--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: Suddenness,\" he says. \" You do not…" description: "\"Suddenness,\" he says. \" You do not prepare, you do not explain, you do not apologize. Suddenly, you go. And with you, you take all contemplation, all c..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/64b/t-a-obreht-11276_apologizing_suddenness-he-says-you-do-not-prepare-yo_2897849.png" --- # Suddenness," he says. " You do not prepare, you do not… ![“Suddenness," he says. " You do not prepare, you do not explain, you do not apologize. Suddenly, you go. And with you, you take all contemplation, all consideration of your own departure. All the suffering that would have come from knowing comes after you are gone, and you are not a part of it.” quote by Tea Obreht](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/64b/t-a-obreht-11276_apologizing_suddenness-he-says-you-do-not-prepare-yo_2897849.png) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/64b/t-a-obreht-11276_apologizing_suddenness-he-says-you-do-not-prepare-yo_2897849.png) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/64b/t-a-obreht-11276_apologizing_suddenness-he-says-you-do-not-prepare-yo_2897849.png) > “Suddenness," he says. " You do not prepare, you do not explain, you do not apologize. Suddenly, you go. And with you, you take all contemplation, all consideration of your own departure. All the suffering that would have come from knowing comes after you are gone, and you are not a part of it.” [Tea Obreht](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/t-a-obreht/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Sudden death leaves no time for preparation, apology, or reflection; suffering follows only after. **In simple terms:** Unexpected loss prevents closure and creates later pain. Key Takeaway Accept impermanence, cherish moments. Themes mortality impermanence loss Mood somber reflective Type philosophical inspirational When to use this quote - health crises - natural disasters - personal loss Key Concepts existentialism grief Questions to Reflect On - How do you prepare for the unexpected? - What rituals aid in mourning? A Different Perspective Grief can be processed even without preparation. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Consideration](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/consideration/) [Contemplation](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/contemplation/) [Departure](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/departure/) [Meditation](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/meditation/) [Suffering](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/suffering/) ## Related quotes > [“You are my winter suddenness—a glass of red wine spilt across a white tablecloth”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-j-geddes/you-are-my-winter-suddenness-a-glass-of-red-wine-spilt-across-a-white/) [john j geddes](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-j-geddes/) > [“...a flood of reality. I get an odd feeling that this is a crucial moment in my life and I'm startled by the suddenness…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bret-easton-ellis/a-flood-of-reality-i-get-an-odd-feeling-that-this-is-a-crucial-moment/) [Bret Easton Ellis](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bret-easton-ellis/) > [“Believe me, Doctor, if your life ends in suddenness you will be glad it did, and if it does not you will wish it…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/t-a-obreht/believe-me-doctor-if-your-life-ends-in-suddenness-you-will-be-glad-it/) [Téa Obreht](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/t-a-obreht/) > [“And, with alarming suddenness, nothing happened.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/terry-pratchett/and-with-alarming-suddenness-nothing-happened/) [Terry Pratchett](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/terry-pratchett/) > [Surely what a man does when he is taken off guard is the best evidence for what sort of man he is. If there…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/c-s-lewis/surely-what-a-man-does-when-he-is-taken-off-guard-is-the-best/) [C. S. Lewis](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/c-s-lewis/) > [She wanted to be alone - to think things out - to adjust herself, if it were possible, to the new world in which…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/she-wanted-to-be-alone-to-think-things-out-to-adjust-herself-if-it/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [Children are much more understanding of the suddenness and arbitrariness of death than we are. The old fairy tales contain a lot of that,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/emma-thompson/children-are-much-more-understanding-of-the-suddenness-and/) [Emma Thompson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/emma-thompson/) > [There's something about the shape that a poem takes in my mind before I write it that has to do with suddenness.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dana-goodyear/there-s-something-about-the-shape-that-a-poem-takes-in-my-mind-before/) [Dana Goodyear](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dana-goodyear/) > [Any departure from fact is the first step on a slippery slope toward unbelievability.