--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: We grow crisp and crotchety, fully half…" description: "\"“We grow crisp and crotchety, fully half our organs ignore our commands--whistling to themselves, as it were, while we struggle to bring them to attent..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/c3f/mark-slouka-21874_dwell-on-the-past_we-grow-crisp-and-crotchety-fully-half-o_2866345.jpg" --- # We grow crisp and crotchety, fully half our organs ignore… ![“We grow crisp and crotchety, fully half our organs ignore our commands--whistling to themselves, as it were, while we struggle to bring them to attention--but to balance the ledger we are allowed to dwell on the past, revisit the sites of our old humiliations, reread (without the aid of…” quote by Mark Slouka](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/c3f/mark-slouka-21874_dwell-on-the-past_we-grow-crisp-and-crotchety-fully-half-o_2866345.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/c3f/mark-slouka-21874_dwell-on-the-past_we-grow-crisp-and-crotchety-fully-half-o_2866345.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/c3f/mark-slouka-21874_dwell-on-the-past_we-grow-crisp-and-crotchety-fully-half-o_2866345.jpg) > ““We grow crisp and crotchety, fully half our organs ignore our commands--whistling to themselves, as it were, while we struggle to bring them to attention--but to balance the ledger we are allowed to dwell on the past, revisit the sites of our old humiliations, reread (without the aid of spectacles) our own misjudgments. And we do, believing that it was there, in our past, that our last best chance for happiness lay hidden; that somewhere in that thicket, now dense with self-recrimination and foolishness, trickled a freshet of joy powerful enough to redeem us.”” [Mark Slouka](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mark-slouka/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. We dwell on past failures, hoping hidden joy lies there, despite self‑criticism and aging bodies. **In simple terms:** We cling to past hurts seeking hidden happiness. Key Takeaway Seek present joy, not past regrets. Themes self‑reflection aging hope Mood melancholic reflective Type philosophical inspirational When to use this quote - therapy sessions - personal journaling - midlife crisis - creative writing Key Concepts psychology existentialism memory Questions to Reflect On - What past pain are you revisiting? - How can you shift focus to present joy? A Different Perspective Past focus can trap us, preventing present healing. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Dwell on the past](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/dwell-on-the-past/) [Happiness](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/happiness/) [Joy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/joy/) ## Related quotes > [I'm afraid that the gift of visiting the past is all that we have. We can revisit it, but only as it happened.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/karen-essex/i-m-afraid-that-the-gift-of-visiting-the-past-is-all-that-we-have-we/) [Karen Essex](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/karen-essex/) > [“I do not like to dwell on the past. Life is ahead of us. If we spend too much time looking backward, we can’t…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/r-j-palacio/i-do-not-like-to-dwell-on-the-past-life-is-ahead-of-us-if-we-spend/) [R.J. Palacio](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/r-j-palacio/) > [Everyone has a right to be sad about things. But don't dwell on the past. Things change, people change, and life goes on.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/everyone-has-a-right-to-be-sad-about-things-but-don-t-dwell-on-the/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [Every second you dwell on the past you steal from your future. Every minute you spend focusing on your problems you take away from…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robin-sharma/every-second-you-dwell-on-the-past-you-steal-from-your-future-every/) [Robin Sharma](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robin-sharma/) > [If you constantly dwell on the past that's where you end up living.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/simon-weston/if-you-constantly-dwell-on-the-past-that-s-where-you-end-up-living/) [Simon Weston](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/simon-weston/) > [I'm not one to dwell on the past and have resentments.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joe-wicks/i-m-not-one-to-dwell-on-the-past-and-have-resentments/) [Joe Wicks](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joe-wicks/) > [“…dwelling and planning is bullshit,” he says. “You dwell on the past, you can’t move forward. Spend too much time planning for the future…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/j-a-redmerski/dwelling-and-planning-is-bullshit-he-says-you-dwell-on-the-past-you/) [J.A. Redmerski](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/j-a-redmerski/) > [Don't dwell on the past in life , because it willn't allow you to move on in life , for the better things that…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/damian-coleman/don-t-dwell-on-the-past-in-life-because-it-willn-t-allow-you-to-move/) [Damian Coleman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/damian-coleman/) > [Don't waste time on what's not important. Don't get sucked into the drama. Get on with it: don't dwell on the past. Be a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/allegra-huston/don-t-waste-time-on-what-s-not-important-don-t-get-sucked-into-the/) [Allegra Huston](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/allegra-huston/) > [“If you worry about the future, and dwell on the past, you can’t enjoy the present.