--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: Meg was going to have to learn for…" description: "\"Meg was going to have to learn for herself what Laurie had figured out over the summer - that it was better to leave well enough alone, to avoid unnece..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/bf0/tom-perrotta-3008_ache_meg-was-going-to-have-to-learn-for-herse_1369691.png" --- # Meg was going to have to learn for herself what Laurie had… ![“Meg was going to have to learn for herself what Laurie had figured out over the summer - that it was better to leave well enough alone, to avoid unnecessary encounters with the people you'd left behind, to not keep poking at that sore tooth with the tip of your tongue. Not because you didn't love…” quote by Tom Perrotta](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/bf0/tom-perrotta-3008_ache_meg-was-going-to-have-to-learn-for-herse_1369691.png) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/bf0/tom-perrotta-3008_ache_meg-was-going-to-have-to-learn-for-herse_1369691.png) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/bf0/tom-perrotta-3008_ache_meg-was-going-to-have-to-learn-for-herse_1369691.png) > “Meg was going to have to learn for herself what Laurie had figured out over the summer - that it was better to leave well enough alone, to avoid unnecessary encounters with the people you'd left behind, to not keep poking at that sore tooth with the tip of your tongue. Not because you didn't love them anymore, but because you did, and because that love was useless now, just another dull ache in your phantom limb.” [Tom Perrotta](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tom-perrotta/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. The quote suggests that sometimes love becomes a painful reminder of loss, and it may be healthier to stop revisiting past relationships that no longer serve us. **In simple terms:** Love can become a lingering ache; sometimes it's best to let go. Key Takeaway Accept the pain and move forward. Themes love loss acceptance healing relationships Mood melancholy reflective Type literary emotional When to use this quote - breakups - family estrangement - personal growth - mental health Key Concepts attachment theory grief emotional boundaries Questions to Reflect On - What relationships are you still holding onto? - How can you honor past love without letting it dominate? A Different Perspective Continuing to engage with past loves can hinder new connections and personal growth. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Ache](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/ache/) [Avoid Unnecessary](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/avoid-unnecessary-1454726/) [Behinds](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/behinds/) [Dull](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/dull/) [Dull Ache](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/dull-ache-1008251/) [Encounters](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/encounters/) [Enough](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/enough/) [Left behind](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/left-behind/) [Left Poking](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/left-poking-4712761/) [Limbs](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/limbs/) [Meg](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/meg/) [Meg Going](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/meg-going-4712762/) [People](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/people/) [Phantom limbs](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/phantom-limbs-143702/) [Phantoms](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/phantoms/) [Sore Tooth](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/sore-tooth-962504/) [Summer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/summer/) [Teeth](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/teeth/) [Tongue](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/tongue/) [Unnecessary](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/unnecessary/) [Useless](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/useless/) [Wells](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/wells/) ## Related quotes > [“A dragon with a sore tooth was an irritable dragon, and an irritable dragon usually resulted in a dead everything else.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/l-g-estrella/a-dragon-with-a-sore-tooth-was-an-irritable-dragon-and-an-irritable/) [L. G. Estrella](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/l-g-estrella/) > [“But the most important thing of all, to which she kept returning like a tongue probing a sore tooth, was the realization that she…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/patricia-c-wrede/but-the-most-important-thing-of-all-to-which-she-kept-returning-like/) [Patricia C. Wrede](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/patricia-c-wrede/) > [“You don’t need fear to avoid unnecessary danger — just a minimum of intelligence and common sense.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/eckhart-tolle/you-don-t-need-fear-to-avoid-unnecessary-danger-just-a-minimum-of/) [Eckhart Tolle](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/eckhart-tolle/) > [ ...for most people in the \[Jewish\] Ghetto \[of Warsaw\] nature lived only in memory -- no parks, birds, or greenery existed in the Ghetto… ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/diane-ackerman/for-most-people-in-the-jewish-ghetto-of-warsaw-nature-lived-only-in/) [Diane Ackerman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/diane-ackerman/) > [Every job will demand some sacrifice. The key is to avoid unnecessary sacrifice.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sheryl-sandberg/every-job-will-demand-some-sacrifice-the-key-is-to-avoid-unnecessary/) [Sheryl Sandberg](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sheryl-sandberg/) > [She never got a chance to fall out of love, to do it properly, slowly and thoroughly, and the result was he was like…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sarah-dunn/she-never-got-a-chance-to-fall-out-of-love-to-do-it-properly-slowly/) [Sarah Dunn](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sarah-dunn/) > [Martin said, "It feels as though part of my self has detached and gone to Amsterdam, where it—she—is waiting for me. Do you know…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/audrey-niffenegger/martin-said-it-feels-as-though-part-of-my-self-has-detached-and-gone/) [Audrey Niffenegger](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/audrey-niffenegger/) > [I felt more alone that week than any. Sometimes I'd feel a body lying next to me like an amputee feels a phantom limb.