--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: I’ve always thought a body would have to…" description: "\"“I’ve always thought a body would have to be sick and dying before they saw the Lord. And I imagined that when he came it would be like looking at the ..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/851/truman-capote-376_quote_i-ve-always-thought-a-body-would-have-to_1077231.jpg" --- # I’ve always thought a body would have to be sick and dying… ![“I’ve always thought a body would have to be sick and dying before they saw the Lord. And I imagined that when he came it would be like looking at the Baptist window: pretty as colored glass with the sun pouring through, such a shine you don’t know it’s getting dark. And it’s been a comfort: to…” quote by Truman Capote](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/851/truman-capote-376_quote_i-ve-always-thought-a-body-would-have-to_1077231.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/851/truman-capote-376_quote_i-ve-always-thought-a-body-would-have-to_1077231.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/851/truman-capote-376_quote_i-ve-always-thought-a-body-would-have-to_1077231.jpg) > ““I’ve always thought a body would have to be sick and dying before they saw the Lord. And I imagined that when he came it would be like looking at the Baptist window: pretty as colored glass with the sun pouring through, such a shine you don’t know it’s getting dark. And it’s been a comfort: to think of that shine taking away all the spooky feeling. But I’ll wager it never happens. I’ll wager at the very end a body realizes the Lord has already shown Himself. That things as they are… …just what they’ve always seen, was seeing Him”” [Truman Capote](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/truman-capote/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. The ultimate revelation of the divine is not a dramatic event but a quiet realization that the sacred has always been present. **In simple terms:** God is always there, not just at death. Key Takeaway Recognize everyday moments as divine. Themes spirituality comfort realization Mood contemplative hopeful Type philosophical inspirational When to use this quote - grief - illness - daily meditation - seeking peace Key Concepts theology existential insight Questions to Reflect On - How do you notice the sacred in ordinary life? - Can comfort be found without religious framing? A Different Perspective The quote may over‑spiritualize personal experience, ignoring secular coping methods. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Sick and dying](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/sick-and-dying/) [Thought](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/thought/) ## Related quotes > [“I've always thought a body would have to be sick and dying before they saw the Lord. And I imagined that when He came…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/truman-capote/i-ve-always-thought-a-body-would-have-to-be-sick-and-dying-before-2/) [Truman Capote](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/truman-capote/) > [“My, how foolish I am! You know what I've always thought? I've always thought a body would have to be sick and dying before…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/truman-capote/my-how-foolish-i-am-you-know-what-i-ve-always-thought-i-ve-always/) [Truman Capote](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/truman-capote/) > [“My, how foolish I am!” my friend cries, suddenly alert, like a woman remembering too late she has biscuits in the over. “You know…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/truman-capote/my-how-foolish-i-am-my-friend-cries-suddenly-alert-like-a-woman/) [Truman Capote](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/truman-capote/) > [I allowed social media to define what I thought of my body. And now I realize that no matter how thin you are, someone…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/demi-lovato/i-allowed-social-media-to-define-what-i-thought-of-my-body-and-now-i/) [Demi Lovato](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/demi-lovato/) > [If our body is a perfect expression of our thought about body, and if our thought about body is that it’s condition has everything…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/richard-bach/if-our-body-is-a-perfect-expression-of-our-thought-about-body-and-if/) [Richard Bach](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/richard-bach/) > [“So what", she thought…body half thrown over the glass edge of her sun and glory filled balcony. "So what", a phrase she had habited…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jamie-weise/so-what-she-thought-body-half-thrown-over-the-glass-edge-of-her-sun/) [Jamie Weise](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jamie-weise/) > [One day I had to sit down with myself and decide that I loved myself no matter what my body looked like and what…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gabourey-sidibe/one-day-i-had-to-sit-down-with-myself-and-decide-that-i-loved-myself/) [Gabourey Sidibe](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gabourey-sidibe/) > [The less the thought of the body, the better. For it is the body that drags us down.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/swami-vivekananda/the-less-the-thought-of-the-body-the-better-for-it-is-the-body-that/) [Swami Vivekananda](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/swami-vivekananda/) > [“I thought it was, "If a body catch a body," Anyway, i keep picturing all these little kids playing some game in this big…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/j-d-salinger/i-thought-it-was-if-a-body-catch-a-body-anyway-i-keep-picturing-all/) [J.D. Salinger](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/j-d-salinger/) > [Our humanist community should be thinking more about demonstrating the fundamental truth that goodness requires neither God nor the belief in God by organizing…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rebecca-goldstein/our-humanist-community-should-be-thinking-more-about-demonstrating/) [Rebecca Goldstein](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rebecca-goldstein/) > [“2Do not mistake these multiple trends--the energy flows of metropolitan growth, the new taste for tea, the nascent, half-formed awareness of mass behavior--for mere…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/steven-johnson/2do-not-mistake-these-multiple-trends-the-energy-flows-of/) [Steven Johnson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/steven-johnson/) > [“When you’re sick and dying, the ego is and should be the first thing to go. I know there’re gurus who teach people how…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/j-r-rain/when-you-re-sick-and-dying-the-ego-is-and-should-be-the-first-thing/) [J.R. Rain](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/j-r-rain/) > [“A very different sort of prayer—most certainly not for the sick and dying—rose within him as his gaze remained fixed on the delicate wisp…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/christina-boyd/a-very-different-sort-of-prayer-most-certainly-not-for-the-sick-and/) [Christina Boyd](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/christina-boyd/) > [If your friend is sick and dying, the most important thing he wants is not an explanation; he wants you to sit with him.