--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: Grief is when you feel so helpless and…" description: "\"“Grief is when you feel so helpless and stupid that you think nothing will ever be right again, and your macaroni and cheese tastes like sawdust, and y..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/b78/sherman-alexie-444_grief_grief-is-when-you-feel-so-helpless-and-s_1982184.jpg" --- # Grief is when you feel so helpless and stupid that you… ![“Grief is when you feel so helpless and stupid that you think nothing will ever be right again, and your macaroni and cheese tastes like sawdust, and you can't even jerk off because it seems like too much trouble.” quote by Sherman Alexie](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/b78/sherman-alexie-444_grief_grief-is-when-you-feel-so-helpless-and-s_1982184.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/b78/sherman-alexie-444_grief_grief-is-when-you-feel-so-helpless-and-s_1982184.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/b78/sherman-alexie-444_grief_grief-is-when-you-feel-so-helpless-and-s_1982184.jpg) > ““Grief is when you feel so helpless and stupid that you think nothing will ever be right again, and your macaroni and cheese tastes like sawdust, and you can't even jerk off because it seems like too much trouble.”” [Sherman Alexie](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sherman-alexie/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Grief can make everyday life feel absurd and overwhelming, draining motivation for even basic pleasures. **In simple terms:** Grief makes life feel pointless. Key Takeaway Acknowledge grief’s impact on daily life. Themes grief absurdity motivation Mood somber darkly humorous Type cathartic observational When to use this quote - daily routine - self-care - creative work Key Concepts mental health coping strategies Questions to Reflect On - How do you navigate daily tasks while grieving? - What supports restore meaning? A Different Perspective Humor may mask deeper pain. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Grief](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/grief/) ## Related quotes > [In the wintertime I like macaroni and cheese.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jami-attenberg/in-the-wintertime-i-like-macaroni-and-cheese/) [Jami Attenberg](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jami-attenberg/) > [“Like somebody who was just happy because there was macaroni and cheese in the world.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/augusten-burroughs/like-somebody-who-was-just-happy-because-there-was-macaroni-and/) [Augusten Burroughs](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/augusten-burroughs/) > [One of the things I love about New York is that it's one of the only places where you could have an entire restaurant…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/savannah-guthrie/one-of-the-things-i-love-about-new-york-is-that-it-s-one-of-the-only/) [Savannah Guthrie](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/savannah-guthrie/) > [“But all she wanted to do was lie in bed, eat Kraft macaroni and cheese, and hide from the alligators.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rebecca-wells/but-all-she-wanted-to-do-was-lie-in-bed-eat-kraft-macaroni-and-cheese/) [Rebecca Wells](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rebecca-wells/) > [I don't do much cooking, but one of my favorite dishes to eat is my wife's macaroni and cheese.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ice-cube/i-don-t-do-much-cooking-but-one-of-my-favorite-dishes-to-eat-is-my/) [Ice Cube](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ice-cube/) > [Bless this highly nutritious microwavable macaroni and cheese dinner and the people who sold it on sale. Amen.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kevin-mcallister/bless-this-highly-nutritious-microwavable-macaroni-and-cheese-dinner/) Kevin McAllister > [I love macaroni and cheese. I could eat it every meal of the day.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/cobie-smulders/i-love-macaroni-and-cheese-i-could-eat-it-every-meal-of-the-day/) [Cobie Smulders](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/cobie-smulders/) > [The only thing I can make is Kraft Macaroni and Cheese. It's my go-to dish, I love it, but I probably order in most…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/johnny-gaudreau/the-only-thing-i-can-make-is-kraft-macaroni-and-cheese-it-s-my-go-to/) [Johnny Gaudreau](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/johnny-gaudreau/) > [Dude, macaroni and cheese is the food of the gods!](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/haley-james-scott/dude-macaroni-and-cheese-is-the-food-of-the-gods/) [Haley James Scott](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/haley-james-scott/) > [I'm a carb queen. I'll always order macaroni and cheese, but I don't want it to be fancy. I want it to be as…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/drew-barrymore/i-m-a-carb-queen-i-ll-always-order-macaroni-and-cheese-but-i-don-t/) [Drew Barrymore](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/drew-barrymore/) > [I am not one to turn down macaroni and cheese, even late at night. I love Italian food. I love pasta... A refrigerator full…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/queen-latifah/i-am-not-one-to-turn-down-macaroni-and-cheese-even-late-at-night-i/) [Queen Latifah](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/queen-latifah/) > [I love macaroni and cheese. I could eat it every meal of the day. It used to be sushi, but these days I cannot…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/cobie-smulders/i-love-macaroni-and-cheese-i-could-eat-it-every-meal-of-the-day-it/) [Cobie Smulders](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/cobie-smulders/) > [Fettucini alfredo is macaroni and cheese for adults.