--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: Outside it dawned on me that my mother…" description: "\"“Outside it dawned on me that my mother hadn't specified the method of my father's suicide. She'd just said he'd committed suicide. It seemed horrible ..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/059/scott-hutchins-35178_coming-home_outside-it-dawned-on-me-that-my-mother-h_2785426.jpg" --- # Outside it dawned on me that my mother hadn't specified… ![“Outside it dawned on me that my mother hadn't specified the method of my father's suicide. She'd just said he'd committed suicide. It seemed horrible to me that I hadn't thought to ask. I decided not to pack. I had clothes in my bedroom at home. I still lived there, in a sense. I hadn't planned on…” quote by Scott Hutchins](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/059/scott-hutchins-35178_coming-home_outside-it-dawned-on-me-that-my-mother-h_2785426.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/059/scott-hutchins-35178_coming-home_outside-it-dawned-on-me-that-my-mother-h_2785426.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/059/scott-hutchins-35178_coming-home_outside-it-dawned-on-me-that-my-mother-h_2785426.jpg) > ““Outside it dawned on me that my mother hadn't specified the method of my father's suicide. She'd just said he'd committed suicide. It seemed horrible to me that I hadn't thought to ask. I decided not to pack. I had clothes in my bedroom at home. I still lived there, in a sense. I hadn't planned on coming home for the summer. He'd been mad about that, I thought. Or had he? I'd reached a point where I couldn't tell if he was mad about everything, or nothing, or wasn't mad at all.”” [Scott Hutchins](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/scott-hutchins/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. The speaker reflects on a father's suicide, noting the lack of detail and the emotional confusion surrounding the event, and the decision not to return home. **In simple terms:** Unclear details about a suicide cause lingering confusion. Key Takeaway Seek clarity and support after loss. Themes grief family uncertainty Mood somber introspective Type personal emotional When to use this quote - counseling sessions - family discussions - personal journaling Key Concepts suicide awareness psychological processing Questions to Reflect On - What questions remain unanswered? - How does uncertainty affect mourning? A Different Perspective Understanding may not change the past. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Coming home](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/coming-home/) [Parenting](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/parenting/) [Suicide](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/suicide/) ## Related quotes > [“I ran as fast as I could for about five minutes over the deserted streets. If you wonder Diary why I did it, the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tionne-rogers/i-ran-as-fast-as-i-could-for-about-five-minutes-over-the-deserted/) [Tionne Rogers](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tionne-rogers/) > [There is an old story about the boy at Eton who committed suicide. The other boys in his house were gathered together and asked…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/auberon-waugh/there-is-an-old-story-about-the-boy-at-eton-who-committed-suicide-the/) [Auberon Waugh](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/auberon-waugh/) > [Don't know why I did it, I was just fooling around. I never knew life was so precious, until I hit the ground. I…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kalea-mendoza/don-t-know-why-i-did-it-i-was-just-fooling-around-i-never-knew-life/) Kalea Mendoza > [It is tempting when looking at the life of anyone who has committed suicide to read into the decision to die a vastly complex…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kay-redfield-jamison/it-is-tempting-when-looking-at-the-life-of-anyone-who-has-committed/) [Kay Redfield Jamison](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kay-redfield-jamison/) > [“It was the same with how people said committed suicide. As if suicide were a felony and not the last desperate act of someone…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ethel-rohan/it-was-the-same-with-how-people-said-committed-suicide-as-if-suicide/) Ethel Rohan > [No cigar-smoker ever committed suicide.