--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: If I stay. If I live. It's up to me." description: "\"If I stay. If I live. It's up to me.\" — Gayle Forman" image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/65f/gayle-forman-312_if-i-stay_if-i-stay-if-i-live-it-s-up-to-me-169126_1691265.png" --- # If I stay. If I live. It's up to me. ![“If I stay. If I live. It's up to me.” quote by Gayle Forman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/65f/gayle-forman-312_if-i-stay_if-i-stay-if-i-live-it-s-up-to-me-169126_1691265.png) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/65f/gayle-forman-312_if-i-stay_if-i-stay-if-i-live-it-s-up-to-me-169126_1691265.png) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/65f/gayle-forman-312_if-i-stay_if-i-stay-if-i-live-it-s-up-to-me-169126_1691265.png) > “If I stay. If I live. It's up to me.” [Gayle Forman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gayle-forman/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. The quote emphasizes personal agency: one's fate depends on personal choices and actions. **In simple terms:** Your future is shaped by your decisions. Key Takeaway Take responsibility for your life. Themes agency choice responsibility Mood determined reflective Type motivational philosophical When to use this quote - career decisions - health choices - relationships - personal growth Key Concepts existentialism self-determination Questions to Reflect On - What choices truly define you? - How do you balance agency with circumstance? A Different Perspective It may overlook external constraints that limit options. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [If i stay](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/if-i-stay/) [Live](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/live/) [Stay](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/stay/) [Stay Live](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/stay-live-1057456/) ## Related quotes > [Can I not stay and live this lie? For I must think only of myself.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alesana/can-i-not-stay-and-live-this-lie-for-i-must-think-only-of-myself/) [Alesana](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alesana/) > [“Adam's lips are set in a grime line. I can't tell if he's about to cry or about to punch the guard. For his…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gayle-forman/adam-s-lips-are-set-in-a-grime-line-i-can-t-tell-if-he-s-about-to-cry/) [Gayle Forman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gayle-forman/) > [“She's not my nurse but she comes up to Gran and Gramps just the same. "Don't you doubt for a second that she can…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gayle-forman/she-s-not-my-nurse-but-she-comes-up-to-gran-and-gramps-just-the-same/) [Gayle Forman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gayle-forman/) > [And now I am here, as alone as I've ever been. I am seventeen years old. This is not how it's suppose to be.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gayle-forman/and-now-i-am-here-as-alone-as-i-ve-ever-been-i-am-seventeen-years-old/) [Gayle Forman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gayle-forman/) > [“I am running the show. Everyone is waiting for me. I decide. I know this now.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gayle-forman/i-am-running-the-show-everyone-is-waiting-for-me-i-decide-i-know-this/) [Gayle Forman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gayle-forman/) > [“I remember watching it all and getting the tickling in my chest and thinking to myself: This is what happiness feels like.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gayle-forman/i-remember-watching-it-all-and-getting-the-tickling-in-my-chest-and/) [Gayle Forman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gayle-forman/) > [“C'mon, Mee,' Henry said. 'You're among family.' 'Totally,' Kim said.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gayle-forman/c-mon-mee-henry-said-you-re-among-family-totally-kim-said/) [Gayle Forman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gayle-forman/) > [“But the you who are tonight is the same you I was in love with yesterday, the same you I'll be in love with…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gayle-forman/but-the-you-who-are-tonight-is-the-same-you-i-was-in-love-with/) [Gayle Forman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gayle-forman/) > [“In English class, someone flung a folded-up square of notebook paper onto the floor next to my right foot. I picked it up and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gayle-forman/in-english-class-someone-flung-a-folded-up-square-of-notebook-paper/) [Gayle Forman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gayle-forman/) > [“It had to do with the doubts. The same niggling doubts I always had about not belonging. I didn't feel like I belonged with…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gayle-forman/it-had-to-do-with-the-doubts-the-same-niggling-doubts-i-always-had/) [Gayle Forman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gayle-forman/) > [“If you stay, I’ll do whatever you want. I’ll quit the band; go with you to New York. But if you need me to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gayle-forman/if-you-stay-i-ll-do-whatever-you-want-i-ll-quit-the-band-go-with-you/) [Gayle Forman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gayle-forman/) > [“Adam had chosen me, and this I didn't understand. Why had he fallen for me? It didn't make sense.