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-a-henry-iii/any-departure-from-fact-is-the-first-step-on-a-slippery-slope-toward/) [William A. Henry III](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-a-henry-iii/) > [Black and white photography is truly quite a 'departure from reality', and the transition from one aspect of visual magic to another was not…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ansel-adams/black-and-white-photography-is-truly-quite-a-departure-from-reality/) [Ansel Adams](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ansel-adams/) > [Science sees the process of evolution from the outside, as one might a train of cars going by, and resolves it into the physical…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-burroughs/science-sees-the-process-of-evolution-from-the-outside-as-one-might-a/) [John Burroughs](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-burroughs/) > [I always use the analogy that when you go to a jeans store and put on a new pair of jeans, it's a pair…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/eric-bana/i-always-use-the-analogy-that-when-you-go-to-a-jeans-store-and-put-on/) [Eric Bana](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/eric-bana/) > [There is all the difference in the world between departure from recognised rules by one who has learned to obey them, and neglect of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ellen-terry/there-is-all-the-difference-in-the-world-between-departure-from/) [Ellen Terry](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ellen-terry/) > [The album is a definite departure. I haven't written original material before, except for one song on my first album, but Elvis and I…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/diana-krall/the-album-is-a-definite-departure-i-haven-t-written-original-material/) [Diana Krall](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/diana-krall/) > [The last act in the biography of the hero is that of the death or departure.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joseph-campbell/the-last-act-in-the-biography-of-the-hero-is-that-of-the-death-or/) [Joseph Campbell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joseph-campbell/) ## More by Tea Obreht > [“I felt my voice had fallen through and through me, and I couldn't summon it back to tell him or myself anything at all.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/t-a-obreht/i-felt-my-voice-had-fallen-through-and-through-me-and-i-couldn-t/) [Téa Obreht](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/t-a-obreht/) > [I grew up in Cyprus and Egypt, these fantastic places I remember fondly.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/t-a-obreht/i-grew-up-in-cyprus-and-egypt-these-fantastic-places-i-remember-fondly/) [Tea Obreht](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/t-a-obreht/) > [Everything necessary to understand my grandfather lies between two stories: the story of the tiger’s wife, and the story of the deathless man. These…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/t-a-obreht/everything-necessary-to-understand-my-grandfather-lies-between-two/) [Tea Obreht](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/t-a-obreht/) > [“People become very upset,' Gavo tells me, 'when they find out they are going to die' . . . 'They behave very strangely,' he…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/t-a-obreht/people-become-very-upset-gavo-tells-me-when-they-find-out-they-are/) [Téa Obreht](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/t-a-obreht/) > [“By the time I got to high school, I had learned to be more cautious about revealing my dreams. I was reading—and therefore writing—adventure…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/t-a-obreht/by-the-time-i-got-to-high-school-i-had-learned-to-be-more-cautious/) [Téa Obreht](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/t-a-obreht/) > [No matter how grave the secret, how imperative absolute silence, someone would always feel the urge to confess, and an unleashed secret is a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/t-a-obreht/no-matter-how-grave-the-secret-how-imperative-absolute-silence/) [Tea Obreht](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/t-a-obreht/) > [“To me, the persistence of my grandfather's rituals meant that he was unchanged, running on discipline and continuance and stoicism. I didn't notice, and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/t-a-obreht/to-me-the-persistence-of-my-grandfather-s-rituals-meant-that-he-was/) [Téa Obreht](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/t-a-obreht/) > [At the end of the day, it's about the reader's attachment to and belief in the magical elements that make or break magical realism.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/t-a-obreht/at-the-end-of-the-day-it-s-about-the-reader-s-attachment-to-and/) [Tea Obreht](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/t-a-obreht/) > [ “I started to feel that nagging sense of shame again, an acute awareness of my own inability to share in his \[my grandfather's\] optimism.” ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/t-a-obreht/i-started-to-feel-that-nagging-sense-of-shame-again-an-acute/) [Téa Obreht](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/t-a-obreht/) > [I think the mythology of death really ran away with me when I was very young.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/t-a-obreht/i-think-the-mythology-of-death-really-ran-away-with-me-when-i-was/) [Tea Obreht](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/t-a-obreht/) > [A lot of writers that I know have told me that the first book you write, you write about your childhood, whether you want…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/t-a-obreht/a-lot-of-writers-that-i-know-have-told-me-that-the-first-book-you/) [Tea Obreht](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/t-a-obreht/) > [When you're in a place, the details you focus on are different than details you focus on when you're writing about it.