--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: Now I was also trying to understand how…" description: "\"“Now I was also trying to understand how someone could end such intense desire without leaving a trace. If you had really loved something, wouldn't a l..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/4fa/susan-orlean-2207_desire_now-i-was-also-trying-to-understand-how_1704603.jpg" --- # Now I was also trying to understand how someone could end… ![“Now I was also trying to understand how someone could end such intense desire without leaving a trace. If you had really loved something, wouldn't a little bit of it always linger? A couple of houseplants? A dinky Home Depot Phalaenopsis in a coffee can? I personally have always found giving up on…” quote by Susan Orlean](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/4fa/susan-orlean-2207_desire_now-i-was-also-trying-to-understand-how_1704603.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/4fa/susan-orlean-2207_desire_now-i-was-also-trying-to-understand-how_1704603.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/4fa/susan-orlean-2207_desire_now-i-was-also-trying-to-understand-how_1704603.jpg) > ““Now I was also trying to understand how someone could end such intense desire without leaving a trace. If you had really loved something, wouldn't a little bit of it always linger? A couple of houseplants? A dinky Home Depot Phalaenopsis in a coffee can? I personally have always found giving up on something a thousand times harder than getting it started, but evidently Laroche's finishes were downright and absolute, and what's more, he also shut off any chance of amends.”” [Susan Orlean](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/susan-orlean/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Letting go of a passion can be harder than starting it; lingering attachment remains. **In simple terms:** Giving up is harder than starting. Key Takeaway Accept loss, move on. Themes loss attachment transition Mood melancholic thoughtful Type reflective philosophical When to use this quote - career shifts - creative projects - relationships Key Concepts grief acceptance Questions to Reflect On - What lingering attachments hold you back? - How can you honor the past while moving forward? A Different Perspective Letting go may prevent new opportunities. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Desire](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/desire/) [Desire Leaving](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/desire-leaving-1184310/) [Evidently Laroche](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/evidently-laroche-1184311/) [Home depot](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/home-depot/) [Intense Desire](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/intense-desire-280227/) [Laroche Finishes](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/laroche-finishes-1184309/) [Sand Time](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/sand-time/) ## Related quotes > [You should have only one intense desire within yourself: Have I become the spirit? Have I achieved my ultimate? Have I risen above the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nirmala-srivastava/you-should-have-only-one-intense-desire-within-yourself-have-i-become/) [Nirmala Srivastava](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nirmala-srivastava/) > [“Rather, it is simply the tale of how two people can be important to each other their whole lives, and then, one morning, quite…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mackenzi-lee/rather-it-is-simply-the-tale-of-how-two-people-can-be-important-to/) [Mackenzi Lee](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mackenzi-lee/) > [The foundation of success is intense desire.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bill-phillips/the-foundation-of-success-is-intense-desire/) [Bill Phillips](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bill-phillips/) > [You feel the intense desire to do good, to do right thing. At this stage, you also feel helpless.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/chin-ning-chu/you-feel-the-intense-desire-to-do-good-to-do-right-thing-at-this/) [Chin-Ning Chu](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/chin-ning-chu/) > [...and the most intense desire gave force to her passionate words as the girl glanced despairingly about the dreary room like a caged creature…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/louisa-may-alcott/and-the-most-intense-desire-gave-force-to-her-passionate-words-as-the/) [Louisa May Alcott](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/louisa-may-alcott/) > [Over the years I have discovered that ideas come through an intense desire for them; continually desiring, the mind becomes a watchtower on the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/charlie-chaplin/over-the-years-i-have-discovered-that-ideas-come-through-an-intense/) [Charlie Chaplin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/charlie-chaplin/) > [Every intense desire is perhaps a desire to be different from what we are.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/eric-hoffer/every-intense-desire-is-perhaps-a-desire-to-be-different-from-what-we/) [Eric Hoffer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/eric-hoffer/) > [“The intense desire to talk with someone, sharp as any pain; this was what people meant when they talked about love. Or rather; this…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kim-stanley-robinson/the-intense-desire-to-talk-with-someone-sharp-as-any-pain-this-was/) [Kim Stanley Robinson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kim-stanley-robinson/) > [Man has an intense desire for assured knowledge.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/albert-einstein/man-has-an-intense-desire-for-assured-knowledge/) [Albert Einstein](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/albert-einstein/) > [A thirst for his kiss, A hunger for his touch, A intense desire for his body next to mine.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/intensedesires12/a-thirst-for-his-kiss-a-hunger-for-his-touch-a-intense-desire-for-his/) [IntenseDesires12](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/intensedesires12/) > [It sometimes seems that intense desire creates not only its own opportunities, but its own talents.