--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: certain very old people reach an age…" description: "\"certain very old people reach an age where every funeral becomes some sort of insane confirmation of strength, rather than of vulnerability, as it is w..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/9d5/erica-jong-445_age_certain-very-old-people-reach-an-age-whe_3112079.jpg" --- # certain very old people reach an age where every funeral… ![“certain very old people reach an age where every funeral becomes some sort of insane confirmation of strength, rather than of vulnerability, as it is when we are in our thirties or forties and our friends die.” quote by Erica Jong](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/9d5/erica-jong-445_age_certain-very-old-people-reach-an-age-whe_3112079.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/9d5/erica-jong-445_age_certain-very-old-people-reach-an-age-whe_3112079.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/9d5/erica-jong-445_age_certain-very-old-people-reach-an-age-whe_3112079.jpg) > “certain very old people reach an age where every funeral becomes some sort of insane confirmation of strength, rather than of vulnerability, as it is when we are in our thirties or forties and our friends die.” [Erica Jong](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/erica-jong/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. It observes that as people age, funerals shift from highlighting vulnerability to showcasing strength, contrasting with younger adults' experiences. **In simple terms:** Older people see funerals as strength, not vulnerability. Key Takeaway Recognize how perspective on loss changes with age. Themes aging loss perspective Mood thoughtful somber Type philosophical reflective When to use this quote - elder care - grief counseling - family gatherings Key Concepts existentialism life cycle Questions to Reflect On - How does age affect your view of mortality? - Can you find strength in loss? A Different Perspective May overlook individual grief experiences; not all view funerals similarly. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Age](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/age/) [Age Funeral](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/age-funeral-5437333/) [Certain](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/certain/) [Certain Old](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/certain-old-1112223/) [Confirmation](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/confirmation/) [Dies](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/dies/) [Forty](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/forty/) [Friends Die](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/friends-die-315726/) [Friendship](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/friendship/) [Funeral](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/funeral/) [Insane](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/insane/) [Old age](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/old-age/) [Old people](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/old-people/) [People](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/people/) [Vulnerability](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/vulnerability/) ## Related quotes > [The fear of old age disturbs us, yet we are not certain of becoming old.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jean-de-la-bruyere/the-fear-of-old-age-disturbs-us-yet-we-are-not-certain-of-becoming-old/) [Jean de la Bruyere](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jean-de-la-bruyere/) > [“Mamma says she is quite certain that "how old is too old?" is not a question known to the Lord.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/annette-bridges/mamma-says-she-is-quite-certain-that-how-old-is-too-old-is-not-a/) [Annette Bridges](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/annette-bridges/) > [One thing is certain. The old Piper Laurie is no more.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/piper-laurie/one-thing-is-certain-the-old-piper-laurie-is-no-more/) [Piper Laurie](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/piper-laurie/) > [The man who holds the key to a woman's heart should make certain the old ones are destroyed.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/minna-antrim/the-man-who-holds-the-key-to-a-woman-s-heart-should-make-certain-the/) [Minna Antrim](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/minna-antrim/) > [Certain old men prefer to rise at dawn, taking a cold bath and a long walk with an empty stomach and otherwise mortifying the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ambrose-bierce/certain-old-men-prefer-to-rise-at-dawn-taking-a-cold-bath-and-a-long/) [Ambrose Bierce](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ambrose-bierce/) > [“It seems like our town has closed down these days leading up to the funeral. 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I don’t want battles where we have to lose in order to win.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/yuna/i-don-t-want-friends-to-die-or-fade-away-i-don-t-want-battles-where/) [Yuna](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/yuna/) > [You have friends, and they die. You have a disease, someone you care about has a disease, Wall Street people are scamming everyone, the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/adam-driver/you-have-friends-and-they-die-you-have-a-disease-someone-you-care/) [Adam Driver](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/adam-driver/) > [This is a message 4 all those who DON'T DRINK OR SMOKE! One day your old friends will die n u will be left alone.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/punkinhead-abhishek/this-is-a-message-4-all-those-who-don-t-drink-or-smoke-one-day-your/) [Punkinhead Abhishek](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/punkinhead-abhishek/) > [Friends die in war. It is easier to remember this before the war than after.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-nathaniel-bell/friends-die-in-war-it-is-easier-to-remember-this-before-the-war-than/) [William Nathaniel Bell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-nathaniel-bell/) > [“We saw our friends die. But we also see our friends live. So many of them live, and we often toast their long and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-levithan/we-saw-our-friends-die-but-we-also-see-our-friends-live-so-many-of/) [David Levithan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-levithan/) ## More by Erica Jong > [“It took me years to learn to sit at my desk for more than two minutes at a time, to put up with the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/erica-jong/it-took-me-years-to-learn-to-sit-at-my-desk-for-more-than-two-minutes/) [Erica Jong](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/erica-jong/) > [Will you ever? 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If a man writes a book about his family stories, people think of it as literature. If…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/erica-jong/women-s-books-are-kind-of-discriminated-against-if-a-man-writes-a/) [Erica Jong](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/erica-jong/) > [Many, many people have done a lot more sexual experimentation than I have.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/erica-jong/many-many-people-have-done-a-lot-more-sexual-experimentation-than-i/) [Erica Jong](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/erica-jong/) > [“Is life much too long for an immortal?”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/erica-jong/is-life-much-too-long-for-an-immortal/) [Erica Jong](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/erica-jong/) > [Don't ye know that ev'ry Soul on Earth feels itself to be an Orphan?](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/erica-jong/don-t-ye-know-that-ev-ry-soul-on-earth-feels-itself-to-be-an-orphan/) [Erica Jong](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/erica-jong/) > [Critics write out of intellectual exercise, not poets. 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But if we take a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dacia-maraini/it-s-easier-to-change-a-law-than-an-age-old-mentality-deep-down-many/) [Dacia Maraini](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dacia-maraini/) > [When I first started writing, when I was 15, I would go to work with people and they would tell me my lyrics were…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sabrina-claudio/when-i-first-started-writing-when-i-was-15-i-would-go-to-work-with/) [Sabrina Claudio](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sabrina-claudio/) > [Real people speak in my books about the main events of the age, such as the war, the Chernobyl disaster, and the downfall of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/svetlana-alexievich/real-people-speak-in-my-books-about-the-main-events-of-the-age-such/) [Svetlana Alexievich](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/svetlana-alexievich/) > [As a child I was very involved with sports and I knew at age 9 that I wanted to be an Olympic champion.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/marion-jones/as-a-child-i-was-very-involved-with-sports-and-i-knew-at-age-9-that-i/) [Marion Jones](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/marion-jones/) > [If there is any period one would desire to be born in, is it not the age of Revolution; when the old and the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ralph-waldo-emerson/if-there-is-any-period-one-would-desire-to-be-born-in-is-it-not-the/) [Ralph Waldo Emerson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ralph-waldo-emerson/) > [By making conscious choices in our behavior and where we focus our attention, we can transform our experience of our body, decrease our biological…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/deepak-chopra/by-making-conscious-choices-in-our-behavior-and-where-we-focus-our/) [Deepak Chopra](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/deepak-chopra/) > [I am just enjoying the dream of being Milan coach at the age of 40.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gennaro-gattuso/i-am-just-enjoying-the-dream-of-being-milan-coach-at-the-age-of-40/) [Gennaro Gattuso](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gennaro-gattuso/) > [Age is an accumulation of life and loss. 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