--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: Listen. I don't know how or when My…" description: "\"“Listen. I don't know how or when My grieving will end, but I'm always Relearning how to be human again.”\" — Sherman Alexie" image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/4f8/sherman-alexie-444_grieving_listen-i-don-t-know-how-or-when-my-griev_1698262.png" --- # Listen. I don't know how or when My grieving will end, but… ![“Listen. I don't know how or when My grieving will end, but I'm always Relearning how to be human again.” quote by Sherman Alexie](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/4f8/sherman-alexie-444_grieving_listen-i-don-t-know-how-or-when-my-griev_1698262.png) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/4f8/sherman-alexie-444_grieving_listen-i-don-t-know-how-or-when-my-griev_1698262.png) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/4f8/sherman-alexie-444_grieving_listen-i-don-t-know-how-or-when-my-griev_1698262.png) > ““Listen. I don't know how or when My grieving will end, but I'm always Relearning how to be human again.”” [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 is a continuous learning process of rediscovering humanity. **In simple terms:** Healing from loss is ongoing. Key Takeaway Embrace the journey of becoming human again. Themes grief growth humanity Mood somber hopeful Type philosophical inspirational When to use this quote - counseling - support groups - personal reflection Key Concepts emotional resilience psychology Questions to Reflect On - What does “relearning to be human” mean for you? - How can you support others grieving? A Different Perspective Grief may never fully end, only transform. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Grieving](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/grieving/) ## Related quotes > [The ancients waited for cherry blossoms, grieved when they were gone, and lamented their passing in countless poems. How very ordinary the poems had…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/junichiro-tanizaki/the-ancients-waited-for-cherry-blossoms-grieved-when-they-were-gone/) [Junichiro Tanizaki](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/junichiro-tanizaki/) > [“I keep writing and rewriting, drawing and redrawing, and rethinking and revising and reediting. It became my grieving ceremony.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sherman-alexie/i-keep-writing-and-rewriting-drawing-and-redrawing-and-rethinking-and/) [Sherman Alexie](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sherman-alexie/) > [Or maybe a person is just made up of a lot of peopleMaybe we’re accumulating these new selves all the time. Hauling them in…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jandy-nelson/or-maybe-a-person-is-just-made-up-of-a-lot-of-peoplemaybe-we-re/) [Jandy Nelson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jandy-nelson/) > [Those who grieve frequently find themselves alone. Missed is the laughter of children, the commotion of teenagers, and the tender, loving concern of a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/thomas-s-monson/those-who-grieve-frequently-find-themselves-alone-missed-is-the/) [Thomas S. Monson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/thomas-s-monson/) > [In general satire, every man perceives A slight attack, yet neither fears nor grieves.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-crabbe/in-general-satire-every-man-perceives-a-slight-attack-yet-neither/) [George Crabbe](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-crabbe/) > [I never could keep a promise. I do not blame myself for this weakness, because the fault must lie in my physical organization. It…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mark-twain/i-never-could-keep-a-promise-i-do-not-blame-myself-for-this-weakness/) [Mark Twain](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mark-twain/) > [“There's always a last time. If you could remember every last time, you'd never stop grieving.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jonathan-tropper/there-s-always-a-last-time-if-you-could-remember-every-last-time-you/) [Jonathan Tropper](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jonathan-tropper/) > [The longer I live, the more it grieves me to see man, who occupies his supreme place for the very purpose of imposing his…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/johann-wolfgang-von-goethe/the-longer-i-live-the-more-it-grieves-me-to-see-man-who-occupies-his/) [Johann Wolfgang von Goethe](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/johann-wolfgang-von-goethe/) > [Birth, life, death is a cycle. And they're all beautiful, you celebrate all of them. Animals do grieve, but they move on. That's the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/cesar-millan/birth-life-death-is-a-cycle-and-they-re-all-beautiful-you-celebrate/) [Cesar Millan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/cesar-millan/) > [These are the intensities that one cannot live with, that he has to outgrow if he wants to survive. But who can help grieving…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tennessee-williams/these-are-the-intensities-that-one-cannot-live-with-that-he-has-to/) [Tennessee Williams](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tennessee-williams/) > [... I think we grieve forever, but that goes for love too, fortunately for us all.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/m-f-k-fisher/i-think-we-grieve-forever-but-that-goes-for-love-too-fortunately-for/) [M. F. K. Fisher](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/m-f-k-fisher/) > [When we don't get what we want, there's a legitimate grieving, and then the spiritual journey truly begins, because not getting what we want…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mark-nepo/when-we-don-t-get-what-we-want-there-s-a-legitimate-grieving-and-then/) [Mark Nepo](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mark-nepo/) > [“...what happens when you return and find nothing but a hollowed shell, shingles and floor, walls and echoes and the light that lead you…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kellie-elmore/what-happens-when-you-return-and-find-nothing-but-a-hollowed-shell/) [Kellie Elmore](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kellie-elmore/) > [Certainly, it is. Love is love, and loss is loss. We all love, and we all die, and everyone suffers the pain of grieving.