--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: Instead of joyfully looking forward to my…" description: "\"Instead of joyfully looking forward to my birth, my mother began systematically preparing for her own death. She was fatalistic.\" — Lorna Luft" image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/1a1/lorna-luft-9342_birth_instead-of-joyfully-looking-forward-to-m_975365.jpg" --- # Instead of joyfully looking forward to my birth, my mother… ![“Instead of joyfully looking forward to my birth, my mother began systematically preparing for her own death. She was fatalistic.” quote by Lorna Luft](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/1a1/lorna-luft-9342_birth_instead-of-joyfully-looking-forward-to-m_975365.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/1a1/lorna-luft-9342_birth_instead-of-joyfully-looking-forward-to-m_975365.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/1a1/lorna-luft-9342_birth_instead-of-joyfully-looking-forward-to-m_975365.jpg) > “Instead of joyfully looking forward to my birth, my mother began systematically preparing for her own death. She was fatalistic.” [Lorna Luft](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lorna-luft/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Facing a mother’s fatalistic outlook on death can dampen one’s own joy about life. **In simple terms:** Death outlook can dim happiness. Key Takeaway Cultivate personal optimism. Themes family mortality optimism Mood reflective somber Type personal psychological When to use this quote - grieving - life planning - mental health Key Concepts psychology resilience generational influence Questions to Reflect On - How to support a fatalistic loved one? - How to keep personal joy alive? A Different Perspective Fatalism may be hard to change. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Birth](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/birth/) [Birth mother](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/birth-mother/) [Death](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/death/) [Fatalistic](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/fatalistic/) [Mother](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/mother/) [Parenting](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/parenting/) ## Related quotes > [I am preparing myself for death. When I go to sleep, I try to keep myself smiling. So that when I die, I have…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/zohra-sehgal/i-am-preparing-myself-for-death-when-i-go-to-sleep-i-try-to-keep/) Zohra Sehgal > [Preparing for death is one of the most empowering things you can do. Thinking about death clarifies your life.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/preparing-for-death-is-one-of-the-most-empowering-things-you-can-do/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [The business of the Christian is nothing else but to be ever preparing for death.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/the-business-of-the-christian-is-nothing-else-but-to-be-ever/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [It is good to have a reminder of death before us, for it helps us to understand the impermanence of life on this earth,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/black-elk/it-is-good-to-have-a-reminder-of-death-before-us-for-it-helps-us-to/) [Black Elk](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/black-elk/) > [“The aim of all life is death. Life is the apprenticeship that we serve preparing for death. Life is the fleeting spark of divinity…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kilroy-j-oldster/the-aim-of-all-life-is-death-life-is-the-apprenticeship-that-we-serve/) [Kilroy J. Oldster](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kilroy-j-oldster/) > [I spend my days preparing for life, not preparing for death.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mumia-abu-jamal/i-spend-my-days-preparing-for-life-not-preparing-for-death/) [Mumia Abu-Jamal](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mumia-abu-jamal/) > [“I went into the kitchen. My mother joined us there, Margaret threw back three shots in a row. "Oh yes, to be sure, Margaret…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/howard-norman/i-went-into-the-kitchen-my-mother-joined-us-there-margaret-threw-back/) [Howard Norman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/howard-norman/) > [“Passover isn't about eating, Hannah," her mother began at last, sighing and pushing her fingers through her silver-streaked hair. "You could have fooled me,"…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jane-yolen/passover-isn-t-about-eating-hannah-her-mother-began-at-last-sighing/) [Jane Yolen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jane-yolen/) > [“Reggie's earliest memory of her mother began with her mother balancing an egg on its end and ended with Reggie losing her left ear.