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gayle-forman/adam-had-chosen-me-and-this-i-didn-t-understand-why-had-he-fallen-for/) [Gayle Forman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gayle-forman/) > [“There was no point getting all worked up about a kiss. One kiss does not a relationship make. I'd kissed boys before, and usually…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gayle-forman/there-was-no-point-getting-all-worked-up-about-a-kiss-one-kiss-does/) [Gayle Forman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gayle-forman/) > [We are like Humpty Dumpty and all these king's horses and all these king's men cannot put us back together again](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gayle-forman/we-are-like-humpty-dumpty-and-all-these-king-s-horses-and-all-these/) [Gayle Forman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gayle-forman/) > [If I stay. If I live. It’s up to me. All this business about medically induced comas is just doctor talk. It’s not up…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gayle-forman/if-i-stay-if-i-live-it-s-up-to-me-all-this-business-about-medically/) [Gayle Forman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gayle-forman/) ## More by Gayle Forman > [“Waiting for Vengeance' Well, what is this? What am I coming to? And beyond that, what am I gonna do? Now there’s blankness Where…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gayle-forman/waiting-for-vengeance-well-what-is-this-what-am-i-coming-to-and/) [Gayle Forman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gayle-forman/) > [I don’t want to be that person, who just takes things.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gayle-forman/i-don-t-want-to-be-that-person-who-just-takes-things/) [Gayle Forman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gayle-forman/) > [“Adam's lips are set in a grime line. I can't tell if he's about to cry or about to punch the guard. For his…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gayle-forman/adam-s-lips-are-set-in-a-grime-line-i-can-t-tell-if-he-s-about-to-cry/) [Gayle Forman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gayle-forman/) > [I’ve blamed her for all of this, for leaving, for ruining me. And maybe that was the seed of it, but from that one…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gayle-forman/i-ve-blamed-her-for-all-of-this-for-leaving-for-ruining-me-and-maybe/) [Gayle Forman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gayle-forman/) > [There are like twenty people in that waiting room right now. Some of them are related to you. Some of them are not. But…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gayle-forman/there-are-like-twenty-people-in-that-waiting-room-right-now-some-of/) [Gayle Forman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gayle-forman/) > [“It’s like an ache, how much I miss them. How much I miss her. I’m so tired of missing things I don’t have”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gayle-forman/it-s-like-an-ache-how-much-i-miss-them-how-much-i-miss-her-i-m-so/) [Gayle Forman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gayle-forman/) > [“Whoever said that the past isn’t dead had it backward. It’s the future that’s already dead, already played out. This whole night has been…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gayle-forman/whoever-said-that-the-past-isn-t-dead-had-it-backward-it-s-the-future/) [Gayle Forman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gayle-forman/) > [“We drank Pepsi out of these old-fashioned bottles that Dad had found at some ancient country store, and I swear they tasted better than…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gayle-forman/we-drank-pepsi-out-of-these-old-fashioned-bottles-that-dad-had-found/) [Gayle Forman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gayle-forman/) > [“Pero si voy a sobrevivir, no puedo nunca, jamás volver a repasar este día.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gayle-forman/pero-si-voy-a-sobrevivir-no-puedo-nunca-jam-s-volver-a-repasar-este-d/) [Gayle Forman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gayle-forman/) > [“Some things are impossible to tear yourself away from.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gayle-forman/some-things-are-impossible-to-tear-yourself-away-from/) [Gayle Forman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gayle-forman/) > [You meet people, you part ways, sometimes you cross paths again. Mostly, you don't.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gayle-forman/you-meet-people-you-part-ways-sometimes-you-cross-paths-again-mostly/) [Gayle Forman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gayle-forman/) > [“Do you honestly think that where you’re buried has any bearing on where your spirit lives?”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gayle-forman/do-you-honestly-think-that-where-you-re-buried-has-any-bearing-on/) [Gayle Forman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gayle-forman/) > [“Jazz je punk pro staré lidi.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gayle-forman/jazz-je-punk-pro-star-lidi/) [Gayle Forman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gayle-forman/) > [Hate me. Devastate me. Annihilate me. Re-create me. Re-create me. Won't you, won't you won't you re-create me.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gayle-forman/hate-me-devastate-me-annihilate-me-re-create-me-re-create-me-won-t/) [Gayle Forman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gayle-forman/) > [“I can't lose you again. It really will kill me this time.