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/t-a-obreht/when-you-re-in-a-place-the-details-you-focus-on-are-different-than/) [Tea Obreht](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/t-a-obreht/) > [“Knowing, above all, that I would come looking, and find what he had left for me, all that remained of The Jungle Book in…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/t-a-obreht/knowing-above-all-that-i-would-come-looking-and-find-what-he-had-left/) [Téa Obreht](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/t-a-obreht/) > [My mother always says that fear and pain are immediate, and that, when they're gone we're left with the concept, but not the true…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/t-a-obreht/my-mother-always-says-that-fear-and-pain-are-immediate-and-that-when/) [Tea Obreht](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/t-a-obreht/) > [“But children die how they have been living-with hope. They don't what is happening, so they expect nothing, they don't ask you to hold…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/t-a-obreht/but-children-die-how-they-have-been-living-with-hope-they-don-t-what/) [Téa Obreht](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/t-a-obreht/) [Explore all 60 Tea Obreht quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/t-a-obreht/) ## More Apologizing quotes > [“There were probably many factors that kept the relationship going and kept your love alive. There were all his promises. "I promise this will…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/meg-kennedy-dugan/there-were-probably-many-factors-that-kept-the-relationship-going-and/) Meg Kennedy Dugan > [“A lady need never apologize. ~ Joseph de Bonaparte (Brother of Napoleon)”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/allison-pataki/a-lady-need-never-apologize-joseph-de-bonaparte-brother-of-napoleon/) Allison Pataki > [A jerk will keep hurting you then apologize to keep you from leaving them, and then do it all over again](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sonya-parker/a-jerk-will-keep-hurting-you-then-apologize-to-keep-you-from-leaving/) [Sonya Parker](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sonya-parker/) > [To apologize for what you most wanted to do, to concede that it was obnoxious, boring, 'vulgar and unsafe' --- that was the worst…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alan-hollinghurst/to-apologize-for-what-you-most-wanted-to-do-to-concede-that-it-was/) [Alan Hollinghurst](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alan-hollinghurst/) > [I have some friends who are actors. I've watched them work. And I would say that of all the arts, acting is the most…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kristen-stewart/i-have-some-friends-who-are-actors-i-ve-watched-them-work-and-i-would/) [Kristen Stewart](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kristen-stewart/) > [President Bush deliberately did not apologize for things and that’s because advisers around him, including those there, felt that the press corps would jump…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-gregory/president-bush-deliberately-did-not-apologize-for-things-and-that-s/) [David Gregory](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-gregory/) > [Apologizing does not always mean you are wrong, it just means that value your relationships more than your ego.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/chinier-bennett/apologizing-does-not-always-mean-you-are-wrong-it-just-means-that/) [Chinier Bennett](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/chinier-bennett/) > [I would like to publicly apologize to anyone I have NOT offended¦I will get to you shortly.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/i-would-like-to-publicly-apologize-to-anyone-i-have-not-offended-i/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [I have a responsibility, and it's something that I did wrong, and if I could personally apologize to every single person that has lost…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nicole-richie/i-have-a-responsibility-and-it-s-something-that-i-did-wrong-and-if-i/) [Nicole Richie](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nicole-richie/) > [To the millions of Americans whove attempted to use HealthCare.gov to shop and enroll in health-care coverage, I want to apologize to you that…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/marilyn-tavenner/to-the-millions-of-americans-whove-attempted-to-use-healthcare-gov-to/) Marilyn Tavenner > [My overall point is that 'one and dones' are not healthy for college basketball. I should not have made it personal to Kentucky and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bobby-knight/my-overall-point-is-that-one-and-dones-are-not-healthy-for-college/) [Bobby Knight](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bobby-knight/) > [Don't apologize for being patriotic. Support the troops](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/toby-keith/don-t-apologize-for-being-patriotic-support-the-troops/) [Toby Keith](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/toby-keith/) > [How many chefs when I was a young boy shouted at me during service? All I ever said was "Yes, chef." The customer is…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/marco-pierre-white/how-many-chefs-when-i-was-a-young-boy-shouted-at-me-during-service/) [Marco Pierre White](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/marco-pierre-white/) > [I want to use my connections with coaches, players, celebrities, whomever, and if I can take that friendship and use it to help someone…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tim-tebow/i-want-to-use-my-connections-with-coaches-players-celebrities/) [Tim Tebow](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tim-tebow/) > [I apologize for the cruel things that I did but I don't regret one single word I said.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/five-finger-death-punch/i-apologize-for-the-cruel-things-that-i-did-but-i-don-t-regret-one/) [Five Finger Death Punch](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/five-finger-death-punch/) Browse all 854 Apologizing quotes ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "Suddenness,\" he says. \" You do not prepare, you do not explain, you do not apologize. 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