--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: In this country, some people start being…" description: "\"In this country, some people start being miserable about growing old while they are still young.\" — Margaret Mead" image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/3d9/margaret-mead-982_aging_in-this-country-some-people-start-being_1348594.jpg" --- # In this country, some people start being miserable about… ![“In this country, some people start being miserable about growing old while they are still young.” quote by Margaret Mead](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/3d9/margaret-mead-982_aging_in-this-country-some-people-start-being_1348594.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/3d9/margaret-mead-982_aging_in-this-country-some-people-start-being_1348594.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/3d9/margaret-mead-982_aging_in-this-country-some-people-start-being_1348594.jpg) > “In this country, some people start being miserable about growing old while they are still young.” [Margaret Mead](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/margaret-mead/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. People often fear aging while still youthful, mistaking youth for permanence. **In simple terms:** Fear of aging starts early. Key Takeaway Embrace aging now. Themes aging mindset life stages Mood reflective concerned Type advice philosophical When to use this quote - career planning - health care - intergenerational dialogue Key Concepts psychology social expectations Questions to Reflect On - How does youth shape your view of aging? - What can you do to appreciate each life stage? A Different Perspective Aging is inevitable, cannot be avoided by denial. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Aging](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/aging/) [Country](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/country/) [Growing](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/growing/) [Growing old](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/growing-old/) [Miserable](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/miserable/) [Miserable Growing](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/miserable-growing-4578711/) [Old Young](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/old-young/) [People](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/people/) [Start Miserable](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/start-miserable-930085/) [Stills](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/stills/) [Young](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/young/) ## Related quotes > [Human beings have not struggled for survival over millions of years for us to just turn around and start being miserable with our lives.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/human-beings-have-not-struggled-for-survival-over-millions-of-years/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [“John had written that normal fantasy ("normal" in the T.S. Kuhn sense) was written for the moderately educated class suffering from ennui. It was…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/don-webb/john-had-written-that-normal-fantasy-normal-in-the-t-s-kuhn-sense-was/) [Don Webb](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/don-webb/) > [Don't regret growing older...remember that a lot of sugar is to be found at the bottom of the cup.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/james-simpson/don-t-regret-growing-older-remember-that-a-lot-of-sugar-is-to-be/) [James Simpson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/james-simpson/) > [“Beautiful surroundings, the society of learned men, the charm of noble women, the graces of art, could not make up for the loss of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/willa-cather/beautiful-surroundings-the-society-of-learned-men-the-charm-of-noble/) [Willa Cather](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/willa-cather/) > [Growing older is mainly an ordeal of the imagination-a moral disease, a social pathology...](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/susan-sontag/growing-older-is-mainly-an-ordeal-of-the-imagination-a-moral-disease/) [Susan Sontag](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/susan-sontag/) > [Anyone who stops learning is old — whether this happens at twenty or at eighty. Anyone who keeps on learning not only remains young…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/henry-ford/anyone-who-stops-learning-is-old-whether-this-happens-at-twenty-or-at/) [Henry Ford](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/henry-ford/) > [Grow old along with me! The best is yet to be, the last of life, for which the first was made. Our times are…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robert-browning/grow-old-along-with-me-the-best-is-yet-to-be-the-last-of-life-for/) [Robert Browning](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robert-browning/) > [“now? When she looked at herself she saw her outside changing, growing older, while inside she still felt young. Aging was a strange thing—made…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/debbie-macomber/now-when-she-looked-at-herself-she-saw-her-outside-changing-growing/) [Debbie Macomber](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/debbie-macomber/) > [The time to begin most things is ten years ago.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mignon-mclaughlin/the-time-to-begin-most-things-is-ten-years-ago/) [Mignon McLaughlin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mignon-mclaughlin/) > [Growing old-it's not nice, but it's interesting.