--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: I'm not on the run from anything and I'm…" description: "\"I'm not on the run from anything and I'm not at all clear about what I'm running towards. But as some great writer put it, I want to be certain that wh..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/925/fiona-shaw-15460_certain_i-m-not-on-the-run-from-anything-and-i-m_2189107.jpg" --- # I'm not on the run from anything and I'm not at all clear… ![“I'm not on the run from anything and I'm not at all clear about what I'm running towards. But as some great writer put it, I want to be certain that when I arrive at death, I'm totally exhausted.” quote by Fiona Shaw](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/925/fiona-shaw-15460_certain_i-m-not-on-the-run-from-anything-and-i-m_2189107.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/925/fiona-shaw-15460_certain_i-m-not-on-the-run-from-anything-and-i-m_2189107.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/925/fiona-shaw-15460_certain_i-m-not-on-the-run-from-anything-and-i-m_2189107.jpg) > “I'm not on the run from anything and I'm not at all clear about what I'm running towards. But as some great writer put it, I want to be certain that when I arrive at death, I'm totally exhausted.” [Fiona Shaw](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/fiona-shaw/) ## 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 feels directionless yet seeks exhaustion at death, echoing a desire for a fully lived life. **In simple terms:** Wants to be exhausted by life's end. Key Takeaway Pursue a life of purpose. Themes purpose existence exhaustion Mood determined introspective Type motivational philosophical When to use this quote - career planning - personal growth Key Concepts existentialism motivation Questions to Reflect On - What does “exhausted” mean to you? - How can you measure a life well lived? A Different Perspective Exhaustion may not equal fulfillment. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Death](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/death/) [Great writers](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/great-writers/) [Running](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/running/) [Writing](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/writing/) ## Related quotes > [On stage, you have to hype yourself for two hours. It takes up a lot of energy, leaving me totally exhausted.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/poonam-dhillon/on-stage-you-have-to-hype-yourself-for-two-hours-it-takes-up-a-lot-of/) [Poonam Dhillon](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/poonam-dhillon/) > [“I’m on my own again. I feel totally exhausted. I”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tom-hughes/i-m-on-my-own-again-i-feel-totally-exhausted-i/) Tom Hughes > [Two sittings a day of my models and I'm totally exhausted.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/paul-cezanne/two-sittings-a-day-of-my-models-and-i-m-totally-exhausted/) [Paul Cezanne](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/paul-cezanne/) > [I'd be totally exhausted by mid-afternoon, and I could barely climb the stairs at home. It was particularly alarming because all my life I'd…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-crawford/i-d-be-totally-exhausted-by-mid-afternoon-and-i-could-barely-climb/) [Michael Crawford](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michael-crawford/) > [“Some people tiptoe through life to arrive at death safely.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stevie-kisner/some-people-tiptoe-through-life-to-arrive-at-death-safely/) Stevie Kisner > [I don't want to die. I can't wrap my head around the concept of death because I'm totally atheist. There's nothing after life in…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alissa-white-gluz/i-don-t-want-to-die-i-can-t-wrap-my-head-around-the-concept-of-death/) [Alissa White-Gluz](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alissa-white-gluz/) > [I think Willa Cather did a short story called "Paul's Case," and in it, when he finally commits suicide, it says, "He surrendered to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rod-serling/i-think-willa-cather-did-a-short-story-called-paul-s-case-and-in-it/) [Rod Serling](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rod-serling/) > [“When death comes you do not stay for one minute in the place it has visited. Many things arrive after death-sadness, questions, and policemen-…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/chris-cleave/when-death-comes-you-do-not-stay-for-one-minute-in-the-place-it-has/) [Chris Cleave](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/chris-cleave/) > [The sort of the template of being a mother is that you're endlessly giving to the point of exhaustion. You know, that's amazing if…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/caitlin-moran/the-sort-of-the-template-of-being-a-mother-is-that-you-re-endlessly/) [Caitlin Moran](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/caitlin-moran/) > [“I'm exhausted when I get home, even though the school day was the equivalent of a seven-hour yawn without Galen or Chloe.