--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: It mattered to us both to have some point…" description: "\"“It mattered to us both to have some point of reference in that strange place, some means of attesting to the effect it had on us. [p. 87]”\" — Shirley ..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/979/shirley-hazzard-9123_mattered_it-mattered-to-us-both-to-have-some-poin_2634379.jpg" --- # It mattered to us both to have some point of reference in… ![“It mattered to us both to have some point of reference in that strange place, some means of attesting to the effect it had on us. [p. 87]” quote by Shirley Hazzard](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/979/shirley-hazzard-9123_mattered_it-mattered-to-us-both-to-have-some-poin_2634379.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/979/shirley-hazzard-9123_mattered_it-mattered-to-us-both-to-have-some-poin_2634379.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/979/shirley-hazzard-9123_mattered_it-mattered-to-us-both-to-have-some-poin_2634379.jpg) > ““It mattered to us both to have some point of reference in that strange place, some means of attesting to the effect it had on us. \[p. 87\]”” [Shirley Hazzard](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/shirley-hazzard/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Finding reference points in unfamiliar places helps us understand and process experiences. **In simple terms:** Reference points aid understanding. Key Takeaway Seek anchors. Themes exploration orientation meaning Mood contemplative poetic Type literary philosophical When to use this quote - travel - new environments - personal growth Key Concepts reference points strange places Questions to Reflect On - How do you create meaning in new settings? - What anchors help you navigate uncertainty? A Different Perspective Anchors may limit openness. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Attesting Effect](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/attesting-effect-2216701/) [Mattered](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/mattered/) [Mattered Point](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/mattered-point-2216700/) [Point Reference](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/point-reference-2216702/) [Reference Strange](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/reference-strange-2216703/) ## Related quotes > [My point of reference is life, in everything that I do.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/howie-mandel/my-point-of-reference-is-life-in-everything-that-i-do/) [Howie Mandel](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/howie-mandel/) > [“To acquire a new perspective we must change our point of reference.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ted-agon/to-acquire-a-new-perspective-we-must-change-our-point-of-reference/) [Ted Agon](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ted-agon/) > [“We're all from the past and we're all from the future, depending on the point of reference.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/cuthbert-soup/we-re-all-from-the-past-and-we-re-all-from-the-future-depending-on/) [Cuthbert Soup](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/cuthbert-soup/) > [ All I cared about was the music, like hearing Townes \[ Van Zandt\] talking about "For the sake of the song"; it's all that… ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/steve-young/all-i-cared-about-was-the-music-like-hearing-townes-van-zandt-talking/) [Steve Young](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/steve-young/) > [At this point in my life I'd like to live as if only love mattered.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tracy-chapman/at-this-point-in-my-life-i-d-like-to-live-as-if-only-love-mattered/) [Tracy Chapman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tracy-chapman/) > [“Your first kiss isn’t as important as your last. The math test really didn’t matter. The pie really did. The stuff you’re good at…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ethan-wate/your-first-kiss-isn-t-as-important-as-your-last-the-math-test-really/) [Ethan Wate](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ethan-wate/) > [He was the closest thing I'd ever had to something, or someone, that mattered. But in the end, close didn't count. You were either…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sarah-dessen/he-was-the-closest-thing-i-d-ever-had-to-something-or-someone-that/) [Sarah Dessen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sarah-dessen/) > [His face was in my neck and he was breathing hard. Was he grieving me? Already? Would he miss me? Had I, in some…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/karen-marie-moning/his-face-was-in-my-neck-and-he-was-breathing-hard-was-he-grieving-me/) [Karen Marie Moning](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/karen-marie-moning/) > [“I don't. If it mattered to me even one bit, I wouldn't be here with you, Nakano-san!”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/maki-murakami/i-don-t-if-it-mattered-to-me-even-one-bit-i-wouldn-t-be-here-with-you/) [Maki Murakami](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/maki-murakami/) > [Why was it that they could never shout like that about anything that mattered?](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-orwell/why-was-it-that-they-could-never-shout-like-that-about-anything-that/) [George Orwell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-orwell/) > [Death mattered not -- It was a mere puncutation](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nathan-huggins/death-mattered-not-it-was-a-mere-puncutation/) [Nathan Huggins](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nathan-huggins/) > [“There it was, Hema must have thought; it was both the sorry and the thank-you that was so long overdue, and the funny