--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: That night, as Cork lay in his bedroll…" description: "\"“That night, as Cork lay in his bedroll, he thought about the bear they were after. He was glad Sam had changed his mind about killing the great animal..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/13f/william-kent-krueger-10066_life_that-night-as-cork-lay-in-his-bedroll-he_1878440.png" --- # That night, as Cork lay in his bedroll, he thought about… ![“That night, as Cork lay in his bedroll, he thought about the bear they were after. He was glad Sam had changed his mind about killing the great animal, but he hoped they would at least see it. He thought about the Windigo, which was something he hoped he would not see. And he thought about his…” quote by William Kent Krueger](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/13f/william-kent-krueger-10066_life_that-night-as-cork-lay-in-his-bedroll-he_1878440.png) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/13f/william-kent-krueger-10066_life_that-night-as-cork-lay-in-his-bedroll-he_1878440.png) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/13f/william-kent-krueger-10066_life_that-night-as-cork-lay-in-his-bedroll-he_1878440.png) > ““That night, as Cork lay in his bedroll, he thought about the bear they were after. He was glad Sam had changed his mind about killing the great animal, but he hoped they would at least see it. He thought about the Windigo, which was something he hoped he would not see. And he thought about his father, whom he would never see again. These were all elements of his life, and although they were separate things, they were now intertwined somehow like the roots of a tree. All his life he would remember the bear hunt with Sam Winter Moon. In some manner he didn't quite understand, the hunt had opened a way in him for the grief to begin passing through. All his life he would be grateful to his father's friend.”” [William Kent Krueger](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-kent-krueger/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. The narrator reflects on intertwined memories of a bear hunt, a mythical creature, and his lost father, recognizing how grief and gratitude emerge from these connections. **In simple terms:** He sees how past events and loss shape his feelings. Key Takeaway Acknowledge how memories influence present emotions. Themes grief memory family nature mythology Mood reflective melancholic hopeful Type literary contemplative When to use this quote - camping - hunting - family remembrance - personal loss - spiritual contemplation Key Concepts interconnectedness healing reflection Questions to Reflect On - How do past experiences shape your current coping? - What role does gratitude play in processing loss? A Different Perspective Grief may resurface unexpectedly, challenging emotional stability. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Bedroll Thought](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/bedroll-thought-2638041/) [Life](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/life/) [Remember Bear](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/remember-bear-646933/) [Thought Bear](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/thought-bear-731758/) [Thought Windigo](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/thought-windigo-2638040/) [Windigo Hoped](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/windigo-hoped-2638042/) [Winter moon](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/winter-moon/) ## Related quotes > [“These days things had a way of happening around him. Although events seemed chaotic, Cork was beginning to suspect they weren't at all. Sam…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-kent-krueger/these-days-things-had-a-way-of-happening-around-him-although-events/) [William Kent Krueger](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-kent-krueger/) > [“If he expected an answer - and he wasn't certain that he didn't - he was disappointed. He told himself he had imagined the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-kent-krueger/if-he-expected-an-answer-and-he-wasn-t-certain-that-he-didn-t-he-was/) [William Kent Krueger](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-kent-krueger/) > [“They fell quiet. Cork wanted to say he loved her. He wanted to ask her to forgive him. He wanted to lay his head…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-kent-krueger/they-fell-quiet-cork-wanted-to-say-he-loved-her-he-wanted-to-ask-her/) [William Kent Krueger](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-kent-krueger/) > [When I was in Greenough, Montana, I came across a bear cub. I was off this path, and I thought, If there's a bear…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/al-roker/when-i-was-in-greenough-montana-i-came-across-a-bear-cub-i-was-off/) [Al Roker](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/al-roker/) > [At first I was almost about to despair, I thought I never could bear it — but I did I bear it. The question…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/heinrich-heine/at-first-i-was-almost-about-to-despair-i-thought-i-never-could-bear/) [Heinrich Heine](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/heinrich-heine/) > [“I thought: I cannot bear this world a moment longer. Then, child, make another. ”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/madeline-miller/i-thought-i-cannot-bear-this-world-a-moment-longer-then-child-make/) [Madeline Miller](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/madeline-miller/) > [“When this you see, remember me, And bear me in your mind. Let all the world say what they may. Speak of me as…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ann-rule/when-this-you-see-remember-me-and-bear-me-in-your-mind-let-all-the/) [Ann Rule](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ann-rule/) > [“When this you see, remember me and bear in your mind-may all the world say what it may, speak of me as you find.