--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: If you really want to know, I’d rather…" description: "\"If you really want to know, I’d rather not have been born at all. I find life very tiring. The thing’s done now, of course, and I can’t alter it. But t..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/7e1/anonymous-1_able_if-you-really-want-to-know-i-d-rather-no_1101836.jpg" --- # If you really want to know, I’d rather not have been born… ![“If you really want to know, I’d rather not have been born at all. I find life very tiring. The thing’s done now, of course, and I can’t alter it. But there will always be this regret at the back of my mind, I shall never quite be able to get rid of it, and it will spoil everything. The thing to do…” quote by Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/7e1/anonymous-1_able_if-you-really-want-to-know-i-d-rather-no_1101836.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/7e1/anonymous-1_able_if-you-really-want-to-know-i-d-rather-no_1101836.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/7e1/anonymous-1_able_if-you-really-want-to-know-i-d-rather-no_1101836.jpg) > “If you really want to know, I’d rather not have been born at all. I find life very tiring. The thing’s done now, of course, and I can’t alter it. But there will always be this regret at the back of my mind, I shall never quite be able to get rid of it, and it will spoil everything. The thing to do now is to grow old quickly, to eat up the years as fast as possible, looking neither right nor left.” [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. The speaker expresses deep existential fatigue and regret, feeling life is burdensome and unchangeable, leading to a desire to hasten aging and escape lingering remorse. **In simple terms:** Life feels burdensome and unchangeable, prompting a wish to age quickly. Key Takeaway Accept the present, seek meaning despite fatigue. Themes existentialism regret fatigue aging meaninglessness Mood melancholic reflective Type philosophical existential personal When to use this quote - personal crisis - mental health - philosophical reflection - coping strategies Key Concepts nihilism existential dread temporal awareness Questions to Reflect On - What would change if you embraced the present? - How can you find purpose amid fatigue? A Different Perspective The perspective may overlook possibilities for growth and resilience. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Grow Old](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/grow-old/) [Life](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/life/) [Mind](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/mind/) [Psychology](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/psychology/) [Regret](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/regret/) [Tire](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/tire/) ## Related quotes > [Thank God for the gift of death for life can be tiring](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kateeep/thank-god-for-the-gift-of-death-for-life-can-be-tiring/) Kateeep > [Everything in life can be tiring and tiresome if we don't have the ability to look at it as if it's the first time…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ric-emmanuel-schmitt/everything-in-life-can-be-tiring-and-tiresome-if-we-don-t-have-the/) [Eric-Emmanuel Schmitt](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ric-emmanuel-schmitt/) > [People who do not accept the new, grow old very quickly.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/auguste-escoffier/people-who-do-not-accept-the-new-grow-old-very-quickly/) [Auguste Escoffier](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/auguste-escoffier/) > [Mom and Dad were great, but being asked where I was going every time I left the house - or where I'd been every…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lauren-weisberger/mom-and-dad-were-great-but-being-asked-where-i-was-going-every-time-i/) [Lauren Weisberger](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lauren-weisberger/) > [Nothing makes one old so quickly as the ever-present thought that one is growing older.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/georg-c-lichtenberg/nothing-makes-one-old-so-quickly-as-the-ever-present-thought-that-one/) [Georg C. Lichtenberg](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/georg-c-lichtenberg/) > [“We live to work. Man was made to move. Without work we shall grow old quickly.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lailah-gifty-akita/we-live-to-work-man-was-made-to-move-without-work-we-shall-grow-old/) [Lailah Gifty Akita](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lailah-gifty-akita/) > [“To be astonished is one of the surest ways of not growing old too quickly.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sidonie-gabrielle-colette-2/to-be-astonished-is-one-of-the-surest-ways-of-not-growing-old-too/) Sidonie-Gabrielle Colette > [Men grow old quickly on the battlefield.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/napoleon-bonaparte/men-grow-old-quickly-on-the-battlefield/) [Napoleon Bonaparte](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/napoleon-bonaparte/) > [I was from North Carolina, so as a youngster all of my mind games about golf were always, If I make this I win…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/i-was-from-north-carolina-so-as-a-youngster-all-of-my-mind-games/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [Out of my mind. Back in five minutes.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/out-of-my-mind-back-in-five-minutes/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [I forget most of what I read, just as I do most of what I have eaten, but I know that both contribute no…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/i-forget-most-of-what-i-read-just-as-i-do-most-of-what-i-have-eaten/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [Any chemist reading this book can see, in some detail, how I have spent most of my mature life. They can become familiar with…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/any-chemist-reading-this-book-can-see-in-some-detail-how-i-have-spent/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [Do you think that God would separate me from my husband if I killed myself? I feel as though I am going out of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/do-you-think-that-god-would-separate-me-from-my-husband-if-i-killed/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [I'm one of the little foxes that spoil the grapes.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/i-m-one-of-the-little-foxes-that-spoil-the-grapes/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [You always know just how to spoil me.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/you-always-know-just-how-to-spoil-me/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) ## More by Anonymous > [And a tear rolled down her cheek, as she said goodbye; because she's walking away, and she's never looking back](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/and-a-tear-rolled-down-her-cheek-as-she-said-goodbye-because-she-s/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [Life is full of change. That's how we learn and grow.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/life-is-full-of-change-that-s-how-we-learn-and-grow/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [You'll seldom experience regret for anything that you've done. It is what you haven't done that will torment you. The message, therefore, is clear.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/you-ll-seldom-experience-regret-for-anything-that-you-ve-done-it-is/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [Scrabble - The game is available in Braille. That’s a nice fact. This makes me feel better about humanity for some reason. I can’t…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/scrabble-the-game-is-available-in-braille-that-s-a-nice-fact-this/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [Everyone needs someone to love, and I choose you.