--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: I forgot my watch. Minutes or hours…" description: "\"I forgot my watch. Minutes or hours later, when the panic subsides, that is what I most regret. Not coming here in the first place - that seemed like a..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/44d/veronica-roth-66_ache_i-forgot-my-watch-minutes-or-hours-later_1906313.png" --- # I forgot my watch. Minutes or hours later, when the panic… ![“I forgot my watch. Minutes or hours later, when the panic subsides, that is what I most regret. Not coming here in the first place - that seemed like an obvious choice - but my bare wrist, which makes it impossible for me to know how long I have been sitting in this room. My back aches, which is…” quote by Veronica Roth](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/44d/veronica-roth-66_ache_i-forgot-my-watch-minutes-or-hours-later_1906313.png) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/44d/veronica-roth-66_ache_i-forgot-my-watch-minutes-or-hours-later_1906313.png) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/44d/veronica-roth-66_ache_i-forgot-my-watch-minutes-or-hours-later_1906313.png) > “I forgot my watch. Minutes or hours later, when the panic subsides, that is what I most regret. Not coming here in the first place - that seemed like an obvious choice - but my bare wrist, which makes it impossible for me to know how long I have been sitting in this room. My back aches, which is some indication, but it is not definite enough.” [Veronica Roth](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/veronica-roth/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. The speaker regrets not acting sooner, realizing that time loss and physical discomfort become more painful than the original fear. **In simple terms:** Regret comes from missed opportunities and lingering discomfort. Key Takeaway Act promptly to avoid later regret. Themes regret timing self‑care Mood reflective anxious Type advice philosophical When to use this quote - travel - medical appointments - personal deadlines Key Concepts decision‑making mindfulness Questions to Reflect On - What holds you back from acting immediately? - How can you prepare to reduce panic in similar situations? A Different Perspective Fear can paralyze even when the risk is low. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Anxiety](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/anxiety/) [Choices](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/choices/) [First place](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/first-place/) [Panic](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/panic/) [Regret](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/regret/) ## Related quotes > [I don't regret not coming out early. A lot of people felt that I could have been a lottery pick, but we'll never know.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-finley/i-don-t-regret-not-coming-out-early-a-lot-of-people-felt-that-i-could/) [Michael Finley](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michael-finley/) > [When humans work, they frequently become unaware of their own body, their own senses, are surprised to find that their wrists ache or their…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/when-humans-work-they-frequently-become-unaware-of-their-own-body/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [I hear footsteps and Four's hands wrap around my wrists. I let him pry my hands from my eyes. He encloses one of my…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/veronica-roth/i-hear-footsteps-and-four-s-hands-wrap-around-my-wrists-i-let-him-pry/) [Veronica Roth](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/veronica-roth/) > [When I look at him, I don't see the cowardly young man who sold me out to Jeanine Matthews, and i don't hear the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/veronica-roth/when-i-look-at-him-i-don-t-see-the-cowardly-young-man-who-sold-me-out/) [Veronica Roth](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/veronica-roth/) > [Sometimes I see him as just another person, and sometimes I feel the sight of him in my gut, like a deep ache.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/veronica-roth/sometimes-i-see-him-as-just-another-person-and-sometimes-i-feel-the/) [Veronica Roth](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/veronica-roth/) > [Goethe said that the worst thing in art is technical facility accompanied by triteness. Many an artist, like God, has never needed to think…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/randall-jarrell/goethe-said-that-the-worst-thing-in-art-is-technical-facility/) [Randall Jarrell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/randall-jarrell/) > [Singing songs that make you slit your wrists](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gerard-way/singing-songs-that-make-you-slit-your-wrists/) [Gerard Way](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gerard-way/) > [ This \[health care reform\] cannot pass. What we have to do today is make a covenant, to slit our wrists, be blood brothers on… ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michele-bachmann/this-health-care-reform-cannot-pass-what-we-have-to-do-today-is-make/) [Michele Bachmann](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michele-bachmann/) > [Kaye: You know what the sun looks like? Janet: No, What? Kaye: Like he slit his wrists in a bathtub and the blood is…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/holly-black/kaye-you-know-what-the-sun-looks-like-janet-no-what-kaye-like-he-slit/) [Holly Black](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/holly-black/) > [So cut my wrists and black my eyes.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/hawthorne-heights/so-cut-my-wrists-and-black-my-eyes/) [Hawthorne Heights](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/hawthorne-heights/) > [Ive broken my nose, Ive broken ribs. You name it. In fact, we just got back from South America, and I fell over a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/keith-emerson/ive-broken-my-nose-ive-broken-ribs-you-name-it-in-fact-we-just-got/) [Keith Emerson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/keith-emerson/) > [My fashion was not the best in the '80s. I looked crazy as hell. I used to wear my pants tucked into my socks…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/deon-cole/my-fashion-was-not-the-best-in-the-80s-i-looked-crazy-as-hell-i-used/) [Deon Cole](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/deon-cole/) > [These scars here upon my wrists help me know that I can get through this..](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/idk/these-scars-here-upon-my-wrists-help-me-know-that-i-can-get-through/) Idk > [Think about it: we went into slavery pagans; we came out Christians. We went into slavery pieces of property; we came out American citizens.