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/brian-jones/when-this-you-see-remember-me-and-bear-in-your-mind-may-all-the-world/) [Brian Jones](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/brian-jones/) > [Though we don't meet or talk often I never forget that I have you in my life Somewhere somehow I remember you.Still bear in…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nix/though-we-don-t-meet-or-talk-often-i-never-forget-that-i-have-you-in/) [Nix](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nix/) > [Remember well, and bear in mind, a constant friend is hard to find.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/laura-ingalls-wilder/remember-well-and-bear-in-mind-a-constant-friend-is-hard-to-find/) [Laura Ingalls Wilder](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/laura-ingalls-wilder/) > [“When the sun goes down, it is very cold and then I easily start crying because the winter moon pierces my heart The Smile…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/angela-carter/when-the-sun-goes-down-it-is-very-cold-and-then-i-easily-start-crying/) [Angela Carter](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/angela-carter/) > [“I have lots of things to teach you now, in case we ever meet, concerning the message that was transmitted to me under a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jack-kerouac/i-have-lots-of-things-to-teach-you-now-in-case-we-ever-meet/) [Jack Kerouac](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jack-kerouac/) > [“And yet she didn't want to kill herself. She loved the world too much, and people. She loved taking long walks in the late…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jhumpa-lahiri/and-yet-she-didn-t-want-to-kill-herself-she-loved-the-world-too-much/) [Jhumpa Lahiri](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jhumpa-lahiri/) > [Lonely as God, and white as a winter moon, Mount Shasta starts up sudden and solitary from the heart of the great black forests…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joaquin-miller/lonely-as-god-and-white-as-a-winter-moon-mount-shasta-starts-up/) [Joaquin Miller](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joaquin-miller/) > [“I shook my head. “The men in green all forsook England a hundred years ago,” said I, speaking as seriously as he had done.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/charlotte-bronte/i-shook-my-head-the-men-in-green-all-forsook-england-a-hundred-years/) [Charlotte Brontë](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/charlotte-bronte/) ## More by William Kent Krueger > [“Once someone's dead, being sorry doesn't cut it. If you hit a man, you can apologize. If you destroy his property, you can pay…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-kent-krueger/once-someone-s-dead-being-sorry-doesn-t-cut-it-if-you-hit-a-man-you/) [William Kent Krueger](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-kent-krueger/) > [“The devil's best defense is a person's disbelief in his existence.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-kent-krueger/the-devil-s-best-defense-is-a-person-s-disbelief-in-his-existence/) [William Kent Krueger](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-kent-krueger/) > [“leaning hard into the wind in order to complete the job expected of him. He was an Eagle”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-kent-krueger/leaning-hard-into-the-wind-in-order-to-complete-the-job-expected-of/) [William Kent Krueger](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-kent-krueger/) > [“Sam's Place had never felt so empty. He suspected the emptiness was not in the old Quonset hut; it was in him. There was…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-kent-krueger/sam-s-place-had-never-felt-so-empty-he-suspected-the-emptiness-was/) [William Kent Krueger](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-kent-krueger/) > [The dead are never far from us. They're in our hearts and on our minds and in the end all that separates us from…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-kent-krueger/the-dead-are-never-far-from-us-they-re-in-our-hearts-and-on-our-minds/) [William Kent Krueger](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-kent-krueger/) > [“I watched the storm as I might have watched the approach and passing of a fierce and beautiful animal. The”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-kent-krueger/i-watched-the-storm-as-i-might-have-watched-the-approach-and-passing/) [William Kent Krueger](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-kent-krueger/) > [“preferred the more informal service of the Methodists to the religious rigor of the Lutherans, who were as ubiquitous in Minnesota as ragweed.