"The punctuation of anniversaries is terrible, like the closing of doors, one after another, between you and what you want to hold on to"
About this Quote
The simile sharpens the cruelty: "like the closing of doors, one after another". Not a single slam, but a series. Each anniversary becomes a ritualized shutting: another year sealed off, another version of a person no longer reachable, another chance to go back quietly revoked. The repetition implies accumulation and claustrophobia, the way grief and nostalgia don't arrive as one big event but as recurring administrative notices: the calendar reminding you what can't be retrieved.
The subtext is an argument with the cultural script of anniversaries as neat milestones. Lindbergh suggests they don't simply measure love, marriage, or memory - they police them, turning longing into an appointment. There's also a writer's suspicion here: punctuation is meant to clarify, yet it can also confine. Anniversaries promise meaning, but they deliver finality.
Context matters. Lindbergh wrote often about solitude, marriage, and the private costs of public life; her era prized stoic composure. This line lets the feeling slip out anyway: not melodrama, but a cool, exact image that makes loss feel mechanical - and therefore, terrifyingly normal.
Quote Details
| Topic | Anniversary |
|---|---|
| Source | Help us find the source |
| Cite |
Citation Formats
APA Style (7th ed.)
Lindbergh, Anne Morrow. (2026, February 17). The punctuation of anniversaries is terrible, like the closing of doors, one after another, between you and what you want to hold on to. FixQuotes. https://fixquotes.com/quotes/the-punctuation-of-anniversaries-is-terrible-like-110827/
Chicago Style
Lindbergh, Anne Morrow. "The punctuation of anniversaries is terrible, like the closing of doors, one after another, between you and what you want to hold on to." FixQuotes. February 17, 2026. https://fixquotes.com/quotes/the-punctuation-of-anniversaries-is-terrible-like-110827/.
MLA Style (9th ed.)
"The punctuation of anniversaries is terrible, like the closing of doors, one after another, between you and what you want to hold on to." FixQuotes, 17 Feb. 2026, https://fixquotes.com/quotes/the-punctuation-of-anniversaries-is-terrible-like-110827/. Accessed 4 Mar. 2026.
