--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: I understood that no one lives forever…" description: "\"“I understood that no one lives forever, but there are certain people whose power and presence so thoroughly penetrate your view of things that contemp..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/3d0/walter-kirn-2189_presence_i-understood-that-no-one-lives-forever-b_2470477.jpg" --- # I understood that no one lives forever, but there are… ![“I understood that no one lives forever, but there are certain people whose power and presence so thoroughly penetrate your view of things that contemplating their absence feels as strange as imagining having never been born yourself.” quote by Walter Kirn](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/3d0/walter-kirn-2189_presence_i-understood-that-no-one-lives-forever-b_2470477.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/3d0/walter-kirn-2189_presence_i-understood-that-no-one-lives-forever-b_2470477.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/3d0/walter-kirn-2189_presence_i-understood-that-no-one-lives-forever-b_2470477.jpg) > ““I understood that no one lives forever, but there are certain people whose power and presence so thoroughly penetrate your view of things that contemplating their absence feels as strange as imagining having never been born yourself.”” [Walter Kirn](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/walter-kirn/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Some people leave such a deep imprint that their loss feels as impossible as never having existed. **In simple terms:** Certain people affect us so profoundly that their absence feels unimaginable. Key Takeaway Cherish impactful relationships. Themes loss memory impact relationships Mood nostalgic thoughtful Type literary emotional When to use this quote - grief counseling - friendship - family bereavement - creative inspiration Key Concepts psychological imprint existential reflection Questions to Reflect On - Who has shaped your perception of the world? - How do you cope with the void left by influential people? A Different Perspective Not everyone experiences such profound influence; some may feel indifferent. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Feels Strange](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/feels-strange-451941/) [Presence](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/presence/) [Strange Imagining](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/strange-imagining-756384/) [Things Contemplating](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/things-contemplating-756386/) [Understood Lives](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/understood-lives-756385/) ## Related quotes > [“Former design studios that now do nothing more than curate their blogs showing other people's work and sell ad space to make a living.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/craig-ward/former-design-studios-that-now-do-nothing-more-than-curate-their/) [Craig Ward](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/craig-ward/) > [“It feels strange to see him; it's been a while. I feel as though I need to meet him all over again.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/elizabeth-berg/it-feels-strange-to-see-him-it-s-been-a-while-i-feel-as-though-i-need/) [Elizabeth Berg](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/elizabeth-berg/) > [“It feels strange to be ignored in general, but when someone who was once an integral part of your life fades away, what are…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jos-n-harris/it-feels-strange-to-be-ignored-in-general-but-when-someone-who-was/) [José N. Harris](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jos-n-harris/) > [Told me its all good, even when it feels strange. Now Im the guy that know strippers by they real names.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/drake/told-me-its-all-good-even-when-it-feels-strange-now-im-the-guy-that/) [Drake](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/drake/) > [It feels strange to me to be living in a box, hiding from the steadying influence of the moon; wearing the hide of a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/barbara-kingsolver/it-feels-strange-to-me-to-be-living-in-a-box-hiding-from-the/) [Barbara Kingsolver](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/barbara-kingsolver/) > [“...you turn and grab my chin--not hard, but the way you do with a child when you want them to focus on you. It…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/heather-demetrios/you-turn-and-grab-my-chin-not-hard-but-the-way-you-do-with-a-child/) [Heather Demetrios](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/heather-demetrios/) > [“Whenever Sadie sees engagement rings, she feels a strange mix of emotions: a kind of excitement mixed with a vague sadness. A longing for…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/elizabeth-berg/whenever-sadie-sees-engagement-rings-she-feels-a-strange-mix-of/) [Elizabeth Berg](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/elizabeth-berg/) > [It feels strange to have spent much time wishing for something, for someone and then one day, suddenly, to just stop.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jenny-han/it-feels-strange-to-have-spent-much-time-wishing-for-something-for/) [Jenny Han](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jenny-han/) > [“…Oh… I am near to a small child - Girl and a Red Woman… it feels so strange… and not real…. - WHO IS…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/deyth-banger/oh-i-am-near-to-a-small-child-girl-and-a-red-woman-it-feels-so/) [Deyth Banger](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/deyth-banger/) > [I feel sorry for anyone who is in a place where he feels strange and stupid.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lois-lowry/i-feel-sorry-for-anyone-who-is-in-a-place-where-he-feels-strange-and/) [Lois Lowry](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lois-lowry/) > [I'm just not used to talking that much about myself. It feels strange.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/andrew-mason/i-m-just-not-used-to-talking-that-much-about-myself-it-feels-strange/) [Andrew Mason](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/andrew-mason/) > [And it feels strange, almost sad, to walk through ther empty halls. Each step I take sounds so lonely.