--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: What we gave, we have; What we spent, we…" description: "\"What we gave, we have; What we spent, we had; What we left, we lost.\" — Tryon Edwards" image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/f38/tryon-edwards-4992_gave_what-we-gave-we-have-what-we-spent-we-ha_2666321.png" --- # What we gave, we have; What we spent, we had; What we… ![“What we gave, we have; What we spent, we had; What we left, we lost.” quote by Tryon Edwards](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/f38/tryon-edwards-4992_gave_what-we-gave-we-have-what-we-spent-we-ha_2666321.png) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/f38/tryon-edwards-4992_gave_what-we-gave-we-have-what-we-spent-we-ha_2666321.png) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/f38/tryon-edwards-4992_gave_what-we-gave-we-have-what-we-spent-we-ha_2666321.png) > “What we gave, we have; What we spent, we had; What we left, we lost.” [Tryon Edwards](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tryon-edwards/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Giving, spending, and losing are interconnected; what we give returns, what we spend is used, what we leave behind is lost. **In simple terms:** Our actions have consequences; loss follows neglect. Key Takeaway Recognize the impact of giving and spending. Themes responsibility economics legacy mindfulness consequences Mood thoughtful cautionary inspirational Type philosophical ethical When to use this quote - budgeting - charitable acts - time management - personal relationships Key Concepts reciprocity resource management temporal awareness Questions to Reflect On - What are you willing to give now? - How does spending affect your future? A Different Perspective Neglect can lead to irreversible loss. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Gave](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/gave/) [Gave Spent](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/gave-spent-2467462/) [Left](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/left/) [Left Lost](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/left-lost-777266/) [Lost](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/lost/) [Spent](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/spent/) [Spent Left](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/spent-left-2467463/) ## Related quotes > [What I gave I have, what I spent I had, what I left I lost by not giving it.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/thomas-ravenscroft/what-i-gave-i-have-what-i-spent-i-had-what-i-left-i-lost-by-not/) [Thomas Ravenscroft](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/thomas-ravenscroft/) > [“When you left me I was lost. I didn’t know what to do, who I was or what I was going to do. Time…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/man/when-you-left-me-i-was-lost-i-didn-t-know-what-to-do-who-i-was-or/) [Man](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/man/) > [The left has lost the common touch.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/christopher-lasch/the-left-has-lost-the-common-touch/) [Christopher Lasch](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/christopher-lasch/) > [When you left, I lost a part of me.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/when-you-left-i-lost-a-part-of-me/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [Cause we. We left and lost again I'll never love again.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/koop/cause-we-we-left-and-lost-again-i-ll-never-love-again/) [Koop](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/koop/) > [This is the test of your manhood: How much is there left in you after you have lost everything outside of yourself?](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/orison-swett-marden/this-is-the-test-of-your-manhood-how-much-is-there-left-in-you-after/) [Orison Swett Marden](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/orison-swett-marden/) > [As long as you still have one bridge left, nothing is lost. But from the moment that you cannot even understand the storytelling or…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/paulo-coelho/as-long-as-you-still-have-one-bridge-left-nothing-is-lost-but-from/) [Paulo Coelho](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/paulo-coelho/) > [When you die, make others cry because you left something behind not because they lost something.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mrthrill/when-you-die-make-others-cry-because-you-left-something-behind-not/) [Mrthrill](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mrthrill/) > [What I spent, I had; What I kept, I lost; What I gave, I have.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/henry-ward-beecher/what-i-spent-i-had-what-i-kept-i-lost-what-i-gave-i-have/) [Henry Ward Beecher](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/henry-ward-beecher/) > [We spent a month in LA using a pool of musicians, a string arranger called Benjamin Wright, some great backing singers, and it gave…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jay-kay/we-spent-a-month-in-la-using-a-pool-of-musicians-a-string-arranger/) [Jay Kay](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jay-kay/) > [Money comes to life as it is spent.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mason-cooley/money-comes-to-life-as-it-is-spent/) [Mason Cooley](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mason-cooley/) > [“This is a spendthrift economy; though nothing is lost, all is spent.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/annie-dillard/this-is-a-spendthrift-economy-though-nothing-is-lost-all-is-spent/) [Annie Dillard](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/annie-dillard/) > [What would we do if we spent a day together?