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gayle-forman/i-can-t-lose-you-again-it-really-will-kill-me-this-time/) [Gayle Forman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gayle-forman/) [Explore all 598 Gayle Forman quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gayle-forman/) ## More If i stay quotes > [“Adam's lips are set in a grime line. I can't tell if he's about to cry or about to punch the guard. For his…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gayle-forman/adam-s-lips-are-set-in-a-grime-line-i-can-t-tell-if-he-s-about-to-cry/) [Gayle Forman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gayle-forman/) > [I mostly like to travel and volunteer because I get antsy if I stay in my comfort zone for too long.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/eden-sher/i-mostly-like-to-travel-and-volunteer-because-i-get-antsy-if-i-stay/) [Eden Sher](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/eden-sher/) > [If I stay, they'll kill me... If I go, at least everything that wants me dead won't be taking it personally.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jim-butcher/if-i-stay-they-ll-kill-me-if-i-go-at-least-everything-that-wants-me/) [Jim Butcher](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jim-butcher/) > [If I stay in Washington for more than 72 hours, I have to bathe myself in the same stuff I use when my dog…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/brian-schweitzer/if-i-stay-in-washington-for-more-than-72-hours-i-have-to-bathe-myself/) [Brian Schweitzer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/brian-schweitzer/) > [If I stay alert, then I can challenge myself, and by challenging myself, that helps me to stay alive and to hopefully take something…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/thomas-jane/if-i-stay-alert-then-i-can-challenge-myself-and-by-challenging-myself/) [Thomas Jane](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/thomas-jane/) > [I watch America's Next Top Model in the gym and go, 'If I stay an extra 15 minutes, I will look like that girl!'](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jennifer-love-hewitt/i-watch-america-s-next-top-model-in-the-gym-and-go-if-i-stay-an-extra/) [Jennifer Love Hewitt](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jennifer-love-hewitt/) > [We are like Humpty Dumpty and all these king's horses and all these king's men cannot put us back together again](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gayle-forman/we-are-like-humpty-dumpty-and-all-these-king-s-horses-and-all-these/) [Gayle Forman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gayle-forman/) > [“There was no point getting all worked up about a kiss. One kiss does not a relationship make. I'd kissed boys before, and usually…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gayle-forman/there-was-no-point-getting-all-worked-up-about-a-kiss-one-kiss-does/) [Gayle Forman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gayle-forman/) > [“Adam had chosen me, and this I didn't understand. Why had he fallen for me? It didn't make sense.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gayle-forman/adam-had-chosen-me-and-this-i-didn-t-understand-why-had-he-fallen-for/) [Gayle Forman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gayle-forman/) > [“If you stay, I’ll do whatever you want. I’ll quit the band; go with you to New York. But if you need me to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gayle-forman/if-you-stay-i-ll-do-whatever-you-want-i-ll-quit-the-band-go-with-you/) [Gayle Forman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gayle-forman/) > [“It had to do with the doubts. The same niggling doubts I always had about not belonging. I didn't feel like I belonged with…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gayle-forman/it-had-to-do-with-the-doubts-the-same-niggling-doubts-i-always-had/) [Gayle Forman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gayle-forman/) > [“In English class, someone flung a folded-up square of notebook paper onto the floor next to my right foot. I picked it up and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gayle-forman/in-english-class-someone-flung-a-folded-up-square-of-notebook-paper/) [Gayle Forman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gayle-forman/) > [I believe I'm a middle-of-the-order hitter capable of driving in runs. If I stay healthy, I'll get back to that level.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/justin-morneau/i-believe-i-m-a-middle-of-the-order-hitter-capable-of-driving-in-runs/) [Justin Morneau](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/justin-morneau/) > [“I have to go to her, Lucan. For my own sanity, if nothing else. If I stay here, I'm not sure what good I'd…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/i-have-to-go-to-her-lucan-for-my-own-sanity-if-nothing-else-if-i-stay/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [If I stay at home, I'm not famous. I'm only famous when I'm out in the streets, so I don't go out on the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/morgan-freeman/if-i-stay-at-home-i-m-not-famous-i-m-only-famous-when-i-m-out-in-the/) [Morgan Freeman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/morgan-freeman/) [Browse all 63 If i stay quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/if-i-stay/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "If I stay. If I live. 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