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anna-banks/i-m-exhausted-when-i-get-home-even-though-the-school-day-was-the/) [Anna Banks](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anna-banks/) > [I want to explain how exhausted I am. Even in my dreams. How I wake up tired. How I’m being drowned by some kind…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/elizabeth-wurtzel/i-want-to-explain-how-exhausted-i-am-even-in-my-dreams-how-i-wake-up/) [Elizabeth Wurtzel](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/elizabeth-wurtzel/) > [The blog is certainly another tool for writers out there to break their way in. But being a blogger does not make you a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/julie-powell/the-blog-is-certainly-another-tool-for-writers-out-there-to-break/) [Julie Powell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/julie-powell/) > [Many great writers have been extraordinarily awkward in daily exchange, but the greatest give the impression that their style was nursed by the closest…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/thornton-wilder/many-great-writers-have-been-extraordinarily-awkward-in-daily/) [Thornton Wilder](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/thornton-wilder/) > [Great writers zealously learn the craft of their profession so they can release the power and the depth of their imagination and experience.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/leonard-bishop/great-writers-zealously-learn-the-craft-of-their-profession-so-they/) [Leonard Bishop](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/leonard-bishop/) > [English literature is a glorious inheritance which is open to all - there are no barriers, no coupons, and no restrictions. In the English…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/winston-churchill/english-literature-is-a-glorious-inheritance-which-is-open-to-all/) [Winston Churchill](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/winston-churchill/) ## More by Fiona Shaw > [I just think that things should be allowed to run their course, and not turned into a Disney ride.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/fiona-shaw/i-just-think-that-things-should-be-allowed-to-run-their-course-and/) [Fiona Shaw](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/fiona-shaw/) > [Theater is dangerously open to repetition. It's exciting when you hit on a new way.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/fiona-shaw/theater-is-dangerously-open-to-repetition-it-s-exciting-when-you-hit/) [Fiona Shaw](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/fiona-shaw/) > [Like a lot of Irish households we read a lot of Irish history. It was almost Soviet, raising the next generation with a mythic…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/fiona-shaw/like-a-lot-of-irish-households-we-read-a-lot-of-irish-history-it-was/) [Fiona Shaw](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/fiona-shaw/) > [The Americans are very clear, and obsessed with nouns.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/fiona-shaw/the-americans-are-very-clear-and-obsessed-with-nouns/) [Fiona Shaw](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/fiona-shaw/) > [I certainly had no intention of playing a man.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/fiona-shaw/i-certainly-had-no-intention-of-playing-a-man/) [Fiona Shaw](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/fiona-shaw/) > [I enjoy making films, but my heart is in the stage. Every night you have to be on. There's no second take.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/fiona-shaw/i-enjoy-making-films-but-my-heart-is-in-the-stage-every-night-you/) [Fiona Shaw](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/fiona-shaw/) > [To be honest I live among the English and have always found them to be very honest in their business dealings. They are noble,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/fiona-shaw/to-be-honest-i-live-among-the-english-and-have-always-found-them-to/) [Fiona Shaw](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/fiona-shaw/) > [Once you've done one style, you leave it for a while.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/fiona-shaw/once-you-ve-done-one-style-you-leave-it-for-a-while/) [Fiona Shaw](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/fiona-shaw/) > [Every generation is obsessed with the decade before they were born.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/fiona-shaw/every-generation-is-obsessed-with-the-decade-before-they-were-born/) [Fiona Shaw](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/fiona-shaw/) > [I loathe bad theater and most theatre is very bad because it's repetitious, unexciting and, dangerously, it is sometimes praised for those things.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/fiona-shaw/i-loathe-bad-theater-and-most-theatre-is-very-bad-because-it-s/) [Fiona Shaw](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/fiona-shaw/) > [Honestly, I get more recognized for 'Three Men and a Little Lady' than 'Harry Potter'.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/fiona-shaw/honestly-i-get-more-recognized-for-three-men-and-a-little-lady-than/) [Fiona Shaw](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/fiona-shaw/) > [Theater dates very quickly.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/fiona-shaw/theater-dates-very-quickly/) [Fiona Shaw](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/fiona-shaw/) > [One moment cannot be the most important.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/fiona-shaw/one-moment-cannot-be-the-most-important/) [Fiona Shaw](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/fiona-shaw/) > [A lot of Irish people perform. They perform in drawing rooms. They sing songs and they play piano.