--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: If you get far enough away you'll be on…" description: "\"If you get far enough away you'll be on your way back home.\" — Tom Waits" image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/b8f/tom-waits-916_away_if-you-get-far-enough-away-you-ll-be-on_2870748.jpg" --- # If you get far enough away you'll be on your way back home. ![“If you get far enough away you'll be on your way back home.” quote by Tom Waits](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/b8f/tom-waits-916_away_if-you-get-far-enough-away-you-ll-be-on_2870748.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/b8f/tom-waits-916_away_if-you-get-far-enough-away-you-ll-be-on_2870748.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/b8f/tom-waits-916_away_if-you-get-far-enough-away-you-ll-be-on_2870748.jpg) > “If you get far enough away you'll be on your way back home.” [Tom Waits](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tom-waits/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Distance can lead to a return to one's roots, suggesting journeys are cyclical. **In simple terms:** Travel far, return home. Key Takeaway Embrace the journey home. Themes travel homecoming identity journey reflection Mood poetic contemplative Type music philosophy When to use this quote - Long‑term projects - expatriate experiences - career cycles Key Concepts circular narrative personal growth Questions to Reflect On - What does “home” mean to you? - How does distance change your sense of self? A Different Perspective Returning may feel like failure; perspective matters. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Away](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/away/) [Away Ll](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/away-ll-499719/) [Back home](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/back-home/) [Enough](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/enough/) [Far away](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/far-away/) [Home](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/home/) [Ifs](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/ifs/) [Inspirational](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/inspirational/) [Way](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/way/) [Way back home](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/way-back-home/) [Way home](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/way-home/) ## Related quotes > [There's nothing bad; there's just making errors on the way back Home.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lester-levenson/there-s-nothing-bad-there-s-just-making-errors-on-the-way-back-home/) [Lester Levenson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lester-levenson/) > [God's Love is always working to help Soul find its way back home](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/harold-klemp/god-s-love-is-always-working-to-help-soul-find-its-way-back-home/) [Harold Klemp](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/harold-klemp/) > [While making "Possessed", I wept each morning on my drive to the studio, and I wept all the way back home. I found it…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joan-crawford/while-making-possessed-i-wept-each-morning-on-my-drive-to-the-studio/) [Joan Crawford](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joan-crawford/) > [River gonna take me, Sing me sweet and sleepy, Sing me sweet and sleepy all the way back home, It's a far gone lullaby…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robert-hunter/river-gonna-take-me-sing-me-sweet-and-sleepy-sing-me-sweet-and-sleepy/) [Robert Hunter](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robert-hunter/) > [Sometimes it takes some time out on your own to find your way back home.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/taylor-dane/sometimes-it-takes-some-time-out-on-your-own-to-find-your-way-back/) [Taylor Dane](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/taylor-dane/) > [There is nothing like a trail of blood to find your way back home. When you've lost it all, that's when you finally realize…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nikki-sixx/there-is-nothing-like-a-trail-of-blood-to-find-your-way-back-home/) [Nikki Sixx](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nikki-sixx/) > [I wrote '('Til) I Kissed You' about a girl I met in Australia. Her name was Lilian, and she was very, very inspirational. I…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/don-everly/i-wrote-til-i-kissed-you-about-a-girl-i-met-in-australia-her-name-was/) [Don Everly](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/don-everly/) > [The night I flew out from Rwanda, I landed in Nairobi, and I was on my way back home, and my left side started…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rom-o-dallaire/the-night-i-flew-out-from-rwanda-i-landed-in-nairobi-and-i-was-on-my/) [Romeo Dallaire](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rom-o-dallaire/) > [I am a pisces, a fish out of water, searching for a way back home.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/james-kidd/i-am-a-pisces-a-fish-out-of-water-searching-for-a-way-back-home/) [James Kidd](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/james-kidd/) > [You know I think so many of us live outside our bodies. My dream is that people will find a way back home, into…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/eve-ensler/you-know-i-think-so-many-of-us-live-outside-our-bodies-my-dream-is/) [Eve Ensler](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/eve-ensler/) > [“Rain comes,” said Eveneye. “Yes,” said Whiteclaw. They fastened the sacs around their necks and began to make their way back home, through the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dylan-lee-peters/rain-comes-said-eveneye-yes-said-whiteclaw-they-fastened-the-sacs/) [Dylan Lee Peters](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dylan-lee-peters/) > [Finding your way doesn't mean you always know where you're going. It's knowing how to find your way back home that's important.