Introduction to ‘When Life Gives You Tangerines’
‘When Life Gives You Tangerines’ (2025) is a heartwarming series that delves into the complexities of life, love, and resilience. The show beautifully encapsulates moments that make you reflect on your experiences and the paths we choose. Quotes from the series resonate with many viewers and provide insight into the characters’ journeys.
This collection showcases notable quotes that convey the essence of ‘When Life Gives You Tangerines’. The characters frequently express thoughts about overcoming adversity and embracing change, often referencing the significance of making the best out of difficult situations.
The quotes from ‘When Life Gives You Tangerines’ have had a profound impact on its audience. They serve as reminders to appreciate life’s little moments and the lessons they bring. Quotes from the series encourage viewers to stay hopeful and resilient, emphasizing the belief that every setback can prepare us for a greater comeback.
As the series continues to inspire many, it’s evident that the quotes shared spark meaningful reflections and conversations that linger long after the episode ends.
Memorable Quotes
Episode 1
“Why is Ae-sun the only one who can’t see his heart burning in the spring sunlight?” – Haenyeo
“I like you because you’re my mom. Isn’t that obvious?” – Oh Ae Sun
“If you like me, then grow up fast. Grow up fast then give me 100 hwan every day.” – Gwang Rye
“With 100 hwan everyday, I want to let her rest.” – Oh Ae Sun
“I am the poor one, not you. Don’t hang back. Live your life to the fullest.” – Gwang Rye
“When I grow up, the first thing I’ll do is buy you a pearl necklace.” – Oh Ae Sun
“I’d rather die earning a penny than die begging.” – Gwang Rye
“Bring me beef instead of chicken everyday. I still won’t marry you.” – Oh Ae Sun
“In the end, we all end up living as orphans. Even though parents die first, their children carry on. Life goes on and on.” – Gwang Rye
“If you cry, you’ll be hungry. So eat while you cry.” – Yang Gwan Sik
Episode 2
“I don’t want him! Yang Gwan-sik? No, thank you!” – Oh Ae Sun
“Just hanging out doesn’t mean we’ll fall for each other.” – Oh Ae Sun
“I wouldn’t take you even if they hand you over. You think I’m crazy? Why marry a guy from the island?” – Oh Ae Sun
“I will marry a man from Seoul, no matter what. Not some guy from the island.” – Oh Ae Sun
“Then take your hand out of my pocket and put it in a guy’s from Seoul.” – Yang Gwan Sik
“Being pitiful is wonderful. My life is full of freebies.” – Oh Ae Sun
“You think I’ve spent ten years as your minion out of pity?” – Yang Gwan Sik
“You only ever feed me. You never make a move.” – Oh Ae Sun
“Your mom is gone. There isn’t a warm spot waiting to welcome you in the world.” – Uncle
“There isn’t a warm spot in the world that will welcome me. The only person in the world who cares about me at all is you, Yang Gwan-sik” – Oh Ae Sun
“I can’t give you everything. But there’s one thing I will do for you, no matter what.” – Yang Gwan Sik
“There are no take backs in life. If your life and my life join together as one, we stick it out together whether we live or die.” – Oh Ae Sun
“In all the 19 years of my life, I’ve never felt more excited.” – Yang Gwan Sik
“Do you know why I’m marrying Yang Gwan-sik, the lamest boy in all of Jeju? Steel. You’re like a steel.” – Oh Ae Sun
“We may have hungry days, but you’ll never break my heart.” – Oh Ae Sun
“Even if someone gave me a gold or silver axe, the steel axe is mine. The steel axe is the real deal.” – Oh Ae Sun
“Does romance pay the bills? Once they get hungry, they’ll start resenting each other.” – Byeong Cheol
Episode 3
“Do you really not know? It might take two to tango, but the boy gets called a hero while the girl’s love gets branded shameless. Did you ruin her life without knowing better?” – Grandma
“You think I can’t get married unless it’s to you? I’m going to marry a richer, more handsome man, a son less precious than you!” – Oh Ae Sun
“Why would you throw away a girl as pretty as Ae-sun? She’s smart, well-spoken, and really cute. Why would you?” – Yang Gwan Sik