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-kent-krueger/preferred-the-more-informal-service-of-the-methodists-to-the/) [William Kent Krueger](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-kent-krueger/) > [“The things that ask the most of us are the things most worth having.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-kent-krueger/the-things-that-ask-the-most-of-us-are-the-things-most-worth-having/) [William Kent Krueger](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-kent-krueger/) > [“Far better, I believe, to be like children and open ourselves to every beautiful possibility, for there is nothing our hearts can imagine that…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-kent-krueger/far-better-i-believe-to-be-like-children-and-open-ourselves-to-every/) [William Kent Krueger](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-kent-krueger/) > [ “Do you believe in God?" St. Kawasaki looked amused. "Hell of a question to ask a priest." \[...\] "I'm asking because I've been a… ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-kent-krueger/do-you-believe-in-god-st-kawasaki-looked-amused-hell-of-a-question-to/) [William Kent Krueger](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-kent-krueger/) > [“Cork wished there were a forecast for his spirit. He felt the dark and the cold penetrating deep in him. He wondered when there…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-kent-krueger/cork-wished-there-were-a-forecast-for-his-spirit-he-felt-the-dark-and/) [William Kent Krueger](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-kent-krueger/) > [“The bottom line was that people who leaned too heavily on someone else were setting themselves up for a terrible fall, and they had…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-kent-krueger/the-bottom-line-was-that-people-who-leaned-too-heavily-on-someone/) [William Kent Krueger](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-kent-krueger/) > [“She sang slowly and richly and delivered the heart of that great spiritual as if she was delivering heaven itself and her face was…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-kent-krueger/she-sang-slowly-and-richly-and-delivered-the-heart-of-that-great/) [William Kent Krueger](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-kent-krueger/) > [“Closing her eyes, she began to let herself dream. Not sleep dreaming, but dreaming of how her life might be. It was a thing…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-kent-krueger/closing-her-eyes-she-began-to-let-herself-dream-not-sleep-dreaming/) [William Kent Krueger](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-kent-krueger/) > [“He who learns must suffer. And even in our sleep pain, which cannot forget, falls drop by drop upon the heart, until, in our…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-kent-krueger/he-who-learns-must-suffer-and-even-in-our-sleep-pain-which-cannot/) [William Kent Krueger](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-kent-krueger/) [Explore all 68 William Kent Krueger quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-kent-krueger/) ## More Life quotes > [Of all the people who have affected my life and influenced the choices I've made, none has been more important than my father. I…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/teddy-atlas/of-all-the-people-who-have-affected-my-life-and-influenced-the/) [Teddy Atlas](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/teddy-atlas/) > [What sets worlds in motion is the interplay of differences, their attractions and repulsions. Life is plurality, death is uniformity. By suppressing differences and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/octavio-paz/what-sets-worlds-in-motion-is-the-interplay-of-differences-their/) [Octavio Paz](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/octavio-paz/) > [Life is full of change. That's how we learn and grow.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/life-is-full-of-change-that-s-how-we-learn-and-grow/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [Life works most perfectly when a reciprocal love relationship is in place between man and God.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/beth-moore/life-works-most-perfectly-when-a-reciprocal-love-relationship-is-in/) [Beth Moore](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/beth-moore/) > [I value the experiences that come with life too much to sit by and not put my full effort into them.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jim-miller/i-value-the-experiences-that-come-with-life-too-much-to-sit-by-and/) [Jim Miller](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jim-miller/) > [Entertainment is a sacred pursuit when done well. When done well, it raises the quality of human life.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-chabon/entertainment-is-a-sacred-pursuit-when-done-well-when-done-well-it/) [Michael Chabon](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michael-chabon/) > [“There's more to life than you can see. Your sight is limited.