What is hardest to accept about the passage of time is that the people who once mattered the most to us wind up in parentheses.

More quotes by John Irving

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"When someone you love dies, and you're not expecting it, you don't lose her all at once; you lose her in pieces over a long time."

- John Irving

Adversity

"When someone you love dies, and you’re not expecting it, you don’t lose her all at once; you lose her in pieces over a long time."

- John Irving

Adversity

"When someone you love dies, and you’re not expecting it, you don’t lose her all at once; you lose her in pieces over a long time – the way the mail stops coming, and her scent fades from the pillows and even from the clothes in her closet and drawers. Gradually, you accumulate the parts of her that are gone. Just when the day comes – when there’s a particular missing part that overwhelms you with the feeling that she’s gone, forever – there comes another day, and another specifically missing part."

- John Irving

Adversity

"Half my life is an act of revision."

- John Irving

Persistence

"When someone you love dies, and you're not expecting it, you don't lose her all at once; you lose her in pieces over a long time - the way the mail stops coming, and her scent fades from the pillows and even from the clothes in her closet and drawers. Gradually, you accumulate the parts of her that are gone. Just when the day comes - when there's a particular missing part that overwhelms you with the feeling that she's gone, forever - there comes another day, and another specifically missing part."

- John Irving

Reflection

More Gratitude Quotes

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"When you arise in the morning, think of what a privilege it is to be alive, to think, to enjoy, to love."

- Marcus Aurelius

Gratitude

"To get happier, try gratitude, giving back, savoring, encouraging your optimism, and celebrating progress."

- Jonathan Harnum

Gratitude

"Be thankful for everything that happens in your life; it’s all an experience."

- Roy T. Bennett

Gratitude

"Sometimes the little things in life mean the most."

- Ellen Hopkins

Gratitude

"The two words that will change your life are 'thank you'. Like a candle that can light a thousand more without shortening its own life, appreciation is a gift that, when given, can set the whole world aglow."

- Stacey Lee

Gratitude