--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: Trust no future, however pleasant! Let…" description: "\"Trust no future, however pleasant! Let the dead past bury its dead! Act -- act in the living Present! Heart within and God overhead.\" — Henry Wadsworth..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/37d/henry-wadsworth-longfellow-284_bury_trust-no-future-however-pleasant-let-the_2873478.jpg" --- # Trust no future, however pleasant! Let the dead past bury… ![“Trust no future, however pleasant! Let the dead past bury its dead! Act -- act in the living Present! Heart within and God overhead.” quote by Henry Wadsworth Longfellow](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/37d/henry-wadsworth-longfellow-284_bury_trust-no-future-however-pleasant-let-the_2873478.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/37d/henry-wadsworth-longfellow-284_bury_trust-no-future-however-pleasant-let-the_2873478.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/37d/henry-wadsworth-longfellow-284_bury_trust-no-future-however-pleasant-let-the_2873478.jpg) > “Trust no future, however pleasant! Let the dead past bury its dead! Act -- act in the living Present! Heart within and God overhead.” [Henry Wadsworth Longfellow](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/henry-wadsworth-longfellow/) ## 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 in the present, let past die, act with purpose and faith. **In simple terms:** Focus on now; let past go. Key Takeaway Act now with heart and belief. Themes present living action faith Mood hopeful determined Type inspirational philosophical When to use this quote - daily routines - creative projects - spiritual practice Key Concepts mindfulness purpose spirituality Questions to Reflect On - What actions can you take today to honor your values? - How does faith guide your present actions? A Different Perspective Ignoring the past may neglect lessons learned. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Bury](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/bury/) [Bury Dead](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/bury-dead-401891/) [Future](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/future/) [Heart](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/heart/) [Let Dead](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/let-dead-281420/) [Living Present](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/living-present/) [Overhead](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/overhead/) [Past](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/past/) [Past Bury](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/past-bury-1979354/) [Pleasant](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/pleasant/) [Time](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/time/) [Trust](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/trust/) ## Related quotes > [Let the dead Past bury its dead!](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/henry-wadsworth-longfellow/let-the-dead-past-bury-its-dead/) [Henry Wadsworth Longfellow](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/henry-wadsworth-longfellow/) > [“The past was finished; let the dead bury their dead.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/w-somerset-maugham/the-past-was-finished-let-the-dead-bury-their-dead/) [W. Somerset Maugham](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/w-somerset-maugham/) > [Let the dead bury the dead.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/harper-lee/let-the-dead-bury-the-dead/) [Harper Lee](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/harper-lee/) > [Let the dead bury the dead, your time will come.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bob-dylan/let-the-dead-bury-the-dead-your-time-will-come/) [Bob Dylan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bob-dylan/) > [Trust Future, however pleasant, Let the past bury its dead Make the use of present, Heart within and God overhead.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/trust-future-however-pleasant-let-the-past-bury-its-dead-make-the-use/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [“You should bury more than the dead. You should try harder. You should give up.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/olena-kalytiak-davis/you-should-bury-more-than-the-dead-you-should-try-harder-you-should/) [Olena Kalytiak Davis](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/olena-kalytiak-davis/) > [“Let each day bury its dead.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/val-edward-simone/let-each-day-bury-its-dead/) [Val Edward Simone](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/val-edward-simone/) > [“Forget the past, let the dead bury the dead. Things were working out fine, and that was the only thing he had to remember.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robert-bloch/forget-the-past-let-the-dead-bury-the-dead-things-were-working-out/) [Robert Bloch](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robert-bloch/) > [“Let the dead bury the dead, Sassenach,” he said softly. “The past is gone—the future is not come. And we are here together, you…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/diana-gabaldon/let-the-dead-bury-the-dead-sassenach-he-said-softly-the-past-is-gone/) [Diana Gabaldon](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/diana-gabaldon/) > [Virtually every civilized society today holds sacred the right to peaceably bury their dead.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mike-schmidt/virtually-every-civilized-society-today-holds-sacred-the-right-to/) [Mike Schmidt](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mike-schmidt/) > [“This was trouble--of the bury-your-dead variety.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/j-r-ward/this-was-trouble-of-the-bury-your-dead-variety/) [J.R. Ward](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/j-r-ward/) > [“It is not necessary to let your past bury your future!”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/laurette/it-is-not-necessary-to-let-your-past-bury-your-future/) [Laurette](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/laurette/) > [“ A Psalm of Life Tell me not in mournful numbers, Life is but an empty dream! For the soul is dead that slumbers,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/henry-wadsworth-longfellow/a-psalm-of-life-tell-me-not-in-mournful-numbers-life-is-but-an-empty/) [Henry Wadsworth Longfellow](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/henry-wadsworth-longfellow/) > [I know why we try to keep the dead alive: we try to keep them alive in order to keep them with us. I…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joan-didion/i-know-why-we-try-to-keep-the-dead-alive-we-try-to-keep-them-alive-in/) [Joan Didion](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joan-didion/) > [“When was it all right to let go not only of the dead but of the living - to learn to accept?”