---
title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: All I wanted was what I'd already had…"
description: "\"All I wanted was what I'd already had. That exultation, that love. It was my one real home; I was a visitor everywhere else.\" — Scott Spencer"
image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/6ce/scott-spencer-14581_home_all-i-wanted-was-what-i-d-already-had-th_295772.png"
---

#  All I wanted was what I'd already had. That exultation…

![“All I wanted was what I'd already had. That exultation, that love. It was my one real home; I was a visitor everywhere else.” quote by Scott Spencer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/6ce/scott-spencer-14581_home_all-i-wanted-was-what-i-d-already-had-th_295772.png)   [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/6ce/scott-spencer-14581_home_all-i-wanted-was-what-i-d-already-had-th_295772.png) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/6ce/scott-spencer-14581_home_all-i-wanted-was-what-i-d-already-had-th_295772.png)

> “All I wanted was what I'd already had. That exultation, that love. It was my one real home; I was a visitor everywhere else.”

[Scott Spencer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/scott-spencer/)

## 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 feels true fulfillment only when experiencing deep love, seeing other places as temporary and empty.

**In simple terms:** Love is home; everything else feels transient.

Key Takeaway

Cherish deep connections.

Themes

love home fulfillment transience

Mood

reflective melancholic

Type

philosophical emotional

When to use this quote

- relationships
- personal reflection
- seeking meaning
- overcoming alienation

Key Concepts

existential longing emotional depth

Questions to Reflect On

- What truly feels like home to you?
- How does love change your perception of the world?

A Different Perspective

Even with love, external pursuits may feel hollow.

★ ★ ★ ★ ★   No ratings yet

[Exultation Love](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/exultation-love-2835496/) [Home](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/home/) [Home Visitor](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/home-visitor-2835495/) [Love](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/love/) [Love Real](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/love-real/) [Real](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/real/) [Real Home](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/real-home-492032/) [Visitors](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/visitors/) [Wanted](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/wanted/) [Wanted Exultation](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/wanted-exultation-2835497/)

## Related quotes

> [“Listen to me, Ria. It will be different when you and I have a home. It will be a real home, one that people…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/maeve-binchy/listen-to-me-ria-it-will-be-different-when-you-and-i-have-a-home-it/)

[Maeve Binchy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/maeve-binchy/)

> [I was a born club comic. Radio and TV and stage were fine, but I found my real home in cabaret.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bob-monkhouse/i-was-a-born-club-comic-radio-and-tv-and-stage-were-fine-but-i-found/)

[Bob Monkhouse](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bob-monkhouse/)

> [Your real home isn't your patterned self. It isn't your thinking. It isn't your feeling. Your real home is the deepest within that you…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-de-ruiter/your-real-home-isn-t-your-patterned-self-it-isn-t-your-thinking-it/)

[John de Ruiter](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-de-ruiter/)

> [There is no place in God's world where there are no people who will come and share a home as long as it is…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/there-is-no-place-in-god-s-world-where-there-are-no-people-who-will/)

[Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/)

> [I have a split - of my real home-life side that's real-life, and then the creative side that is not necessarily real-life, but it…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/frank-iero/i-have-a-split-of-my-real-home-life-side-that-s-real-life-and-then/)

[Frank Iero](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/frank-iero/)

> [“We leave our home,” she pointed upwards, “and come here. When we’re done down here in the swamp of humanity, whatever you want to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jonas-saul/we-leave-our-home-she-pointed-upwards-and-come-here-when-we-re-done/)

[Jonas Saul](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jonas-saul/)

> [You can live in a house, but your real home is inside you.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/leonard-jacobson/you-can-live-in-a-house-but-your-real-home-is-inside-you/)

[Leonard Jacobson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/leonard-jacobson/)

> [I'm a real home girl.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lisa-snowdon/i-m-a-real-home-girl/)

[Lisa Snowdon](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lisa-snowdon/)

> [“The real home of man is not his house but the road. Life itself is a travel that has to be done by foot.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bruce-chatwin/the-real-home-of-man-is-not-his-house-but-the-road-life-itself-is-a/)

[Bruce Chatwin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bruce-chatwin/)

> [“Who you are and what you believe in is your real home, the only home no one can take from you, the only home…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/adam-bagdasarian/who-you-are-and-what-you-believe-in-is-your-real-home-the-only-home/)

[Adam Bagdasarian](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/adam-bagdasarian/)

> [I wanted it to look like real cooking in someone's real home or just so out-of-there bizarre that it would be fun.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anthony-bourdain/i-wanted-it-to-look-like-real-cooking-in-someone-s-real-home-or-just/)

[Anthony Bourdain](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anthony-bourdain/)

> [I get on with people. I don't hang out with people who aren't nice. It's like, be real or go home.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/charli-xcx/i-get-on-with-people-i-don-t-hang-out-with-people-who-aren-t-nice-it/)

[Charli XCX](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/charli-xcx/)

> [When my dad was a traveling salesman we moved, I think, seven times before I was 14. There was no real home. Of course,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/steve-doocy/when-my-dad-was-a-traveling-salesman-we-moved-i-think-seven-times/)

