Lines from ‘My Oxford Year’ that hit differently: 10 life lessons on love, loss, living fully

Stories set in Oxford have a haunting beauty to them — conjuring images of cobblestone streets, golden-hour libraries and the silent anguish of vanishing youth. 

My Oxford Year, directed by Iain Morris and featuring Sofia Carson and Corey Mylchreest from Queen Charlotte, covers all of this and more. It is more than just a love tale; it is a lesson to live fully, love fearlessly and embrace life’s messiness.

Based on Julia Whelan’s 2018 novel, the film follows Anna (Carson), an ambitious American student pursuing her academic goals in Oxford.

But her perfectly planned future is disrupted when she meets Jamie (Mylchreest), a local professor with a poetic mind and a secret that affects everything. What unfolds is a timeless and touching story that will leave you with a lump in your throat and a fractured heart. 

Here are 10 lines from the film that feel like whispered truths; and life lessons disguised as dialogue, each offering a gentle reminder to live more fully.

1. “You should never regret the things you do. You should only regret the things that you don’t do…”

This is a quiet encouragement to say “yes” more frequently. To take the risk of falling. To live without the nagging what-ifs.

2. “Just because something is fleeting doesn’t mean it’s not meaningful.”

Some moments are not meant to last — but that does not make them any less real. 

3. “You never know the choice you make is right or wrong ‘til you make it. What matters is they are yours to make.”

This is a reminder that taking responsibility for your path is braver than perfection.

4. “This is the messiness of life, and as an annoyingly brilliant man once told me, these are the best bits.”

The chaos, the curveballs, the heartbreaks — they are not detours. They are the story.

5. “You’re not obligated to be the same person you were a year ago, a month ago, or even a day ago. You’re allowed to grow. You’re allowed to change.”

This means permission to evolve — to shed old skins; rewrite your own narrative.

6. “Sometimes the hardest thing isn’t letting go but learning to start over.”

Letting go is an ending. Starting over is a beginning. And beginnings are terrifyingly brave.

7. “We don’t get to choose our circumstances, but we do get to choose how we respond to them.”

Life throws curveballs. Grace is in the swing.

8. “Love doesn’t always come in convenient, easy packages. Sometimes, it’s messy and painful and complicated.”

Real love is not curated. It is raw, inconvenient, but worthwhile.

9. “You can’t stop the future from coming, but you can choose what you do with the time you have.”

This is a call to presence — to savor the now. To make the moment count.

10. “Love doesn’t have to last a lifetime to be real.”

Some loves are short stories, not novels. But they are no less true.