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/booker-t-washington/think-about-it-we-went-into-slavery-pagans-we-came-out-christians-we/) [Booker T. Washington](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/booker-t-washington/) > [But that quickly faded, and he frowned. "You're bleeding," he said. "What happened?" Claire sighed and held up her wrist to show him the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rachel-caine/but-that-quickly-faded-and-he-frowned-you-re-bleeding-he-said-what/) [Rachel Caine](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rachel-caine/) ## More by Veronica Roth > [How strange that something so simple could have been instrumental in my decision to ruin one of my most relationships and friendships, and damage…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/veronica-roth/how-strange-that-something-so-simple-could-have-been-instrumental-in/) [Veronica Roth](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/veronica-roth/) > [“I was beginning to feel that I had finally found a place to stay, a place that was not so unstable or corrupt or…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/veronica-roth/i-was-beginning-to-feel-that-i-had-finally-found-a-place-to-stay-a/) [Veronica Roth](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/veronica-roth/) > [“He acts so tough that he’s probably afraid of marshmallows and really bright sunrises or something. Overcompensating.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/veronica-roth/he-acts-so-tough-that-he-s-probably-afraid-of-marshmallows-and-really/) [Veronica Roth](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/veronica-roth/) > [And is it selfish of me to crave victory, or is it brave?](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/veronica-roth/and-is-it-selfish-of-me-to-crave-victory-or-is-it-brave/) [Veronica Roth](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/veronica-roth/) > [You always look like someone's sucked the life right out of you when something fascinates you. -Tris](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/veronica-roth/you-always-look-like-someone-s-sucked-the-life-right-out-of-you-when/) [Veronica Roth](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/veronica-roth/) > [“We can be mended. We mend each other.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/veronica-roth/we-can-be-mended-we-mend-each-other/) [Veronica Roth](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/veronica-roth/) > [Don’t worry about me handling the pain," I say. "I’ve had a lot of practice.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/veronica-roth/don-t-worry-about-me-handling-the-pain-i-say-i-ve-had-a-lot-of/) [Veronica Roth](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/veronica-roth/) > [Soon I will honor my parents by dying as they died. and if all they believed about death was true, soon I will join…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/veronica-roth/soon-i-will-honor-my-parents-by-dying-as-they-died-and-if-all-they/) [Veronica Roth](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/veronica-roth/) > [“Mas lembre-se, já agora, que por vezes as pessoas que oprimimos tornam-se mais poderosas do que nós gostaríamos.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/veronica-roth/mas-lembre-se-j-agora-que-por-vezes-as-pessoas-que-oprimimos-tornam/) [Veronica Roth](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/veronica-roth/) > [“am aware of how little space there is between us—six inches at most. That space feels charged with electricity. I feel like it should…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/veronica-roth/am-aware-of-how-little-space-there-is-between-us-six-inches-at-most/) [Veronica Roth](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/veronica-roth/) > [“Oh, good,” I say, a sour taste in my mouth. “Heroism is what I was focused on. Not, you know, trying not to die.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/veronica-roth/oh-good-i-say-a-sour-taste-in-my-mouth-heroism-is-what-i-was-focused/) [Veronica Roth](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/veronica-roth/) > [“Caleb frowns at him. "How old are you, anyway?" "Eighteen." "And you don't think you're too old to be with my little sister?" Tobias…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/veronica-roth/caleb-frowns-at-him-how-old-are-you-anyway-eighteen-and-you-don-t/) [Veronica Roth](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/veronica-roth/) > [What do you think they're going to do to us when they find us guilty?" she says after a few minutes of silence have…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/veronica-roth/what-do-you-think-they-re-going-to-do-to-us-when-they-find-us-guilty/) [Veronica Roth](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/veronica-roth/) > [“La paz está restringida, eso es libertad”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/veronica-roth/la-paz-est-restringida-eso-es-libertad/) [Veronica Roth](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/veronica-roth/) > [In some parts of the ancient world, the hawk symbolized the sun. Back when I got this, I figured if I always had the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/veronica-roth/in-some-parts-of-the-ancient-world-the-hawk-symbolized-the-sun-back/) [Veronica Roth](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/veronica-roth/) [Explore all 1,589 Veronica Roth quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/veronica-roth/) ## 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 ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "I forgot my watch. Minutes or hours later, when the panic subsides, that is what I most regret. Not coming here in the first place - that seemed like an obvious choice - but my bare wrist, which makes it impossible for me to know how long I have been sitting in this room. My back aches, which is some indication, but it is not definite enough.", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "Veronica Roth" }, "isPartOf": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website" }, "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/veronica-roth/i-forgot-my-watch-minutes-or-hours-later-when-the-panic-subsides-that/", "about": { "@type": "Thing", "name": "Ache" }, "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/veronica-roth/i-forgot-my-watch-minutes-or-hours-later-when-the-panic-subsides-that/#quotation", "image": { "@type": "ImageObject", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/44d/veronica-roth-66_ache_i-forgot-my-watch-minutes-or-hours-later_1906313.png", "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/44d/veronica-roth-66_ache_i-forgot-my-watch-minutes-or-hours-later_1906313.png", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/44d/veronica-roth-66_ache_i-forgot-my-watch-minutes-or-hours-later_1906313.png", "width": 1080, "height": 1080, "caption": "“I forgot my watch. Minutes or hours later, when the panic subsides, that is what I most regret. Not coming…” — Veronica Roth", "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": "Veronica Roth", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/veronica-roth/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 4, "name": "I forgot my watch. Minutes or...", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/veronica-roth/i-forgot-my-watch-minutes-or-hours-later-when-the-panic-subsides-that/" } ], "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/veronica-roth/i-forgot-my-watch-minutes-or-hours-later-when-the-panic-subsides-that/#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 } } ] } ```