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/clare-vanderpool/finding-your-way-doesn-t-mean-you-always-know-where-you-re-going-it-s/) [Clare Vanderpool](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/clare-vanderpool/) > [I take my children everywhere, but they always find their way back home.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robert-orben/i-take-my-children-everywhere-but-they-always-find-their-way-back-home/) [Robert Orben](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robert-orben/) > [“We all have a bit of Adam and Eve in us. Sooner or later we come to a point in our youth when we…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tom-ryan/we-all-have-a-bit-of-adam-and-eve-in-us-sooner-or-later-we-come-to-a/) [Tom Ryan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tom-ryan/) > [So now I'm finally goin down can I find my way back home now there's no one else around can I find my way…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/saliva/so-now-i-m-finally-goin-down-can-i-find-my-way-back-home-now-there-s/) [Saliva](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/saliva/) ## More by Tom Waits > [Most of us have the residue of thousands of songs in our ears, that if you end up songwriting, I think you're mostly smoking…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tom-waits/most-of-us-have-the-residue-of-thousands-of-songs-in-our-ears-that-if/) [Tom Waits](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tom-waits/) > [Bill Hicks - blowtorch, excavator, truthsayer, and brain specialist. He will correct your vision. Others will drive on the road he built.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tom-waits/bill-hicks-blowtorch-excavator-truthsayer-and-brain-specialist-he/) [Tom Waits](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tom-waits/) > [Don't plant your days they turn into weeds](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tom-waits/don-t-plant-your-days-they-turn-into-weeds/) [Tom Waits](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tom-waits/) > [“T’ain’t no sin to take off your skin, and dance around in your bones.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tom-waits/t-ain-t-no-sin-to-take-off-your-skin-and-dance-around-in-your-bones/) [Tom Waits](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tom-waits/) > [“an all time favorite: "The large print giveth, the small print taketh away.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tom-waits/an-all-time-favorite-the-large-print-giveth-the-small-print-taketh/) [Tom Waits](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tom-waits/) > [I'll tell you all my secrets but I lie about my past…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tom-waits/i-ll-tell-you-all-my-secrets-but-i-lie-about-my-past/) [Tom Waits](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tom-waits/) > [For a songwriter, you don't really go to songwriting school; you learn by listening to tunes. And you try to understand them and take…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tom-waits/for-a-songwriter-you-don-t-really-go-to-songwriting-school-you-learn/) [Tom Waits](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tom-waits/) > [I'm trying to learn how to write faster.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tom-waits/i-m-trying-to-learn-how-to-write-faster/) [Tom Waits](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tom-waits/) > [The world is a hellish place, and bad writing is destroying the quality of our suffering.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tom-waits/the-world-is-a-hellish-place-and-bad-writing-is-destroying-the/) [Tom Waits](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tom-waits/) > [I'm always looking for sounds that are pleasing at the time. The sound of a helicopter is really annoying until you're drowning, and it's…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tom-waits/i-m-always-looking-for-sounds-that-are-pleasing-at-the-time-the-sound/) [Tom Waits](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tom-waits/) > [I was born in the back seat of a Yellow Cab in a hospital loading zone and with the meter still running. I emerged…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tom-waits/i-was-born-in-the-back-seat-of-a-yellow-cab-in-a-hospital-loading/) [Tom Waits](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tom-waits/) > [There's not much difference between what I appear to be on stage and what I am. I think people like that, that I'm not…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tom-waits/there-s-not-much-difference-between-what-i-appear-to-be-on-stage-and/) [Tom Waits](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tom-waits/) > [Most of the things you absorb you will ultimately secrete.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tom-waits/most-of-the-things-you-absorb-you-will-ultimately-secrete/) [Tom Waits](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tom-waits/) > [The devil knows the Bible like the back of his hand.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tom-waits/the-devil-knows-the-bible-like-the-back-of-his-hand/) [Tom Waits](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tom-waits/) > [I bark my voice out through a closed throat, pretty much. It's more, perhaps, like a dog in some ways. It does have its…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tom-waits/i-bark-my-voice-out-through-a-closed-throat-pretty-much-it-s-more/) [Tom Waits](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tom-waits/) [Explore all 328 Tom Waits quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tom-waits/) ## More Away quotes > [I once told someone I could act. They totally bought it. I've been getting away with it ever since.