A short story is the ultimate close-up magic trick -- a couple of thousand words to take you around the universe or break your heart.
Neil GaimanRead
How can you be happy in this world? You have a hole in your heart. You have a gateway inside you to lands beyond the world you know. They will call you, as you grow.
Interpretation
What this quote means
True happiness may require exploring the depths of one's inner self and imagination.
This quote by Neil Gaiman suggests that happiness is not solely found in the external world but rather through introspection and the exploration of one's inner self. The 'hole in your heart' symbolizes a longing or emptiness, while the 'gateway inside you' represents the potential for discovery and growth that can lead to fulfillment and joy in life.
Themes
HappinessInner SelfExplorationImaginationGrowth
In practice
Example use cases
This quote can be shared during a motivational speech on finding joy within oneself.
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As a teenager I wrote to R.A. Lafferty. And he responded, too, with letters that were like R.A. Lafferty short stories, filled with elliptical answers to straight questions and simple answers to complicated ones.
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Nothing’s changed. You’ll go home. You’ll be bored. You’ll be ignored. No one will listen to you, really listen to you. You’re too clever and too quiet for them to understand. They don’t even get your name right.
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I like the stars. It's the illusion of permanence, I think. I mean, they're always flaring up and caving in and going out. But from here, I can pretend...I can pretend that things last. I can pretend that lives last longer than moments. Gods come, and gods go. Mortals flicker and flash and fade. Worlds don't last; and stars and galaxies are transient, fleeting things that twinkle like fireflies and vanish into cold and dust. But I can pretend.
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