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/eric-hoffer/it-sometimes-seems-that-intense-desire-creates-not-only-its-own/) [Eric Hoffer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/eric-hoffer/) > [His eyes burned violet - not with anger but with intense desire. The kind of look that made you love a person so much,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lauren-kate/his-eyes-burned-violet-not-with-anger-but-with-intense-desire-the/) [Lauren Kate](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lauren-kate/) > [Frankly, I never had any intense desire to go to India. I know that sounds a bit strange, but it just never was someplace…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/judi-dench/frankly-i-never-had-any-intense-desire-to-go-to-india-i-know-that/) [Judi Dench](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/judi-dench/) > [I have an intense desire to constantly make music, and I don't feel that way about anything else.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/grimes/i-have-an-intense-desire-to-constantly-make-music-and-i-don-t-feel/) [Grimes](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/grimes/) > [What it comes down to is intense desire. To get this winning edge, you need to build an indomitable will. This means you must…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anson-dorrance/what-it-comes-down-to-is-intense-desire-to-get-this-winning-edge-you/) [Anson Dorrance](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anson-dorrance/) ## More by Susan Orlean > [I've used Twitter now and again to try to figure something out; it's an amazing resource. But I think you have to use it…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/susan-orlean/i-ve-used-twitter-now-and-again-to-try-to-figure-something-out-it-s/) [Susan Orlean](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/susan-orlean/) > [Who on earth is going to use 'utilize' in a text message, a whopping seven characters including the always-hard-to-type 'z,' when you can say…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/susan-orlean/who-on-earth-is-going-to-use-utilize-in-a-text-message-a-whopping/) [Susan Orlean](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/susan-orlean/) > [When my son was born, and after a day of lying-in I was told that I could leave the hospital and take him home,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/susan-orlean/when-my-son-was-born-and-after-a-day-of-lying-in-i-was-told-that-i/) [Susan Orlean](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/susan-orlean/) > [I'm happy to be reminded that an ordinary day full of nothing but nothingness can make you feel like you've won the lottery.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/susan-orlean/i-m-happy-to-be-reminded-that-an-ordinary-day-full-of-nothing-but/) [Susan Orlean](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/susan-orlean/) > [I once had a boyfriend who couldn't write unless he was wearing a necktie and a dress shirt, which I thought was really weird,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/susan-orlean/i-once-had-a-boyfriend-who-couldn-t-write-unless-he-was-wearing-a/) [Susan Orlean](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/susan-orlean/) > [“I, too, had set out to be remembered. I had wanted to create something permanent in my life- some proof that everything in its…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/susan-orlean/i-too-had-set-out-to-be-remembered-i-had-wanted-to-create-something/) [Susan Orlean](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/susan-orlean/) > [I think of myself as something of a connoisseur of procrastination, creative and dogged in my approach to not getting things done.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/susan-orlean/i-think-of-myself-as-something-of-a-connoisseur-of-procrastination/) [Susan Orlean](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/susan-orlean/) > [I'm very excited about my new Spotify account, which gives me access to twenty gazillion songs any time, all the time. The day I…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/susan-orlean/i-m-very-excited-about-my-new-spotify-account-which-gives-me-access/) [Susan Orlean](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/susan-orlean/) > [I approach stories as a private educational enterprise: I want to learn about something. I teach myself through research, reporting, and thinking, and then,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/susan-orlean/i-approach-stories-as-a-private-educational-enterprise-i-want-to/) [Susan Orlean](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/susan-orlean/) > [We're fascinated by animals because it's almost like having Martians living among us. We can see some familiarity in them, but they're entirely different…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/susan-orlean/we-re-fascinated-by-animals-because-it-s-almost-like-having-martians/) [Susan Orlean](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/susan-orlean/) > [My inspiration is really very simple: I'm struck by things that I want to know more about. I really do react just as a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/susan-orlean/my-inspiration-is-really-very-simple-i-m-struck-by-things-that-i-want/) [Susan Orlean](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/susan-orlean/) > [I am dismayed to realize that much of the advice I used to parcel out to aspiring writers has passed its sell-by date.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/susan-orlean/i-am-dismayed-to-realize-that-much-of-the-advice-i-used-to-parcel-out/) [Susan Orlean](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/susan-orlean/) > [I wish I had coined the phrase 'tyranny of choice,' but someone beat me to it. The counterintuitive truth is that have an abundance…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/susan-orlean/i-wish-i-had-coined-the-phrase-tyranny-of-choice-but-someone-beat-me/) [Susan Orlean](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/susan-orlean/) > [My ace in the hole as a human being used to be my capacity for remembering birthdays. I worked at it. Whenever I made…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/susan-orlean/my-ace-in-the-hole-as-a-human-being-used-to-be-my-capacity-for/) [Susan Orlean](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/susan-orlean/) > [Sometimes I think I've figured out some order in the universe, but then I find myself in Florida](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/susan-orlean/sometimes-i-think-i-ve-figured-out-some-order-in-the-universe-but/) [Susan Orlean](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/susan-orlean/) [Explore all 179 Susan Orlean quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/susan-orlean/) ## More Desire quotes > [I put myself in the student's place and remember the frustrations, doubts, determination, and desires I felt when I was going through the initial…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ted-martinez/i-put-myself-in-the-student-s-place-and-remember-the-frustrations/) [Ted Martinez](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ted-martinez/) > [Passion is what you need to be good, an unforgiving passion.