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/august-strindberg/growing-old-it-s-not-nice-but-it-s-interesting/) [August Strindberg](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/august-strindberg/) > [“Prayer of an Anonymous Abbess: Lord, thou knowest better than myself that I am growing older and will soon be old. Keep me from…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/prayer-of-an-anonymous-abbess-lord-thou-knowest-better-than-myself/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [Old, but I'm not that old. Young, but Im not that bold. I dont think this world is sold. I am just doing what…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jade/old-but-i-m-not-that-old-young-but-im-not-that-bold-i-dont-think-this/) [Jade](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jade/) > [Sometimes you believe that you are targeting a 25-35-year-old young woman and you see that there is a crowd of 78-year-old people who are…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/maurice-levy/sometimes-you-believe-that-you-are-targeting-a-25-35-year-old-young/) [Maurice Levy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/maurice-levy/) > [ \[D\]on't grow old. With age comes caution, which is another name for cowardice… Whatever else you do in life, don't cultivate a conscience. Without… ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/hesketh-pearson/d-on-t-grow-old-with-age-comes-caution-which-is-another-name-for/) [Hesketh Pearson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/hesketh-pearson/) > [The heart never grows better by age; I fear rather worse, always harder. A young liar will be an old one, and a young…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/the-heart-never-grows-better-by-age-i-fear-rather-worse-always-harder/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) ## More by Margaret Mead > [The prophet who fails to present a bearable alternative and yet preaches doom is part of the trap that he postulates. Not only does…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/margaret-mead/the-prophet-who-fails-to-present-a-bearable-alternative-and-yet/) [Margaret Mead](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/margaret-mead/) > [The contempt for law and the contempt for the human consequences of lawbreaking go from the bottom to the top of American society.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/margaret-mead/the-contempt-for-law-and-the-contempt-for-the-human-consequences-of/) [Margaret Mead](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/margaret-mead/) > [If one cannot state a matter clearly enough so that even an intelligent twelve-year-old can understand it, one should remain within the cloistered walls…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/margaret-mead/if-one-cannot-state-a-matter-clearly-enough-so-that-even-an/) [Margaret Mead](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/margaret-mead/) > [I learned the value of hard work by working hard.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/margaret-mead/i-learned-the-value-of-hard-work-by-working-hard/) [Margaret Mead](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/margaret-mead/) > [Children must be taught how to think, not what to think.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/margaret-mead/children-must-be-taught-how-to-think-not-what-to-think/) [Margaret Mead](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/margaret-mead/) > [Women are scolded both for being mothers and for not being mothers, for wanting to eat their cake and have it too, and for…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/margaret-mead/women-are-scolded-both-for-being-mothers-and-for-not-being-mothers/) [Margaret Mead](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/margaret-mead/) > [we came to realize that a civilization which rode roughshod over the way of life of other peoples was incorporating evil in its own…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/margaret-mead/we-came-to-realize-that-a-civilization-which-rode-roughshod-over-the/) [Margaret Mead](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/margaret-mead/) > [WE MUST DEVISE A SYSTEM IN WHICH PEACE IS MORE REWARDING THAN WAR.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/margaret-mead/we-must-devise-a-system-in-which-peace-is-more-rewarding-than-war/) [Margaret Mead](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/margaret-mead/) > [Through a grandmother's voice and hands the end of life is known at the beginning.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/margaret-mead/through-a-grandmother-s-voice-and-hands-the-end-of-life-is-known-at/) [Margaret Mead](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/margaret-mead/) > [today's children are the first generation to grow up in a world that has the power to destroy itself.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/margaret-mead/today-s-children-are-the-first-generation-to-grow-up-in-a-world-that/) [Margaret Mead](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/margaret-mead/) > [We are now at a point where we must educate our children in what no one knew yesterday, and prepare our schools for what…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/margaret-mead/we-are-now-at-a-point-where-we-must-educate-our-children-in-what-no/) [Margaret Mead](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/margaret-mead/) > [Humanity . . . lies in man's capacity to question the known and imagine the unknown.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/margaret-mead/humanity-lies-in-man-s-capacity-to-question-the-known-and-imagine-the/) [Margaret Mead](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/margaret-mead/) > [Fathers are biological necessities, but social accidents.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/margaret-mead/fathers-are-biological-necessities-but-social-accidents/) [Margaret Mead](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/margaret-mead/) > [“One of the most dangerous things that can happen to a child is to kill or torture an animal and not be held responsible.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/margaret-mead/one-of-the-most-dangerous-things-that-can-happen-to-a-child-is-to/) [Margaret Mead](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/margaret-mead/) > [We end up with the contradictory picture of a society that appears to throw its doors wide open to women, but translates her every…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/margaret-mead/we-end-up-with-the-contradictory-picture-of-a-society-that-appears-to/) [Margaret Mead](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/margaret-mead/) [Explore all 314 Margaret Mead quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/margaret-mead/) ## More Aging quotes > [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/) > [In the past 40 years, the United States lost more than a million farmers and ranchers. Many of our farmers are aging. Today, only…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tom-vilsack/in-the-past-40-years-the-united-states-lost-more-than-a-million/) [Tom Vilsack](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tom-vilsack/) > [We'll never be as young as we are tonight.