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jennifer-mcmahon/reggie-s-earliest-memory-of-her-mother-began-with-her-mother/) [Jennifer McMahon](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jennifer-mcmahon/) > [My mother began to go crazy. Not in a 'Let's paint the kitchen red!' sort of way. But crazy in a 'gas oven, toothpaste…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/augusten-burroughs/my-mother-began-to-go-crazy-not-in-a-let-s-paint-the-kitchen-red-sort/) [Augusten Burroughs](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/augusten-burroughs/) > [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/) > [“On the big bed, Mamima and Sandeep’s mother began to dream, sprawled in vivid crab-like postures. His aunt lay on her stomach, her arms…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/amit-chaudhuri/on-the-big-bed-mamima-and-sandeep-s-mother-began-to-dream-sprawled-in/) [Amit Chaudhuri](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/amit-chaudhuri/) > [My mother began her political journey as a symbol of hope and resistance to the repressive, regressive, Islamist regime of General Ziaul Haq.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bilawal-bhutto-zardari/my-mother-began-her-political-journey-as-a-symbol-of-hope-and/) [Bilawal Bhutto Zardari](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bilawal-bhutto-zardari/) > [I now know, by an almost fatalistic conformity with the facts, that my destiny is to travel...](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/i-now-know-by-an-almost-fatalistic-conformity-with-the-facts-that-my/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [I think death is part of all of our lives and everything needs to evolve into something else. Anyway, that's my fatalistic attitude.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rick-owens/i-think-death-is-part-of-all-of-our-lives-and-everything-needs-to/) [Rick Owens](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rick-owens/) ## More by Lorna Luft > [When you're Judy Garland and you want something, you just pick up the phone and call somebody. Anybody.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lorna-luft/when-you-re-judy-garland-and-you-want-something-you-just-pick-up-the/) [Lorna Luft](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lorna-luft/) > [I'm extraordinarily honored and proud when I am told that I am part of the Broadway community and part of the Broadway family. Because,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lorna-luft/i-m-extraordinarily-honored-and-proud-when-i-am-told-that-i-am-part/) [Lorna Luft](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lorna-luft/) > [My mother was a phoenix who always expected to rise from the ashes of her latest disaster. She loved being Judy Garland](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lorna-luft/my-mother-was-a-phoenix-who-always-expected-to-rise-from-the-ashes-of/) [Lorna Luft](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lorna-luft/) > [Every time I go out on a stage I consider myself very lucky. Because, in a time where people are economically thinking about what…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lorna-luft/every-time-i-go-out-on-a-stage-i-consider-myself-very-lucky-because/) [Lorna Luft](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lorna-luft/) > [Between them, my parents had 10 marriages.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lorna-luft/between-them-my-parents-had-10-marriages/) [Lorna Luft](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lorna-luft/) > [Sinatra was just one of Mom's friends.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lorna-luft/sinatra-was-just-one-of-mom-s-friends/) [Lorna Luft](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lorna-luft/) > [When I look back at The Judy Garland Show, I have such mixed feelings. It broke my mother's heart when they canceled it.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lorna-luft/when-i-look-back-at-the-judy-garland-show-i-have-such-mixed-feelings/) [Lorna Luft](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lorna-luft/) > [If you really want to kill yourself, you get a gun and blow your head off](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lorna-luft/if-you-really-want-to-kill-yourself-you-get-a-gun-and-blow-your-head/) [Lorna Luft](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lorna-luft/) > [Dinah had all the class.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lorna-luft/dinah-had-all-the-class/) [Lorna Luft](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lorna-luft/) > [I have a healthy body, free of the chemicals that once controlled it.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lorna-luft/i-have-a-healthy-body-free-of-the-chemicals-that-once-controlled-it/) [Lorna Luft](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lorna-luft/) > [When your parent is a public idol, you never really have a chance to lay that parent to rest.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lorna-luft/when-your-parent-is-a-public-idol-you-never-really-have-a-chance-to/) [Lorna Luft](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lorna-luft/) > [When my mother signed at MGM, that was the only kind of contract you could sign. There was no such thing as an independent…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lorna-luft/when-my-mother-signed-at-mgm-that-was-the-only-kind-of-contract-you/) [Lorna Luft](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lorna-luft/) > [Living in continual chaos is exhausting, frightening. The catch is that it's also very addictive.