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alice-sebold/when-was-it-all-right-to-let-go-not-only-of-the-dead-but-of-the/) [Alice Sebold](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alice-sebold/) ## More by Henry Wadsworth Longfellow > [The spring came suddenly, bursting upon the world as a child bursts into a room, with a laugh and a shout and hands full…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/henry-wadsworth-longfellow/the-spring-came-suddenly-bursting-upon-the-world-as-a-child-bursts/) [Henry Wadsworth Longfellow](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/henry-wadsworth-longfellow/) > [In old age our bodies are worn-out instruments, on which the soul tries in vain to play the melodies of youth. But because the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/henry-wadsworth-longfellow/in-old-age-our-bodies-are-worn-out-instruments-on-which-the-soul/) [Henry Wadsworth Longfellow](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/henry-wadsworth-longfellow/) > [“ Endymion The rising moon has hid the stars; Her level rays, like golden bars, Lie on the landscape green, With shadows brown between.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/henry-wadsworth-longfellow/endymion-the-rising-moon-has-hid-the-stars-her-level-rays-like-golden/) [Henry Wadsworth Longfellow](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/henry-wadsworth-longfellow/) > [There's nothing fair nor beautiful, but takes Something from thee, that makes it beautiful.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/henry-wadsworth-longfellow/there-s-nothing-fair-nor-beautiful-but-takes-something-from-thee-that/) [Henry Wadsworth Longfellow](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/henry-wadsworth-longfellow/) > [Fame comes only when deserved, and then is as inevitable as destiny, for it is destiny.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/henry-wadsworth-longfellow/fame-comes-only-when-deserved-and-then-is-as-inevitable-as-destiny/) [Henry Wadsworth Longfellow](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/henry-wadsworth-longfellow/) > [Nature paints not; In oils, but frescoes the great dome of heaven; With sunsets, and the lovely forms of clouds; And flying vapors.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/henry-wadsworth-longfellow/nature-paints-not-in-oils-but-frescoes-the-great-dome-of-heaven-with/) [Henry Wadsworth Longfellow](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/henry-wadsworth-longfellow/) > [“  Thus dwelt together in love these simple Acadian farmers,—   Dwelt in the love of God and of man. Alike were they free from   Fear,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/henry-wadsworth-longfellow/thus-dwelt-together-in-love-these-simple-acadian-farmers-dwelt-in-the/) [Henry Wadsworth Longfellow](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/henry-wadsworth-longfellow/) > [The trees are white with dust, that o'er their sleep Wave their broad curtains in the south-wind's breath, While underneath such leafy tents they…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/henry-wadsworth-longfellow/the-trees-are-white-with-dust-that-o-er-their-sleep-wave-their-broad/) [Henry Wadsworth Longfellow](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/henry-wadsworth-longfellow/) > [Heights by great men reached and kept were not obtained by sudden flight but, while their companions slept, they were toiling upward in the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/henry-wadsworth-longfellow/heights-by-great-men-reached-and-kept-were-not-obtained-by-sudden/) [Henry Wadsworth Longfellow](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/henry-wadsworth-longfellow/) > [All things come round to him who will but wait.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/henry-wadsworth-longfellow/all-things-come-round-to-him-who-will-but-wait/) [Henry Wadsworth Longfellow](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/henry-wadsworth-longfellow/) > [Ah, how skillful grows the hand That obeyeth Love's command! It is the heart, and not the brain, That to the highest doth attain,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/henry-wadsworth-longfellow/ah-how-skillful-grows-the-hand-that-obeyeth-love-s-command-it-is-the/) [Henry Wadsworth Longfellow](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/henry-wadsworth-longfellow/) > [Thus departed Hiawatha, Hiawatha the Beloved, In the glory of the sunset, In the purple mists of evening, To the regions of the home-wind,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/henry-wadsworth-longfellow/thus-departed-hiawatha-hiawatha-the-beloved-in-the-glory-of-the/) [Henry Wadsworth Longfellow](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/henry-wadsworth-longfellow/) > [Books are sepulchres of thought.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/henry-wadsworth-longfellow/books-are-sepulchres-of-thought/) [Henry Wadsworth Longfellow](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/henry-wadsworth-longfellow/) > [Morality without religion is only a kind of dead reckoning - an endeavor to find our place on a cloudy sea by measuring the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/henry-wadsworth-longfellow/morality-without-religion-is-only-a-kind-of-dead-reckoning-an/) [Henry Wadsworth Longfellow](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/henry-wadsworth-longfellow/) > [Buried was the bloody hatchet; Buried was the dreadful war-club; Buried were all warlike weapons, And the war-cry was forgotten. Then was peace among…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/henry-wadsworth-longfellow/buried-was-the-bloody-hatchet-buried-was-the-dreadful-war-club-buried/) [Henry Wadsworth Longfellow](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/henry-wadsworth-longfellow/) [Explore all 755 Henry Wadsworth Longfellow quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/henry-wadsworth-longfellow/) ## More Bury quotes > [What you try to bury just ends up burying you.