--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: Then the ship gave sudden lurches that…" description: "\"“Then the ship gave sudden lurches that made it a matter of uncertainty whether one was going to put his fork in his mouth or into his eye.”\" — Thomas ..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/5de/thomas-bailey-aldrich-4098_uncertainty_then-the-ship-gave-sudden-lurches-that-m_2280769.png" --- # Then the ship gave sudden lurches that made it a matter of… ![“Then the ship gave sudden lurches that made it a matter of uncertainty whether one was going to put his fork in his mouth or into his eye.” quote by Thomas Bailey Aldrich](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/5de/thomas-bailey-aldrich-4098_uncertainty_then-the-ship-gave-sudden-lurches-that-m_2280769.png) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/5de/thomas-bailey-aldrich-4098_uncertainty_then-the-ship-gave-sudden-lurches-that-m_2280769.png) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/5de/thomas-bailey-aldrich-4098_uncertainty_then-the-ship-gave-sudden-lurches-that-m_2280769.png) > ““Then the ship gave sudden lurches that made it a matter of uncertainty whether one was going to put his fork in his mouth or into his eye.”” [Thomas Bailey Aldrich](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/thomas-bailey-aldrich/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Unexpected turbulence can make ordinary actions feel dangerous, highlighting how quickly circumstances can shift. **In simple terms:** Sudden changes make normal tasks risky. Key Takeaway Stay alert and adapt quickly. Themes uncertainty risk adaptation Mood anxious alert Type narrative descriptive When to use this quote - travel - dining - emergency response Key Concepts human perception environmental volatility Questions to Reflect On - How do you maintain composure when routines become hazardous? - What safeguards can prevent accidental harm? A Different Perspective Even small disturbances can cause major misjudgments. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Gave Sudden](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/gave-sudden-1265982/) [Ship Gave](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/ship-gave-2501363/) [Sudden Lurches](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/sudden-lurches-5322501/) [Uncertainty](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/uncertainty/) [Uncertainty Going](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/uncertainty-going-1999608/) ## Related quotes > [When you come to a new team there's always uncertainty about how they're going to respond.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/quique-setien/when-you-come-to-a-new-team-there-s-always-uncertainty-about-how-they/) [Quique Setien](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/quique-setien/) > [“West was the only officer on the quarterdeck, and it so happened that the party of hands making dolphins and paunch-mats on the forecastle…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/patrick-o-brian/west-was-the-only-officer-on-the-quarterdeck-and-it-so-happened-that/) [Patrick O'Brian](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/patrick-o-brian/) > [“But I didn't call to him for he gave a sudden intimation that he was content to be alone - he stretched out his…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/f-scott-fitzgerald/but-i-didn-t-call-to-him-for-he-gave-a-sudden-intimation-that-he-was/) [F. Scott Fitzgerald](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/f-scott-fitzgerald/) > [“He gave a sudden shake as if he couldn't stand to feel his life still holding on to him.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sarah-porter/he-gave-a-sudden-shake-as-if-he-couldn-t-stand-to-feel-his-life-still/) [Sarah Porter](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sarah-porter/) > [In the midst of global recession, in the face of uncertainty about what's going to happen next, film looks for inspiration to real people.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/simon-beaufoy/in-the-midst-of-global-recession-in-the-face-of-uncertainty-about/) [Simon Beaufoy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/simon-beaufoy/) > [Modeling in Europe at the beginning of my career was pretty hard, with the constant traveling and uncertainty as to where I was going…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/molly-sims/modeling-in-europe-at-the-beginning-of-my-career-was-pretty-hard-with-2/) [Molly Sims](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/molly-sims/) > [Uncertainty that comes from knowledge (knowing what you don't know) is different from uncertainty coming from ignorance.