--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: In short, you had that particular ability…" description: "\"“In short, you had that particular ability which I never had: the ability to be alive.”\" — Sigizmund Krzhizhanovsky" image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/852/sigizmund-krzhizhanovsky-31121_ability_in-short-you-had-that-particular-ability_346003.jpg" --- # In short, you had that particular ability which I never… ![“In short, you had that particular ability which I never had: the ability to be alive.” quote by Sigizmund Krzhizhanovsky](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/852/sigizmund-krzhizhanovsky-31121_ability_in-short-you-had-that-particular-ability_346003.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/852/sigizmund-krzhizhanovsky-31121_ability_in-short-you-had-that-particular-ability_346003.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/852/sigizmund-krzhizhanovsky-31121_ability_in-short-you-had-that-particular-ability_346003.jpg) > ““In short, you had that particular ability which I never had: the ability to be alive.”” [Sigizmund Krzhizhanovsky](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sigizmund-krzhizhanovsky/) ## 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 admires another's capacity to fully experience life, a vitality he feels he lacks. **In simple terms:** Envy of someone's vivid living. Key Takeaway Cherish and cultivate your own aliveness. Themes envy life existence Mood reflective melancholic Type philosophical literary When to use this quote - personal growth - relationships - mental health - creative pursuits Key Concepts existentialism authenticity Questions to Reflect On - What does being truly alive mean to you? - How can you nurture that ability daily? A Different Perspective Life's richness cannot be captured solely by observation. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Ability](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/ability/) [Alive](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/alive/) ## Related quotes > [“Cornered, she seemed to possess no mechanism for behaving well. By the same token, when not trapped or obliged to confront people or situations…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/caroline-moorehead/cornered-she-seemed-to-possess-no-mechanism-for-behaving-well-by-the/) [Caroline Moorehead](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/caroline-moorehead/) > [It often happens that when a person possesses a particular ability to an extraordinary degree, nature makes up for it by leaving him or…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robert-shea/it-often-happens-that-when-a-person-possesses-a-particular-ability-to/) [Robert Shea](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robert-shea/) > [It is a fine thing to have ability, but the ability to discover ability in others is the true test.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/it-is-a-fine-thing-to-have-ability-but-the-ability-to-discover/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [“Response-ability is your ability to respond to a situation. You”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/fred-kofman/response-ability-is-your-ability-to-respond-to-a-situation-you/) [Fred Kofman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/fred-kofman/) > [There is something that is much more scarce, something finer far, something rarer than ability. It is the ability to recognize ability.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/elbert-hubbard/there-is-something-that-is-much-more-scarce-something-finer-far/) [Elbert Hubbard](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/elbert-hubbard/) > [There is something that is much more scarce, something rarer than ability. It is the ability to recognize ability.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robert-half/there-is-something-that-is-much-more-scarce-something-rarer-than/) [Robert Half](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robert-half/) > [Response-ability is the ABILITY to choose our response to any circumstance or condition.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stephen-covey/response-ability-is-the-ability-to-choose-our-response-to-any/) [Stephen Covey](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stephen-covey/) > [Leadership is the ability to do, not the ability to state](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/paul-von-ringelheim/leadership-is-the-ability-to-do-not-the-ability-to-state/) Paul Von Ringelheim > [Everyone has a ability, and with that ability; you can make a change in life. 8)](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dub-tepper/everyone-has-a-ability-and-with-that-ability-you-can-make-a-change-in/) DUB$TEPPER > [Being cared for when one is dead is less satisfactory than being cared for when one is alive.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/aldous-huxley/being-cared-for-when-one-is-dead-is-less-satisfactory-than-being/) [Aldous Huxley](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/aldous-huxley/) > [“We're all being left out one way or the other. The survivors miss being heroes. The heroes miss being alive. The only ones not…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/cynthia-bass/we-re-all-being-left-out-one-way-or-the-other-the-survivors-miss/) [Cynthia Bass](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/cynthia-bass/) > [“I do not worship a DEAD and buried Christ at Calvary. I worship a ressurected and LIVING Christ in Heaven! Jesus Christ is alive.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/israelmore-ayivor/i-do-not-worship-a-dead-and-buried-christ-at-calvary-i-worship-a/) [Israelmore Ayivor](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/israelmore-ayivor/) > [Dead or alive, interesting people are interesting people.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/noel-riley-fitch/dead-or-alive-interesting-people-are-interesting-people/) Noel Riley Fitch > [“You should be alive as you can until you're totally dead.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dylan-moran/you-should-be-alive-as-you-can-until-you-re-totally-dead/) [Dylan Moran](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dylan-moran/) > [If you’re alive, don’t move, if you’re dead, don’t worry about it.