thing…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/abraham-verghese/there-it-was-hema-must-have-thought-it-was-both-the-sorry-and-the/) [Abraham Verghese](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/abraham-verghese/) > [“Knowing you don’t have much time left changes things. You get kind of philosophical. And you figure things out—more like, they figure themselves out—and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kami-garcia/knowing-you-don-t-have-much-time-left-changes-things-you-get-kind-of/) [Kami Garcia](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kami-garcia/) > [“Climbing mattered. The danger bathed the world in a halogen glow that caused everything—the sweep of the rock, the orange and yellow lichens, the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jon-krakauer/climbing-mattered-the-danger-bathed-the-world-in-a-halogen-glow-that/) [Jon Krakauer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jon-krakauer/) > [“History mattered. But it could not guarantee what might happen next.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michelle-gable/history-mattered-but-it-could-not-guarantee-what-might-happen-next/) [Michelle Gable](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michelle-gable/) ## More by Shirley Hazzard > [It's nervous work. The state you need to write in is the state that others are paying large sums of money to get rid…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/shirley-hazzard/it-s-nervous-work-the-state-you-need-to-write-in-is-the-state-that/) [Shirley Hazzard](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/shirley-hazzard/) > [I wasn't convinced a shop girl would know the word 'Oedipal.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/shirley-hazzard/i-wasn-t-convinced-a-shop-girl-would-know-the-word-oedipal/) [Shirley Hazzard](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/shirley-hazzard/) > [Great literature is like moral leadership; everyone deplores the lack of it, but there is a tendency to prefer it from the safely dead.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/shirley-hazzard/great-literature-is-like-moral-leadership-everyone-deplores-the-lack/) [Shirley Hazzard](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/shirley-hazzard/) > [When people say of their tragedies, 'I don't often think of it now,' what they mean is it has entered permanently into their thoughts,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/shirley-hazzard/when-people-say-of-their-tragedies-i-don-t-often-think-of-it-now-what/) [Shirley Hazzard](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/shirley-hazzard/) > [“But that's a way to go on loving--a place, or a person. To miss it. In fact, to go away, to put yourself in…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/shirley-hazzard/but-that-s-a-way-to-go-on-loving-a-place-or-a-person-to-miss-it-in/) [Shirley Hazzard](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/shirley-hazzard/) > [“I see that you are highly defensive." . . . Caro said, "I withhold my analysis of your own attitude.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/shirley-hazzard/i-see-that-you-are-highly-defensive-caro-said-i-withhold-my-analysis/) [Shirley Hazzard](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/shirley-hazzard/) > [“... although the sufferings of children are the worst, being inextinguishable--children themselves seldom have a proper sense of their own tragedy, discounting and keeping…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/shirley-hazzard/although-the-sufferings-of-children-are-the-worst-being/) [Shirley Hazzard](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/shirley-hazzard/) > [ “I said, "Some people do know more than others. That contributes to the impression that someone, somewhere,knows the whole thing." \[p. 38\]” ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/shirley-hazzard/i-said-some-people-do-know-more-than-others-that-contributes-to-the/) [Shirley Hazzard](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/shirley-hazzard/) > [“Dark had meant Dora, had meant words and events sordid with self. Struggling to the light from Dora's darkness, Caro had acquired conscience and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/shirley-hazzard/dark-had-meant-dora-had-meant-words-and-events-sordid-with-self/) [Shirley Hazzard](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/shirley-hazzard/) > [Marriage is like democracy - it doesn't really work, but it's all we've been able to come up with.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/shirley-hazzard/marriage-is-like-democracy-it-doesn-t-really-work-but-it-s-all-we-ve/) [Shirley Hazzard](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/shirley-hazzard/) > [“Sometimes, as now, her heart twisted and broke under his determination to wound her. At others, she was almost convinced that she felt nothing…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/shirley-hazzard/sometimes-as-now-her-heart-twisted-and-broke-under-his-determination/) [Shirley Hazzard](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/shirley-hazzard/) > [“Chief Coordinator of DALTO – the Department of Aid to the Less technically Oriented, working to induce backwards nations to come forwards.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/shirley-hazzard/chief-coordinator-of-dalto-the-department-of-aid-to-the-less/) [Shirley Hazzard](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/shirley-hazzard/) > [“Occasion revived an illusion of discovery, as if one woke in a strange room to wonder afresh not only where but who one was;…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/shirley-hazzard/occasion-revived-an-illusion-of-discovery-as-if-one-woke-in-a-strange/) [Shirley Hazzard](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/shirley-hazzard/) > [When you realize someone is trying to hurt you, it hurts less." "Unless you love them.