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-maginn/no-cigar-smoker-ever-committed-suicide/) William Maginn > [I was really struck by all these people who had committed suicide. There are videos of all of them talking about why they're so…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joshuah-bearman/i-was-really-struck-by-all-these-people-who-had-committed-suicide/) [Joshuah Bearman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joshuah-bearman/) > [How do you dare to ask me for a solution? It's like asking Seneca for a solution. You remember what he did? He committed…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/oriana-fallaci/how-do-you-dare-to-ask-me-for-a-solution-it-s-like-asking-seneca-for/) [Oriana Fallaci](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/oriana-fallaci/) > [If my mother hadn't tried to sell me chicken Kiev cutlets for $1.40 after I graduated from college, maybe I would've been the lawyer…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gary-shteyngart/if-my-mother-hadn-t-tried-to-sell-me-chicken-kiev-cutlets-for-1-40/) [Gary Shteyngart](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gary-shteyngart/) > [If my mother hadn't encouraged me, I would be nervous and feeling like I'm doing something wrong.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alek-wek/if-my-mother-hadn-t-encouraged-me-i-would-be-nervous-and-feeling-like/) [Alek Wek](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alek-wek/) > [If my mother hadn't thrown my football boots on the fire, I might have become as famous as Denis Compton.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/len-hutton/if-my-mother-hadn-t-thrown-my-football-boots-on-the-fire-i-might-have/) Len Hutton > [“We placed her in her coffin the following afternoon. I tried to hammer the lid down, but the stupid nails were inferior and wouldn’t…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/masaji-ishikawa/we-placed-her-in-her-coffin-the-following-afternoon-i-tried-to-hammer/) [Masaji Ishikawa](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/masaji-ishikawa/) > [If my mother hadn't been trying to be a writer, I don't know if I would have thought of it myself.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-updike/if-my-mother-hadn-t-been-trying-to-be-a-writer-i-don-t-know-if-i/) [John Updike](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-updike/) > [“kicked out of nursery school that day. If my mother hadn’t been the most patient person in the world, I might never have gone…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ben-horowitz/kicked-out-of-nursery-school-that-day-if-my-mother-hadn-t-been-the/) [Ben Horowitz](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ben-horowitz/) > [“Isobel moved farther into the kitchen, not knowing whether to be relieved that her mother hadn't had an atomic meltdown, or mortified that she'd…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kelly-creagh/isobel-moved-farther-into-the-kitchen-not-knowing-whether-to-be/) [Kelly Creagh](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kelly-creagh/) ## More by Scott Hutchins > [“What happened to us American men? There we were, joyfully plundering the world like openhanded pirates, and now that we have it all we…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/scott-hutchins/what-happened-to-us-american-men-there-we-were-joyfully-plundering/) [Scott Hutchins](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/scott-hutchins/) > [“We are all, of course, wayfaring strangers on this earth. But coming out of the rainbow tunnel, the liminal portal between Marin and San…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/scott-hutchins/we-are-all-of-course-wayfaring-strangers-on-this-earth-but-coming-out/) [Scott Hutchins](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/scott-hutchins/) > [I know already that I can survive it. That's the sorrow of it all. That whatever comes I'll survive it. I mean, even if…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/scott-hutchins/i-know-already-that-i-can-survive-it-that-s-the-sorrow-of-it-all-that/) [Scott Hutchins](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/scott-hutchins/) > [“She wants another spin on the wheel of fortune? 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In other words,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/scott-hutchins/when-you-spend-significant-amounts-of-time-with-someone-they-offer/) [Scott Hutchins](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/scott-hutchins/) > [I read more books than you can imagine on all sorts of odd topics, which is something that I love.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/scott-hutchins/i-read-more-books-than-you-can-imagine-on-all-sorts-of-odd-topics/) [Scott Hutchins](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/scott-hutchins/) [Explore all 13 Scott Hutchins quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/scott-hutchins/) ## More Coming home quotes > [Everything comes home, my mother used to say; every word spoken, every shadow cast, every footprint in the sand. It can't be helped; it's…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joanne-harris/everything-comes-home-my-mother-used-to-say-every-word-spoken-every/) [Joanne Harris](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joanne-harris/) > [I was interested in all kinds of things, whether it be Avatar, Mad Men, Troy, 300, Battlestar Gallactica, or the poems of Horace