[Steve Doocy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/steve-doocy/)

> [Home is a blueprint of memory...Finding home is crucial to the act of writing. Begin here. With what you know. With the tales you've…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/georgia-heard/home-is-a-blueprint-of-memory-finding-home-is-crucial-to-the-act-of/)

[Georgia Heard](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/georgia-heard/)

> [Am I going to be able to provide a real home for her, man? An education? A real life? What's her college application going…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jim-butcher/am-i-going-to-be-able-to-provide-a-real-home-for-her-man-an-education/)

[Jim Butcher](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jim-butcher/)

## More by Scott Spencer

> [You're all I care about," I said. "No. And me. The person I am when I'm with you, the way I see myself and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/scott-spencer/you-re-all-i-care-about-i-said-no-and-me-the-person-i-am-when-i-m/)

[Scott Spencer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/scott-spencer/)

> [Writers are stewards of the culture. Publishers, librarians, bookstore owners. We're all in this together. To write books that are gripping, important, that people…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/scott-spencer/writers-are-stewards-of-the-culture-publishers-librarians-bookstore/)

[Scott Spencer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/scott-spencer/)

> [“Daniel's mind is a scorpion stinging itself to death.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/scott-spencer/daniel-s-mind-is-a-scorpion-stinging-itself-to-death/)

[Scott Spencer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/scott-spencer/)

> [The trouble with excuses, however, is that they become inevitably difficult to believe after they’ve been used a couple of times.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/scott-spencer/the-trouble-with-excuses-however-is-that-they-become-inevitably/)

[Scott Spencer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/scott-spencer/)

> [“I never think of the life I'll miss after I'm dead, or all that I missed before I was born. It's the time I'm…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/scott-spencer/i-never-think-of-the-life-i-ll-miss-after-i-m-dead-or-all-that-i/)

[Scott Spencer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/scott-spencer/)

> [“It was the first time I had heard the truth of what happened that afternoon said in a voice that was not my own.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/scott-spencer/it-was-the-first-time-i-had-heard-the-truth-of-what-happened-that/)

[Scott Spencer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/scott-spencer/)

> [A novelist is someone who sits around the house all day in his underwear, trying not to smoke.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/scott-spencer/a-novelist-is-someone-who-sits-around-the-house-all-day-in-his/)

[Scott Spencer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/scott-spencer/)

> [“On a ship that's made of paper, I would sail the seven seas. (Just to be with you.)”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/scott-spencer/on-a-ship-that-s-made-of-paper-i-would-sail-the-seven-seas-just-to-be/)

[Scott Spencer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/scott-spencer/)

> [Contempt is a dangerous emotion, luring us into believing that we understand more than we do. Contempt causes us to jeer rather than speak,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/scott-spencer/contempt-is-a-dangerous-emotion-luring-us-into-believing-that-we/)

[Scott Spencer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/scott-spencer/)

> [“If endless love was a dream, then it was a dream we all shared, even more that we all shared the dream of never…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/scott-spencer/if-endless-love-was-a-dream-then-it-was-a-dream-we-all-shared-even/)

[Scott Spencer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/scott-spencer/)

> [“Love gives us a heightened consciousness through which to apprehend the world, but anger gives us a precise, detached perception of its own.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/scott-spencer/love-gives-us-a-heightened-consciousness-through-which-to-apprehend/)

[Scott Spencer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/scott-spencer/)

> [“I don’t want to say it, I truly don’t, but if you’ve gone this far I suppose it’s obvious that what was ignited when…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/scott-spencer/i-don-t-want-to-say-it-i-truly-don-t-but-if-you-ve-gone-this-far-i/)

[Scott Spencer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/scott-spencer/)

> [“He welcomes the chance to do fatherly things with the little girl, and those ten morning minutes with dear little four-year-old Ruby, with her…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/scott-spencer/he-welcomes-the-chance-to-do-fatherly-things-with-the-little-girl-and/)

[Scott Spencer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/scott-spencer/)

> [“It was only vanity and discouragement that sometimes made me feel alone with my endless love, but now that I was taking one of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/scott-spencer/it-was-only-vanity-and-discouragement-that-sometimes-made-me-feel/)

[Scott Spencer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/scott-spencer/)

> [If a book isn't teaching me something, pulling something out of me, then it will be dull for me and the reader.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/scott-spencer/if-a-book-isn-t-teaching-me-something-pulling-something-out-of-me/)

[Scott Spencer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/scott-spencer/)

[Explore all 46 Scott Spencer quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/scott-spencer/)

## More Home quotes

> [Sentiment is the mightiest force in civilization; not sentimentality, but sentiment. Women will bring this into politics. Home, sweet home, is as powerful on…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/judith-ellen-foster/sentiment-is-the-mightiest-force-in-civilization-not-sentimentality/)

[Judith Ellen Foster](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/judith-ellen-foster/)