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jay-asher/and-it-feels-strange-almost-sad-to-walk-through-ther-empty-halls-each/) [Jay Asher](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jay-asher/) > [“I could make him mine. But I don't want him. I want someone else. It feels strange to have spent so much time wishing…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jenny-han/i-could-make-him-mine-but-i-don-t-want-him-i-want-someone-else-it/) [Jenny Han](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jenny-han/) > [“This is home, it's the only place I want to be, but at the same time everything familiar feels strange. It's the same as…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jael-mchenry-the-kitchen-daughter/this-is-home-it-s-the-only-place-i-want-to-be-but-at-the-same-time/) [Jael McHenry (The Kitchen Daughter](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jael-mchenry-the-kitchen-daughter/) > [Changmin teases me so much...it's to the point that it feels strange when he doesn't.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/junsu/changmin-teases-me-so-much-it-s-to-the-point-that-it-feels-strange/) [Junsu](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/junsu/) ## More by Walter Kirn > [Everyone loves a witch hunt as long as it's someone else's witch being hunted.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/walter-kirn/everyone-loves-a-witch-hunt-as-long-as-it-s-someone-else-s-witch/) [Walter Kirn](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/walter-kirn/) > [“I just wasn't ready for his stories. They'd breed with the others I'd heard and hatch new monsters, because there was no such thing…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/walter-kirn/i-just-wasn-t-ready-for-his-stories-they-d-breed-with-the-others-i-d/) [Walter Kirn](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/walter-kirn/) > [It's no accident that most self-help groups use 'anonymous' in their names; to Americans, the first step toward redemption is a ritual wiping out…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/walter-kirn/it-s-no-accident-that-most-self-help-groups-use-anonymous-in-their/) [Walter Kirn](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/walter-kirn/) > [“For time to pass it would have to go somewhere, and where would that be? Time sits. We move, it sits. Sometimes it trembles…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/walter-kirn/for-time-to-pass-it-would-have-to-go-somewhere-and-where-would-that/) [Walter Kirn](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/walter-kirn/) > [Once you realize just the sort of glut of books that exists out there, it does become incumbent on you not to add to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/walter-kirn/once-you-realize-just-the-sort-of-glut-of-books-that-exists-out-there/) [Walter Kirn](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/walter-kirn/) > [There are two sides to me. One is the writer. That's a savage person who looks at everything as a story and, you know,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/walter-kirn/there-are-two-sides-to-me-one-is-the-writer-that-s-a-savage-person/) [Walter Kirn](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/walter-kirn/) > [I remember the first time I went to Italy when I was eighteen, I was in Florence and there were all these eighteen, nineteen,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/walter-kirn/i-remember-the-first-time-i-went-to-italy-when-i-was-eighteen-i-was/) [Walter Kirn](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/walter-kirn/) > [Quiet cunning bested boastful brawn](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/walter-kirn/quiet-cunning-bested-boastful-brawn/) [Walter Kirn](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/walter-kirn/) > [The idea that Americans favor politicians who either remind them of themselves or can imagine what their selves are like because they too have…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/walter-kirn/the-idea-that-americans-favor-politicians-who-either-remind-them-of/) [Walter Kirn](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/walter-kirn/) > [“Our habit of wishing backward from what is to what might have been is the soft but persistent tapping that cracks the crystal.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/walter-kirn/our-habit-of-wishing-backward-from-what-is-to-what-might-have-been-is/) [Walter Kirn](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/walter-kirn/) > [Memo to extreme partisans: If you can't bring yourselves to love your enemies, can you at least learn to hate your friends?](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/walter-kirn/memo-to-extreme-partisans-if-you-can-t-bring-yourselves-to-love-your/) [Walter Kirn](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/walter-kirn/) > [People can be so neglectful of each other and of their own heritage - then death intrudes. Conversations we wish that we'd had earlier…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/walter-kirn/people-can-be-so-neglectful-of-each-other-and-of-their-own-heritage/) [Walter Kirn](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/walter-kirn/) > [I'd assumed that a deal was a deal when Princeton admitted me, but I was wrong. The price of getting in - to the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/walter-kirn/i-d-assumed-that-a-deal-was-a-deal-when-princeton-admitted-me-but-i/) [Walter Kirn](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/walter-kirn/) > [The reason that last-ditch political maneuvering has become business as usual in Washington is that the actors involved are drunk on blame and are…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/walter-kirn/the-reason-that-last-ditch-political-maneuvering-has-become-business/) [Walter Kirn](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/walter-kirn/) > [“Meanness on request isn't meanness at all, but kindness carried too far.