--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: Let us not look back to the past with…" description: "\"“Let us not look back to the past with anger, nor towards the future with fear, but look around with awareness.”\" — James Thurber" image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/6b9/james-thurber-1534_anger_let-us-not-look-back-to-the-past-with-an_2675810.png" --- # Let us not look back to the past with anger, nor towards… ![“Let us not look back to the past with anger, nor towards the future with fear, but look around with awareness.” quote by James Thurber](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/6b9/james-thurber-1534_anger_let-us-not-look-back-to-the-past-with-an_2675810.png) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/6b9/james-thurber-1534_anger_let-us-not-look-back-to-the-past-with-an_2675810.png) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/6b9/james-thurber-1534_anger_let-us-not-look-back-to-the-past-with-an_2675810.png) > ““Let us not look back to the past with anger, nor towards the future with fear, but look around with awareness.”” [James Thurber](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/james-thurber/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. He urges present‑moment awareness, avoiding anger about the past and fear of the future. **In simple terms:** Focus on now, not past or future. Key Takeaway Practice mindful awareness daily. Themes mindfulness awareness present Mood calm reflective Type mindful philosophical When to use this quote - stress reduction - decision making - personal growth Key Concepts psychology philosophy Questions to Reflect On - How can you train yourself to stay present? - What practices help release past anger? A Different Perspective Awareness can be challenged by habitual rumination. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Anger](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/anger/) [Awareness](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/awareness/) [Fear](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/fear/) [Time](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/time/) ## Related quotes > [“I sat there on that Wednesday evening in my pokey fucking living room, looked at myself on the TV screen being a massive, odious…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/james-rhodes/i-sat-there-on-that-wednesday-evening-in-my-pokey-fucking-living-room/) [James Rhodes](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/james-rhodes/) > [Once I got past my anger toward my mother, I began to excel in volleyball and modeling.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gabrielle-reece/once-i-got-past-my-anger-toward-my-mother-i-began-to-excel-in/) [Gabrielle Reece](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gabrielle-reece/) > [“You know what might help? If you wrote her a letter and told her everything you’re thinking and feeling about what she did. Maybe…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/marie-force/you-know-what-might-help-if-you-wrote-her-a-letter-and-told-her/) [Marie Force](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/marie-force/) > [Don't look back at your past, you can't fix what's already been done, just move forward and live in the moment.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/don-t-look-back-at-your-past-you-can-t-fix-what-s-already-been-done/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [“Humans rarely look back to the past, until they have made the same mistake!”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lucinda-riley/humans-rarely-look-back-to-the-past-until-they-have-made-the-same/) [Lucinda Riley](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lucinda-riley/) > [“When you look at the past, the past will always be deterministic, since only one single observation took place.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nassim-nicholas-taleb/when-you-look-at-the-past-the-past-will-always-be-deterministic-since/) [Nassim Nicholas Taleb](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nassim-nicholas-taleb/) > [Don't look back to the past. Look towards the future for a better tomorrow.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/don-t-look-back-to-the-past-look-towards-the-future-for-a-better/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [“I know what it is to look at your past, and see nothing more than your mistakes”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/a-c-gaughen/i-know-what-it-is-to-look-at-your-past-and-see-nothing-more-than-your/) [A.C. Gaughen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/a-c-gaughen/) > [Don't look into the past look into the future](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/don-t-look-into-the-past-look-into-the-future/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [“You have to look past the beauty to see the ugliness.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nath-jones/you-have-to-look-past-the-beauty-to-see-the-ugliness/) Nath Jones > [There is a way to look at the past. Don't hide from it. 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Anything bad can be transformed…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mehmet-murat-ildan/anger-is-a-rough-water-if-you-can-canalize-it-into-a-water-mill-you/) [Mehmet Murat Ildan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mehmet-murat-ildan/) > [“Some say the Earth is angry Because he wants no company; I say the Earth is angry Because he lives alone.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/n-k-jemisin/some-say-the-earth-is-angry-because-he-wants-no-company-i-say-the/) [N.K. Jemisin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/n-k-jemisin/) > [“When you feel terribly angry, you're possessed by anger ghost.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/toba-beta/when-you-feel-terribly-angry-you-re-possessed-by-anger-ghost/) [Toba Beta](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/toba-beta/) > [“Medical studies have shown that cursing reduces levels of stress and pain. Repressing your anger is not healthy. It's much better to verbalize it,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/oliver-markus-malloy/medical-studies-have-shown-that-cursing-reduces-levels-of-stress-and/) [Oliver Markus Malloy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/oliver-markus-malloy/) > [My care will be in the heart n not in words My anger will be in Words n not in the Heart](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ritu-ghatourey/my-care-will-be-in-the-heart-n-not-in-words-my-anger-will-be-in-words/) [Ritu Ghatourey](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ritu-ghatourey/) > [You should be angry. You must not be bitter. Bitterness is like cancer. It eats upon the host. It doesn't do anything to the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/maya-angelou/you-should-be-angry-you-must-not-be-bitter-bitterness-is-like-cancer/) [Maya Angelou](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/maya-angelou/) > [To be a Negro in this country and to be relatively conscious is to be in a rage almost all the time.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/to-be-a-negro-in-this-country-and-to-be-relatively-conscious-is-to-be/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [“God, you had enough time to have been through it three times. You've been through my stuff. I bet you over and let one…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stephen-king/god-you-had-enough-time-to-have-been-through-it-three-times-you-ve/) [Stephen King](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stephen-king/) > [The present contains nothing more than the past, and what is found in the effect was already in the cause.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/henri-bergson/the-present-contains-nothing-more-than-the-past-and-what-is-found-in/) [Henri Bergson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/henri-bergson/) > [Depression is merely anger without enthusiasm.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/steven-wright/depression-is-merely-anger-without-enthusiasm/) [Steven Wright](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/steven-wright/) > [I always fight better when my opponent's angry.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-haye/i-always-fight-better-when-my-opponent-s-angry/) [David Haye](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-haye/) > [ “Where there are kashays (anger-pride-deceit-greed), there is worldly life. As long as anger-pride-deceit-greed exist; one is a sansaari \[living a worldly life\] regardless of… ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dada-bhagwan/where-there-are-kashays-anger-pride-deceit-greed-there-is-worldly/) [Dada Bhagwan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dada-bhagwan/) [Browse all 7,469 Anger quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/anger/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "“Let us not look back to the past with anger, nor towards the future with fear, but look around with awareness.”", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "James Thurber" }, "isPartOf": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website" }, "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/james-thurber/let-us-not-look-back-to-the-past-with-anger-nor-towards-the-future/", "about": { "@type": "Thing", "name": "Anger" }, "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/james-thurber/let-us-not-look-back-to-the-past-with-anger-nor-towards-the-future/#quotation", "image": { "@type": "ImageObject", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/6b9/james-thurber-1534_anger_let-us-not-look-back-to-the-past-with-an_2675810.png", "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/6b9/james-thurber-1534_anger_let-us-not-look-back-to-the-past-with-an_2675810.png", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/6b9/james-thurber-1534_anger_let-us-not-look-back-to-the-past-with-an_2675810.png", "width": 1080, "height": 1080, "caption": "“Let us not look back to the past with anger, nor towards the future with fear, but look around with awareness.” — James Thurber", "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": "James Thurber", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/james-thurber/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 4, "name": "“Let us not look back to...", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/james-thurber/let-us-not-look-back-to-the-past-with-anger-nor-towards-the-future/" } ], "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/james-thurber/let-us-not-look-back-to-the-past-with-anger-nor-towards-the-future/#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 } } ] } ```