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/angie-stanton/if-you-worry-about-the-future-and-dwell-on-the-past-you-can-t-enjoy/) [Angie Stanton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/angie-stanton/) > [You can't look in the future and can't dwell on the past. It's all about the present and what you do each day.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alex-de-minaur/you-can-t-look-in-the-future-and-can-t-dwell-on-the-past-it-s-all/) [Alex de Minaur](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alex-de-minaur/) > [Its more fun to think of the future than dwell on the past.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sara-shepard/its-more-fun-to-think-of-the-future-than-dwell-on-the-past/) [Sara Shepard](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sara-shepard/) > [I wish it wasn't so natural for me to dwell on the past.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jenny-zhang/i-wish-it-wasn-t-so-natural-for-me-to-dwell-on-the-past/) [Jenny Zhang](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jenny-zhang/) > [I do try not to dwell on the past too much, because I have a tendency to do that, and as I've gotten older,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/charlie-hunnam/i-do-try-not-to-dwell-on-the-past-too-much-because-i-have-a-tendency/) [Charlie Hunnam](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/charlie-hunnam/) > [When you continue to dwell on the past, there's no chance for a future. History repeats itself, thus, it's ok to LOOK back at…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/when-you-continue-to-dwell-on-the-past-there-s-no-chance-for-a-future/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) ## More by Mark Slouka > [“My mother knew a man during the war. Theirs was a love story, and like any good love story, it left blood on the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mark-slouka/my-mother-knew-a-man-during-the-war-theirs-was-a-love-story-and-like/) [Mark Slouka](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mark-slouka/) > [I distrust the perpetually busy; always have. The frenetic ones spinning in tight little circles like poisoned rats. The slower ones, grinding away their…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mark-slouka/i-distrust-the-perpetually-busy-always-have-the-frenetic-ones/) [Mark Slouka](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mark-slouka/) > [“There are times in every life when the past acquires a particular resonance, when we grow sensitive to sounds and voices normally beyond the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mark-slouka/there-are-times-in-every-life-when-the-past-acquires-a-particular/) [Mark Slouka](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mark-slouka/) > [Most of the time when something goes bad—a marriage, a war, a run of good luck—you don’t know it. It’s like in the cartoons,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mark-slouka/most-of-the-time-when-something-goes-bad-a-marriage-a-war-a-run-of/) [Mark Slouka](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mark-slouka/) > [“Generally speaking, writers who have been at it for a while, and who are any good at it, suffer from an acute kind of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mark-slouka/generally-speaking-writers-who-have-been-at-it-for-a-while-and-who/) [Mark Slouka](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mark-slouka/) > [“Acceptance was not in my nature. Even as a young man it seemed to me that everywhere the world conspired against the heart, and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mark-slouka/acceptance-was-not-in-my-nature-even-as-a-young-man-it-seemed-to-me/) [Mark Slouka](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mark-slouka/) > [“Such is the privilege of survival: to be allowed to fashion the means that fit our ends, to cobble together a narrative that reveals…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mark-slouka/such-is-the-privilege-of-survival-to-be-allowed-to-fashion-the-means/) [Mark Slouka](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mark-slouka/) > [“Literature is literature. Its purpose is to challenge and disorient us, to break us down a little bit so that we are forced to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mark-slouka/literature-is-literature-its-purpose-is-to-challenge-and-disorient-us/) [Mark Slouka](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mark-slouka/) > [“The only thing your life teaches you is how to live your life. And that’s only if you’re very lucky. And you listen very…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mark-slouka/the-only-thing-your-life-teaches-you-is-how-to-live-your-life-and/) [Mark Slouka](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mark-slouka/) > [“And yet, far off, I can hear something whispering that this compulsion to do, to intrude ourselves, to improve on what is--even when wholly…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mark-slouka/and-yet-far-off-i-can-hear-something-whispering-that-this-compulsion/) [Mark Slouka](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mark-slouka/) > [“I lost my father this past year, and the word feels right because I keep looking for him. As if he were misplaced. As…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mark-slouka/i-lost-my-father-this-past-year-and-the-word-feels-right-because-i/) [Mark Slouka](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mark-slouka/) > [Life isn't simple. Literature shouldn't be either.