“When a tame cow decides to rebel, it won’t budge. You can’t force it to plow the field.” – Grandma
“Being with you would be like always getting a losing roll.” – Oh Ae Sun
“If I’m with you, I won’t find happiness in marriage. Please let me live my life. Let me change the fate you pity so.” – Oh Ae Sun
“Am I standing in your way?” – Yang Gwan Sik
“You have to leave so I can live my life.” – Oh Ae Sun
“Am I standing in his way?” – Oh Ae Sun
“Why do you take everything from me? Why do you only take everything that belongs to me?” – Oh Ae Sun
“If she hadn’t run that day, could she have stopped the destiny that was rushing toward her?” – Geum Myeong
“Destiny has always been sassy, just like that.” – Geum Myeong
Episode 4
“I don’t want her to set the table. I want her to be the one to flip it.” – Oh Ae Sun
“I heard vanity stems from emptiness. Maybe I want to buy so much because I grew up poor. Maybe it’s a deeply rooted issue.” – Geum Myeong
“It’s an odd thing. Parents dwell on what they couldn’t give. And children dwell on what they couldn’t get.” – Geum Myeong
“Life can take cruel turns, but I believe what isn’t right isn’t right.” – Oh Ae Sun
“How could I leave you behind? I’d feel better if I gave you a good send-off first and followed afterward.” – Yang Gwan Sik
Episode 5
“If I work for a day, we’ll make it through another day. But to work a day, it’s just so unfair.” – Yang Gwan Sik
“I thought that once you grew up, your hands and heart would naturally become calloused. But everything’s still too hot for me. I get burned everyday, but it hurts every time. Am I the only fool in the world? Is there anyone else adulting just fine?” – Oh Ae Sun
“They all just pretend to be adults because people tell them they are adults.” – Yang Gwan Sik
“I’ve had a coffin on my back for my whole life, but I still fear death, and that’s why I never had my picture taken.” – Gwang Rye
“The pain of losing a parent cuts deeper as life goes on, but the pain of losing a child is etched in the deepest part of your heart.” – Kim Chun Ok
“When a parent dies, you send them to heaven. But when a child dies, you keep them alive in here. You can’t let them go so you keep them alive in here.” – Kim Chun Ok
“It’s the first time I’ve had my own home. Stupid home. Even conches and crabs have their own. But I was always the only one without a home.” – Oh Ae Sun
“With their lives full of catches, all they wanted was for their blazing summer sunshine to last.” – Geum Myeong
Episode 6
“Your mind can’t weep if your body is weary. One day, life might get so tough that you feel like you can’t go on. Don’t just lie still. Struggle with all your might. Stomp on your blanket. Plow the field or even do odd jobs to earn some money. Tell yourself you won’t die and must survive, no matter what. Paddle your arms and legs like crazy. You’ll get through the dark waters and see the sky. You’ll be able to breathe again.” – Gwang Rye
“Rain may pour as if it would sweep everything away. But once the sun starts blazing again, life rises again, no matter what.” – Yang Gwan Sik
“No words can describe the pain of losing your child.” – Oh Ae Sun
“Just like it takes a village to raise a child, it takes a village to save a single life.” – Oh Ae Sun
“When you’re struggling to breathe in the dark waters, you need to stay close to others to survive. Or fear will grip your heart, and you won’t make it.” – Grandpa (neighbor)
“No one can live on their own. Go together, with others. If you do, 100 miles will feel like ten.” – Grandma (neighbor)
Episodes 7-8
“A cocoon that doesn’t break open in time gets devoured by predators. Only the ones that break free quickly emerge as butterflies. You need to learn how to open the doors that are in your way.” – Haenyeo
“I was mad at my mom for being poor. I was mad because I knew I was the reason.” – Geum Myeong
“Parents have no idea of the moment when their child’s heart develops knots. If they knew, they’d protect their child.” – Geum Myeong
“No tree grows without knots. And a child’s knots would carve a hole in a father’s heart, so God keeps it hidden.” – Geum Myeong
“You can’t always be the best. No one’s that perfect.” – Yang Gwan Sik