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/isaac-asimov/uncertainty-that-comes-from-knowledge-knowing-what-you-don-t-know-is/) [Isaac Asimov](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/isaac-asimov/) > [We don't always know the details of our future. We do not know what lies ahead. We live in a time of uncertainty. We…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dieter-f-uchtdorf/we-don-t-always-know-the-details-of-our-future-we-do-not-know-what/) [Dieter F. Uchtdorf](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dieter-f-uchtdorf/) > [Marriages are always moving from one season to another. Sometimes we find ourselves in winter--discouraged, detached, and dissatisfied; other times we experience springtime, with…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gary-chapman/marriages-are-always-moving-from-one-season-to-another-sometimes-we/) [Gary Chapman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gary-chapman/) > [Moses became America's true founding father because he evangelized action; he justified risk. He gave ordinary people the courage to live with uncertainty.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bruce-feiler/moses-became-america-s-true-founding-father-because-he-evangelized/) [Bruce Feiler](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bruce-feiler/) > [“She's sure, absolutely sure, that what she's waiting for will happen, just the way she wants it to; and I'm so uncertain, so fearful…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lois-lowry/she-s-sure-absolutely-sure-that-what-she-s-waiting-for-will-happen/) [Lois Lowry](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lois-lowry/) > [I don't think we should tell them what we're going to do in advance. Let them think. Worry. Wonder. Uncertainty is the most chilling…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/vernon-a-walters/i-don-t-think-we-should-tell-them-what-we-re-going-to-do-in-advance/) [Vernon A. Walters](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/vernon-a-walters/) > [Here today, may be gone tomorrow! Never take anyone or nothing for granted! Be sure to count your blessing daily because tomorrow isn't promised.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/surgeo-bell/here-today-may-be-gone-tomorrow-never-take-anyone-or-nothing-for/) [Surgeo Bell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/surgeo-bell/) > [The dream of coming back is becoming a reality. A lot of the uncertainty about the future has been cleared up. A lot of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/paul-tagliabue/the-dream-of-coming-back-is-becoming-a-reality-a-lot-of-the/) [Paul Tagliabue](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/paul-tagliabue/) > [I have lifted my plane . . . for perhaps a thousand flights and I have never felt her wheels glide from the Earth…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/beryl-markham/i-have-lifted-my-plane-for-perhaps-a-thousand-flights-and-i-have/) [Beryl Markham](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/beryl-markham/) ## More by Thomas Bailey Aldrich > [No bird has ever uttered note That was not in some first bird's throat; Since Eden's freshness and man's fall No rose has been…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/thomas-bailey-aldrich/no-bird-has-ever-uttered-note-that-was-not-in-some-first-bird-s/) [Thomas Bailey Aldrich](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/thomas-bailey-aldrich/) > [There is no man at once so unselfish and selfish as a man in love.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/thomas-bailey-aldrich/there-is-no-man-at-once-so-unselfish-and-selfish-as-a-man-in-love/) [Thomas Bailey Aldrich](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/thomas-bailey-aldrich/) > [I have frequently noticed how circumstances conspire to help a man, or a boy, when he has thoroughly resolved on doing a thing.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/thomas-bailey-aldrich/i-have-frequently-noticed-how-circumstances-conspire-to-help-a-man-or/) [Thomas Bailey Aldrich](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/thomas-bailey-aldrich/) > [Everywhere on the Continent, the tourist is looked upon as a bird to be plucked, and presently the bird himself feebly comes to regard…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/thomas-bailey-aldrich/everywhere-on-the-continent-the-tourist-is-looked-upon-as-a-bird-to/) [Thomas Bailey Aldrich](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/thomas-bailey-aldrich/) > [Imagine all human beings swept off the face of the earth, excepting one man. Imagine this man in some vast city, New York or…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/thomas-bailey-aldrich/imagine-all-human-beings-swept-off-the-face-of-the-earth-excepting/) [Thomas Bailey Aldrich](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/thomas-bailey-aldrich/) > [The possession of gold has ruined fewer men than the lack of it.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/thomas-bailey-aldrich/the-possession-of-gold-has-ruined-fewer-men-than-the-lack-of-it/) [Thomas Bailey Aldrich](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/thomas-bailey-aldrich/) > [“..Fell over the prostrate steersman, and there we all lay in a heep, two or three of us quite picturesque with the nosebleed.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/thomas-bailey-aldrich/fell-over-the-prostrate-steersman-and-there-we-all-lay-in-a-heep-two/) [Thomas Bailey Aldrich](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/thomas-bailey-aldrich/) > [A man should have duties outside of himself; without them, he is a mere balloon, inflated with thin egotism and drifting nowhere.