--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: You feel a sense of urgency, especially…" description: "\"You feel a sense of urgency, especially at my advanced age, when you're staring into the grave.\" — Frank McCourt" image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/56b/frank-mccourt-2576_age_you-feel-a-sense-of-urgency-especially-a_547168.png" --- # You feel a sense of urgency, especially at my advanced… ![“You feel a sense of urgency, especially at my advanced age, when you're staring into the grave.” quote by Frank McCourt](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/56b/frank-mccourt-2576_age_you-feel-a-sense-of-urgency-especially-a_547168.png) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/56b/frank-mccourt-2576_age_you-feel-a-sense-of-urgency-especially-a_547168.png) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/56b/frank-mccourt-2576_age_you-feel-a-sense-of-urgency-especially-a_547168.png) > “You feel a sense of urgency, especially at my advanced age, when you're staring into the grave.” [Frank McCourt](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/frank-mccourt/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. He feels urgency and mortality awareness as he ages, confronting death directly. **In simple terms:** Age brings urgency about life and death. Key Takeaway Embrace life’s fleeting nature. Themes mortality age urgency reflection life Mood somber motivational Type existential inspirational When to use this quote - health decisions - legacy planning - personal reflection - creative work Key Concepts existentialism psychology aging Questions to Reflect On - What does urgency inspire in you? - How do you balance fear and purpose? A Different Perspective Fear of death can paralyze action. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Advanced Age](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/advanced-age-471956/) [Age](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/age/) [Age Staring](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/age-staring-4562218/) [Sense of urgency](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/sense-of-urgency/) [Sense Urgency](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/sense-urgency/) [Staring](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/staring/) [Staring Grave](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/staring-grave-4562216/) [Urgency](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/urgency/) [Urgency Especially](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/urgency-especially-4562217/) ## Related quotes > [So many people are on the front lines of this fossil fuel frenzy. It is infused with a sense of urgency.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/avi-lewis/so-many-people-are-on-the-front-lines-of-this-fossil-fuel-frenzy-it/) [Avi Lewis](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/avi-lewis/) > [I just think we want to stay healthy, and I don't think we think about a sense of urgency. We realize how old we…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/karl-malone/i-just-think-we-want-to-stay-healthy-and-i-don-t-think-we-think-about/) [Karl Malone](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/karl-malone/) > [Being constantly the hub of a network of potential interruptions provides the excitement and importance of crisis management. As well as the false sense…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-foley/being-constantly-the-hub-of-a-network-of-potential-interruptions/) [Michael Foley](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michael-foley/) > [You must take action now that will move you towards your goals. Develop a sense of urgency in your life.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/h-jackson-brown-jr/you-must-take-action-now-that-will-move-you-towards-your-goals/) [H. Jackson Brown, Jr](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/h-jackson-brown-jr/) > [IBM needed - an enormous sense of urgency.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lou-gerstner/ibm-needed-an-enormous-sense-of-urgency/) [Lou Gerstner](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lou-gerstner/) > [When I was coming out of the dark places in my life, it's like, 'Man, you've come that close to not being here anymore,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/darren-waller/when-i-was-coming-out-of-the-dark-places-in-my-life-it-s-like-man-you/) [Darren Waller](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/darren-waller/) > [The sense of urgency has almost completely vanished.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/cleve-jones/the-sense-of-urgency-has-almost-completely-vanished/) [Cleve Jones](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/cleve-jones/) > [I'm a little more measured. That sense of urgency I thought accompanied things - it can take a little longer. You have to take…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-arad/i-m-a-little-more-measured-that-sense-of-urgency-i-thought/) [Michael Arad](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michael-arad/) > [Throughout all of human history we've enjoyed certain benign circumstances: an envelope of atmosphere, an envelope of temperature. A kind of resilience that if…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sylvia-earle/throughout-all-of-human-history-we-ve-enjoyed-certain-benign/) [Sylvia Earle](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sylvia-earle/) > [There's a thin line between playing with a sense of urgency and playing a little too tight.