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mitch-hedberg/fettucini-alfredo-is-macaroni-and-cheese-for-adults/) [Mitch Hedberg](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mitch-hedberg/) > [You can buy a box of low-fat macaroni and cheese made with powdered nonsense. I'm not worried if I'm using four different cheeses and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tom-colicchio/you-can-buy-a-box-of-low-fat-macaroni-and-cheese-made-with-powdered/) [Tom Colicchio](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tom-colicchio/) > [It was like sawdust, the unhappiness: it infiltrated everything, everything was a problem, everything made her cry - school, homework, boyfriends, the future, the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/melanie-thernstrom/it-was-like-sawdust-the-unhappiness-it-infiltrated-everything/) Melanie Thernstrom ## More by Sherman Alexie > [“He says the earth is an oval marble that nobody can win. He says the sky is not blue and the grass is not…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sherman-alexie/he-says-the-earth-is-an-oval-marble-that-nobody-can-win-he-says-the/) [Sherman Alexie](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sherman-alexie/) > [“Now, in the old days, Indians used to be forgiving of any kind of eccentricity. In fact, weird people were often celebrated. Epileptics were…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sherman-alexie/now-in-the-old-days-indians-used-to-be-forgiving-of-any-kind-of/) [Sherman Alexie](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sherman-alexie/) > [Since Jesus was human then he most assuredly farted and burped. And if God did create us in God's image then God must fart…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sherman-alexie/since-jesus-was-human-then-he-most-assuredly-farted-and-burped-and-if/) [Sherman Alexie](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sherman-alexie/) > [“A century ago she might have been beautiful, her face reflected in the river instead of a mirror. But all the years have changed…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sherman-alexie/a-century-ago-she-might-have-been-beautiful-her-face-reflected-in-the/) [Sherman Alexie](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sherman-alexie/) > [“In all those stories, I could fly.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sherman-alexie/in-all-those-stories-i-could-fly/) [Sherman Alexie](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sherman-alexie/) > [I don't think there's a whole lot of class literature at all. I think most of that has become racially based, and people don't…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sherman-alexie/i-don-t-think-there-s-a-whole-lot-of-class-literature-at-all-i-think/) [Sherman Alexie](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sherman-alexie/) > [She wanted to be buried in a coffin filled with used paperbacks.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sherman-alexie/she-wanted-to-be-buried-in-a-coffin-filled-with-used-paperbacks/) [Sherman Alexie](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sherman-alexie/) > [“Is there really a difference between that killing and this killing? Does God approve of some killing and not other killing? If I kill…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sherman-alexie/is-there-really-a-difference-between-that-killing-and-this-killing/) [Sherman Alexie](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sherman-alexie/) > [“Son, things have never been like how you think they used to be.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sherman-alexie/son-things-have-never-been-like-how-you-think-they-used-to-be/) [Sherman Alexie](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sherman-alexie/) > [My parents banned nothing, though the Christian fundamentalists in my tribe held book-and-record burnings every now and again. So, yes, fundamentalist assholes can also…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sherman-alexie/my-parents-banned-nothing-though-the-christian-fundamentalists-in-my/) [Sherman Alexie](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sherman-alexie/) > [“Or maybe I could have anesthetized myself with homework and extra credit and binge-reading.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sherman-alexie/or-maybe-i-could-have-anesthetized-myself-with-homework-and-extra/) [Sherman Alexie](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sherman-alexie/) > [“Dear wife, I'm sorry that I am mysteriously incapable of folding clean laundry, but I iron, oh, I iron. Sweetheart, I'll make your white…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sherman-alexie/dear-wife-i-m-sorry-that-i-am-mysteriously-incapable-of-folding-clean/) [Sherman Alexie](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sherman-alexie/) > [“Gordy,” I said. “I need to talk to you." "I don't have time," he said. "Mr. Orcutt and I have to debug some PCs.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sherman-alexie/gordy-i-said-i-need-to-talk-to-you-i-don-t-have-time-he-said-mr/) [Sherman Alexie](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sherman-alexie/) > [“The United States wants all of us to forget the crimes it committed against the indigenous. The United States wants us to forget. The…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sherman-alexie/the-united-states-wants-all-of-us-to-forget-the-crimes-it-committed/) [Sherman Alexie](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sherman-alexie/) > [I think that white women are more apt to read laterally. So I think there's some strong identification for women, and their political and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sherman-alexie/i-think-that-white-women-are-more-apt-to-read-laterally-so-i-think/) [Sherman Alexie](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sherman-alexie/) [Explore all 546 Sherman Alexie quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sherman-alexie/) ## More Grief quotes > [“...they had lived, they'd lived intensely. But no matter how deeply you live, it comes to this in the end: one of you will…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/brian-morton/they-had-lived-they-d-lived-intensely-but-no-matter-how-deeply-you/) [Brian Morton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/brian-morton/) > [“You must understand the pain and grief of losing someone is nothing more than a function of survival.