--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: I was gonna say, The problem is they know…" description: "\"“I was gonna say, The problem is they know what matters, but they don’t choose it. You know how hard that is, Lily? I love May, but it was still so har..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/618/sue-monk-kidd-404_hardest-thing_i-was-gonna-say-the-problem-is-they-know_2203912.jpg" --- # I was gonna say, The problem is they know what matters… ![“I was gonna say, The problem is they know what matters, but they don’t choose it. You know how hard that is, Lily? I love May, but it was still so hard to choose Caribbean Pink. The hardest thing on earth is choosing what matters.” quote by Sue Monk Kidd](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/618/sue-monk-kidd-404_hardest-thing_i-was-gonna-say-the-problem-is-they-know_2203912.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/618/sue-monk-kidd-404_hardest-thing_i-was-gonna-say-the-problem-is-they-know_2203912.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/618/sue-monk-kidd-404_hardest-thing_i-was-gonna-say-the-problem-is-they-know_2203912.jpg) > ““I was gonna say, The problem is they know what matters, but they don’t choose it. You know how hard that is, Lily? I love May, but it was still so hard to choose Caribbean Pink. The hardest thing on earth is choosing what matters.”” [Sue Monk Kidd](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sue-monk-kidd/) ## 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 notes that people know what matters but struggle to choose it, illustrating the difficulty of making meaningful decisions, especially in love. **In simple terms:** People know values but find choosing hard. Key Takeaway Practice decisive decision‑making. Themes decision making values love Mood thoughtful empathetic Type motivational introspective When to use this quote - career choices - relationship decisions - value clarification - goal setting Key Concepts psychology of choice personal growth relationship dynamics Questions to Reflect On - What holds you back from choosing? - How can you align actions with values? A Different Perspective Choosing may involve fear of loss. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Pink](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/pink/) ## Related quotes > [“She was with me the day I went to the paint store to pick out the color. I had a nice tan color in…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sue-monk-kidd/she-was-with-me-the-day-i-went-to-the-paint-store-to-pick-out-the/) [Sue Monk Kidd](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sue-monk-kidd/) > [“August says to Lily," You know some things don't matter that much Lily. Like the colour of the house. How big is that in…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sue-monk-kidd/august-says-to-lily-you-know-some-things-don-t-matter-that-much-lily/) [Sue Monk Kidd](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sue-monk-kidd/) > [some things don't matter much. Like the color of a house. How big is that in the overall scheme of life? But lifting a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sue-monk-kidd/some-things-don-t-matter-much-like-the-color-of-a-house-how-big-is/) [Sue Monk Kidd](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sue-monk-kidd/) > [ “Lily Owens: If your favorite color is blue, why did you paint the house pink? August Boatwright: \[chuckles\] That was May's doing. When we… ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sue-monk-kidd/lily-owens-if-your-favorite-color-is-blue-why-did-you-paint-the-house/) [Sue Monk Kidd](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sue-monk-kidd/) > [The hardest thing on earth is choosing what matters.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sue-monk-kidd/the-hardest-thing-on-earth-is-choosing-what-matters/) [Sue Monk Kidd](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sue-monk-kidd/) > [“You know, some things don't matter that much, Lily. Like the color of a house. How big is that in the over-all scheme of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sue-monk-kidd/you-know-some-things-don-t-matter-that-much-lily-like-the-color-of-a/) [Sue Monk Kidd](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sue-monk-kidd/) > [“You know, some things don't matter that much, Lily. Like the color of a house. 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That's why it's hard to choose. You have to make the right choice. 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Everything suddenly there--life…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sue-monk-kidd/the-translucence-that-comes-when-life-hardens-into-a-bead-of-such/) [Sue Monk Kidd](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sue-monk-kidd/) > [“There's no pain on earth that doesn't require a benevolent witness.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sue-monk-kidd/there-s-no-pain-on-earth-that-doesn-t-require-a-benevolent-witness/) [sue monk kidd](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sue-monk-kidd/) > [“afflicted with the worst female curse on earth, the need to mold myself to expectations.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sue-monk-kidd/afflicted-with-the-worst-female-curse-on-earth-the-need-to-mold/) [Sue Monk Kidd](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sue-monk-kidd/) > [“Her forbidden bath all those months ago still hung leaden between us, though Handful didn't seem the least bit ashamed by my discovery of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sue-monk-kidd/her-forbidden-bath-all-those-months-ago-still-hung-leaden-between-us/) [Sue Monk Kidd](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sue-monk-kidd/) > [“Why should God’s perfection be based on having an unchanging nature?” I asked. “Isn’t flexibility more perfect than stasis?”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sue-monk-kidd/why-should-god-s-perfection-be-based-on-having-an-unchanging-nature-i/) [Sue Monk Kidd](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sue-monk-kidd/) [Explore all 584 Sue Monk Kidd quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sue-monk-kidd/) ## More Hardest thing quotes > [I was in good shape from Divergent. 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