I can only note that the past is beautiful because one never realises an emotion at the time. It expands later, and thus we don't have complete emotions about the present, only about the past.
Virginia WoolfRead
It is no use trying to sum people up. One must follow hints, not exactly what is said, nor yet entirely what is done.
Interpretation
What this quote means
Understanding people requires more than just their words or actions; it involves reading the subtleties and hints in their behavior.
Virginia Woolf emphasizes the complexity of human relationships, pointing out that one cannot simply categorize or judge people based on their spoken words or visible actions alone. Instead, effective understanding requires an attentive observation of the nuanced hints and underlying emotions that inform their behavior, leading to a deeper connection and comprehension of individuals.
Themes
UnderstandingRelationshipsEmpathyCommunicationHuman Behavior
In practice
Example use cases
In a discussion about emotional intelligence at a workshop.
More from Virginia Woolf
All quotes βDeath is woven in with the violets,β said Louis. βDeath and again death.β)
Virginia WoolfRead
He began to search among the infinite series of impressions which time had laid down, leaf upon leaf, fold upon fold softly, incessantly upon his brain; among scents, sounds; voices, harsh, hollow, sweet; and lights passing, and brooms tapping; and the wash and hush of the sea.
Virginia WoolfRead
I want to think quietly, calmly, spaciously, never to be interrupted, never to have to rise from my chair, to slip easily from one thing to another, without any sense of hostility, or obstacle. I want to sink deeper and deeper, away from the surface, with its hard separate facts.
Virginia WoolfRead
I do think all good and evil comes from words. I have to tune myself into a good temper with something musical, and I run to a book as a child to its mother.
Virginia WoolfRead
London perpetually attracts, stimulates, gives me a play and a story and a poem, without any trouble, save that of moving my legs through the streets... To walk alone through London is the greatest rest.
Virginia WoolfRead
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God is more interested in your future and your relationships than you are.
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