in different places I have come to expect certain books to look a certain way, and, as in all fashions,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alberto-manguel/at-different-times-and-in-different-places-i-have-come-to-expect/) [Alberto Manguel](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alberto-manguel/) > [I gave up a lot of money to stay with the Braves four different times and I don't regret any second of it.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-smoltz/i-gave-up-a-lot-of-money-to-stay-with-the-braves-four-different-times/) [John Smoltz](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-smoltz/) > [At different times in my life I met God from a different point of view.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/t-bone-burnett/at-different-times-in-my-life-i-met-god-from-a-different-point-of-view/) [T Bone Burnett](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/t-bone-burnett/) > [Biologically and physiologically, we are not equal. Some of us learn better at different times of day. Some learn best visually, some auditorially, some…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/leo-buscaglia/biologically-and-physiologically-we-are-not-equal-some-of-us-learn/) [Leo Buscaglia](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/leo-buscaglia/) > [I've liked different women at different times in my life. I've been attracted to white women. I've been attracted to black women. I've been…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/oliver-stone/i-ve-liked-different-women-at-different-times-in-my-life-i-ve-been/) [Oliver Stone](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/oliver-stone/) > [“The shift of power to retailers is not an inevitable phenomenon: technological changes and associated innovative ideas have been instrumental in moving power and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/greg-thain/the-shift-of-power-to-retailers-is-not-an-inevitable-phenomenon/) [Greg Thain](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/greg-thain/) > [Humor of all types is notoriously subjective. 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All that diversity of natural things…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/isaac-newton/blind-metaphysical-necessity-which-is-certainly-the-same-always-and/) [Isaac Newton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/isaac-newton/) > [“Our lives are constantly changing. Different things become relevant at different times in our lives. We are motivated by our changing sensibilities. Why can…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sarah-thornton/our-lives-are-constantly-changing-different-things-become-relevant-at/) [Sarah Thornton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sarah-thornton/) > [I broke ribs three different times.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/garrett-mcnamara/i-broke-ribs-three-different-times/) [Garrett McNamara](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/garrett-mcnamara/) [Browse all 376 Different times quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/different-times/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "“I have always pondered a tragic law of adolescence. 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