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/walter-kirn/meanness-on-request-isn-t-meanness-at-all-but-kindness-carried-too-far/) [Walter Kirn](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/walter-kirn/) [Explore all 177 Walter Kirn quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/walter-kirn/) ## More Presence quotes > [When you approach something to photograph it, first be still with yourself until the object of your attention affirms your presence. Then don't leave…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/minor-white/when-you-approach-something-to-photograph-it-first-be-still-with/) [Minor White](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/minor-white/) > [“Only through absence can we understand presence, he told me, and I understood that by then. I understood it well. After”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sarah-domet/only-through-absence-can-we-understand-presence-he-told-me-and-i/) [Sarah Domet](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sarah-domet/) > [Racism has never been outright gone in the history of this nation, but I think we've had moments where everybody has been really fed…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jemele-hill/racism-has-never-been-outright-gone-in-the-history-of-this-nation-but/) [Jemele Hill](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jemele-hill/) > [When one is frank, one's very presence is a compliment.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/marianne-moore/when-one-is-frank-one-s-very-presence-is-a-compliment/) [Marianne Moore](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/marianne-moore/) > [“A spark of every fire we seek is already within us.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kamand-kojouri/a-spark-of-every-fire-we-seek-is-already-within-us/) [Kamand Kojouri](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kamand-kojouri/) > [In solitude, at last, we’re able to let God define us the way we are always supposed to be defined—by relationship: the I-thou relationship,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/richard-rohr/in-solitude-at-last-we-re-able-to-let-god-define-us-the-way-we-are/) [Richard Rohr](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/richard-rohr/) > [Throughout my years, I've had the pleasure of assembling and training what I believe to be the best group of people in the world.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/red-adair/throughout-my-years-i-ve-had-the-pleasure-of-assembling-and-training/) [Red Adair](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/red-adair/) > [“I was thinking how most people don't make you feel much of anything at all. Don't make you feel like time spent with them…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jane-lotter/i-was-thinking-how-most-people-don-t-make-you-feel-much-of-anything/) [Jane Lotter](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jane-lotter/) > [Seeing my children makes me come most alive. I come home and I see my kids' faces light up when they see me at…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/richard-patrick/seeing-my-children-makes-me-come-most-alive-i-come-home-and-i-see-my/) [Richard Patrick](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/richard-patrick/) > [Many are observing Ferguson and witnessing the anger, demonstrations, looting and vandalism and calling for quiet. But quiet isn't enough. The absence of noise…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jesse-jackson/many-are-observing-ferguson-and-witnessing-the-anger-demonstrations/) [Jesse Jackson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jesse-jackson/) > [God is near whether you sense His presence or not.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/max-lucado/god-is-near-whether-you-sense-his-presence-or-not/) [Max Lucado](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/max-lucado/) > [“In your darkest times, never be afraid. The Lord's presence is always with you.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lailah-gifty-akita/in-your-darkest-times-never-be-afraid-the-lord-s-presence-is-always/) [Lailah Gifty Akita](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lailah-gifty-akita/) > [What distinguishes a great player is his presence. When he goes on to the court, his presence dominates the atmosphere.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bill-russell/what-distinguishes-a-great-player-is-his-presence-when-he-goes-on-to/) [Bill Russell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bill-russell/) > [“But with Dimitri, I never felt like I had to be anything more what I already was. I didn't have to entertain him or…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/richelle-mead/but-with-dimitri-i-never-felt-like-i-had-to-be-anything-more-what-i/) [Richelle Mead](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/richelle-mead/) > [“Few delights can equal the mere presence of one whom we trust utterly.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-macdonald/few-delights-can-equal-the-mere-presence-of-one-whom-we-trust-utterly/) [George MacDonald](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-macdonald/) [Browse all 1,426 Presence quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/presence/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "“I understood that no one lives forever, but there are certain people whose power and presence so thoroughly penetrate your view of things that contemplating their absence feels as strange as imagining having never been born yourself.”", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "Walter Kirn" }, "isPartOf": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website" }, "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/walter-kirn/i-understood-that-no-one-lives-forever-but-there-are-certain-people/", "about": { "@type": "Thing", "name": "Presence" }, "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/walter-kirn/i-understood-that-no-one-lives-forever-but-there-are-certain-people/#quotation", "image": { "@type": "ImageObject", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/3d0/walter-kirn-2189_presence_i-understood-that-no-one-lives-forever-b_2470477.jpg", "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/3d0/walter-kirn-2189_presence_i-understood-that-no-one-lives-forever-b_2470477.jpg", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/3d0/walter-kirn-2189_presence_i-understood-that-no-one-lives-forever-b_2470477.jpg", "width": 1080, "height": 1080, "caption": "“I understood that no one lives forever, but there are certain people whose power and presence so thoroughly…” — Walter Kirn", "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": "Walter Kirn", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/walter-kirn/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 4, "name": "“I understood that no one lives...", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/walter-kirn/i-understood-that-no-one-lives-forever-but-there-are-certain-people/" } ], "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/walter-kirn/i-understood-that-no-one-lives-forever-but-there-are-certain-people/#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 } } ] } ```