(Ladies Only)](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/demetrius/what-would-we-do-if-we-spent-a-day-together-ladies-only/) [Demetrius](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/demetrius/) > [Since I was 15, I have not spent a Christmas or a New Year with my family.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/toby-alderweireld/since-i-was-15-i-have-not-spent-a-christmas-or-a-new-year-with-my/) [Toby Alderweireld](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/toby-alderweireld/) > [When I was playing piano, it was like, 'I'm going to write a song using all the white keys.' My music director, who knew…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-tesh/when-i-was-playing-piano-it-was-like-i-m-going-to-write-a-song-using/) [John Tesh](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-tesh/) ## More by Tryon Edwards > [Science has sometimes been said to be opposed to faith, and inconsistent with it. But all science, in fact, rests on a basis of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tryon-edwards/science-has-sometimes-been-said-to-be-opposed-to-faith-and/) [Tryon Edwards](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tryon-edwards/) > [Credulity is belief in slight evidence, with no evidence, or against evidence.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tryon-edwards/credulity-is-belief-in-slight-evidence-with-no-evidence-or-against/) [Tryon Edwards](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tryon-edwards/) > [Mystery is another name for our ignorance; if we were omniscient, all would be perfectly plain](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tryon-edwards/mystery-is-another-name-for-our-ignorance-if-we-were-omniscient-all/) [Tryon Edwards](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tryon-edwards/) > [Every parting is a form of death, as every reunion is a type of heaven.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tryon-edwards/every-parting-is-a-form-of-death-as-every-reunion-is-a-type-of-heaven/) [Tryon Edwards](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tryon-edwards/) > [Anxiety is the poison of human life; the parent of many sins and of more miseries.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tryon-edwards/anxiety-is-the-poison-of-human-life-the-parent-of-many-sins-and-of/) [Tryon Edwards](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tryon-edwards/) > [The first step to improvement, whether mental, moral, or religious, is to know ourselves - our weakness, errors, deficiencies, and sins, that, by divine…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tryon-edwards/the-first-step-to-improvement-whether-mental-moral-or-religious-is-to/) [Tryon Edwards](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tryon-edwards/) > [The leaves do not change color from the blighting touch of the frost, but from the process of natural decay. They fall when the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tryon-edwards/the-leaves-do-not-change-color-from-the-blighting-touch-of-the-frost/) [Tryon Edwards](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tryon-edwards/) > [Indolence is the dry rot of even a good mind and a good character; the practical uselessness of both. It is the waste of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tryon-edwards/indolence-is-the-dry-rot-of-even-a-good-mind-and-a-good-character-the/) [Tryon Edwards](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tryon-edwards/) > [To rule one's anger is well; to prevent it is still better.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tryon-edwards/to-rule-one-s-anger-is-well-to-prevent-it-is-still-better/) [Tryon Edwards](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tryon-edwards/) > [Mystery is but another name for ignorance; if we were omniscient, all would be perfectly plain!](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tryon-edwards/mystery-is-but-another-name-for-ignorance-if-we-were-omniscient-all/) [Tryon Edwards](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tryon-edwards/) > [To rejoice in another prosperity, is to give content to your own lot: to mitigate another grief, is to alleviate or dispel your own](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tryon-edwards/to-rejoice-in-another-prosperity-is-to-give-content-to-your-own-lot/) [Tryon Edwards](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tryon-edwards/) > [Hell is truth seen too late - duty neglected in its season](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tryon-edwards/hell-is-truth-seen-too-late-duty-neglected-in-its-season/) [Tryon Edwards](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tryon-edwards/) > [No true civilization can be expected permanently to continue which is not based on the great principles of Christianity.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tryon-edwards/no-true-civilization-can-be-expected-permanently-to-continue-which-is/) [Tryon Edwards](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tryon-edwards/) > [My books are my tools, and the greater their variety and perfection the greater the help to my literary work.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tryon-edwards/my-books-are-my-tools-and-the-greater-their-variety-and-perfection/) [Tryon Edwards](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tryon-edwards/) > [Anxiety is the rust of life, destroying its brightness and weakening its power. A childlike and abiding trust in Providence is its best preventive…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tryon-edwards/anxiety-is-the-rust-of-life-destroying-its-brightness-and-weakening/) [Tryon Edwards](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tryon-edwards/) [Explore all 104 Tryon Edwards quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tryon-edwards/) ## More Gave quotes > [I gave my archive to Emory University because there's a really dear friend who teaches there, Rudolph Byrd, and he's the editor.