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/laurell-k-hamilton/if-you-re-alive-don-t-move-if-you-re-dead-don-t-worry-about-it/) [Laurell K. Hamilton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/laurell-k-hamilton/) ## More by Sigizmund Krzhizhanovsky > [“Oh no.' Straight raised his eyes to me, and a slight smile touched the corners of his lips. 'A philosophy of life is more…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sigizmund-krzhizhanovsky/oh-no-straight-raised-his-eyes-to-me-and-a-slight-smile-touched-the/) [Sigizmund Krzhizhanovsky](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sigizmund-krzhizhanovsky/) > [“Here, in the city, associations tend to be strangely uniform: An association by similarity (especially an inner, essential similarity) is rare and almost unachievable.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sigizmund-krzhizhanovsky/here-in-the-city-associations-tend-to-be-strangely-uniform-an/) [Sigizmund Krzhizhanovsky](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sigizmund-krzhizhanovsky/) > [“Why frighten little children with the dark when one can quiet them with it and lead them into dreams?”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sigizmund-krzhizhanovsky/why-frighten-little-children-with-the-dark-when-one-can-quiet-them/) [Sigizmund Krzhizhanovsky](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sigizmund-krzhizhanovsky/) > [“A dingily bilious sun was seeping through a tent of black clouds.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sigizmund-krzhizhanovsky/a-dingily-bilious-sun-was-seeping-through-a-tent-of-black-clouds/) [Sigizmund Krzhizhanovsky](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sigizmund-krzhizhanovsky/) > [“Writers, in essence, are professional word tamers; if the words walking down the lines were living creatures, they would surely fear and hate the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sigizmund-krzhizhanovsky/writers-in-essence-are-professional-word-tamers-if-the-words-walking/) [Sigizmund Krzhizhanovsky](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sigizmund-krzhizhanovsky/) > [“Muscovites see clearly but write muddily; the eye grasps but the fingers splay.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sigizmund-krzhizhanovsky/muscovites-see-clearly-but-write-muddily-the-eye-grasps-but-the/) [Sigizmund Krzhizhanovsky](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sigizmund-krzhizhanovsky/) > [“In a certain present there is more of the future than in the future itself.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sigizmund-krzhizhanovsky/in-a-certain-present-there-is-more-of-the-future-than-in-the-future/) [Sigizmund Krzhizhanovsky](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sigizmund-krzhizhanovsky/) > [“Hiding my half existence behind the opaque walls of my skull, concealing it like a shameful disease, I did not consider the simple fact…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sigizmund-krzhizhanovsky/hiding-my-half-existence-behind-the-opaque-walls-of-my-skull/) [Sigizmund Krzhizhanovsky](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sigizmund-krzhizhanovsky/) > [“Wherever you look, everything is in a row: a seven-story pile abutting a three-windowed log hut hard by a fantastical L-shaped mansion; ten paces…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sigizmund-krzhizhanovsky/wherever-you-look-everything-is-in-a-row-a-seven-story-pile-abutting/) [Sigizmund Krzhizhanovsky](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sigizmund-krzhizhanovsky/) > [“At the time I...loved someone. Now I wouldn't know how.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sigizmund-krzhizhanovsky/at-the-time-i-loved-someone-now-i-wouldn-t-know-how/) [Sigizmund Krzhizhanovsky](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sigizmund-krzhizhanovsky/) > [“People are ignorant of what any street clock knows. Why? Because the crack that cleaves existence also swallows their existence-reflecting consciousnesses. Thrown back into…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sigizmund-krzhizhanovsky/people-are-ignorant-of-what-any-street-clock-knows-why-because-the/) [Sigizmund Krzhizhanovsky](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sigizmund-krzhizhanovsky/) > [“Quantin crept closer to the knoll. A pungent smell passed through his nostrils up into his brain. Attracted by the poppies' scarlet smears, he…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sigizmund-krzhizhanovsky/quantin-crept-closer-to-the-knoll-a-pungent-smell-passed-through-his/) [Sigizmund Krzhizhanovsky](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sigizmund-krzhizhanovsky/) > [“...as I was sifting through a heap of old and new "identity cards," I noticed that something was missing: my identity.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sigizmund-krzhizhanovsky/as-i-was-sifting-through-a-heap-of-old-and-new-identity-cards-i/) [Sigizmund Krzhizhanovsky](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sigizmund-krzhizhanovsky/) > [ “But it's fair to say that the war's \[WWI\] dialectic forced those who were more or less alive to go to their death, and… ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sigizmund-krzhizhanovsky/but-it-s-fair-to-say-that-the-war-s-wwi-dialectic-forced-those-who/) [Sigizmund Krzhizhanovsky](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sigizmund-krzhizhanovsky/) > [“A dingily bilious sun was seeping through a tent of black clouds. Passersby, spitefully elbowing elbows, were rushing along the pavement. People thronging the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sigizmund-krzhizhanovsky/a-dingily-bilious-sun-was-seeping-through-a-tent-of-black-clouds-2/) [Sigizmund Krzhizhanovsky](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sigizmund-krzhizhanovsky/) [Explore all 16 Sigizmund Krzhizhanovsky quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sigizmund-krzhizhanovsky/) ## More Ability quotes > [I don't think there's a direct correlation between my sexuality and my skiing ability. But I think because I was so concerned about it…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gus-kenworthy/i-don-t-think-there-s-a-direct-correlation-between-my-sexuality-and/) [Gus Kenworthy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gus-kenworthy/) > [“the importance of ability. The things that make a great job great, I discovered, are rare and valuable. If you want them in your…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/cal-newport/the-importance-of-ability-the-things-that-make-a-great-job-great-i/) [Cal Newport](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/cal-newport/) > [Ambition drives you on, ability certainly helps, but the fickle finger of fate and luck are great things.