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lee-strobel/if-your-friend-is-sick-and-dying-the-most-important-thing-he-wants-is/) [Lee Strobel](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lee-strobel/) > [“On October 1, 1838, the first detachment set out in what was to be known as the Trail of Tears. As they moved westward,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/howard-zinn/on-october-1-1838-the-first-detachment-set-out-in-what-was-to-be/) [Howard Zinn](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/howard-zinn/) ## More by Truman Capote > [“You can beat your brains out for her, and she’ll hand you horseshit on a platter.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/truman-capote/you-can-beat-your-brains-out-for-her-and-she-ll-hand-you-horseshit-on/) [Truman Capote](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/truman-capote/) > [“The walls of the cell fell away, the sky came down, I saw the big yellow bird.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/truman-capote/the-walls-of-the-cell-fell-away-the-sky-came-down-i-saw-the-big/) [Truman Capote](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/truman-capote/) > [“Don't wanna ride on the devil's side...just wanna ride with you”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/truman-capote/don-t-wanna-ride-on-the-devil-s-side-just-wanna-ride-with-you/) [Truman Capote](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/truman-capote/) > [Wrinkles and bones, white hair and diamonds: I can't wait.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/truman-capote/wrinkles-and-bones-white-hair-and-diamonds-i-can-t-wait/) [Truman Capote](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/truman-capote/) > [You can't blame a writer for what the characters say.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/truman-capote/you-can-t-blame-a-writer-for-what-the-characters-say/) [Truman Capote](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/truman-capote/) > [There is really no practical help that one can offer; it is a matter of self-discovery, of one's own convictions, or working with one's…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/truman-capote/there-is-really-no-practical-help-that-one-can-offer-it-is-a-matter/) [Truman Capote](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/truman-capote/) > [“...Narcissus was so egotist...he was merely another of us who, in our unshatterable isolation, recognized, on seeing his reflection, the beautiful comrade, the only…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/truman-capote/narcissus-was-so-egotist-he-was-merely-another-of-us-who-in-our/) [Truman Capote](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/truman-capote/) > [“Is it - I'm not certain - possible to love someone if your first interest is the use you can make of him? Doesn't…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/truman-capote/is-it-i-m-not-certain-possible-to-love-someone-if-your-first-interest/) [Truman Capote](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/truman-capote/) > [One of the most difficult things in writing a novel or anything at all is to choose the point of view from which it's…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/truman-capote/one-of-the-most-difficult-things-in-writing-a-novel-or-anything-at/) [Truman Capote](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/truman-capote/) > [I've never worked for a newspaper. I've had some very bad reviews in newspapers.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/truman-capote/i-ve-never-worked-for-a-newspaper-i-ve-had-some-very-bad-reviews-in/) [Truman Capote](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/truman-capote/) > [But, my dear, so few things are fulfilled: what are most lives but a series of incompleted episodes? 'We work in the dark, we…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/truman-capote/but-my-dear-so-few-things-are-fulfilled-what-are-most-lives-but-a/) [Truman Capote](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/truman-capote/) > [“…she, glittery voyager of secure destination, steamed down the harbor with whistles whistling and confetti in the air.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/truman-capote/she-glittery-voyager-of-secure-destination-steamed-down-the-harbor/) [Truman Capote](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/truman-capote/) > [“Because it's indeed difficult to portray, in any meaningful depth, another being, his appearance, speech, mentality, without to some degree, and often for quite…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/truman-capote/because-it-s-indeed-difficult-to-portray-in-any-meaningful-depth/) [truman capote](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/truman-capote/) > [“It's a bore, but the answer is good things only happen to you if you're good. Good? Honest is more what I mean. Not…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/truman-capote/it-s-a-bore-but-the-answer-is-good-things-only-happen-to-you-if-you/) [Truman Capote](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/truman-capote/) > [“In the courtyard there was an angel of black stone, and its angel head rose above giant elephant leaves; the stark glass angel eyes,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/truman-capote/in-the-courtyard-there-was-an-angel-of-black-stone-and-its-angel-head/) [Truman Capote](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/truman-capote/) [Explore all 585 Truman Capote quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/truman-capote/) ## More Sick and dying quotes > [“On October 1, 1838, the first detachment set out in what was to be known as the Trail of Tears. As they moved westward,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/howard-zinn/on-october-1-1838-the-first-detachment-set-out-in-what-was-to-be/) [Howard Zinn](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/howard-zinn/) > [If your friend is sick and dying, the most important thing he wants is not an explanation; he wants you to sit with him.