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alice-walker/i-gave-my-archive-to-emory-university-because-there-s-a-really-dear/) [Alice Walker](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alice-walker/) > [And I gave you my all, now baby be mine.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ashanti/and-i-gave-you-my-all-now-baby-be-mine/) [Ashanti](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ashanti/) > [How could you justify giving Holland twice the amount of money that you gave Belgium? Well, finally, I put it up to them. They…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/w-averell-harriman/how-could-you-justify-giving-holland-twice-the-amount-of-money-that/) [W. Averell Harriman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/w-averell-harriman/) > [“The Lord gave you a backbone because He wanted you to use it. So use it.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nick-wilgus/the-lord-gave-you-a-backbone-because-he-wanted-you-to-use-it-so-use-it/) [Nick Wilgus](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nick-wilgus/) > [Some Republicans gave up on winning the African-American vote, looking the other way or trying to benefit politically from racial polarization. I am here…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ken-mehlman/some-republicans-gave-up-on-winning-the-african-american-vote-looking/) [Ken Mehlman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ken-mehlman/) > [Just remember that when nobody was there for you, I was. And when nobody else gave a damn, I did.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/just-remember-that-when-nobody-was-there-for-you-i-was-and-when/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [When we built Roomba, we explicitly designed it to not have a face. We didn't want to think it was cute; we wanted people…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/colin-angle/when-we-built-roomba-we-explicitly-designed-it-to-not-have-a-face-we/) [Colin Angle](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/colin-angle/) > [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/) > [The first time I went to Abbey Road and put those headphones on, I discovered I had two voices. I no longer had to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/cilla-black/the-first-time-i-went-to-abbey-road-and-put-those-headphones-on-i/) [Cilla Black](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/cilla-black/) > [God gave me eyes so that I might see you, and God gave you eyes, so that I might see myself.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/brad-brown/god-gave-me-eyes-so-that-i-might-see-you-and-god-gave-you-eyes-so/) [Brad Brown](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/brad-brown/) > [My mother 'gave teas' the way other mothers breathed. Her own mother 'gave teas.' All of their friends 'gave teas,' each involving butter cookies…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joan-didion/my-mother-gave-teas-the-way-other-mothers-breathed-her-own-mother/) [Joan Didion](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joan-didion/) > [I have a large watch collection, and classic watches are especially important to me. I had a silver Rolex, and I actually gave it…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nate-berkus/i-have-a-large-watch-collection-and-classic-watches-are-especially/) [Nate Berkus](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nate-berkus/) > [You may not believe me, but I gave you al I had.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/you-may-not-believe-me-but-i-gave-you-al-i-had/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [I remember talking with Arcade Fire after their first record, when they were getting all kinds of offers from major labels, and I don't…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-byrne/i-remember-talking-with-arcade-fire-after-their-first-record-when/) [David Byrne](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-byrne/) > [God gave us the gift of life; it is up to us to give ourselves the gift of living well.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/voltaire/god-gave-us-the-gift-of-life-it-is-up-to-us-to-give-ourselves-the/) [Voltaire](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/voltaire/) [Browse all 1,390 Gave quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/gave/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "What we gave, we have; What we spent, we had; What we left, we lost.", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "Tryon Edwards" }, "isPartOf": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website" }, "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tryon-edwards/what-we-gave-we-have-what-we-spent-we-had-what-we-left-we-lost/", "about": { "@type": "Thing", "name": "Gave" }, "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tryon-edwards/what-we-gave-we-have-what-we-spent-we-had-what-we-left-we-lost/#quotation", "image": { "@type": "ImageObject", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/f38/tryon-edwards-4992_gave_what-we-gave-we-have-what-we-spent-we-ha_2666321.png", "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/f38/tryon-edwards-4992_gave_what-we-gave-we-have-what-we-spent-we-ha_2666321.png", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/f38/tryon-edwards-4992_gave_what-we-gave-we-have-what-we-spent-we-ha_2666321.png", "width": 1080, "height": 1080, "caption": "“What we gave, we have; What we spent, we had; What we left, we lost.” — Tryon Edwards", "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": "Tryon Edwards", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tryon-edwards/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 4, "name": "What we gave, we have; What...", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tryon-edwards/what-we-gave-we-have-what-we-spent-we-had-what-we-left-we-lost/" } ], "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tryon-edwards/what-we-gave-we-have-what-we-spent-we-had-what-we-left-we-lost/#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 } } ] } ```