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-easton/passion-is-what-you-need-to-be-good-an-unforgiving-passion/) [David Easton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-easton/) > [I want the municipality to be a helping hand to the man with a desire of sympathy, to help the fallen when it is…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-burns/i-want-the-municipality-to-be-a-helping-hand-to-the-man-with-a-desire/) [John Burns](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-burns/) > [Ye youths and virgins, when your generous blood Has drunk the warmth of fifteen summers, now The loves invite; now to new rapture wakes…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-armstrong/ye-youths-and-virgins-when-your-generous-blood-has-drunk-the-warmth/) [John Armstrong](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-armstrong/) > [I have observed this in my experience of slavery, - that whenever my condition was improved, instead of its increasing my contentment, it only…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/frederick-douglass/i-have-observed-this-in-my-experience-of-slavery-that-whenever-my/) [Frederick Douglass](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/frederick-douglass/) > [“THE ESSENCE OF YOUR DESIRE IS A FEELING”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/danielle-laporte/the-essence-of-your-desire-is-a-feeling/) [Danielle LaPorte](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/danielle-laporte/) > [On the brink of being satiated, desire still appears infinite.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jean-rostand/on-the-brink-of-being-satiated-desire-still-appears-infinite/) [Jean Rostand](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jean-rostand/) > [If there is any period one would desire to be born in, is it not the age of Revolution; when the old and the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ralph-waldo-emerson/if-there-is-any-period-one-would-desire-to-be-born-in-is-it-not-the/) [Ralph Waldo Emerson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ralph-waldo-emerson/) > [He caught her, she fell, he caught her in his arms, he held her tightly unconscious of what he was doing. He held her…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/victor-hugo/he-caught-her-she-fell-he-caught-her-in-his-arms-he-held-her-tightly/) [Victor Hugo](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/victor-hugo/) > [ Teaching might even be the greatest of the arts since the medium is the human mind and spirit. My three \[great teachers\] did not… ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-steinbeck/teaching-might-even-be-the-greatest-of-the-arts-since-the-medium-is/) [John Steinbeck](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-steinbeck/) > [“The deepest urge in human nature is the desire to be important.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-dewey/the-deepest-urge-in-human-nature-is-the-desire-to-be-important/) [John Dewey](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-dewey/) > [In discovering books, you became free to explore the full range of human motives, desires, secrets, and lies. All my life, people have scolded…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/betsy-lerner/in-discovering-books-you-became-free-to-explore-the-full-range-of/) [Betsy Lerner](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/betsy-lerner/) > [I have never been in, nor have I had any strong particular desire to be in, what is termed a costume drama, but I…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/martin-freeman/i-have-never-been-in-nor-have-i-had-any-strong-particular-desire-to/) [Martin Freeman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/martin-freeman/) > [Now I am in the place I call this wide wide Heaven because it includes all my simplest desires but also the most humble…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alice-sebold/now-i-am-in-the-place-i-call-this-wide-wide-heaven-because-it/) [Alice Sebold](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alice-sebold/) > [“from THE DEVIL YOU KNOW : She wanted him too. He could see it in the rapid rise of her breasts. He could smell…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/emery-lee/from-the-devil-you-know-she-wanted-him-too-he-could-see-it-in-the/) [Emery Lee](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/emery-lee/) [Browse all 15,155 Desire quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/desire/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "“Now I was also trying to understand how someone could end such intense desire without leaving a trace. If you had really loved something, wouldn't a little bit of it always linger? A couple of houseplants? A dinky Home Depot Phalaenopsis in a coffee can? I personally have always found giving up on something a thousand times harder than getting it started, but evidently Laroche's finishes were downright and absolute, and what's more, he also shut off any chance of amends.”", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "Susan Orlean" }, "isPartOf": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website" }, "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/susan-orlean/now-i-was-also-trying-to-understand-how-someone-could-end-such/", "about": { "@type": "Thing", "name": "Desire" }, "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/susan-orlean/now-i-was-also-trying-to-understand-how-someone-could-end-such/#quotation", "image": { "@type": "ImageObject", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/4fa/susan-orlean-2207_desire_now-i-was-also-trying-to-understand-how_1704603.jpg", "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/4fa/susan-orlean-2207_desire_now-i-was-also-trying-to-understand-how_1704603.jpg", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/4fa/susan-orlean-2207_desire_now-i-was-also-trying-to-understand-how_1704603.jpg", "width": 1080, "height": 1080, "caption": "“Now I was also trying to understand how someone could end such intense desire without leaving a trace. If…” — Susan Orlean", "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": "Susan Orlean", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/susan-orlean/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 4, "name": "“Now I was also trying to...", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/susan-orlean/now-i-was-also-trying-to-understand-how-someone-could-end-such/" } ], "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/susan-orlean/now-i-was-also-trying-to-understand-how-someone-could-end-such/#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 } } ] } ```