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/matthew-slater/there-s-a-thin-line-between-playing-with-a-sense-of-urgency-and/) [Matthew Slater](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/matthew-slater/) > [There's a sense of urgency in understanding that your body is not really your own. We can control it to a certain extent through…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sufjan-stevens/there-s-a-sense-of-urgency-in-understanding-that-your-body-is-not/) [Sufjan Stevens](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sufjan-stevens/) > [I have a sense of urgency, of time. I am a woman and am always running between work, doctors' appointments, school meetings, filling up…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/segolene-royal/i-have-a-sense-of-urgency-of-time-i-am-a-woman-and-am-always-running/) [Segolene Royal](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/segolene-royal/) > [Develop a sense of urgency in your life.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/h-jackson-brown-jr/develop-a-sense-of-urgency-in-your-life/) [H. Jackson Brown, Jr](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/h-jackson-brown-jr/) > [Without a sense of urgency, desire loses its value.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jim-rohn/without-a-sense-of-urgency-desire-loses-its-value/) [Jim Rohn](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jim-rohn/) > [There is a sense of urgency and this is a time for teachers and I think that there is this psychic awareness with this…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gabrielle-bernstein/there-is-a-sense-of-urgency-and-this-is-a-time-for-teachers-and-i/) [Gabrielle Bernstein](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gabrielle-bernstein/) ## More by Frank McCourt > [I'm not one of those James Joyce intellectuals who can stand back and look at the whole edifice... It was a slow process for…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/frank-mccourt/i-m-not-one-of-those-james-joyce-intellectuals-who-can-stand-back-and/) [Frank McCourt](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/frank-mccourt/) > [I admire certain priests and nuns who go off on their own and do God's work on their own, who help in the ghettos,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/frank-mccourt/i-admire-certain-priests-and-nuns-who-go-off-on-their-own-and-do-god/) [Frank McCourt](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/frank-mccourt/) > [When I act tough they listen politely till the spasm passes. They know.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/frank-mccourt/when-i-act-tough-they-listen-politely-till-the-spasm-passes-they-know/) [Frank McCourt](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/frank-mccourt/) > [Just luxuriate in a certain memory, and the details will come. It's like a magnet attracting steel filings.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/frank-mccourt/just-luxuriate-in-a-certain-memory-and-the-details-will-come-it-s/) [Frank McCourt](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/frank-mccourt/) > [Sing your song. Dance your dance. Tell your tale.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/frank-mccourt/sing-your-song-dance-your-dance-tell-your-tale/) [Frank McCourt](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/frank-mccourt/) > [They all went into the bar business. Which was a mistake, because they began to sip at the merchandise and it set them back,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/frank-mccourt/they-all-went-into-the-bar-business-which-was-a-mistake-because-they/) [Frank McCourt](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/frank-mccourt/) > [My childhood here... was very limited. So it was a long, long time before I actually went out to Brooklyn.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/frank-mccourt/my-childhood-here-was-very-limited-so-it-was-a-long-long-time-before/) [Frank McCourt](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/frank-mccourt/) > [We never really had any kind of a Christmas. This is one part where my memory fails me completely.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/frank-mccourt/we-never-really-had-any-kind-of-a-christmas-this-is-one-part-where-my/) [Frank McCourt](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/frank-mccourt/) > [A lot of people say writers start losing their powers after 60 or 65. But I look at the best-seller list and see a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/frank-mccourt/a-lot-of-people-say-writers-start-losing-their-powers-after-60-or-65/) [Frank McCourt](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/frank-mccourt/) > [“When the dark clouds flutter like bats in my head I wish I could open a window and release them.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/frank-mccourt/when-the-dark-clouds-flutter-like-bats-in-my-head-i-wish-i-could-open/) [Frank McCourt](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/frank-mccourt/) > [Shakespeare is like mashed potatoes, you can never get enough of him.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/frank-mccourt/shakespeare-is-like-mashed-potatoes-you-can-never-get-enough-of-him/) [Frank McCourt](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/frank-mccourt/) > [I just have to proceed as usual. No matter what happens, nothing helps with the writing of the next book.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/frank-mccourt/i-just-have-to-proceed-as-usual-no-matter-what-happens-nothing-helps/) [Frank McCourt](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/frank-mccourt/) > [Worse than the ordinary, miserable childhood is the miserable Irish childhood, and worse yet is the miserable Irish Catholic childhood.