> [I don't like being away from home. That's one reason why I don't work as much as I used to \[when I started my…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jane-powell/i-don-t-like-being-away-from-home-that-s-one-reason-why-i-don-t-work/)

[Jane Powell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jane-powell/)

> [“It is not the force of the wind, but the depth of the roots.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/craig-d-lounsbrough/it-is-not-the-force-of-the-wind-but-the-depth-of-the-roots/)

[Craig D. Lounsbrough](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/craig-d-lounsbrough/)

> [If your life's at a juncture and you need to think about things, there's nowhere better than home. However old you are.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sophie-kinsella/if-your-life-s-at-a-juncture-and-you-need-to-think-about-things-there/)

[Sophie Kinsella](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sophie-kinsella/)

> [Most days, I go home and I feel rejuvenated. I feel ebullient.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/siddhartha-mukherjee/most-days-i-go-home-and-i-feel-rejuvenated-i-feel-ebullient/)

[Siddhartha Mukherjee](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/siddhartha-mukherjee/)

> [If my campaign is not in the debate, we will not be talking about how we really fix this problem of endless and expanding…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jill-stein/if-my-campaign-is-not-in-the-debate-we-will-not-be-talking-about-how/)

[Jill Stein](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jill-stein/)

> [Houses are like the human beings that inhabit them.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/victor-hugo/houses-are-like-the-human-beings-that-inhabit-them/)

[Victor Hugo](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/victor-hugo/)

> [The house has to serve comfort. The work of art is revolutionary; the house is conservative.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/adolf-loos/the-house-has-to-serve-comfort-the-work-of-art-is-revolutionary-the/)

[Adolf Loos](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/adolf-loos/)

> [I don't crave applause. I'm not one of those guys who comes alive on stage. I'm much more alive at home, I think.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-bowie/i-don-t-crave-applause-i-m-not-one-of-those-guys-who-comes-alive-on/)

[David Bowie](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-bowie/)

> [A home is not a museum. It doesn't have to be furnished with Picasso paintings, or Sheraton suites, or Oriental rugs, or Chinese pottery.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/james-m-cain/a-home-is-not-a-museum-it-doesn-t-have-to-be-furnished-with-picasso/)

[James M. Cain](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/james-m-cain/)

> [As a child, I had a lot of older gay men taking care of me. There's a trust there. I feel like little girls…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/margaret-cho/as-a-child-i-had-a-lot-of-older-gay-men-taking-care-of-me-there-s-a/)

[Margaret Cho](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/margaret-cho/)

> [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/)

> [When you're in the middle of a pennant race, you can't go up there thinking about home runs.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sammy-sosa/when-you-re-in-the-middle-of-a-pennant-race-you-can-t-go-up-there/)

[Sammy Sosa](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sammy-sosa/)

> [I write about presidents. That means I write about guys - so far. I'm interested in the people closest to them, the people they…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/doris-kearns-goodwin/i-write-about-presidents-that-means-i-write-about-guys-so-far-i-m/)

[Doris Kearns Goodwin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/doris-kearns-goodwin/)

> [You play a part, and as soon as a movie is over and the camera stops, you go home and you're not really responsible…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nastassja-kinski/you-play-a-part-and-as-soon-as-a-movie-is-over-and-the-camera-stops/)

[Nastassja Kinski](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nastassja-kinski/)

[Browse all 25,855 Home quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/home/)

```json
{
    "@context": "https://schema.org",
    "@graph": [
        {
            "@type": "Quotation",
            "text": "All I wanted was what I'd already had. That exultation, that love. It was my one real home; I was a visitor everywhere else.",
            "creator": {
                "@type": "Person",
                "name": "Scott Spencer"
            },
            "isPartOf": {
                "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website"
            },
            "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/scott-spencer/all-i-wanted-was-what-i-d-already-had-that-exultation-that-love-it/",
            "about": {
                "@type": "Thing",
                "name": "Home"
            },
            "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/scott-spencer/all-i-wanted-was-what-i-d-already-had-that-exultation-that-love-it/#quotation",
            "image": {
                "@type": "ImageObject",
                "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/6ce/scott-spencer-14581_home_all-i-wanted-was-what-i-d-already-had-th_295772.png",
                "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/6ce/scott-spencer-14581_home_all-i-wanted-was-what-i-d-already-had-th_295772.png",
                "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/6ce/scott-spencer-14581_home_all-i-wanted-was-what-i-d-already-had-th_295772.png",
                "width": 1080,
                "height": 1080,
                "caption": "“All I wanted was what I'd already had. That exultation, that love. It was my one real home; I was a visitor…” — Scott Spencer",
                "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": "Scott Spencer",
                    "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/scott-spencer/"
                },
                {
                    "@type": "ListItem",
                    "position": 4,
                    "name": "All I wanted was what I'd...",
                    "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/scott-spencer/all-i-wanted-was-what-i-d-already-had-that-exultation-that-love-it/"
                }
            ],
            "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/scott-spencer/all-i-wanted-was-what-i-d-already-had-that-exultation-that-love-it/#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
            }
        }
    ]
}
```