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tammy-kling/there-s-more-to-life-than-you-can-see-your-sight-is-limited/) [Tammy Kling](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tammy-kling/) > [“I've spent much of my life calling my intuition "something wrong with me.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/deanna-l-lawlis/i-ve-spent-much-of-my-life-calling-my-intuition-something-wrong-with/) [Deanna L. Lawlis](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/deanna-l-lawlis/) > [When you do things they're absolutely right at that time for you and it can always teach you something about yourself. You can take…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kym-marsh/when-you-do-things-they-re-absolutely-right-at-that-time-for-you-and/) [Kym Marsh](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kym-marsh/) > [The only people who think the Internet is a calamity are people whose lives have been hurt by it; the only people who insist…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/chuck-klosterman/the-only-people-who-think-the-internet-is-a-calamity-are-people-whose/) [Chuck Klosterman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/chuck-klosterman/) > [The one thing that I keep learning over and over again is that I don't know nothing. I mean, that's my life lesson.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dwayne-johnson/the-one-thing-that-i-keep-learning-over-and-over-again-is-that-i-don/) [Dwayne Johnson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dwayne-johnson/) > [“THIS tale of my sore-troubled life I write,    To thank the God of nature, who conveyed    My soul to me, and with such care…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/this-tale-of-my-sore-troubled-life-i-write-to-thank-the-god-of-nature/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [“The future is only an indifferent void no one cares about, but the past is filled with life, and its countenance is irritating, repellent,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/milan-kundera/the-future-is-only-an-indifferent-void-no-one-cares-about-but-the/) [Milan Kundera](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/milan-kundera/) > [Two things revolutionised life: moving to the countryside and falling in love.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nick-love/two-things-revolutionised-life-moving-to-the-countryside-and-falling/) [Nick Love](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nick-love/) > [But just remember, life without me would be even more unbearable.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anne-rice/but-just-remember-life-without-me-would-be-even-more-unbearable/) [Anne Rice](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anne-rice/) [Browse all 265,290 Life quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/life/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "“That night, as Cork lay in his bedroll, he thought about the bear they were after. He was glad Sam had changed his mind about killing the great animal, but he hoped they would at least see it. He thought about the Windigo, which was something he hoped he would not see. And he thought about his father, whom he would never see again. These were all elements of his life, and although they were separate things, they were now intertwined somehow like the roots of a tree. All his life he would remember the bear hunt with Sam Winter Moon. In some manner he didn't quite understand, the hunt had opened a way in him for the grief to begin passing through. All his life he would be grateful to his father's friend.”", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "William Kent Krueger" }, "isPartOf": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website" }, "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-kent-krueger/that-night-as-cork-lay-in-his-bedroll-he-thought-about-the-bear-they/", "about": { "@type": "Thing", "name": "Life" }, "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-kent-krueger/that-night-as-cork-lay-in-his-bedroll-he-thought-about-the-bear-they/#quotation", "image": { "@type": "ImageObject", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/13f/william-kent-krueger-10066_life_that-night-as-cork-lay-in-his-bedroll-he_1878440.png", "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/13f/william-kent-krueger-10066_life_that-night-as-cork-lay-in-his-bedroll-he_1878440.png", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/13f/william-kent-krueger-10066_life_that-night-as-cork-lay-in-his-bedroll-he_1878440.png", "width": 1080, "height": 1080, "caption": "“That night, as Cork lay in his bedroll, he thought about the bear they were after. He was glad Sam had…” — William Kent Krueger", "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": "William Kent Krueger", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-kent-krueger/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 4, "name": "“That night, as Cork lay in...", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-kent-krueger/that-night-as-cork-lay-in-his-bedroll-he-thought-about-the-bear-they/" } ], "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-kent-krueger/that-night-as-cork-lay-in-his-bedroll-he-thought-about-the-bear-they/#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 } } ] } ```