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lorna-luft/living-in-continual-chaos-is-exhausting-frightening-the-catch-is-that/) [Lorna Luft](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lorna-luft/) > [One of the oddities about being Judy Garland's daughter was that everyone treated my mother with such awe that they would never have asked…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lorna-luft/one-of-the-oddities-about-being-judy-garland-s-daughter-was-that/) [Lorna Luft](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lorna-luft/) > [People come up to me as I leave the stage after a performance and tell me tey saw my mother onstage with me every…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lorna-luft/people-come-up-to-me-as-i-leave-the-stage-after-a-performance-and/) [Lorna Luft](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lorna-luft/) [Explore all 73 Lorna Luft quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lorna-luft/) ## More Birth quotes > [“Conception is the beginning of human life. From the time that an ovum is fertilized a new life begins that is neither that of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/declaration-on-procured-abortion-congregation-for-the-doctrine-of-the-faith-1974/conception-is-the-beginning-of-human-life-from-the-time-that-an-ovum/) Declaration on Procured Abortion Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith 1974 > [In the entire history of the universe, let alone in your own history, there has never been another day just like today, and there…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/frederick-buechner/in-the-entire-history-of-the-universe-let-alone-in-your-own-history/) [Frederick Buechner](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/frederick-buechner/) > [The greatest mystery in life is not life itself, but death. Death is the culmination of life, the ultimate blossoming of life. In death…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rajneesh/the-greatest-mystery-in-life-is-not-life-itself-but-death-death-is/) [Rajneesh](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rajneesh/) > [Guns have little or nothing to do with juvenile violence. 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It was the Lord speaking to us all…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/francine-rivers/it-was-no-accident-no-coincidence-that-the-seasons-came-round-and/) [Francine Rivers](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/francine-rivers/) > [We do not want to be reminded that it is we, the indigenous people, who are poor and exploited in the land of our…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/steven-biko/we-do-not-want-to-be-reminded-that-it-is-we-the-indigenous-people-who/) [Steven Biko](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/steven-biko/) > [There are two kinds of beauty; there is a beauty which God gives at birth, and which withers as a flower. And there is…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/abraham-kuyper/there-are-two-kinds-of-beauty-there-is-a-beauty-which-god-gives-at/) [Abraham Kuyper](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/abraham-kuyper/) > [Always keep the smile, because the smile is the beginning of love.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/adam-imad/always-keep-the-smile-because-the-smile-is-the-beginning-of-love/) Adam Imad > [The wailing of the newborn infant is mingled with the dirge for the dead.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lucretius/the-wailing-of-the-newborn-infant-is-mingled-with-the-dirge-for-the/) [Lucretius](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lucretius/) > [I gave birth to most of them MC's... So when it comes around to the month of May, Send me your royalty check for…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/roxanne-shante/i-gave-birth-to-most-of-them-mc-s-so-when-it-comes-around-to-the/) Roxanne Shante > [“A Beautiful verse takes birth when "U"n"I" VERSE.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rajesh-walecha/a-beautiful-verse-takes-birth-when-u-n-i-verse/) [Rajesh Walecha](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rajesh-walecha/) > [“There is no born evil, only a corruptible canvas darkened by a formidable perpetrator.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/yefon-isabelle/there-is-no-born-evil-only-a-corruptible-canvas-darkened-by-a/) [Yefon Isabelle](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/yefon-isabelle/) > [I've always thought that the most extraordinary special effect you could do is to buy a child at the moment of its birth, sit…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/clive-barker/i-ve-always-thought-that-the-most-extraordinary-special-effect-you/) [Clive Barker](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/clive-barker/) [Browse all 6,183 Birth quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/birth/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "Instead of joyfully looking forward to my birth, my mother began systematically preparing for her own death. 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