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/steven-cooper/you-must-understand-the-pain-and-grief-of-losing-someone-is-nothing/) [Steven Cooper](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/steven-cooper/) > [You felt a deep sorrow, the kind of melancholy you feel when you're in a beautiful place and the sun is going down](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/thrity-umrigar/you-felt-a-deep-sorrow-the-kind-of-melancholy-you-feel-when-you-re-in/) [Thrity Umrigar](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/thrity-umrigar/) > [... how much of our inner substance is it good for us to give to public griefs? The whole modern tendency to agonize over…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/louise-bogan/how-much-of-our-inner-substance-is-it-good-for-us-to-give-to-public/) [Louise Bogan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/louise-bogan/) > [You dont choose your life; it chooses you. Theres no point asking why life has reserved certain joys or griefs, you just accept them…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/paulo-coelho/you-dont-choose-your-life-it-chooses-you-theres-no-point-asking-why/) [Paulo Coelho](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/paulo-coelho/) > [“When we learn to attribute meaning to the events in our lives, we connect with our Higher Purpose, Higher Wisdom, or Source; we become…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/susan-barbara-apollon/when-we-learn-to-attribute-meaning-to-the-events-in-our-lives-we/) [Susan Barbara Apollon](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/susan-barbara-apollon/) > [Only to have a grief equal to all these tears!](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/adrienne-rich/only-to-have-a-grief-equal-to-all-these-tears/) [Adrienne Rich](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/adrienne-rich/) > [Nowadays most people wear black most of the time anyway: go to a literary party and one would imagine everyone there was in perpetual…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/fay-weldon/nowadays-most-people-wear-black-most-of-the-time-anyway-go-to-a/) [Fay Weldon](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/fay-weldon/) > [Suppressed grief suffocates, it rages within the breast, and is forced to multiply its strength.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ovid/suppressed-grief-suffocates-it-rages-within-the-breast-and-is-forced/) [Ovid](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ovid/) > [That Woman is in love with her own grief.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gabrielle-zevin/that-woman-is-in-love-with-her-own-grief/) [Gabrielle Zevin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gabrielle-zevin/) > [Short time seems long in sorrow's sharp sustaining.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-shakespeare/short-time-seems-long-in-sorrow-s-sharp-sustaining/) [William Shakespeare](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-shakespeare/) > [These days grief seems like walking on a frozen river; most of the time he feels safe enough, but there is always that danger…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-nicholls/these-days-grief-seems-like-walking-on-a-frozen-river-most-of-the/) [David Nicholls](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-nicholls/) > [“You've been my beacon of light in my storm of grief, and I don't know if I could live without you.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/katie-ashley/you-ve-been-my-beacon-of-light-in-my-storm-of-grief-and-i-don-t-know/) [Katie Ashley](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/katie-ashley/) > [Ancient eyes had stared at me, filled with ancient grief. And something more. Something so alien and unexpected that I'd almost burst into tears.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/karen-marie-moning/ancient-eyes-had-stared-at-me-filled-with-ancient-grief-and-something/) [Karen Marie Moning](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/karen-marie-moning/) > [Meanwhile, the trees were just as green as before; the birds sang and the sun shone as clearly now as ever. The familiar surroundings…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/thomas-hardy/meanwhile-the-trees-were-just-as-green-as-before-the-birds-sang-and/) [Thomas Hardy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/thomas-hardy/) [Browse all 8,012 Grief quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/grief/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "“Grief is when you feel so helpless and stupid that you think nothing will ever be right again, and your macaroni and cheese tastes like sawdust, and you can't even jerk off because it seems like too much trouble.”", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "Sherman Alexie" }, "isPartOf": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website" }, "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sherman-alexie/grief-is-when-you-feel-so-helpless-and-stupid-that-you-think-nothing/", "about": { "@type": "Thing", "name": "Grief" }, "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sherman-alexie/grief-is-when-you-feel-so-helpless-and-stupid-that-you-think-nothing/#quotation", "image": { "@type": "ImageObject", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/b78/sherman-alexie-444_grief_grief-is-when-you-feel-so-helpless-and-s_1982184.jpg", "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/b78/sherman-alexie-444_grief_grief-is-when-you-feel-so-helpless-and-s_1982184.jpg", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/b78/sherman-alexie-444_grief_grief-is-when-you-feel-so-helpless-and-s_1982184.jpg", "width": 1080, "height": 1080, "caption": "“Grief is when you feel so helpless and stupid that you think nothing will ever be right again, and your…” — Sherman Alexie", "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": "Sherman Alexie", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sherman-alexie/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 4, "name": "“Grief is when you feel so...", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sherman-alexie/grief-is-when-you-feel-so-helpless-and-stupid-that-you-think-nothing/" } ], "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sherman-alexie/grief-is-when-you-feel-so-helpless-and-stupid-that-you-think-nothing/#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 } } ] } ```