--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: Hardly had they rested when the waves…" description: "\"“Hardly had they rested when the waves carried them out again, like a nightmare that repeats itself over and over through the night, and over and over ..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/ed2/william-kotzwinkle-46724_children_hardly-had-they-rested-when-the-waves-ca_2515247.jpg" --- # Hardly had they rested when the waves carried them out… ![“Hardly had they rested when the waves carried them out again, like a nightmare that repeats itself over and over through the night, and over and over again through the years. Back and forth they went and he feared that her strength could not hold. He had no confidence, not in himself, nor in her…” quote by William Kotzwinkle](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/ed2/william-kotzwinkle-46724_children_hardly-had-they-rested-when-the-waves-ca_2515247.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/ed2/william-kotzwinkle-46724_children_hardly-had-they-rested-when-the-waves-ca_2515247.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/ed2/william-kotzwinkle-46724_children_hardly-had-they-rested-when-the-waves-ca_2515247.jpg) > ““Hardly had they rested when the waves carried them out again, like a nightmare that repeats itself over and over through the night, and over and over again through the years. Back and forth they went and he feared that her strength could not hold. He had no confidence, not in himself, nor in her. He felt like a helpless child, and Diane seemed helpless too, their long struggle getting them nowhere, only repeating itself--contraction, release, contraction again.”” [William Kotzwinkle](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-kotzwinkle/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. A relentless cycle of struggle and fear leaves the protagonists feeling powerless and stuck in repetitive conflict. **In simple terms:** Repeated struggle creates helplessness. Key Takeaway Break the cycle, seek new strategies. Themes struggle fear powerlessness repetition hope Mood anxious despair reflective Type narrative philosophical When to use this quote - relationship conflict - personal growth - mental health - overcoming stagnation Key Concepts existentialism resilience agency Questions to Reflect On - What can disrupt this endless loop? - How can one regain confidence? A Different Perspective Even with effort, patterns can persist without change. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Children](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/children/) ## Related quotes > [Often a man can play the helpless child in front of a woman, but he can almost never bring it off when he feels…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/f-scott-fitzgerald/often-a-man-can-play-the-helpless-child-in-front-of-a-woman-but-he/) [F. Scott Fitzgerald](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/f-scott-fitzgerald/) > [In every adult human there still lives a helpless child who is afraid of aloneness… This would be so even if there were a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/louise-j-kaplan/in-every-adult-human-there-still-lives-a-helpless-child-who-is-afraid/) [Louise J. Kaplan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/louise-j-kaplan/) > [I couldn't explain the feeling,i felt as helpless as a child,cold and alone,fell down on my knees as I was begging her to stay…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/fena-ramasilo/i-couldn-t-explain-the-feeling-i-felt-as-helpless-as-a-child-cold-and/) [Fena Ramasilo](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/fena-ramasilo/) > [“I feared her rejection but I feared the strength of my feelings more. I still loved my wife but my dreams were being invaded…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/angela-l-hansen/i-feared-her-rejection-but-i-feared-the-strength-of-my-feelings-more/) [Angela L. Hansen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/angela-l-hansen/) > [“I checked my email. this is it this is what it feels like to be helpless.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-levithan/i-checked-my-email-this-is-it-this-is-what-it-feels-like-to-be/) [David Levithan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-levithan/) > [My heart throbs and aches and, for once, it's not for myself. It's for all of us. It's for everyone who knows what it's…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sarah-wylie/my-heart-throbs-and-aches-and-for-once-it-s-not-for-myself-it-s-for/) [Sarah Wylie](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sarah-wylie/) > [“But for reasons she would never be able to articulate to anyone, herself included, she took a few steps more into the despairing darkness…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/casey-fisher/but-for-reasons-she-would-never-be-able-to-articulate-to-anyone/) [Casey Fisher](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/casey-fisher/) > [“Suddenly he knew joy and sorrow felted into one fabric. Courage and fear were one thing too. He found that he had started to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-steinbeck/suddenly-he-knew-joy-and-sorrow-felted-into-one-fabric-courage-and/) [John Steinbeck](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-steinbeck/) > [Adults look upon a child as something empty that is to be filled through their own efforts, as something inert and helpless for which…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/maria-montessori/adults-look-upon-a-child-as-something-empty-that-is-to-be-filled/) [Maria Montessori](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/maria-montessori/) > [Almost everywhere we find . . . the use of various coercive measures, to rid ourselves as quickly as possible of the child withinus--i.e.,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alice-miller/almost-everywhere-we-find-the-use-of-various-coercive-measures-to-rid/) [Alice Miller](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alice-miller/) > [“Hopeless and helpless doth AEgeon wend, But to procrastinate his lifeless end.