and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/daniel-mendelsohn/i-was-interested-in-all-kinds-of-things-whether-it-be-avatar-mad-men/) [Daniel Mendelsohn](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/daniel-mendelsohn/) > [Everyday happiness means getting up in the morning, and you can't wait to finish your breakfast. You can't wait to do your exercises. You…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-burns/everyday-happiness-means-getting-up-in-the-morning-and-you-can-t-wait/) [George Burns](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-burns/) > [To be polite to everybody except the people they love most is a nervous affectation that afflicts many families ... when they come home,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/margaret-fishback/to-be-polite-to-everybody-except-the-people-they-love-most-is-a/) Margaret Fishback > [This is my idea of heaven, coming home and watching the news.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rita-moreno/this-is-my-idea-of-heaven-coming-home-and-watching-the-news/) [Rita Moreno](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rita-moreno/) > [“And when I look into his eyes there’s a feeling of something I can only describe as familiarity, a sense of safety. Like coming…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rebecca-james/and-when-i-look-into-his-eyes-there-s-a-feeling-of-something-i-can/) [Rebecca James](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rebecca-james/) > [My greatest fear is coming home one day and discovering that the slim and sexy woman I married has become fat and shapeless](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mo-zee/my-greatest-fear-is-coming-home-one-day-and-discovering-that-the-slim/) [MO'Zee](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mo-zee/) > [Seeing my children makes me come most alive. I come home and I see my kids' faces light up when they see me at…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/richard-patrick/seeing-my-children-makes-me-come-most-alive-i-come-home-and-i-see-my/) [Richard Patrick](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/richard-patrick/) > [I wouldn't just come home from school and watch TV everyday, they had me involved in lots of local theatre. I was a very…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kerry-washington/i-wouldn-t-just-come-home-from-school-and-watch-tv-everyday-they-had/) [Kerry Washington](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kerry-washington/) > [“Where we sail and anchor our heart fill up the multitude odyssey paving to the coming home of our soul.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/angelica-hopes/where-we-sail-and-anchor-our-heart-fill-up-the-multitude-odyssey/) [Angelica Hopes](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/angelica-hopes/) > [I can see you through any darkness. Your light it leads me on. I'm coming back to your orchard. Coming back to my home.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lizz-wright/i-can-see-you-through-any-darkness-your-light-it-leads-me-on-i-m/) [Lizz Wright](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lizz-wright/) > [Coming back to your calling. I can hear your voice say. Coming home for tomorrow from my dreams of yesterday.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lizz-wright/coming-back-to-your-calling-i-can-hear-your-voice-say-coming-home-for/) [Lizz Wright](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lizz-wright/) > [It all begins and ends in the same place, doesn't it? Conor and me in Ballyutogue. We all come home eventually.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/leon-uris/it-all-begins-and-ends-in-the-same-place-doesn-t-it-conor-and-me-in/) [Leon Uris](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/leon-uris/) > [“Yes, she’s coming home for a visit. No, I will not give you a free pass. You put one finger on her, I’ll beat…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nalini-singh/yes-she-s-coming-home-for-a-visit-no-i-will-not-give-you-a-free-pass/) [nalini singh](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nalini-singh/) > [“I let it all out: the joy and the pain. The waiting and the wanting. The future and the past. We kiss for so…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/katia-rose/i-let-it-all-out-the-joy-and-the-pain-the-waiting-and-the-wanting-the/) Katia Rose [Browse all 1,175 Coming home quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/coming-home/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "“Outside it dawned on me that my mother hadn't specified the method of my father's suicide. She'd just said he'd committed suicide. It seemed horrible to me that I hadn't thought to ask. I decided not to pack. I had clothes in my bedroom at home. I still lived there, in a sense. I hadn't planned on coming home for the summer. He'd been mad about that, I thought. Or had he? 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