--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: I am not sure that digging in our past…" description: "\"“I am not sure that digging in our past guilts is a useful occupation for the very old, given that one can do so little about them. I have reached a st..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/693/diana-athill-33371_digging_i-am-not-sure-that-digging-in-our-past-g_470441.png" --- # I am not sure that digging in our past guilts is a useful… ![“I am not sure that digging in our past guilts is a useful occupation for the very old, given that one can do so little about them. I have reached a stage at which one hopes to be forgiven for concentrating on how to get through the present.” quote by Diana Athill](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/693/diana-athill-33371_digging_i-am-not-sure-that-digging-in-our-past-g_470441.png) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/693/diana-athill-33371_digging_i-am-not-sure-that-digging-in-our-past-g_470441.png) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/693/diana-athill-33371_digging_i-am-not-sure-that-digging-in-our-past-g_470441.png) > ““I am not sure that digging in our past guilts is a useful occupation for the very old, given that one can do so little about them. I have reached a stage at which one hopes to be forgiven for concentrating on how to get through the present.”” [Diana Athill](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/diana-athill/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. She argues that focusing on past guilt is unproductive for the elderly; better to seek forgiveness and live in the present. **In simple terms:** Old people should let go of past guilt and live now. Key Takeaway Forgive and focus on present living. Themes aging forgiveness present‑focus psychology Mood reflective calm Type philosophical inspirational When to use this quote - elder care - personal reflection - daily life Key Concepts existentialism mental health Questions to Reflect On - How can you practice present‑moment awareness? - What does forgiveness mean to you? A Different Perspective Past reflection can hinder present well‑being. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Regret](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/regret/) ## Related quotes > [People spend thousands in therapy digging and digging in the past. When you dig and dig, you find relics. Try to forgive yourself and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/richard-simmons/people-spend-thousands-in-therapy-digging-and-digging-in-the-past/) [Richard Simmons](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/richard-simmons/) > [“It’s not always a good idea, digging around in the past,” he said. “I done that once. I went to see the girl who…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/elizabeth-berg/it-s-not-always-a-good-idea-digging-around-in-the-past-he-said-i-done/) [Elizabeth Berg](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/elizabeth-berg/) > [“She found it hard to believe that there would be any bold moves, because too many people had dirty flour in their bags, and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sofi-oksanen/she-found-it-hard-to-believe-that-there-would-be-any-bold-moves/) Sofi Oksanen > [“After being approached at his mother’s funeral by a man who told him that Mary had “single-handedly saved America’s space program…and nobody knows it…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sam-maggs/after-being-approached-at-his-mother-s-funeral-by-a-man-who-told-him/) [Sam Maggs](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sam-maggs/) > [“I have tried to use memory and invention together, like two hands engaged in the same muddy work of digging up the past.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/emma-donoghue/i-have-tried-to-use-memory-and-invention-together-like-two-hands/) [Emma Donoghue](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/emma-donoghue/) > [“Someone once told me that digging up the past has two sides: The pro is that you remember things you had forgotten about. Unfortunately,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/pete-wentz/someone-once-told-me-that-digging-up-the-past-has-two-sides-the-pro/) [Pete Wentz](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/pete-wentz/) > [“Sometimes it’s better not to know. Nothing can change what is or what happened and digging around in the past is only going to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mary-campisi/sometimes-it-s-better-not-to-know-nothing-can-change-what-is-or-what/) [Mary Campisi](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mary-campisi/) > [ The Ancient One, as you know, is the master, is the Sorcerer Supreme, and \[Doctor\] Strange comes to learn how to heal himself and… ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tilda-swinton/the-ancient-one-as-you-know-is-the-master-is-the-sorcerer-supreme-and/) [Tilda Swinton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tilda-swinton/) > [I love the little garden in the back of my family's brownstone in Brooklyn. Digging out there in the dirt is a joy for…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/siri-hustvedt/i-love-the-little-garden-in-the-back-of-my-family-s-brownstone-in/) [Siri Hustvedt](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/siri-hustvedt/) > [When you consider the sheer magnitude of investable equities to choose from in the world's emerging markets, you realize that finding one that looks…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mark-mobius/when-you-consider-the-sheer-magnitude-of-investable-equities-to/) [Mark Mobius](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mark-mobius/) > [From my image of digging around in the mud like a grunt, I preferred fighting the war from ships.