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/chuck-palahniuk/we-ll-never-be-as-young-as-we-are-tonight/) [Chuck Palahniuk](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/chuck-palahniuk/) > [“Prayer of an Anonymous Abbess: Lord, thou knowest better than myself that I am growing older and will soon be old. Keep me from…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/prayer-of-an-anonymous-abbess-lord-thou-knowest-better-than-myself/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [The more I produce, the less I am certain. On the road along which the artist walks, night falls ever more densely. Finally, he…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/albert-camus/the-more-i-produce-the-less-i-am-certain-on-the-road-along-which-the/) [Albert Camus](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/albert-camus/) > [So often do you see collegians enter life with high resolve and lofty purpose and then watch them shrink and shrink to sordid, selfish,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/w-e-b-du-bois/so-often-do-you-see-collegians-enter-life-with-high-resolve-and-lofty/) [W. E. B. Du Bois](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/w-e-b-du-bois/) > [Aging is like enlightenment at gunpoint. Before I had cancer, I lived my life for my art. After I had cancer, I lived my…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anna-halprin/aging-is-like-enlightenment-at-gunpoint-before-i-had-cancer-i-lived/) [Anna Halprin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anna-halprin/) > [All the dangers in our world are like a blessed wake up call. They tell us to live life NOW... not tomorrow, not when…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/susan-jeffers/all-the-dangers-in-our-world-are-like-a-blessed-wake-up-call-they/) [Susan Jeffers](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/susan-jeffers/) > [“You could see the signs of female aging as diseased, especially if you had a vested interest in making women too see them your…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/naomi-wolf/you-could-see-the-signs-of-female-aging-as-diseased-especially-if-you/) [Naomi Wolf](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/naomi-wolf/) > [“It takes maturity to be able to laugh like a child again.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/moffat-machingura/it-takes-maturity-to-be-able-to-laugh-like-a-child-again/) [Moffat Machingura](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/moffat-machingura/) > [Seek ye counsel of the aged for their eyes have looked on the faces of the years and their ears have hardened to the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/khalil-gibran/seek-ye-counsel-of-the-aged-for-their-eyes-have-looked-on-the-faces/) [Khalil Gibran](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/khalil-gibran/) > [Growing old-it's not nice, but it's interesting.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/august-strindberg/growing-old-it-s-not-nice-but-it-s-interesting/) [August Strindberg](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/august-strindberg/) > [Anything is possible in the life of a man if he lives long enough. Even maturity.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/howell-raines/anything-is-possible-in-the-life-of-a-man-if-he-lives-long-enough/) [Howell Raines](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/howell-raines/) > [I just want to be Patty McCormack. I want to spend every year aging the way she has.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/janet-varney/i-just-want-to-be-patty-mccormack-i-want-to-spend-every-year-aging/) [Janet Varney](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/janet-varney/) > [Maturity is reached the day we don't need to be lied to about anything.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/frank-yerby/maturity-is-reached-the-day-we-don-t-need-to-be-lied-to-about-anything/) [Frank Yerby](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/frank-yerby/) [Browse all 2,792 Aging quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/aging/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "In this country, some people start being miserable about growing old while they are still young.", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "Margaret Mead" }, "isPartOf": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website" }, "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/margaret-mead/in-this-country-some-people-start-being-miserable-about-growing-old/", "about": { "@type": "Thing", "name": "Aging" }, "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/margaret-mead/in-this-country-some-people-start-being-miserable-about-growing-old/#quotation", "image": { "@type": "ImageObject", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/3d9/margaret-mead-982_aging_in-this-country-some-people-start-being_1348594.jpg", "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/3d9/margaret-mead-982_aging_in-this-country-some-people-start-being_1348594.jpg", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/3d9/margaret-mead-982_aging_in-this-country-some-people-start-being_1348594.jpg", "width": 1080, "height": 1080, "caption": "“In this country, some people start being miserable about growing old while they are still young.” — Margaret Mead", "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": "Margaret Mead", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/margaret-mead/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 4, "name": "In this country, some people start...", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/margaret-mead/in-this-country-some-people-start-being-miserable-about-growing-old/" } ], "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/margaret-mead/in-this-country-some-people-start-being-miserable-about-growing-old/#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 } } ] } ```