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/shirley-hazzard/when-you-realize-someone-is-trying-to-hurt-you-it-hurts-less-unless/) [Shirley Hazzard](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/shirley-hazzard/) > [Since the moment of the United Nations' inception, untold energies have been expended by governments not only toward the exclusion of persons of principle…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/shirley-hazzard/since-the-moment-of-the-united-nations-inception-untold-energies-have/) [Shirley Hazzard](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/shirley-hazzard/) [Explore all 75 Shirley Hazzard quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/shirley-hazzard/) ## More Mattered quotes > [“History mattered. But it could not guarantee what might happen next.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michelle-gable/history-mattered-but-it-could-not-guarantee-what-might-happen-next/) [Michelle Gable](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michelle-gable/) > [“Climbing mattered. The danger bathed the world in a halogen glow that caused everything—the sweep of the rock, the orange and yellow lichens, the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jon-krakauer/climbing-mattered-the-danger-bathed-the-world-in-a-halogen-glow-that/) [Jon Krakauer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jon-krakauer/) > [“Knowing you don’t have much time left changes things. You get kind of philosophical. And you figure things out—more like, they figure themselves out—and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kami-garcia/knowing-you-don-t-have-much-time-left-changes-things-you-get-kind-of/) [Kami Garcia](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kami-garcia/) > [“There it was, Hema must have thought; it was both the sorry and the thank-you that was so long overdue, and the funny thing…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/abraham-verghese/there-it-was-hema-must-have-thought-it-was-both-the-sorry-and-the/) [Abraham Verghese](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/abraham-verghese/) > [Death mattered not -- It was a mere puncutation](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nathan-huggins/death-mattered-not-it-was-a-mere-puncutation/) [Nathan Huggins](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nathan-huggins/) > [Why was it that they could never shout like that about anything that mattered?](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-orwell/why-was-it-that-they-could-never-shout-like-that-about-anything-that/) [George Orwell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-orwell/) > [“I don't. If it mattered to me even one bit, I wouldn't be here with you, Nakano-san!”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/maki-murakami/i-don-t-if-it-mattered-to-me-even-one-bit-i-wouldn-t-be-here-with-you/) [Maki Murakami](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/maki-murakami/) > [His face was in my neck and he was breathing hard. Was he grieving me? Already? Would he miss me? Had I, in some…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/karen-marie-moning/his-face-was-in-my-neck-and-he-was-breathing-hard-was-he-grieving-me/) [Karen Marie Moning](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/karen-marie-moning/) > [He was the closest thing I'd ever had to something, or someone, that mattered. But in the end, close didn't count. You were either…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sarah-dessen/he-was-the-closest-thing-i-d-ever-had-to-something-or-someone-that/) [Sarah Dessen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sarah-dessen/) > [“Your first kiss isn’t as important as your last. The math test really didn’t matter. The pie really did. The stuff you’re good at…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ethan-wate/your-first-kiss-isn-t-as-important-as-your-last-the-math-test-really/) [Ethan Wate](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ethan-wate/) > [At this point in my life I'd like to live as if only love mattered.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tracy-chapman/at-this-point-in-my-life-i-d-like-to-live-as-if-only-love-mattered/) [Tracy Chapman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tracy-chapman/) > [ All I cared about was the music, like hearing Townes \[ Van Zandt\] talking about "For the sake of the song"; it's all that… ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/steve-young/all-i-cared-about-was-the-music-like-hearing-townes-van-zandt-talking/) [Steve Young](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/steve-young/) > [We'd grown up without any money. I mean, everything was a struggle; our lives were a struggle, and dancing changed all of that. Nothing…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/arlene-phillips/we-d-grown-up-without-any-money-i-mean-everything-was-a-struggle-our/) [Arlene Phillips](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/arlene-phillips/) > [“She had realized something over the recent months: it didn’t matter who you were or what you’d accomplished in life; none of that mattered…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lindy-zart/she-had-realized-something-over-the-recent-months-it-didn-t-matter/) [Lindy Zart](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lindy-zart/) > [It was a recession when I graduated, but I was so unequipped to have a job anyway, I don't think it would have mattered…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jeffrey-eugenides/it-was-a-recession-when-i-graduated-but-i-was-so-unequipped-to-have-a/) [Jeffrey Eugenides](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jeffrey-eugenides/) [Browse all 263 Mattered quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/mattered/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "“It mattered to us both to have some point of reference in that strange place, some means of attesting to the effect it had on us. 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