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/haskell-wexler/from-my-image-of-digging-around-in-the-mud-like-a-grunt-i-preferred/) [Haskell Wexler](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/haskell-wexler/) > [I thought I knew a lot about music. Then you start digging and the deeper you go, the more there is.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-mellencamp/i-thought-i-knew-a-lot-about-music-then-you-start-digging-and-the/) [John Mellencamp](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-mellencamp/) > [In archaeology you uncover the unknown. In diplomacy you cover the known.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/in-archaeology-you-uncover-the-unknown-in-diplomacy-you-cover-the/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [In a delightful garden, sowing, planting or digging are not hardship but are done with a zeal and a certain pleasure.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/martin-luther/in-a-delightful-garden-sowing-planting-or-digging-are-not-hardship/) [Martin Luther](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/martin-luther/) > [Some people are like ants. Give them a warm day and a piece of ground and they start digging. There the similarity ends. Ants…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/hal-borland/some-people-are-like-ants-give-them-a-warm-day-and-a-piece-of-ground/) [Hal Borland](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/hal-borland/) ## More by Diana Athill > [An important aspect of the ebbing of sex was that other things became interesting. Sex obliterates the individuality of young women more often than…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/diana-athill/an-important-aspect-of-the-ebbing-of-sex-was-that-other-things-became/) [Diana Athill](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/diana-athill/) > [“We must always remember that we are only midwives—if we want praise for progeny we must give birth to our own.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/diana-athill/we-must-always-remember-that-we-are-only-midwives-if-we-want-praise/) [Diana Athill](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/diana-athill/) > [“To me it was plain silly. It is so obvious that life works in terms of species rather than individuals. The individual just has…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/diana-athill/to-me-it-was-plain-silly-it-is-so-obvious-that-life-works-in-terms-of/) [Diana Athill](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/diana-athill/) > [“She was an object lesson on the essential luck, whatever hardships may come their way, of those born able to make things.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/diana-athill/she-was-an-object-lesson-on-the-essential-luck-whatever-hardships-may/) [Diana Athill](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/diana-athill/) > [“Dwindling energy is one of the most boring things about being old. From time to time you get a day when it seems to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/diana-athill/dwindling-energy-is-one-of-the-most-boring-things-about-being-old/) [Diana Athill](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/diana-athill/) > [The extension of power offered by a pony, the ease and speed of movement, the tapping of unsuspected courage, the satisfaction of collaboration with…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/diana-athill/the-extension-of-power-offered-by-a-pony-the-ease-and-speed-of/) [Diana Athill](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/diana-athill/) > [“All through my sixties I felt I was still within hailing distance of middle age, not safe on its shores, perhaps, but navigating its…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/diana-athill/all-through-my-sixties-i-felt-i-was-still-within-hailing-distance-of/) [Diana Athill](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/diana-athill/) > [“Generally office and home were far apart, and home was much more important than office. I was not ashamed of valuing my private life…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/diana-athill/generally-office-and-home-were-far-apart-and-home-was-much-more/) [Diana Athill](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/diana-athill/) > [You don't always have to go so far as to murder your darlings – those turns of phrase or images of which you felt…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/diana-athill/you-don-t-always-have-to-go-so-far-as-to-murder-your-darlings-those/) [Diana Athill](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/diana-athill/) > [“I have heard people bewailing man's landing on the moon, as though before it was touched by an astronaut's foot it was made of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/diana-athill/i-have-heard-people-bewailing-man-s-landing-on-the-moon-as-though/) [Diana Athill](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/diana-athill/) > [“How, then, does the written word work? What part of a reader absorbs it - or should that be a double question: what part…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/diana-athill/how-then-does-the-written-word-work-what-part-of-a-reader-absorbs-it/) [Diana Athill](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/diana-athill/) > [Writing shouldn't come between the reader and what's being described. It should be as transparent as possible.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/diana-athill/writing-shouldn-t-come-between-the-reader-and-what-s-being-described/) [Diana Athill](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/diana-athill/) > [Read it aloud to yourself because that's the only way to be sure the rhythms of the sentences are OK.