“Any other grief fades with time and becomes numb. But when the grief is too deep, I end up burying it.” – Oh Ae Sun
“Tomorrow, life will go on under the blazing sun of tomorrow.” – Oh Ae Sun
“I swallowed their dreams and spread my wings, embracing my mom’s dream like a seed in my heart.” – Geum Myeong
“Mom’s dream was passed on to me, a dream so heavy, a dream so blazing, that at last, it made the sound of wings flapping.” – Geum Myeong
“When you guys soar, I swear it feels like I’m soaring, too.” – Oh Ae Sun
“Even as I gently press my heart to soothe it down, the moon wanes, yet the young heart remains.” – Oh Ae Sun
Episode 9
“Even if a million miles lie ahead of you, your greatest worry is the one in front of you.” – Geum Myeong
“Even if a million miles lie ahead of you, your greatest joy is the one in front of you.” – Geum Myeong
“Don’t walk all over them ’cause they’re easy to treat. A young leaf can be torn by even a gentle rain.” – Haenyeo / Auntie
“None of us have fully grown up. But everytime our hearts felt growing pains, we all grew a little.” – Geum Myeong
“There are moments when the heart grows.” – Geum Myeong
“The fluffy guy had the eyes of a mole being chased by a hunter. So I let it happen.” – Geum Myeong
“I’m just a supplement here anyway! But this girl says I’m the best. She likes me more than her brothers!” – Eun Myeong
“The fall breeze turned into the spring breeze. The whistling sound never ceased in my heart.” – Geum Myeong
Episode 10
“The strongest wind is one that blows within one’s fist-sized heart. Nothing could withstand such wind.” – Geum Myeong
“They are only children when they’re in your arms. Once they leave, they’re busier than the president. My children are the busiest people in the world.” – Haenyeo / Auntie
“A radish may look fine no matter how many times it falls, but even the sturdiest radish can crack inside.” – Haenyeo / Auntie
“Don’t treat your children differently. Children remember everything.” – Haenyeo / Auntie
“Each person was swayed by the love in their heart.” – Geum Myeong
“How would you know if I’m better than the noodle guy? You don’t know me very well.” – Park Cheong Seop
“Everyone has a dark side, after all.” – Park Cheong Seop
“It was a time when strangers were dangerous, and kindness from a stranger was dangerous.” – Oh Ae Sun
“I have eyes in the back of my head. That’s what it takes to be a mom.” – Gwang Rye
“There were no open endings in fairy tales back then.” – Oh Ae Sun
“They are only children when they’re in your arms.” – Yang Gwan Sik
“She’s the one growing up, not me. My heart is still the same.” – Oh Ae Sun
“Mom, by mere coincidence, has lost immeasurable things. That’s why she fussed even more, believing that restless worry could prevent even coincidences.” – Geum Myeong
“Her relentless worry was tiresome. But it was the same relentless worry that saved me again. Just like that, she’s saved me time and again.” – Geum Myeong
“It was only much later, when I could no longer answer her calls, that I deeply missed her relentless worry.” – Geum Myeong
“Her delicate heart sank countless times. I wish I’d shown her a bit more appreciation. Regret arrived too late once again.” – Geum Myeong
Episode 11
“Who proposes with an oil boiler instead of a diamond?” – Geum Myeong
“Whether this grand first love would become a love song or a break up song, I didn’t know back then. I was just blazing with love without any shame.” – Geum Myeong
“They say you need countless lifetimes of fate to meet even once in this life. If you miss it when it brushes past, that’s the end.” –
“Who could withstand the storm that blows within one’s fist- sized heart? Fall was fall. Spring was spring. So it was a season where the wind never rested. And so it was a life where the heart never settled.” – Geum Myeong
“You know, a poem can even make poverty seem picturesque. There’s nothing cool about being broke, but poetry makes it seem somewhat cool.” – Park Cheong Seop
“Your Natasha, without makeup, is just a donkey.” – Geum Myeong
“If you keep pitying yourself and saying your life sucks, your life will really suck. If you think you’re only worth 100 won, who would think you’re worth 1,000 won? Stop pitying yourself and say something sweet to yourself so you can stand tall.” – Geum Myeong