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/frank-mccourt/worse-than-the-ordinary-miserable-childhood-is-the-miserable-irish/) [Frank McCourt](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/frank-mccourt/) > [It's not enough to be American. You always have to be something else, Irish-American, German-American, and you'd wonder how they'd get along if someone…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/frank-mccourt/it-s-not-enough-to-be-american-you-always-have-to-be-something-else/) [Frank McCourt](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/frank-mccourt/) > [I had to get rid of any idea of hell or any idea of the afterlife. That's what held me, kept me down. So…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/frank-mccourt/i-had-to-get-rid-of-any-idea-of-hell-or-any-idea-of-the-afterlife/) [Frank McCourt](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/frank-mccourt/) [Explore all 159 Frank McCourt quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/frank-mccourt/) ## More Age quotes > [I need a bath." He chuckled. "You smell of smoke, as do I." The duke turned, leaning heavily on his cane. "Jameson, open the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/karen-hawkins/i-need-a-bath-he-chuckled-you-smell-of-smoke-as-do-i-the-duke-turned/) [Karen Hawkins](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/karen-hawkins/) > [While we've youth in our hearts, we can never grow old.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/oliver-wendell-holmes-jr/while-we-ve-youth-in-our-hearts-we-can-never-grow-old/) [Oliver Wendell Holmes, Jr](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/oliver-wendell-holmes-jr/) > [It's easier to change a law than an age-old mentality. Deep down, many prejudices, many hostilities, many fears persist. 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. Adulthood is a series of lines crossed.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ellen-goodman/age-is-an-accumulation-of-life-and-loss-adulthood-is-a-series-of/) [Ellen Goodman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ellen-goodman/) > [I calculated that if I live up to the age of 80, then I end up using 450 toothbrushes in my life. All that…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dia-mirza/i-calculated-that-if-i-live-up-to-the-age-of-80-then-i-end-up-using/) [Dia Mirza](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dia-mirza/) > [Why is wisdom so fair? Why is beauty so wise? Because all else is temporary, while beauty and wisdom are the only real and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/vera-nazarian/why-is-wisdom-so-fair-why-is-beauty-so-wise-because-all-else-is/) [Vera Nazarian](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/vera-nazarian/) > [It was only when I went to acting school that I was like, "You are absolutely such a pigheaded freak show that you thought…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/giles-matthey/it-was-only-when-i-went-to-acting-school-that-i-was-like-you-are/) [Giles Matthey](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/giles-matthey/) > [That old man dies prematurely whose memory records no benefits conferred. They only have lived long who have lived virtuously.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/richard-brinsley-sheridan/that-old-man-dies-prematurely-whose-memory-records-no-benefits/) [Richard Brinsley Sheridan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/richard-brinsley-sheridan/) > [We have started to make music at age seven. That was a hard work.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bill-kaulitz/we-have-started-to-make-music-at-age-seven-that-was-a-hard-work/) [Bill Kaulitz](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bill-kaulitz/) [Browse all 18,948 Age quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/age/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "You feel a sense of urgency, especially at my advanced age, when you're staring into the grave.", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "Frank McCourt" }, "isPartOf": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website" }, "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/frank-mccourt/you-feel-a-sense-of-urgency-especially-at-my-advanced-age-when-you-re/", "about": { "@type": "Thing", "name": "Age" }, "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/frank-mccourt/you-feel-a-sense-of-urgency-especially-at-my-advanced-age-when-you-re/#quotation", "image": { "@type": "ImageObject", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/56b/frank-mccourt-2576_age_you-feel-a-sense-of-urgency-especially-a_547168.png", "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/56b/frank-mccourt-2576_age_you-feel-a-sense-of-urgency-especially-a_547168.png", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/56b/frank-mccourt-2576_age_you-feel-a-sense-of-urgency-especially-a_547168.png", "width": 1080, "height": 1080, "caption": "“You feel a sense of urgency, especially at my advanced age, when you're staring into the grave.” — Frank McCourt", "creditText": "SMS4Smile Quotes", "creator": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization" } } }, { "@type": "BreadcrumbList", "itemListElement": [ { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 1, "name": "Home", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 2, "name": "Quotes", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 3, "name": "Frank McCourt", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/frank-mccourt/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 4, "name": "You feel a sense of urgency,...", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/frank-mccourt/you-feel-a-sense-of-urgency-especially-at-my-advanced-age-when-you-re/" } ], "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/frank-mccourt/you-feel-a-sense-of-urgency-especially-at-my-advanced-age-when-you-re/#breadcrumb" }, { "@type": "WebSite", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website", "name": "SMS4Smile Quotes", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/", "publisher": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization" } }, { "@type": "Organization", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization", "name": "SMS4Smile Quotes", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/", "logo": { "@type": "ImageObject", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/wp-content/themes/sq/assets/icons/icon-512.png", "width": 512, "height": 512 } } ] } ```