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lee-strobel/if-your-friend-is-sick-and-dying-the-most-important-thing-he-wants-is/) [Lee Strobel](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lee-strobel/) > [“A very different sort of prayer—most certainly not for the sick and dying—rose within him as his gaze remained fixed on the delicate wisp…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/christina-boyd/a-very-different-sort-of-prayer-most-certainly-not-for-the-sick-and/) [Christina Boyd](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/christina-boyd/) > [“When you’re sick and dying, the ego is and should be the first thing to go. I know there’re gurus who teach people how…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/j-r-rain/when-you-re-sick-and-dying-the-ego-is-and-should-be-the-first-thing/) [J.R. Rain](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/j-r-rain/) > [“2Do not mistake these multiple trends--the energy flows of metropolitan growth, the new taste for tea, the nascent, half-formed awareness of mass behavior--for mere…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/steven-johnson/2do-not-mistake-these-multiple-trends-the-energy-flows-of/) [Steven Johnson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/steven-johnson/) > [Our humanist community should be thinking more about demonstrating the fundamental truth that goodness requires neither God nor the belief in God by organizing…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rebecca-goldstein/our-humanist-community-should-be-thinking-more-about-demonstrating/) [Rebecca Goldstein](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rebecca-goldstein/) > [“I spent about two weeks there, volunteering at one of Mother Teresa’s charities, working the morning shift in the women’s wing of the Kalighat…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/amanda-lindhout/i-spent-about-two-weeks-there-volunteering-at-one-of-mother-teresa-s/) [Amanda Lindhout](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/amanda-lindhout/) > [Joscelin, is love supposed to make you feel like you’re sick and dying, and mad enough to hit someone and drunk with joy, and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jacqueline-carey/joscelin-is-love-supposed-to-make-you-feel-like-you-re-sick-and-dying/) [Jacqueline Carey](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jacqueline-carey/) > [“Covenant More Than Just Healing, When Sick This Covenant does not simply mean that when we are sick and dying, the Lord will come…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-g-lake/covenant-more-than-just-healing-when-sick-this-covenant-does-not/) [John G. Lake](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-g-lake/) > [“When you’re sick and dying, the ego is and should be the first thing to go.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/j-r-rain/when-you-re-sick-and-dying-the-ego-is-and-should-be-the-first-thing-2/) [J.R. Rain](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/j-r-rain/) > [We are fat and sick and dying because we have handed a basic, fundamental and intimate function of life over to corporations. We choose…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alton-brown/we-are-fat-and-sick-and-dying-because-we-have-handed-a-basic/) [Alton Brown](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alton-brown/) > [Multi-billion-dollar multinational corporations view the exploitation of the world's sick and dying as a sacred duty to their shareholders.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-le-carre/multi-billion-dollar-multinational-corporations-view-the-exploitation/) [John le Carre](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-le-carre/) > [“Religion may not be something you approve of, and that's just fine. But agrarian religious culture is going to be powerful. If you think…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sharon-astyk/religion-may-not-be-something-you-approve-of-and-that-s-just-fine-but/) Sharon Astyk > [“I've always thought a body would have to be sick and dying before they saw the Lord. And I imagined that when He came…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/truman-capote/i-ve-always-thought-a-body-would-have-to-be-sick-and-dying-before-2/) [Truman Capote](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/truman-capote/) > [“And then I feel guilty, because I know all these offers are made in vain. I know I cannot get my mother back healthy…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robin-romm/and-then-i-feel-guilty-because-i-know-all-these-offers-are-made-in/) [Robin Romm](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robin-romm/) [Browse all 29 Sick and dying quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/sick-and-dying/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "“I’ve always thought a body would have to be sick and dying before they saw the Lord. And I imagined that when he came it would be like looking at the Baptist window: pretty as colored glass with the sun pouring through, such a shine you don’t know it’s getting dark. And it’s been a comfort: to think of that shine taking away all the spooky feeling. But I’ll wager it never happens. I’ll wager at the very end a body realizes the Lord has already shown Himself. That things as they are… …just what they’ve always seen, was seeing Him”", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "Truman Capote" }, "isPartOf": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website" }, "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/truman-capote/i-ve-always-thought-a-body-would-have-to-be-sick-and-dying-before/", "about": { "@type": "Thing", "name": "Sick and dying" }, "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/truman-capote/i-ve-always-thought-a-body-would-have-to-be-sick-and-dying-before/#quotation", "image": { "@type": "ImageObject", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/851/truman-capote-376_quote_i-ve-always-thought-a-body-would-have-to_1077231.jpg", "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/851/truman-capote-376_quote_i-ve-always-thought-a-body-would-have-to_1077231.jpg", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/851/truman-capote-376_quote_i-ve-always-thought-a-body-would-have-to_1077231.jpg", "width": 1080, "height": 1080, "caption": "“I’ve always thought a body would have to be sick and dying before they saw the Lord. And I imagined that…” — Truman Capote", "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": "Truman Capote", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/truman-capote/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 4, "name": "“I’ve always thought a body would...", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/truman-capote/i-ve-always-thought-a-body-would-have-to-be-sick-and-dying-before/" } ], "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/truman-capote/i-ve-always-thought-a-body-would-have-to-be-sick-and-dying-before/#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 } } ] } ```