--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: it is discouraging to leave the past…" description: "\"it is discouraging to leave the past behind only to see it coming toward you like the thunderstorm which drenched you yesterday.\" — William H. Gass" image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/e8c/william-h-gass-4166_behinds_it-is-discouraging-to-leave-the-past-beh_1198216.png" --- # it is discouraging to leave the past behind only to see it… ![“it is discouraging to leave the past behind only to see it coming toward you like the thunderstorm which drenched you yesterday.” quote by William H. Gass](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/e8c/william-h-gass-4166_behinds_it-is-discouraging-to-leave-the-past-beh_1198216.png) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/e8c/william-h-gass-4166_behinds_it-is-discouraging-to-leave-the-past-beh_1198216.png) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/e8c/william-h-gass-4166_behinds_it-is-discouraging-to-leave-the-past-beh_1198216.png) > “it is discouraging to leave the past behind only to see it coming toward you like the thunderstorm which drenched you yesterday.” [William H. Gass](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-h-gass/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Reflects on how past experiences can resurface unexpectedly, often with greater intensity than anticipated. **In simple terms:** Past can return stronger than expected. Key Takeaway Stay aware of unresolved issues. Themes memory trauma recurrence Mood reflective melancholic Type literary philosophical When to use this quote - personal growth - therapy - conflict resolution - emotional resilience Key Concepts psychology nostalgia cycle Questions to Reflect On - What unresolved past event still affects you? - How can you process memories before they overwhelm? A Different Perspective Ignoring the past can amplify its impact later. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Leave the past behind](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/leave-the-past-behind/) [Leaving the past](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/leaving-the-past/) [Past](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/past/) [Thunderstorm](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/thunderstorm/) [Time](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/time/) [Yesterday](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/yesterday/) ## Related quotes > [To move foward, you have to leave the past behind](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/susannah-cahalan/to-move-foward-you-have-to-leave-the-past-behind/) [Susannah Cahalan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/susannah-cahalan/) > [The past did affect the present and the future, in ways you could see and a million ones you couldn't. Time wasn't a thing…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sarah-dessen/the-past-did-affect-the-present-and-the-future-in-ways-you-could-see/) [Sarah Dessen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sarah-dessen/) > [We cannot go back in time and change the past, but we can repent. The Savior can wipe away our tears of regret and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dieter-f-uchtdorf/we-cannot-go-back-in-time-and-change-the-past-but-we-can-repent-the/) [Dieter F. Uchtdorf](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dieter-f-uchtdorf/) > [There is an opportunity for us to renew ourselves. There's an opportunity for us to leave the past behind and present something different for…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jay-weatherill/there-is-an-opportunity-for-us-to-renew-ourselves-there-s-an/) [Jay Weatherill](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jay-weatherill/) > [To the sky, I rise / Spread my wings, and fly / I leave the past behind / And say goodbye to the scared…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/christina-aguilera/to-the-sky-i-rise-spread-my-wings-and-fly-i-leave-the-past-behind-and/) [Christina Aguilera](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/christina-aguilera/) > [The warrior woman is filled with the courage, confidence, and inner strength to leave the past behind. She knows that there is no way…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/debbie-ford/the-warrior-woman-is-filled-with-the-courage-confidence-and-inner/) [Debbie Ford](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/debbie-ford/) > [The farther behind I leave the past, the closer I am to forging my own character.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/isabelle-eberhardt/the-farther-behind-i-leave-the-past-the-closer-i-am-to-forging-my-own/) [Isabelle Eberhardt](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/isabelle-eberhardt/) > [As a fiction writer, that's been a preoccupation of mine: Can you really just close the door and leave the past back there behind…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dani-shapiro/as-a-fiction-writer-that-s-been-a-preoccupation-of-mine-can-you/) [Dani Shapiro](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dani-shapiro/) > [Sometimes it's good to leave the past in the past.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/sometimes-it-s-good-to-leave-the-past-in-the-past/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [Leave the past in the past, tomorrows not promised and Todays just a gift i guess thats why its the present](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joe-budden/leave-the-past-in-the-past-tomorrows-not-promised-and-todays-just-a/) [Joe Budden](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joe-budden/) > [Now why would you want to bring up the past? Makes no damn sense. Focus on the present. Leave the past behind.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/now-why-would-you-want-to-bring-up-the-past-makes-no-damn-sense-focus/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [Rise and grind. Leave the past behind. Let GOD be your future and you will be fine.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/rise-and-grind-leave-the-past-behind-let-god-be-your-future-and-you/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [“Frequently we do not leave the past behind. We clasp on to it. We dissect it, and let fears for the future, tempered by…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ray-simpson/frequently-we-do-not-leave-the-past-behind-we-clasp-on-to-it-we/) [Ray Simpson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ray-simpson/) > [Hopefully one day people will learn to mind their business, leave the past behind them and know when to shut up.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/hopefully-one-day-people-will-learn-to-mind-their-business-leave-the/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [Tomorrow is a new beginning for me. Time to change and leave the past behind me.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/tomorrow-is-a-new-beginning-for-me-time-to-change-and-leave-the-past/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) ## More by William H. 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Gass](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-h-gass/) > [“Why were they whining then?...whining, damn them, whining… Because they’d have to give up their hope of living like an animal and return to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-h-gass/why-were-they-whining-then-whining-damn-them-whining-because-they-d/) [William H. Gass](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-h-gass/) > [Sports, politics, and religion are the three passions of the badly educated.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-h-gass/sports-politics-and-religion-are-the-three-passions-of-the-badly/) [William H. Gass](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-h-gass/) > [“Then Jethro Furber wondered whether Omensetter wasn't an actor.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-h-gass/then-jethro-furber-wondered-whether-omensetter-wasn-t-an-actor/) [William H. Gass](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-h-gass/) [Explore all 115 William H. 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