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/harvey-pekar/i-felt-more-alone-that-week-than-any-sometimes-i-d-feel-a-body-lying/) [Harvey Pekar](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/harvey-pekar/) > [It is not simply what one remembers, but why. There are sites of amputation where the past is severed from the body of the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/camilla-gibb/it-is-not-simply-what-one-remembers-but-why-there-are-sites-of/) [Camilla Gibb](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/camilla-gibb/) > [“True love is that which manages to avoid unnecessary suffering.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/paulo-coelho/true-love-is-that-which-manages-to-avoid-unnecessary-suffering/) [Paulo Coelho](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/paulo-coelho/) > [I attribute much of my success in New York to my ability to understand and avoid unnecessary distractions.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/derek-jeter/i-attribute-much-of-my-success-in-new-york-to-my-ability-to/) [Derek Jeter](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/derek-jeter/) > [I want to talk to her. I want to have lunch with her. I want her to give me a book she just read…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nora-ephron/i-want-to-talk-to-her-i-want-to-have-lunch-with-her-i-want-her-to/) [Nora Ephron](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nora-ephron/) > [Run lean; avoid unnecessary expenses.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/richard-branson/run-lean-avoid-unnecessary-expenses/) [Richard Branson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/richard-branson/) > [Life forces enough final decisions on us. We should have the sense to avoid as many of the unnecessary ones as we can.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-irving/life-forces-enough-final-decisions-on-us-we-should-have-the-sense-to/) [John Irving](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-irving/) > [One should always avoid unnecessary unhappiness. Especially if one is an immortal. They taught us that in school.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kage-baker/one-should-always-avoid-unnecessary-unhappiness-especially-if-one-is/) [Kage Baker](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kage-baker/) ## More by Tom Perrotta > [I was also known as Frodo because I was an early adopter of 'The Lord of the Rings.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tom-perrotta/i-was-also-known-as-frodo-because-i-was-an-early-adopter-of-the-lord/) [Tom Perrotta](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tom-perrotta/) > [“As far as I could tell, he earned his hundred thousand a year by wandering the hallway with a Styrofoam cup of coffee, smiling…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tom-perrotta/as-far-as-i-could-tell-he-earned-his-hundred-thousand-a-year-by/) [Tom Perrotta](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tom-perrotta/) > [“thinking how good it was to be free, away from the baby and from Tom, too, the two people who couldn’t help reminding her…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tom-perrotta/thinking-how-good-it-was-to-be-free-away-from-the-baby-and-from-tom/) [Tom Perrotta](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tom-perrotta/) > [It's like the human race has been programmed for misery.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tom-perrotta/it-s-like-the-human-race-has-been-programmed-for-misery/) [Tom Perrotta](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tom-perrotta/) > [“She took care of evyone with the same no-nonsense air of friendliness and good cheer that made her seem so paradoxically wholesome, as if…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tom-perrotta/she-took-care-of-evyone-with-the-same-no-nonsense-air-of-friendliness/) [Tom Perrotta](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tom-perrotta/) > [Back then, when everybody thought the world would last forever, nobody had time for anything.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tom-perrotta/back-then-when-everybody-thought-the-world-would-last-forever-nobody/) [Tom Perrotta](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tom-perrotta/) > [“Stan and Rudy are grown men. It's too late to shape their minds, to teach them values and a sense of compassion. You have…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tom-perrotta/stan-and-rudy-are-grown-men-it-s-too-late-to-shape-their-minds-to/) [Tom Perrotta](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tom-perrotta/) > [I write about kids growing up, I write a lot about schools and parents, and all of my experiences with those things have been…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tom-perrotta/i-write-about-kids-growing-up-i-write-a-lot-about-schools-and-parents/) [Tom Perrotta](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tom-perrotta/) > [You could say that this book is ripped from the headlines, but that wouldn't be fair. Bret Anthony Johnston's riveting novel picks up where…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tom-perrotta/you-could-say-that-this-book-is-ripped-from-the-headlines-but-that/) [Tom Perrotta](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tom-perrotta/) > [The interesting part about the writing process is that you can never see all the way to the end, not if something is happening…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tom-perrotta/the-interesting-part-about-the-writing-process-is-that-you-can-never/) [Tom Perrotta](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tom-perrotta/) > [“Something had happened to him ove the past couple of years, something to do with being home with Aaron, sinking into the rhythm of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tom-perrotta/something-had-happened-to-him-ove-the-past-couple-of-years-something/) [Tom Perrotta](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tom-perrotta/) > [“They were good listeners, worldly yet easily shocked, hungry for details, curious and nonjudgmental at the same time, always happy to give advice, but…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tom-perrotta/they-were-good-listeners-worldly-yet-easily-shocked-hungry-for/) [Tom Perrotta](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tom-perrotta/) > [I read 'The Great Gatsby' in high school and was hypnotized by the beauty of the sentences and moved by the story about the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tom-perrotta/i-read-the-great-gatsby-in-high-school-and-was-hypnotized-by-the/) [Tom Perrotta](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tom-perrotta/) > [I no longer believe that just about everything is funny, if viewed from the proper angle.