When All is Lost

“Although there are times I’d give anything to have her back, I’m glad she went first. Losing her was like being cleft down the middle. It was the moment it all ended for me, and I wouldn’t have wanted her to go through that. Being the survivor stinks.”

—Sara Gruen, Water for Elephants

This is what I want. When I’m old I want my man to be like this. He thinks of her pain instead of his own. You get thinking about how romantic and sweet it is...but then you think he’s old, he’s alone, and he’s sad. It’s upsetting.

This poor old man, Jacob, is alone in a retirement home. His family has forgotten him, and his wife is no longer around. It’s definitely no Notebook ending (movie version at least) where they die together. But still, he goes on living still loving her just as much as when he first met her, barely waiting to see her again once his time is up.

He had found his true love and he had taken her away from the rotten situation she was in. It’s rotten thinking when that time comes being stuck their alone until it’s your time to die. What do you do when the one you’ve loved for some many years is no longer there beside you in the morning? Certainly killing yourself is not the option. Again (I can relate it to my older post) memories is the key to happiness, especially at this point in his old life. He can remember her beautiful smile even as she grew older when she was with him, the children, and their pets (horses, and their elephant Rosie).

I don’t know if I would be so caring when I’m older. It’s always quite scary thinking about the future. What would be worse dying first leaving your spouse with all the misery, pain, and bills, or you being left with all that knowing that you may be handling it better than your spouse? Being the last survivor must suck and be very lonely. It would be like Lost (I’ve only recently started it but I know everyone dies) where the dog is all by himself someone surviving. Who is there for him? I’d probably go insane, especially if the one you loved and shared everything with all the time was no longer around.

If this quotes intrigued you, but readings not your thing then definitely check out the movie! Both are incredible (like every novel, movie, and show I’ve posted already). If that hasn’t sold you then the fact that Christoph Waltz being in it should convince you.

I would like to thank quickly MovieFone for making it very easy for me to find the quote instead of scrolling through page after page trying to find the perfect quote to talk about. There are more terrific quotes on their page.