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-shakespeare/hopeless-and-helpless-doth-aegeon-wend-but-to-procrastinate-his/) [William Shakespeare](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-shakespeare/) > [I know it's not good to be weak and helpless. But I don't think it's good to be too strong either. In our society,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/natsuki-takaya/i-know-it-s-not-good-to-be-weak-and-helpless-but-i-don-t-think-it-s/) [Natsuki Takaya](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/natsuki-takaya/) > [And I feel so helpless here. Watch my eyes are filled with fear.~~~](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/and-i-feel-so-helpless-here-watch-my-eyes-are-filled-with-fear/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [What we need as Christians is to be able to feed ourselves. How many there are who sit helpless and listless, with open mouths,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/what-we-need-as-christians-is-to-be-able-to-feed-ourselves-how-many/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [I could not have slept tonight if I had left that helpless little creature to perish on the ground.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/abraham-lincoln/i-could-not-have-slept-tonight-if-i-had-left-that-helpless-little/) [Abraham Lincoln](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/abraham-lincoln/) ## More by William Kotzwinkle > [“And still others heard: dreeeple zoonnnnnnggggggg ummmmmtwrrrdssss Calling from the beyond Whatever it was, it touched E.T.'s healing finger, and caused it to glow.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-kotzwinkle/and-still-others-heard-dreeeple-zoonnnnnnggggggg-ummmmmtwrrrdssss/) [William Kotzwinkle](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-kotzwinkle/) > [“Writing is magic for those willing to follow their imagination to a region where anything is possible.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-kotzwinkle/writing-is-magic-for-those-willing-to-follow-their-imagination-to-a/) [William Kotzwinkle](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-kotzwinkle/) > [“There's no reason why you can't have another child." Laski listened numbly. He thinks that's what has been at stake, our wish for a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-kotzwinkle/there-s-no-reason-why-you-can-t-have-another-child-laski-listened/) [William Kotzwinkle](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-kotzwinkle/) > [“Their leader wore a Nazi helmet and had renamed himself Heimlich in honor of the man who ran the SS, not knowing he'd confused…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-kotzwinkle/their-leader-wore-a-nazi-helmet-and-had-renamed-himself-heimlich-in/) [William Kotzwinkle](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-kotzwinkle/) > [“The wave came again and carried them out onto the sea of pain, where he wondered again why life ever came into the world...The…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-kotzwinkle/the-wave-came-again-and-carried-them-out-onto-the-sea-of-pain-where/) [William Kotzwinkle](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-kotzwinkle/) > [“I'm cracking up in this fucking Fishbinder Problem Box. A terrible seizure is coming on, I can feel its sinister pulsation creeping up my…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-kotzwinkle/i-m-cracking-up-in-this-fucking-fishbinder-problem-box-a-terrible/) [William Kotzwinkle](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-kotzwinkle/) [Explore all 7 William Kotzwinkle quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-kotzwinkle/) ## More Children quotes > [I am certain that children always know more than they are able to tell, and that makes the big difference between them and adults,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jacques-lusseyran/i-am-certain-that-children-always-know-more-than-they-are-able-to/) [Jacques Lusseyran](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jacques-lusseyran/) > [Behind every successful child is an adult who believed in him.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rick-warren/behind-every-successful-child-is-an-adult-who-believed-in-him/) [Rick Warren](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rick-warren/) > [I believe in freedom to do what you want if you aren't hurting others, but pictures of obese protesters giving their children big gulps.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/philip-defranco/i-believe-in-freedom-to-do-what-you-want-if-you-aren-t-hurting-others/) [Philip DeFranco](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/philip-defranco/) > [If the audience likes your work, if they like you, they don't think whether you are married or have children or not. I made…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dimple-kapadia/if-the-audience-likes-your-work-if-they-like-you-they-don-t-think/) [Dimple Kapadia](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dimple-kapadia/) > [It doesnt seem to me strange that children should like the macabre, the sensational, and the forbidden.