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/everyone-needs-someone-to-love-and-i-choose-you/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [“THIS tale of my sore-troubled life I write,    To thank the God of nature, who conveyed    My soul to me, and with such care…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/this-tale-of-my-sore-troubled-life-i-write-to-thank-the-god-of-nature/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [Put on my J's and dance the whole night away Im naughty by nature like Im hip-hop hooray With my hands in the sky,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/put-on-my-j-s-and-dance-the-whole-night-away-im-naughty-by-nature/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [Me.. I have been through a lot, but I still manage to have a smile on my face. Im not worried about the past…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/me-i-have-been-through-a-lot-but-i-still-manage-to-have-a-smile-on-my/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [Distance is a test of love. many will fail for those who can't withstand it, but for those who can, theres only one answer…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/distance-is-a-test-of-love-many-will-fail-for-those-who-can-t/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [Im sorry I ever tried...](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/im-sorry-i-ever-tried/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [Being betrayed by the one you love is the worst feeling in the world...](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/being-betrayed-by-the-one-you-love-is-the-worst-feeling-in-the-world/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [Let children support their parents or be imprisoned.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/let-children-support-their-parents-or-be-imprisoned/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [The only person I've ever purposely caused pain here is myself...By simply sharing, caring too much.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/the-only-person-i-ve-ever-purposely-caused-pain-here-is-myself-by/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [“Start a business, not a startup”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/start-a-business-not-a-startup/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [The truth is, of course, that the curtness of the Ten Commandments is an evidence, not of the gloom and narrowness of a religion,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/the-truth-is-of-course-that-the-curtness-of-the-ten-commandments-is/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) [Explore all 162,899 Anonymous quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) ## More Able quotes > [I am certain that children always know more than they are able to tell, and that makes the big difference between them and adults,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jacques-lusseyran/i-am-certain-that-children-always-know-more-than-they-are-able-to/) [Jacques Lusseyran](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jacques-lusseyran/) > [I have observed this in my experience of slavery, - that whenever my condition was improved, instead of its increasing my contentment, it only…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/frederick-douglass/i-have-observed-this-in-my-experience-of-slavery-that-whenever-my/) [Frederick Douglass](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/frederick-douglass/) > [There is something about the South that accepts the supernatural. If you don't accept it and you're having a conversation with someone who does,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alice-englert/there-is-something-about-the-south-that-accepts-the-supernatural-if/) [Alice Englert](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alice-englert/) > [In the '80s, the way radio was programmed, if you didn't have a hit record you weren't going to be able to make any…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/huey-lewis/in-the-80s-the-way-radio-was-programmed-if-you-didn-t-have-a-hit/) [Huey Lewis](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/huey-lewis/) > [I think I've had the longest career of strength, focus, and still being able to sell records. I think I'm that guy. I'm still…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nas/i-think-i-ve-had-the-longest-career-of-strength-focus-and-still-being/) [Nas](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nas/) > [I have that need in me, I want everyone to love me, but I'm embarrassed by that need, so I wanted to cover it…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anthony-jeselnik/i-have-that-need-in-me-i-want-everyone-to-love-me-but-i-m-embarrassed/) [Anthony Jeselnik](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anthony-jeselnik/) > [Thinking about the things that happened, I don't know any other ball player would could have done what he (Jackie Robinson) did. To be…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/pee-wee-reese/thinking-about-the-things-that-happened-i-don-t-know-any-other-ball/) [Pee Wee Reese](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/pee-wee-reese/) > [I wanted to remember in order to be able to return.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anais-nin/i-wanted-to-remember-in-order-to-be-able-to-return/) [Anais Nin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anais-nin/) > [Government schools, with your tax money, now discourage the teaching of multiplication tables by rote memorization but teach reading by the 'look-and-say' method which…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/greg-perry/government-schools-with-your-tax-money-now-discourage-the-teaching-of/) Greg Perry > [I don't know if I would qualify as mainstream. I think I have managed to function pretty successfully on the fringes of the music…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/pat-metheny/i-don-t-know-if-i-would-qualify-as-mainstream-i-think-i-have-managed/) [Pat Metheny](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/pat-metheny/) > [What we're supposed to do as actors is be able to portray real human beings and emotions. And if you grow up in this…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/emily-browning/what-we-re-supposed-to-do-as-actors-is-be-able-to-portray-real-human/) [Emily Browning](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/emily-browning/) > [The reason that Apple is able to create products like iPad is because we always try to be at the intersection of technology and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/steve-jobs/the-reason-that-apple-is-able-to-create-products-like-ipad-is-because/) [Steve Jobs](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/steve-jobs/) > [It was an important period for us, because even though we weren't a "punk band", and what became a model for a punk band,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stephen-mallinder/it-was-an-important-period-for-us-because-even-though-we-weren-t-a/) [Stephen Mallinder](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stephen-mallinder/) > [- You look fine. - Right. I look fine. Except I don't, said Zora, tugging sadly at her man's nightshirt. This was why Kiki…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/zadie-smith/you-look-fine-right-i-look-fine-except-i-don-t-said-zora-tugging/) [Zadie Smith](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/zadie-smith/) > [There is a way to be a woman, ask for what we deserve and be able to negotiate.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tracee-ellis-ross/there-is-a-way-to-be-a-woman-ask-for-what-we-deserve-and-be-able-to/) [Tracee Ellis Ross](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tracee-ellis-ross/) Browse all 17,257 Able quotes ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "If you really want to know, I’d rather not have been born at all. I find life very tiring. The thing’s done now, of course, and I can’t alter it. But there will always be this regret at the back of my mind, I shall never quite be able to get rid of it, and it will spoil everything. 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