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/thomas-bailey-aldrich/a-man-should-have-duties-outside-of-himself-without-them-he-is-a-mere/) [Thomas Bailey Aldrich](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/thomas-bailey-aldrich/) > [Great thoughts in crude, unshapely verse set forth lose half their preciousness, and ever must, unless the diamond with its own rich dust be…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/thomas-bailey-aldrich/great-thoughts-in-crude-unshapely-verse-set-forth-lose-half-their/) [Thomas Bailey Aldrich](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/thomas-bailey-aldrich/) > [So I sit there kicked my heels, thinking about New Orleans, and watching a morbid blue-bottle fly attempt to commit suicide by butting his…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/thomas-bailey-aldrich/so-i-sit-there-kicked-my-heels-thinking-about-new-orleans-and/) [Thomas Bailey Aldrich](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/thomas-bailey-aldrich/) > [What is more cheerful, now, in the fall of the year, than an open-wood-fire? Do you hear those little chirps and twitters coming out…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/thomas-bailey-aldrich/what-is-more-cheerful-now-in-the-fall-of-the-year-than-an-open-wood/) [Thomas Bailey Aldrich](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/thomas-bailey-aldrich/) > [Decoration Day is the most beautiful of our national holidays… The grim cannon have turned into palm branches, and the shell and shrapnel into…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/thomas-bailey-aldrich/decoration-day-is-the-most-beautiful-of-our-national-holidays-the/) [Thomas Bailey Aldrich](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/thomas-bailey-aldrich/) > [Famous old houses seem to have an intuitive perception of the value of corner lots. If it is a possible thing, they always set…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/thomas-bailey-aldrich/famous-old-houses-seem-to-have-an-intuitive-perception-of-the-value/) [Thomas Bailey Aldrich](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/thomas-bailey-aldrich/) > [Every man has within himself a gold mine whose riches are limited only by his own industry.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/thomas-bailey-aldrich/every-man-has-within-himself-a-gold-mine-whose-riches-are-limited/) [Thomas Bailey Aldrich](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/thomas-bailey-aldrich/) > [The fate of the worm refutes the pretended ethical teaching of the proverb, which assumes to illustrate the advantage of early rising and does…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/thomas-bailey-aldrich/the-fate-of-the-worm-refutes-the-pretended-ethical-teaching-of-the/) [Thomas Bailey Aldrich](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/thomas-bailey-aldrich/) [Explore all 116 Thomas Bailey Aldrich quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/thomas-bailey-aldrich/) ## More Uncertainty quotes > [I have lifted my plane . . . for perhaps a thousand flights and I have never felt her wheels glide from the Earth…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/beryl-markham/i-have-lifted-my-plane-for-perhaps-a-thousand-flights-and-i-have/) [Beryl Markham](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/beryl-markham/) > [The dream of coming back is becoming a reality. A lot of the uncertainty about the future has been cleared up. A lot of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/paul-tagliabue/the-dream-of-coming-back-is-becoming-a-reality-a-lot-of-the/) [Paul Tagliabue](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/paul-tagliabue/) > [Here today, may be gone tomorrow! Never take anyone or nothing for granted! Be sure to count your blessing daily because tomorrow isn't promised.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/surgeo-bell/here-today-may-be-gone-tomorrow-never-take-anyone-or-nothing-for/) [Surgeo Bell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/surgeo-bell/) > [I don't think we should tell them what we're going to do in advance. Let them think. Worry. Wonder. Uncertainty is the most chilling…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/vernon-a-walters/i-don-t-think-we-should-tell-them-what-we-re-going-to-do-in-advance/) [Vernon A. Walters](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/vernon-a-walters/) > [“She's sure, absolutely sure, that what she's waiting for will happen, just the way she wants it to; and I'm so uncertain, so fearful…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lois-lowry/she-s-sure-absolutely-sure-that-what-she-s-waiting-for-will-happen/) [Lois Lowry](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lois-lowry/) > [Moses became America's true founding father because he evangelized action; he justified risk. He gave ordinary people the courage to live with uncertainty.