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/fiona-shaw/a-lot-of-irish-people-perform-they-perform-in-drawing-rooms-they-sing/) [Fiona Shaw](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/fiona-shaw/) > [There's something about the Irish that is remarkable.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/fiona-shaw/there-s-something-about-the-irish-that-is-remarkable/) [Fiona Shaw](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/fiona-shaw/) [Explore all 43 Fiona Shaw quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/fiona-shaw/) ## More Certain 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/) > [One can put some trust in the gratitude of a sovereign, and also in that of his family; under certain conditions, one can even…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/otto-von-bismarck/one-can-put-some-trust-in-the-gratitude-of-a-sovereign-and-also-in/) [Otto von Bismarck](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/otto-von-bismarck/) > [For successful education there must always be a certain freshness in the knowledge dealt with. It must be either new in itself or invested…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alfred-north-whitehead/for-successful-education-there-must-always-be-a-certain-freshness-in/) [Alfred North Whitehead](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alfred-north-whitehead/) > [People don't always realize that a record is forever. It'll always be there under your name. You've got to be certain that it's right.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/frank-iero/people-don-t-always-realize-that-a-record-is-forever-it-ll-always-be/) [Frank Iero](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/frank-iero/) > [Faith gives you a certain structure and meaning to your life.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/riffat-hassan/faith-gives-you-a-certain-structure-and-meaning-to-your-life/) Riffat Hassan > [I started out dancing on a reality TV show, but always with the intention of making my way over to film. I transitioned into…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/julianne-hough/i-started-out-dancing-on-a-reality-tv-show-but-always-with-the/) [Julianne Hough](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/julianne-hough/) > [One of the deepest and strangest of all human moods is the mood which will suddenly strike us perhaps in a garden at night,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/one-of-the-deepest-and-strangest-of-all-human-moods-is-the-mood-which/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [A dialogue is very important. It is a form of communication in which question and answer continue till a question is left without an…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jiddu-krishnamurti/a-dialogue-is-very-important-it-is-a-form-of-communication-in-which/) [Jiddu Krishnamurti](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jiddu-krishnamurti/) > [I mean those people who are interested in good government will certainly contribute in order to make certain there's some counter-balance to those whose…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stephen-breyer/i-mean-those-people-who-are-interested-in-good-government-will/) [Stephen Breyer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stephen-breyer/) > [Why do we love certain homes, and why do they seem to love us? It is the warmth of our individual hearts reflected in…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/t-h-robsjohn-gibbings/why-do-we-love-certain-homes-and-why-do-they-seem-to-love-us-it-is/) T. H. Robsjohn-Gibbings > [Human life consists of doing certain things ... to take part in the life of the community; to be able to talk about subjects…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/amartya-sen/human-life-consists-of-doing-certain-things-to-take-part-in-the-life/) [Amartya Sen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/amartya-sen/) > [We've all seen talented young players who get to a certain level but there comes a point where that talent will only take you…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/warren-gatland/we-ve-all-seen-talented-young-players-who-get-to-a-certain-level-but/) [Warren Gatland](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/warren-gatland/) > [The concept of humanity is an especially useful ideological instrument of imperialist expansion, and in its ethical-humanitarian form it is a specific vehicle of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/carl-schmitt/the-concept-of-humanity-is-an-especially-useful-ideological/) [Carl Schmitt](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/carl-schmitt/) > [I think that at a certain age, say fifteen or sixteen, poetry is like masturbation. But later in life good poets burn their early…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/umberto-eco/i-think-that-at-a-certain-age-say-fifteen-or-sixteen-poetry-is-like/) [Umberto Eco](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/umberto-eco/) > [If a person does not listen to the demands of their own spiritual and heart life and insists on a certain program, you're going…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joseph-campbell/if-a-person-does-not-listen-to-the-demands-of-their-own-spiritual-and/) [Joseph Campbell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joseph-campbell/) Browse all 13,673 Certain quotes ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "I'm not on the run from anything and I'm not at all clear about what I'm running towards. 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