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/fergus-henderson/ambition-drives-you-on-ability-certainly-helps-but-the-fickle-finger/) [Fergus Henderson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/fergus-henderson/) > [The ability of the gospel to unite us on common strengths and common truths is one of the great miracles . . . of the gospel.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jeffrey-r-holland/the-ability-of-the-gospel-to-unite-us-on-common-strengths-and-common/) [Jeffrey R. Holland](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jeffrey-r-holland/) > [Maybe law enforcement would like the ability to turn on the camera on your Mac.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tim-cook/maybe-law-enforcement-would-like-the-ability-to-turn-on-the-camera-on/) [Tim Cook](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tim-cook/) > [I've seen guys come along with more ability - they've been faster or bigger or stronger - but they never worked hard to develop…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/steve-largent/i-ve-seen-guys-come-along-with-more-ability-they-ve-been-faster-or/) [Steve Largent](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/steve-largent/) > [The youth of India has the strength to move the entire World with a click of a mouse, we have generated that ability!](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/narendra-modi/the-youth-of-india-has-the-strength-to-move-the-entire-world-with-a/) [Narendra Modi](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/narendra-modi/) > [Time hath not yet so dried this blood of mine, Nor age so eat up my invention, Nor fortune made such havoc of my…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-shakespeare/time-hath-not-yet-so-dried-this-blood-of-mine-nor-age-so-eat-up-my/) [William Shakespeare](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-shakespeare/) > [An absolutely necessary part of a writer's equipment, almost as necessary as talent, is the ability to stand up under punishment, both the punishment…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/irwin-shaw/an-absolutely-necessary-part-of-a-writer-s-equipment-almost-as/) [Irwin Shaw](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/irwin-shaw/) > [I'd be more frightened by not using whatever abilities I'd been given. I'd be more frightened by procrastination and laziness.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/denzel-washington/i-d-be-more-frightened-by-not-using-whatever-abilities-i-d-been-given/) [Denzel Washington](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/denzel-washington/) > [Bring into captivity every thought to the obedience of Christ. Take what I cannot give: my heart, body, thoughts, time, abilities, money, health, strength,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/elizabeth-prentiss/bring-into-captivity-every-thought-to-the-obedience-of-christ-take/) [Elizabeth Prentiss](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/elizabeth-prentiss/) > [You can only do the work to the very best of your ability.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/christine-baranski/you-can-only-do-the-work-to-the-very-best-of-your-ability/) [Christine Baranski](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/christine-baranski/) > [Judge a person not by his ability to make money but by his ability to retain it.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/vikrant-parsai/judge-a-person-not-by-his-ability-to-make-money-but-by-his-ability-to/) [Vikrant Parsai](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/vikrant-parsai/) > [Balance is the ability to be happy in the midst of the most chaotic or even boring or transient circumstance.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/frederick-lenz/balance-is-the-ability-to-be-happy-in-the-midst-of-the-most-chaotic/) [Frederick Lenz](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/frederick-lenz/) > [Bobby had faith in my ability as a singer.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/julie-london/bobby-had-faith-in-my-ability-as-a-singer/) [Julie London](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/julie-london/) [Browse all 9,990 Ability quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/ability/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "“In short, you had that particular ability which I never had: the ability to be alive.”", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "Sigizmund Krzhizhanovsky" }, "isPartOf": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website" }, "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sigizmund-krzhizhanovsky/in-short-you-had-that-particular-ability-which-i-never-had-the/", "about": { "@type": "Thing", "name": "Ability" }, "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sigizmund-krzhizhanovsky/in-short-you-had-that-particular-ability-which-i-never-had-the/#quotation", "image": { "@type": "ImageObject", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/852/sigizmund-krzhizhanovsky-31121_ability_in-short-you-had-that-particular-ability_346003.jpg", "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/852/sigizmund-krzhizhanovsky-31121_ability_in-short-you-had-that-particular-ability_346003.jpg", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/852/sigizmund-krzhizhanovsky-31121_ability_in-short-you-had-that-particular-ability_346003.jpg", "width": 1080, "height": 1080, "caption": "“In short, you had that particular ability which I never had: the ability to be alive.” — Sigizmund Krzhizhanovsky", "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": "Sigizmund Krzhizhanovsky", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sigizmund-krzhizhanovsky/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 4, "name": "“In short, you had that particular...", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sigizmund-krzhizhanovsky/in-short-you-had-that-particular-ability-which-i-never-had-the/" } ], "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sigizmund-krzhizhanovsky/in-short-you-had-that-particular-ability-which-i-never-had-the/#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 } } ] } ```