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anthony-hecht/it-doesnt-seem-to-me-strange-that-children-should-like-the-macabre/) [Anthony Hecht](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anthony-hecht/) > [Let children support their parents or be imprisoned.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/let-children-support-their-parents-or-be-imprisoned/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [Gratitude isn't just a feeling, it's an action. Expressing gratitude by writing in a journal, taking a photo, or shooting a video creates a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/janice-kaplan/gratitude-isn-t-just-a-feeling-it-s-an-action-expressing-gratitude-by/) [Janice Kaplan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/janice-kaplan/) > [My embarrassing confession is that my father is a 'Camelot: The Musical' obsessive. So as a child, when we were going to visit relatives…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/chris-chibnall/my-embarrassing-confession-is-that-my-father-is-a-camelot-the-musical/) [Chris Chibnall](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/chris-chibnall/) > [I have many who keep me going, I am very fortunate in this sense. There is nothing like a child who knows more about…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/floyd-cooper/i-have-many-who-keep-me-going-i-am-very-fortunate-in-this-sense-there/) [Floyd Cooper](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/floyd-cooper/) > [My school was one of the most beautiful places a child can grow up in. You are surrounded by nature - cats, dogs, birds…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/amala-akkineni/my-school-was-one-of-the-most-beautiful-places-a-child-can-grow-up-in/) [Amala Akkineni](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/amala-akkineni/) > [A lesser complaint: hair extensions. There are moments on 'All My Children' when half the women actors, young and old, seem to be afflicted…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/camille-paglia/a-lesser-complaint-hair-extensions-there-are-moments-on-all-my/) [Camille Paglia](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/camille-paglia/) > [As a child, I had a lot of older gay men taking care of me. There's a trust there. I feel like little girls…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/margaret-cho/as-a-child-i-had-a-lot-of-older-gay-men-taking-care-of-me-there-s-a/) [Margaret Cho](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/margaret-cho/) > [If my child had prejudice in his head, I'd be ashamed. I would see it as my failure as a parent.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/salman-rushdie/if-my-child-had-prejudice-in-his-head-i-d-be-ashamed-i-would-see-it/) [Salman Rushdie](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/salman-rushdie/) > [“Children's lives are always beginning and adults' lives are always ending. Or is it the opposite? Your childhood is always ending and your adult…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alison-espach/children-s-lives-are-always-beginning-and-adults-lives-are-always/) [Alison Espach](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alison-espach/) > [As a child I was very involved with sports and I knew at age 9 that I wanted to be an Olympic champion.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/marion-jones/as-a-child-i-was-very-involved-with-sports-and-i-knew-at-age-9-that-i/) [Marion Jones](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/marion-jones/) [Browse all 62,396 Children quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/children/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "“Hardly had they rested when the waves carried them out again, like a nightmare that repeats itself over and over through the night, and over and over again through the years. Back and forth they went and he feared that her strength could not hold. He had no confidence, not in himself, nor in her. He felt like a helpless child, and Diane seemed helpless too, their long struggle getting them nowhere, only repeating itself--contraction, release, contraction again.”", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "William Kotzwinkle" }, "isPartOf": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website" }, "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-kotzwinkle/hardly-had-they-rested-when-the-waves-carried-them-out-again-like-a/", "about": { "@type": "Thing", "name": "Children" }, "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-kotzwinkle/hardly-had-they-rested-when-the-waves-carried-them-out-again-like-a/#quotation", "image": { "@type": "ImageObject", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/ed2/william-kotzwinkle-46724_children_hardly-had-they-rested-when-the-waves-ca_2515247.jpg", "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/ed2/william-kotzwinkle-46724_children_hardly-had-they-rested-when-the-waves-ca_2515247.jpg", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/ed2/william-kotzwinkle-46724_children_hardly-had-they-rested-when-the-waves-ca_2515247.jpg", "width": 1080, "height": 1080, "caption": "“Hardly had they rested when the waves carried them out again, like a nightmare that repeats itself over and…” — William Kotzwinkle", "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 Kotzwinkle", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-kotzwinkle/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 4, "name": "“Hardly had they rested when the...", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-kotzwinkle/hardly-had-they-rested-when-the-waves-carried-them-out-again-like-a/" } ], "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-kotzwinkle/hardly-had-they-rested-when-the-waves-carried-them-out-again-like-a/#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 } } ] } ```