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lynsay-sands/certainly-it-is-love-is-love-and-loss-is-loss-we-all-love-and-we-all/) [Lynsay Sands](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lynsay-sands/) > [This is a proof of a well-trained mind, to rejoice in what is good and to grieve at the opposite.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/marcus-tullius-cicero/this-is-a-proof-of-a-well-trained-mind-to-rejoice-in-what-is-good-and/) [Marcus Tullius Cicero](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/marcus-tullius-cicero/) ## 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 Grieving quotes > [This is a proof of a well-trained mind, to rejoice in what is good and to grieve at the opposite.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/marcus-tullius-cicero/this-is-a-proof-of-a-well-trained-mind-to-rejoice-in-what-is-good-and/) [Marcus Tullius Cicero](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/marcus-tullius-cicero/) > [Certainly, it is. Love is love, and loss is loss. We all love, and we all die, and everyone suffers the pain of grieving.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lynsay-sands/certainly-it-is-love-is-love-and-loss-is-loss-we-all-love-and-we-all/) [Lynsay Sands](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lynsay-sands/) > [“...what happens when you return and find nothing but a hollowed shell, shingles and floor, walls and echoes and the light that lead you…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kellie-elmore/what-happens-when-you-return-and-find-nothing-but-a-hollowed-shell/) [Kellie Elmore](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kellie-elmore/) > [When we don't get what we want, there's a legitimate grieving, and then the spiritual journey truly begins, because not getting what we want…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mark-nepo/when-we-don-t-get-what-we-want-there-s-a-legitimate-grieving-and-then/) [Mark Nepo](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mark-nepo/) > [... I think we grieve forever, but that goes for love too, fortunately for us all.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/m-f-k-fisher/i-think-we-grieve-forever-but-that-goes-for-love-too-fortunately-for/) [M. F. K. Fisher](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/m-f-k-fisher/) > [These are the intensities that one cannot live with, that he has to outgrow if he wants to survive. But who can help grieving…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tennessee-williams/these-are-the-intensities-that-one-cannot-live-with-that-he-has-to/) [Tennessee Williams](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tennessee-williams/) > [Birth, life, death is a cycle. And they're all beautiful, you celebrate all of them. Animals do grieve, but they move on. That's the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/cesar-millan/birth-life-death-is-a-cycle-and-they-re-all-beautiful-you-celebrate/) [Cesar Millan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/cesar-millan/) > [The longer I live, the more it grieves me to see man, who occupies his supreme place for the very purpose of imposing his…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/johann-wolfgang-von-goethe/the-longer-i-live-the-more-it-grieves-me-to-see-man-who-occupies-his/) [Johann Wolfgang von Goethe](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/johann-wolfgang-von-goethe/) > [“There's always a last time. If you could remember every last time, you'd never stop grieving.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jonathan-tropper/there-s-always-a-last-time-if-you-could-remember-every-last-time-you/) [Jonathan Tropper](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jonathan-tropper/) > [I never could keep a promise. I do not blame myself for this weakness, because the fault must lie in my physical organization. It…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mark-twain/i-never-could-keep-a-promise-i-do-not-blame-myself-for-this-weakness/) [Mark Twain](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mark-twain/) > [In general satire, every man perceives A slight attack, yet neither fears nor grieves.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-crabbe/in-general-satire-every-man-perceives-a-slight-attack-yet-neither/) [George Crabbe](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-crabbe/) > [Those who grieve frequently find themselves alone. Missed is the laughter of children, the commotion of teenagers, and the tender, loving concern of a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/thomas-s-monson/those-who-grieve-frequently-find-themselves-alone-missed-is-the/) [Thomas S. Monson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/thomas-s-monson/) > [Or maybe a person is just made up of a lot of peopleMaybe we’re accumulating these new selves all the time. Hauling them in…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jandy-nelson/or-maybe-a-person-is-just-made-up-of-a-lot-of-peoplemaybe-we-re/) [Jandy Nelson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jandy-nelson/) > [Any kind of grieving that is not allowed causes a break. In our culture, grieving in public is not encouraged, but in other cultures,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alice-ripley/any-kind-of-grieving-that-is-not-allowed-causes-a-break-in-our/) [Alice Ripley](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alice-ripley/) > [It always grieves me to contemplate the initiation of children into the ways of life when they are scarcely more than infants. It checks…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/charles-dickens/it-always-grieves-me-to-contemplate-the-initiation-of-children-into/) [Charles Dickens](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/charles-dickens/) [Browse all 1,021 Grieving quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/grieving/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "“Listen. 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