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/akshay-kumar/i-once-told-someone-i-could-act-they-totally-bought-it-i-ve-been/) [Akshay Kumar](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/akshay-kumar/) > [I don't like being away from home. That's one reason why I don't work as much as I used to \[when I started my…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jane-powell/i-don-t-like-being-away-from-home-that-s-one-reason-why-i-don-t-work/) [Jane Powell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jane-powell/) > [Some shows just go away - and that's fine. They serve their purpose and their entertainment value, but there are shows that touch people…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-cudlitz/some-shows-just-go-away-and-that-s-fine-they-serve-their-purpose-and/) [Michael Cudlitz](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michael-cudlitz/) > [You just say the word, and I'll make the rest of the world go away. I'll take you someplace safe, where no one else…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rachel-vincent/you-just-say-the-word-and-i-ll-make-the-rest-of-the-world-go-away-i/) [Rachel Vincent](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rachel-vincent/) > [Who wants a stylus. You have to get em and put em away, and you lose em. Yuck. Nobody wants a stylus.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/steve-jobs/who-wants-a-stylus-you-have-to-get-em-and-put-em-away-and-you-lose-em/) [Steve Jobs](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/steve-jobs/) > [I just think my own ambition would not allow me to sit on the gifts that my creator had given me. And so that's…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/janelle-monae/i-just-think-my-own-ambition-would-not-allow-me-to-sit-on-the-gifts/) [Janelle Monae](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/janelle-monae/) > [Beauty fades away.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/beauty-fades-away/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [You can't kind of take away, you either do or you don't. If you kind of take away something you're a failure.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-guare/you-can-t-kind-of-take-away-you-either-do-or-you-don-t-if-you-kind-of/) [John Guare](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-guare/) > [We never think that our mothers will die. It was like suddenly an abyss opened at my feet - I was standing on nothing.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ben-okri/we-never-think-that-our-mothers-will-die-it-was-like-suddenly-an/) [Ben Okri](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ben-okri/) > [We all have time away from football to get our head down. At the same time it is a very busy schedule.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/reece-james/we-all-have-time-away-from-football-to-get-our-head-down-at-the-same/) [Reece James](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/reece-james/) > [If you take away the predators in the prairies and the national parks, you suddenly have an explosion of elk, and then you have…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/peter-benchley/if-you-take-away-the-predators-in-the-prairies-and-the-national-parks/) [Peter Benchley](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/peter-benchley/) > [“Please don't go away. You--you matter. To me.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rachel-caine/please-don-t-go-away-you-you-matter-to-me/) [Rachel Caine](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rachel-caine/) > [Our world is drowning in a sea of self-centeredness. You can make yourself quite unique right away by leaving this ocean of selfishness and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-bytheway/our-world-is-drowning-in-a-sea-of-self-centeredness-you-can-make/) [John Bytheway](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-bytheway/) > [“Why is it," she asked, snuggling closer, "that I so often imagine myself running away and running free?”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mary-balogh/why-is-it-she-asked-snuggling-closer-that-i-so-often-imagine-myself/) [Mary Balogh](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mary-balogh/) > [I do spend a lot of weekends on the road. I have to pace myself. It can be pretty busy, but I'm not out…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gary-sinise/i-do-spend-a-lot-of-weekends-on-the-road-i-have-to-pace-myself-it-can/) [Gary Sinise](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gary-sinise/) [Browse all 4,933 Away quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/away/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "If you get far enough away you'll be on your way back home.", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "Tom Waits" }, "isPartOf": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website" }, "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tom-waits/if-you-get-far-enough-away-you-ll-be-on-your-way-back-home/", "about": { "@type": "Thing", "name": "Away" }, "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tom-waits/if-you-get-far-enough-away-you-ll-be-on-your-way-back-home/#quotation", "image": { "@type": "ImageObject", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/b8f/tom-waits-916_away_if-you-get-far-enough-away-you-ll-be-on_2870748.jpg", "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/b8f/tom-waits-916_away_if-you-get-far-enough-away-you-ll-be-on_2870748.jpg", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/b8f/tom-waits-916_away_if-you-get-far-enough-away-you-ll-be-on_2870748.jpg", "width": 1080, "height": 1080, "caption": "“If you get far enough away you'll be on your way back home.” — Tom Waits", "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": "Tom Waits", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tom-waits/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 4, "name": "If you get far enough away...", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tom-waits/if-you-get-far-enough-away-you-ll-be-on-your-way-back-home/" } ], "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tom-waits/if-you-get-far-enough-away-you-ll-be-on-your-way-back-home/#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 } } ] } ```