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tom-perrotta/i-no-longer-believe-that-just-about-everything-is-funny-if-viewed/) [Tom Perrotta](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tom-perrotta/) > [“us, Will had invited his camp counselor buddy, Dylan, and Dylan had brought along his roommate, this annoying kid named Sanjay. I mean, it…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tom-perrotta/us-will-had-invited-his-camp-counselor-buddy-dylan-and-dylan-had/) [Tom Perrotta](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tom-perrotta/) [Explore all 141 Tom Perrotta quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tom-perrotta/) ## More Ache quotes > [… and so he tried to accept the ache in his heart as what Dr. Larch would call the common symptoms of normal life.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-irving/and-so-he-tried-to-accept-the-ache-in-his-heart-as-what-dr-larch/) [John Irving](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-irving/) > [When we went into the ocean, I watched his body as he dove into the waves, and it gave me a feeling in my…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nicole-krauss/when-we-went-into-the-ocean-i-watched-his-body-as-he-dove-into-the/) [Nicole Krauss](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nicole-krauss/) > [A woman who lives with the stress of an overwhelmed schedule will often ache with the sadness of an underwhelmed soul.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lysa-terkeurst/a-woman-who-lives-with-the-stress-of-an-overwhelmed-schedule-will/) [Lysa TerKeurst](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lysa-terkeurst/) > [I ache for the touch of your lips dear, but much more for the touch of your whips dear.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tom-lehrer/i-ache-for-the-touch-of-your-lips-dear-but-much-more-for-the-touch-of/) [Tom Lehrer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tom-lehrer/) > [I was not wounded in any part of my body, but I had never experienced such intense pain, such a ripping of the nerves,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/yann-martel/i-was-not-wounded-in-any-part-of-my-body-but-i-had-never-experienced/) [Yann Martel](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/yann-martel/) > [And the flavor of Pippa's kiss--bittersweet and strange--stayed with me all the way back uptown, swaying and sleepy as I sailed home on the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/donna-tartt/and-the-flavor-of-pippa-s-kiss-bittersweet-and-strange-stayed-with-me/) [Donna Tartt](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/donna-tartt/) > [They are enthusiasts, devotees. Addicts. Something about the circus stirs their souls, and they ache for it when it is absent. They seek each…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/erin-morgenstern/they-are-enthusiasts-devotees-addicts-something-about-the-circus/) [Erin Morgenstern](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/erin-morgenstern/) > [as we acquire new aches and new pains, our health care is, of necessity, being supplied by internists, cardiologists, dermatologists, podiatrists, urologists, periodontists, gynecologists…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/judith-viorst/as-we-acquire-new-aches-and-new-pains-our-health-care-is-of-necessity/) [Judith Viorst](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/judith-viorst/) > [Jamie enjoyed solitude, but loneliness was a constant ache.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sidney-sheldon/jamie-enjoyed-solitude-but-loneliness-was-a-constant-ache/) [Sidney Sheldon](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sidney-sheldon/) > [Some men make money not for the sake of living, but ache In the blindness of greed and live just for their fortune's sake.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/juvenal/some-men-make-money-not-for-the-sake-of-living-but-ache-in-the/) [Juvenal](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/juvenal/) > [Staring at her face, she began to fancy her outer layer had begun to melt away while she wasn't paying attention, and something --…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/laini-taylor/staring-at-her-face-she-began-to-fancy-her-outer-layer-had-begun-to/) [Laini Taylor](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/laini-taylor/) > [O thou beautiful And unimaginable ether! and Ye multiplying masses of increased And still increasing lights! what are ye? what Is this blue wilderness…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lord-byron/o-thou-beautiful-and-unimaginable-ether-and-ye-multiplying-masses-of/) [Lord Byron](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lord-byron/) > [An emotion is a thought, yes, an idea, but it is also a sensation, an ache in your body. Desire, love, hate, fear, repulsion…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-landay/an-emotion-is-a-thought-yes-an-idea-but-it-is-also-a-sensation-an/) [William Landay](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-landay/) > [He that sleeps feels not the tooth-ache](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-shakespeare/he-that-sleeps-feels-not-the-tooth-ache/) [William Shakespeare](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-shakespeare/) > [I will live this day as if it is my last. …I will waste not a moment mourning yesterday’s misfortunes, Yesterday’s defeats, yesterday’s aches…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/og-mandino/i-will-live-this-day-as-if-it-is-my-last-i-will-waste-not-a-moment/) [Og Mandino](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/og-mandino/) [Browse all 489 Ache quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/ache/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "Meg was going to have to learn for herself what Laurie had figured out over the summer - that it was better to leave well enough alone, to avoid unnecessary encounters with the people you'd left behind, to not keep poking at that sore tooth with the tip of your tongue. 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