--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: We should all live as if we were never…" description: "\"We should all live as if we were never going to die, for it is the deaths of our friends that hurt us, not our own.\" — Gerald Brenan" image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/947/gerald-brenan-19175_death_we-should-all-live-as-if-we-were-never-g_999644.png" --- # We should all live as if we were never going to die, for… ![“We should all live as if we were never going to die, for it is the deaths of our friends that hurt us, not our own.” quote by Gerald Brenan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/947/gerald-brenan-19175_death_we-should-all-live-as-if-we-were-never-g_999644.png) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/947/gerald-brenan-19175_death_we-should-all-live-as-if-we-were-never-g_999644.png) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/947/gerald-brenan-19175_death_we-should-all-live-as-if-we-were-never-g_999644.png) > “We should all live as if we were never going to die, for it is the deaths of our friends that hurt us, not our own.” [Gerald Brenan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gerald-brenan/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Live fully now, because loss of friends hurts more than personal death. **In simple terms:** Live fully; friends matter more. Key Takeaway Cherish relationships now. Themes life mortality friendship loss Mood reflective serene Type philosophical inspirational When to use this quote - friendships - grief counseling - life planning - legacy projects Key Concepts Existential philosophy social bonds meaning of life Questions to Reflect On - How do you honor your friends' lives? - What actions strengthen your friendships? A Different Perspective Focusing solely on self can overlook communal support. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Death](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/death/) [Deaths](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/deaths/) [Deaths Friends](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/deaths-friends-2100983/) [Die Deaths](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/die-deaths-1538482/) [Dies](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/dies/) [Friends hurt](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/friends-hurt/) [Friendship](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/friendship/) [Going Die](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/going-die/) [Hurt](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/hurt/) [Hurt U](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/hurt-u/) [Ifs](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/ifs/) [Inspirational](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/inspirational/) [Should](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/should/) ## Related quotes > [We soon cease to feel the grief at the deaths of our friends, yet we continue to the end of our lives to miss…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gerald-brenan/we-soon-cease-to-feel-the-grief-at-the-deaths-of-our-friends-yet-we/) [Gerald Brenan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gerald-brenan/) > [“Without love, you die. 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Dude,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/everyone-in-a-relationship-hates-those-two-sentances-i-think-we/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [It is easier with strangers, for they touch your life but for an instant. You will not disappoint them, for you owe them nothing;…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-gemmell/it-is-easier-with-strangers-for-they-touch-your-life-but-for-an/) [David Gemmell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-gemmell/) > [Friends can hurt you, but the possibility of pain with lovers is so much greater because your expectations are so high. You don't ask…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ethan-hawke/friends-can-hurt-you-but-the-possibility-of-pain-with-lovers-is-so/) [Ethan Hawke](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ethan-hawke/) > [Sometimes your friends can hurt you wrose than any of your enemies could when we were together, nobody makes me feel like the way…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/sometimes-your-friends-can-hurt-you-wrose-than-any-of-your-enemies/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [“Forgiveness should go hand in hand with love. In our families, as well as with our friends, there can be hurt feelings and disagreements.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/thomas-s-monson/forgiveness-should-go-hand-in-hand-with-love-in-our-families-as-well/) [Thomas S. Monson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/thomas-s-monson/) ## More by Gerald Brenan > [“It is by sitting down to write every morning that one becomes a writer.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gerald-brenan/it-is-by-sitting-down-to-write-every-morning-that-one-becomes-a-writer/) [Gerald Brenan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gerald-brenan/) > [Every writer and artist wonders what in the world people of other professions can find to live for.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gerald-brenan/every-writer-and-artist-wonders-what-in-the-world-people-of-other/) [Gerald Brenan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gerald-brenan/) > [Words are as recalcitrant as circus animals, and the unskilled trainer can crack his whip at them in vain.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gerald-brenan/words-are-as-recalcitrant-as-circus-animals-and-the-unskilled-trainer/) [Gerald Brenan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gerald-brenan/) > [We are closer to the ants than to the butterflies. 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When it reads well it has…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gerald-brenan/when-i-write-a-page-that-reads-badly-i-know-that-it-is-myself-who-has/) [Gerald Brenan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gerald-brenan/) > [A bad memory is the mother of invention.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gerald-brenan/a-bad-memory-is-the-mother-of-invention/) [Gerald Brenan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gerald-brenan/) > [We soon cease to feel the grief at the deaths of our friends, yet we continue to the end of our lives to miss…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gerald-brenan/we-soon-cease-to-feel-the-grief-at-the-deaths-of-our-friends-yet-we/) [Gerald Brenan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gerald-brenan/) > [We confess our bad qualities to others out of fear of appearing naive or ridiculous by not being aware of them.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gerald-brenan/we-confess-our-bad-qualities-to-others-out-of-fear-of-appearing-naive/) [Gerald Brenan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gerald-brenan/) > [Wisdom is keeping a sense of fallibility of all our views and opinions.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gerald-brenan/wisdom-is-keeping-a-sense-of-fallibility-of-all-our-views-and-opinions/) [Gerald Brenan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gerald-brenan/) > [One of the marks of a great poet is that he creates his own family of words and teaches them to live together in…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gerald-brenan/one-of-the-marks-of-a-great-poet-is-that-he-creates-his-own-family-of/) [Gerald Brenan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gerald-brenan/) > [It is by sitting down to write every morning that he becomes a writer. Those who do not do this remain amateurs.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gerald-brenan/it-is-by-sitting-down-to-write-every-morning-that-he-becomes-a-writer/) [Gerald Brenan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gerald-brenan/) [Explore all 33 Gerald Brenan quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gerald-brenan/) ## More Death quotes > [“He wondered how it was fair that your dying should depend so much on when you were born.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mitch-albom/he-wondered-how-it-was-fair-that-your-dying-should-depend-so-much-on/) [Mitch Albom](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mitch-albom/) > [What sets worlds in motion is the interplay of differences, their attractions and repulsions. Life is plurality, death is uniformity. 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Then his eyes turned to the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/j-anthony-torino/what-did-you-see-she-asked-gently-his-brow-furrowed-as-if-he-could/) [J. Anthony Torino](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/j-anthony-torino/) > [Those whose life is long still strive for gain, and for all mortals all things take second place to money.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sophocles/those-whose-life-is-long-still-strive-for-gain-and-for-all-mortals/) [Sophocles](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sophocles/) > [“I practice Dying--every night-- But have not learned to, still-- Though Talented--by Mortal bones-- For such a common Skill.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alan-w-powers/i-practice-dying-every-night-but-have-not-learned-to-still-though/) [Alan W. 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