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bruce-feiler/moses-became-america-s-true-founding-father-because-he-evangelized/) [Bruce Feiler](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bruce-feiler/) > [Marriages are always moving from one season to another. Sometimes we find ourselves in winter--discouraged, detached, and dissatisfied; other times we experience springtime, with…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gary-chapman/marriages-are-always-moving-from-one-season-to-another-sometimes-we/) [Gary Chapman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gary-chapman/) > [We don't always know the details of our future. We do not know what lies ahead. We live in a time of uncertainty. We…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dieter-f-uchtdorf/we-don-t-always-know-the-details-of-our-future-we-do-not-know-what/) [Dieter F. Uchtdorf](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dieter-f-uchtdorf/) > [Uncertainty that comes from knowledge (knowing what you don't know) is different from uncertainty coming from ignorance.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/isaac-asimov/uncertainty-that-comes-from-knowledge-knowing-what-you-don-t-know-is/) [Isaac Asimov](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/isaac-asimov/) > [Uncertainty will always be part of the taking charge process.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/uncertainty-will-always-be-part-of-the-taking-charge-process/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [The superpowers often behave like two heavily armed blind men feeling their way around a room, each believing himself in mortal peril from the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/the-superpowers-often-behave-like-two-heavily-armed-blind-men-feeling/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [Our life always expresses the result of our dominant thoughts. It is an adventure, a storybook with each chapter a new tale. An unknown…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/allie-mclaughlin/our-life-always-expresses-the-result-of-our-dominant-thoughts-it-is/) [Allie McLaughlin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/allie-mclaughlin/) > [If you just watch a teenager, you see a lot of uncertainty.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jamie-lee-curtis/if-you-just-watch-a-teenager-you-see-a-lot-of-uncertainty/) [Jamie Lee Curtis](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jamie-lee-curtis/) > [“All creativity is based on quantum leaps and uncertainty.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/deepak-chopra/all-creativity-is-based-on-quantum-leaps-and-uncertainty/) [Deepak Chopra](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/deepak-chopra/) > [I don't know what tomorrow might bring, but I'm still hoping no matter what it is, it's gonna be better than today.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/blaze-olamiday/i-don-t-know-what-tomorrow-might-bring-but-i-m-still-hoping-no-matter/) [Blaze Olamiday](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/blaze-olamiday/) [Browse all 1,842 Uncertainty quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/uncertainty/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "“Then the ship gave sudden lurches that made it a matter of uncertainty whether one was going to put his fork in his mouth or into his eye.”", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "Thomas Bailey Aldrich" }, "isPartOf": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website" }, "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/thomas-bailey-aldrich/then-the-ship-gave-sudden-lurches-that-made-it-a-matter-of/", "about": { "@type": "Thing", "name": "Uncertainty" }, "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/thomas-bailey-aldrich/then-the-ship-gave-sudden-lurches-that-made-it-a-matter-of/#quotation", "image": { "@type": "ImageObject", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/5de/thomas-bailey-aldrich-4098_uncertainty_then-the-ship-gave-sudden-lurches-that-m_2280769.png", "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/5de/thomas-bailey-aldrich-4098_uncertainty_then-the-ship-gave-sudden-lurches-that-m_2280769.png", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/5de/thomas-bailey-aldrich-4098_uncertainty_then-the-ship-gave-sudden-lurches-that-m_2280769.png", "width": 1080, "height": 1080, "caption": "“Then the ship gave sudden lurches that made it a matter of uncertainty whether one was going to put his fork…” — Thomas Bailey Aldrich", "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": "Thomas Bailey Aldrich", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/thomas-bailey-aldrich/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 4, "name": "“Then the ship gave sudden lurches...", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/thomas-bailey-aldrich/then-the-ship-gave-sudden-lurches-that-made-it-a-matter-of/" } ], "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/thomas-bailey-aldrich/then-the-ship-gave-sudden-lurches-that-made-it-a-matter-of/#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 } } ] } ```