“You’re like a Christmas tree. A tree just does its job no matter where you put it. Whether a Christmas tree is in a room in a basement or a corner store no one visits, it’s always sparkling. It always makes your heart pound.” – Park Cheong Seop
“There was a time when people held their heads up. A time when people stayed true to their hearts. A time when we looked at each other, not our cell phones.” – Geum Myeong
“Who goes to work for fun? People go for the money.” – Geum Myeong
“I’ve also had a dream for a long time. Being independent. Living an independent life is actually quite a feat.” – Geum Myeong
“Life goes on for the living.” – Geum Myeong
“We constantly struggled to be independent. From college entrance and graduation to meeting the in-laws, life has been a series of parental summons.” – Oh Ae Sun
“A child definitely does what it saw growing up. I should’ve shown only precious things to my precious child.” – Oh Ae Sun
“My heart sank as I realized that I was a mirror for my child.” – Oh Ae Sun
“Dad chose to fight his own war. He never left mom stranded alone on the battlefield. In those days, dad turning around was truly revolutionary.” – Geum Myeong
“I couldn’t teach her. She was so precious, too dear, so I chose not to teach her.” – Oh Ae Sun
“I was the boss at my house but just a minion in theirs.” – Geum Myeong
“Even a small scratch on your heart deeply bruises both mine and your dad’s.” – Oh Ae Sun
“I was a bad brat at my house but a barbarian at theirs.” – Geum Myeong
“Do you know where you’re putting that boulder down? On your son’s heart. That’s where you’re putting it down.” – Oh Ae Sun
“My first love didn’t end up as a fairy tale.” – Geum Myeong
“When our engagement ended, I cried like a North Korean spy.” – Geum Myeong
“We were together for seven years. And we spent a year breaking up.” – Geum Myeong
“I do love you deeply. But I love myself deeply, too.” – Geum Myeong
“I’m so glad that you’re the one who’ll remember me in my twenties.” – Geum Myeong
“In Seoul, where I had no one, he was my lover, my family, and my best friend.” – Geum Myeong
“Suddenly becoming strangers with my closest buddy felt like the Little Prince was leaving the small planet only the two of us lived on.” – Geum Myeong
Episode 12
“A broken heart isn’t just a figure of speech. It actually hurts. My heart clenches painfully.” – Geum Myeong
“We used to be each other’s world. One left that world, while the other stayed behind.” – Geum Myeong
“In the fortress that was both comforting and unsettling, I slept well and recharged, just like a bear hibernating for winter.” – Geum Myeong
“Maybe if I sleep less, you two can sleep more. That just wakes me up.” – Yang Gwan Sik
“You always give me 120 things when you only have 100. How can you give me more?” – Geum Myeong
“That day, I saw a different sun. Only after my sun, the first to light up the lonely ocean, had set forever did I realize how warm it was to be by my dad’s side.” – Geum Myeong
“To know what a man is like, you must look at his father. They learn how to treat their family from their father.” – Oh Ae Sun
“They say your first love is meant to be a memory.” – Oh Ae Sun
“Just like an old garment is turned into new clothes by a skilled tailor, I went there like a rag, but I came back neat and sharp.” – Geum Myeong
“The problem lies in one’s character, not one’s fortune.” – Haenyeo / Auntie
“There comes a season for everyone when they lose their second tooth.” – Oh Ae Sun
“Every season in life is full of farewells. No one arrives and all I see is people leaving one by one. Still, let’s leave this world together.” – Oh Ae Sun
“We thought we came to the picnic together, but each had their own tide. Just as the tides ebb and flow, some have left but for some, it was the season for a new arrival at the picnic.” – Geum Myeong
“New sprouts still lift their heads even in the frozen soil of the front lines. A winter, as early as their spring, was on its way.” – Geum Myeong
“A glistening winter, so dazzling as spring was on its way.” – Geum Myeong