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/diana-athill/read-it-aloud-to-yourself-because-that-s-the-only-way-to-be-sure-the/) [Diana Athill](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/diana-athill/) > [“It was like removing layers of crumpled brown paper from an awkwardly shaped parcel, and revealing the attractive present which it contained.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/diana-athill/it-was-like-removing-layers-of-crumpled-brown-paper-from-an-awkwardly/) [Diana Athill](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/diana-athill/) [Explore all 15 Diana Athill quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/diana-athill/) ## More Digging quotes > [Some people are like ants. Give them a warm day and a piece of ground and they start digging. There the similarity ends. Ants…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/hal-borland/some-people-are-like-ants-give-them-a-warm-day-and-a-piece-of-ground/) [Hal Borland](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/hal-borland/) > [In a delightful garden, sowing, planting or digging are not hardship but are done with a zeal and a certain pleasure.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/martin-luther/in-a-delightful-garden-sowing-planting-or-digging-are-not-hardship/) [Martin Luther](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/martin-luther/) > [In archaeology you uncover the unknown. In diplomacy you cover the known.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/in-archaeology-you-uncover-the-unknown-in-diplomacy-you-cover-the/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [I thought I knew a lot about music. Then you start digging and the deeper you go, the more there is.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-mellencamp/i-thought-i-knew-a-lot-about-music-then-you-start-digging-and-the/) [John Mellencamp](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-mellencamp/) > [From my image of digging around in the mud like a grunt, I preferred fighting the war from ships.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/haskell-wexler/from-my-image-of-digging-around-in-the-mud-like-a-grunt-i-preferred/) [Haskell Wexler](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/haskell-wexler/) > [When you consider the sheer magnitude of investable equities to choose from in the world's emerging markets, you realize that finding one that looks…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mark-mobius/when-you-consider-the-sheer-magnitude-of-investable-equities-to/) [Mark Mobius](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mark-mobius/) > [I love the little garden in the back of my family's brownstone in Brooklyn. Digging out there in the dirt is a joy for…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/siri-hustvedt/i-love-the-little-garden-in-the-back-of-my-family-s-brownstone-in/) [Siri Hustvedt](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/siri-hustvedt/) > [ The Ancient One, as you know, is the master, is the Sorcerer Supreme, and \[Doctor\] Strange comes to learn how to heal himself and… ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tilda-swinton/the-ancient-one-as-you-know-is-the-master-is-the-sorcerer-supreme-and/) [Tilda Swinton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tilda-swinton/) > [I wish I lived back in the Old West days, because I'd save up my money for about twenty years so I could buy…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jack-handey/i-wish-i-lived-back-in-the-old-west-days-because-i-d-save-up-my-money/) [Jack Handey](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jack-handey/) > [If you really want to be a good archaeologist, you have to understand ancient DNA; you have to understand chemical analysis to figure out…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sarah-parcak/if-you-really-want-to-be-a-good-archaeologist-you-have-to-understand/) [Sarah Parcak](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sarah-parcak/) > [I was a manual labourer. I figured out really early on that the value of my life could be determined by my hourly rate…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/cliff-curtis/i-was-a-manual-labourer-i-figured-out-really-early-on-that-the-value/) [Cliff Curtis](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/cliff-curtis/) > [Archaeology, I found, comprehended all manner of excitement and achievement. Adventure is coupled with bookish toil. Romantic excursions go hand in hand with scholarly…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/archaeology-i-found-comprehended-all-manner-of-excitement-and/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [I've never met a girl who thinks like you." "A lot of people tell me that," she said, digging at a cuticle. "But it's…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/haruki-murakami/i-ve-never-met-a-girl-who-thinks-like-you-a-lot-of-people-tell-me/) [Haruki Murakami](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/haruki-murakami/) > [If you don't break a hole through the brick wall, don't just start digging a new hole. Keep going until you break through that…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/russell-simmons/if-you-don-t-break-a-hole-through-the-brick-wall-don-t-just-start/) [Russell Simmons](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/russell-simmons/) > [Keep digging, Flynn. Six feet makes a grave.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/devon-monk/keep-digging-flynn-six-feet-makes-a-grave/) [Devon Monk](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/devon-monk/) Browse all 487 Digging quotes ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "“I am not sure that digging in our past guilts is a useful occupation for the very old, given that one can do so little about them. 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