--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: Losing both parents at a young age gave…" description: "\"Losing both parents at a young age gave me a sense that you can't really control life - so you'd better live it while it's here. I stopped believing in..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/553/jon-hamm-8288_age_losing-both-parents-at-a-young-age-gave_2976880.jpg" --- # Losing both parents at a young age gave me a sense that… ![“Losing both parents at a young age gave me a sense that you can't really control life - so you'd better live it while it's here. I stopped believing in a storybook existence a long time ago. All you can do is push in a direction and see what comes of it.” quote by Jon Hamm](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/553/jon-hamm-8288_age_losing-both-parents-at-a-young-age-gave_2976880.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/553/jon-hamm-8288_age_losing-both-parents-at-a-young-age-gave_2976880.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/553/jon-hamm-8288_age_losing-both-parents-at-a-young-age-gave_2976880.jpg) > “Losing both parents at a young age gave me a sense that you can't really control life - so you'd better live it while it's here. I stopped believing in a storybook existence a long time ago. All you can do is push in a direction and see what comes of it.” [Jon Hamm](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jon-hamm/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Loss teaches that control is illusion; live fully in the present and act without certainty. **In simple terms:** Life is unpredictable; act now. Key Takeaway Seize the moment. Themes loss control impermanence action Mood introspective hopeful Type philosophical inspirational When to use this quote - grief counseling - career decisions - personal growth - creative projects Key Concepts existential acceptance mindfulness Questions to Reflect On - What does “living now” look like for you? - How do you balance risk and safety? A Different Perspective Too much action without reflection can be reckless. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Age](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/age/) [Believing Storybook](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/believing-storybook-4610644/) [Control Life](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/control-life/) [Existence](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/existence/) [Life](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/life/) [Long](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/long/) [Long time](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/long-time/) [Long time ago](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/long-time-ago/) [Losing](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/losing/) [Losing Both Parents](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/losing-both-parents-227368/) [Losing Parents](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/losing-parents-1395291/) [Parenting](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/parenting/) [Storybook Existence](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/storybook-existence-4610643/) [Young](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/young/) [Young age](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/young-age/) ## Related quotes > [Losing my parents was probably the hardest and deepest blow from which I've had to recover.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/marlo-thomas/losing-my-parents-was-probably-the-hardest-and-deepest-blow-from/) [Marlo Thomas](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/marlo-thomas/) > [After you have loss in your life and after you experience something like losing your parents, the greatest gift of that was it prepared…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dane-cook/after-you-have-loss-in-your-life-and-after-you-experience-something/) [Dane Cook](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dane-cook/) > [Losing my parents was the most crushing thing that ever happened to me. I lost my dad when I was 26, and it changed…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/harlan-coben/losing-my-parents-was-the-most-crushing-thing-that-ever-happened-to/) [Harlan Coben](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/harlan-coben/) > [Being an only child and losing both my parents at an early age, I have found that the friends I have made over the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/fannie-flagg/being-an-only-child-and-losing-both-my-parents-at-an-early-age-i-have/) [Fannie Flagg](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/fannie-flagg/) > [As a child I had dealt with a lot of loss and grief. I was constantly losing my parents, losing my home, constantly moving…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/erin-gray/as-a-child-i-had-dealt-with-a-lot-of-loss-and-grief-i-was-constantly/) [Erin Gray](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/erin-gray/) > [Losing my parents really set me adrift in more ways than one. It's not just losing them. It's losing the possibility of family.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/walter-mosley/losing-my-parents-really-set-me-adrift-in-more-ways-than-one-it-s-not/) [Walter Mosley](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/walter-mosley/) > [Losing close relatives doesnt get any easier, really, but losing your parents is the big deal.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rick-stein/losing-close-relatives-doesnt-get-any-easier-really-but-losing-your/) [Rick Stein](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rick-stein/) > [After everything I've been through - the foster care, the losing my parents and stuff like that, I was never one to kind of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/barry-keoghan/after-everything-i-ve-been-through-the-foster-care-the-losing-my/) [Barry Keoghan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/barry-keoghan/) > [As you gain control of the mind, you gain control of life and you gain control of your time. It all works together.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/frederick-lenz/as-you-gain-control-of-the-mind-you-gain-control-of-life-and-you-gain/) [Frederick Lenz](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/frederick-lenz/) > [I have no control of life. I have to prepare myself for any situation.