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jane-wagner/what-you-try-to-bury-just-ends-up-burying-you/) [Jane Wagner](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jane-wagner/) > [I have to stay here and bury her," he whispered. "Here, between RiverClan and ThunderClan. After this, not even her own Clan will want…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/erin-hunter/i-have-to-stay-here-and-bury-her-he-whispered-here-between-riverclan/) [Erin Hunter](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/erin-hunter/) > [“Bury us, and mark our names above. Let us be free.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/madeline-miller/bury-us-and-mark-our-names-above-let-us-be-free/) [Madeline Miller](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/madeline-miller/) > [I once said, 'We will bury you,' and I got into trouble with it. Of course we will not bury you with a shovel.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nikita-khrushchev/i-once-said-we-will-bury-you-and-i-got-into-trouble-with-it-of-course/) [Nikita Khrushchev](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nikita-khrushchev/) > [“The seed we bury in soil, Flourish, even after we die.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/neymat-khan/the-seed-we-bury-in-soil-flourish-even-after-we-die/) [Neymat Khan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/neymat-khan/) > [“Sweetheart, I’ll be a Marine ‘til they bury my cold, dead, decrepit ass in the ground a good fifty or sixty years from now.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dee-tenorio/sweetheart-i-ll-be-a-marine-til-they-bury-my-cold-dead-decrepit-ass/) [Dee Tenorio](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dee-tenorio/) > [There's also the tradition of voodoo, the Haitian magic arts, in New Orleans. And because New Orleans is below sea level, when they bury…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sam-trammell/there-s-also-the-tradition-of-voodoo-the-haitian-magic-arts-in-new/) [Sam Trammell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sam-trammell/) > [“You did anything to bury me, but you forgot that I was a seed.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dinos-christianopoulos/you-did-anything-to-bury-me-but-you-forgot-that-i-was-a-seed/) [Dinos Christianopoulos](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dinos-christianopoulos/) > [True to my religion, true everything Im too different. So when I die, bury me next to 2 bitches.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/2-chainz/true-to-my-religion-true-everything-im-too-different-so-when-i-die/) [2 Chainz](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/2-chainz/) > [“A seed only realizes its potential the day you bury it.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/matshona-dhliwayo/a-seed-only-realizes-its-potential-the-day-you-bury-it/) [Matshona Dhliwayo](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/matshona-dhliwayo/) > [Cant break me down, bury me bury me, I am finished with you](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/30-seconds-to-mars/cant-break-me-down-bury-me-bury-me-i-am-finished-with-you/) [30 Seconds To Mars](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/30-seconds-to-mars/) > [What made it special made it dangerous, so I bury it... and forget.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kate-bush/what-made-it-special-made-it-dangerous-so-i-bury-it-and-forget/) [Kate Bush](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kate-bush/) > [A person you bury in ur heart you can neva 4get](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/melchor-lim/a-person-you-bury-in-ur-heart-you-can-neva-4get/) [Melchor Lim](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/melchor-lim/) > [“If love weighs you down and casts a shadow on your life then it isn’t love. Love is light and makes you light.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kamand-kojouri/if-love-weighs-you-down-and-casts-a-shadow-on-your-life-then-it-isn-t/) [Kamand Kojouri](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kamand-kojouri/) > [“Adulthood involves learning to conclusively bury a great many of our hopes.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alain-de-botton/adulthood-involves-learning-to-conclusively-bury-a-great-many-of-our/) [Alain de Botton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alain-de-botton/) [Browse all 220 Bury quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/bury/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "Trust no future, however pleasant! Let the dead past bury its dead! Act -- act in the living Present! Heart within and God overhead.", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "Henry Wadsworth Longfellow" }, "isPartOf": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website" }, "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/henry-wadsworth-longfellow/trust-no-future-however-pleasant-let-the-dead-past-bury-its-dead-act/", "about": { "@type": "Thing", "name": "Bury" }, "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/henry-wadsworth-longfellow/trust-no-future-however-pleasant-let-the-dead-past-bury-its-dead-act/#quotation", "image": { "@type": "ImageObject", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/37d/henry-wadsworth-longfellow-284_bury_trust-no-future-however-pleasant-let-the_2873478.jpg", "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/37d/henry-wadsworth-longfellow-284_bury_trust-no-future-however-pleasant-let-the_2873478.jpg", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/37d/henry-wadsworth-longfellow-284_bury_trust-no-future-however-pleasant-let-the_2873478.jpg", "width": 1080, "height": 1080, "caption": "“Trust no future, however pleasant! Let the dead past bury its dead! Act -- act in the living Present! Heart…” — Henry Wadsworth Longfellow", "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": "Henry Wadsworth Longfellow", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/henry-wadsworth-longfellow/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 4, "name": "Trust no future, however pleasant! Let...", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/henry-wadsworth-longfellow/trust-no-future-however-pleasant-let-the-dead-past-bury-its-dead-act/" } ], "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/henry-wadsworth-longfellow/trust-no-future-however-pleasant-let-the-dead-past-bury-its-dead-act/#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 } } ] } ```