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lyoto-machida/i-have-no-control-of-life-i-have-to-prepare-myself-for-any-situation/) [Lyoto Machida](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lyoto-machida/) > [“If you are impeccable with your word, if you don’t take anything personally, if you don’t make assumptions, if you always do your best,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/miguel-ruiz/if-you-are-impeccable-with-your-word-if-you-don-t-take-anything/) [Miguel Ruiz](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/miguel-ruiz/) > [In my work I have complete control, but about my life, I don't want to.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/marina-abramovic/in-my-work-i-have-complete-control-but-about-my-life-i-don-t-want-to/) [Marina Abramovic](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/marina-abramovic/) > [You are the master of your own destiny; you can influence, direct and also control your own life the way you feel is going…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kemmy-nola/you-are-the-master-of-your-own-destiny-you-can-influence-direct-and/) [Kemmy Nola](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kemmy-nola/) > [“To control your life, control your mind. To control your mind, control your breath.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stephen-richards/to-control-your-life-control-your-mind-to-control-your-mind-control/) [Stephen Richards](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stephen-richards/) > [“Without time management, you lose control of your life and do what other people tell you to do. You lose control and become a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/thomas-miller/without-time-management-you-lose-control-of-your-life-and-do-what/) [Thomas Miller](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/thomas-miller/) ## More by Jon Hamm > [People go through different stages of their lives at different times. If you're out of sync with your friend group, that gets exploded once…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jon-hamm/people-go-through-different-stages-of-their-lives-at-different-times/) [Jon Hamm](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jon-hamm/) > [I got into acting because my teachers kept nudging me into it. The power a teacher has to influence someone is so great. I…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jon-hamm/i-got-into-acting-because-my-teachers-kept-nudging-me-into-it-the/) [Jon Hamm](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jon-hamm/) > [Would you want people walking up to you and pointing at your d--k? I can't believe I'm still talking about this. But I've worn…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jon-hamm/would-you-want-people-walking-up-to-you-and-pointing-at-your-d-k-i/) [Jon Hamm](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jon-hamm/) > [Any time you're making a movie, all you want to do is reduce the variables of things that could possibly go wrong. I think…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jon-hamm/any-time-you-re-making-a-movie-all-you-want-to-do-is-reduce-the/) [Jon Hamm](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jon-hamm/) > [It's hard to describe to people how terrible it was when you could only watch cartoons at a certain time in your life. But…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jon-hamm/it-s-hard-to-describe-to-people-how-terrible-it-was-when-you-could/) [Jon Hamm](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jon-hamm/) > [I always say I make the movies where people go, 'Hey, I never saw it, but when I finally did, I really liked it.'…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jon-hamm/i-always-say-i-make-the-movies-where-people-go-hey-i-never-saw-it-but/) [Jon Hamm](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jon-hamm/) > [I'm not Yadier Molina behind the plate, but I can throw a ball to second on a rope.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jon-hamm/i-m-not-yadier-molina-behind-the-plate-but-i-can-throw-a-ball-to/) [Jon Hamm](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jon-hamm/) > [I'm painfully aware of my surroundings at all times.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jon-hamm/i-m-painfully-aware-of-my-surroundings-at-all-times/) [Jon Hamm](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jon-hamm/) > [The world keeps moving, the world keeps turning, and people get older, and young people become older and more important and cooler and interesting,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jon-hamm/the-world-keeps-moving-the-world-keeps-turning-and-people-get-older/) [Jon Hamm](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jon-hamm/) > [I've always had weird hair, and it's never looked good.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jon-hamm/i-ve-always-had-weird-hair-and-it-s-never-looked-good/) [Jon Hamm](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jon-hamm/) > [Being in an ensemble cast is the best. You're all in the same boat. You're all together.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jon-hamm/being-in-an-ensemble-cast-is-the-best-you-re-all-in-the-same-boat-you/) [Jon Hamm](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jon-hamm/) > [The great thing about getting older is living life.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jon-hamm/the-great-thing-about-getting-older-is-living-life/) [Jon Hamm](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jon-hamm/) > [The last thing I wanted to do was play another womanizer or ladies' man or Lothario. I've taken myself out of the running for…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jon-hamm/the-last-thing-i-wanted-to-do-was-play-another-womanizer-or-ladies/) [Jon Hamm](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jon-hamm/) > [It's definitely nerve-racking to be the center of attention. I'm not the kind of an actor that just craves attention 24-7 - but it's…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jon-hamm/it-s-definitely-nerve-racking-to-be-the-center-of-attention-i-m-not/) [Jon Hamm](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jon-hamm/) > [I felt very comfortable playing Don Draper, because I knew that Don Draper is a character - that Dick Whitman is playing Don Draper.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jon-hamm/i-felt-very-comfortable-playing-don-draper-because-i-knew-that-don/) [Jon Hamm](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jon-hamm/) [Explore all 82 Jon Hamm quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jon-hamm/) ## 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": "Losing both parents at a young age gave me a sense that you can't really control life - so you'd better live it while it's here. I stopped believing in a storybook existence a long time ago. 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