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mark-slouka/life-isn-t-simple-literature-shouldn-t-be-either/) [Mark Slouka](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mark-slouka/) > [The 'deep' civic function of the humanities . . . is something understood very well by totalitarian societies, which tend to keep close tabs…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mark-slouka/the-deep-civic-function-of-the-humanities-is-something-understood/) [Mark Slouka](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mark-slouka/) > [Maybe I lacked coping skills. Maybe I was weak. I cared for people for no better reason than they seemed to care for me,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mark-slouka/maybe-i-lacked-coping-skills-maybe-i-was-weak-i-cared-for-people-for/) [Mark Slouka](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mark-slouka/) > [Consider it: Who but God could have dreamed a tale so absurd and so heartless?](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mark-slouka/consider-it-who-but-god-could-have-dreamed-a-tale-so-absurd-and-so/) [Mark Slouka](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mark-slouka/) [Explore all 28 Mark Slouka quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mark-slouka/) ## More Dwell on the past quotes > [When you continue to dwell on the past, there's no chance for a future. History repeats itself, thus, it's ok to LOOK back at…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/when-you-continue-to-dwell-on-the-past-there-s-no-chance-for-a-future/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [I do try not to dwell on the past too much, because I have a tendency to do that, and as I've gotten older,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/charlie-hunnam/i-do-try-not-to-dwell-on-the-past-too-much-because-i-have-a-tendency/) [Charlie Hunnam](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/charlie-hunnam/) > [I wish it wasn't so natural for me to dwell on the past.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jenny-zhang/i-wish-it-wasn-t-so-natural-for-me-to-dwell-on-the-past/) [Jenny Zhang](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jenny-zhang/) > [Its more fun to think of the future than dwell on the past.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sara-shepard/its-more-fun-to-think-of-the-future-than-dwell-on-the-past/) [Sara Shepard](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sara-shepard/) > [You can't look in the future and can't dwell on the past. It's all about the present and what you do each day.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alex-de-minaur/you-can-t-look-in-the-future-and-can-t-dwell-on-the-past-it-s-all/) [Alex de Minaur](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alex-de-minaur/) > [Our Second First Kiss We dwell on the past, while living the present But I admit, the past was unpleasant Full of ups and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/giselle-simental/our-second-first-kiss-we-dwell-on-the-past-while-living-the-present/) Giselle Simental > [“If you worry about the future, and dwell on the past, you can’t enjoy the present.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/angie-stanton/if-you-worry-about-the-future-and-dwell-on-the-past-you-can-t-enjoy/) [Angie Stanton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/angie-stanton/) > [Don't waste time on what's not important. Don't get sucked into the drama. Get on with it: don't dwell on the past. Be a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/allegra-huston/don-t-waste-time-on-what-s-not-important-don-t-get-sucked-into-the/) [Allegra Huston](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/allegra-huston/) > [Don't dwell on the past in life , because it willn't allow you to move on in life , for the better things that…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/damian-coleman/don-t-dwell-on-the-past-in-life-because-it-willn-t-allow-you-to-move/) [Damian Coleman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/damian-coleman/) > [“…dwelling and planning is bullshit,” he says. “You dwell on the past, you can’t move forward. Spend too much time planning for the future…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/j-a-redmerski/dwelling-and-planning-is-bullshit-he-says-you-dwell-on-the-past-you/) [J.A. Redmerski](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/j-a-redmerski/) > [I'm not one to dwell on the past and have resentments.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joe-wicks/i-m-not-one-to-dwell-on-the-past-and-have-resentments/) [Joe Wicks](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joe-wicks/) > [If you constantly dwell on the past that's where you end up living.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/simon-weston/if-you-constantly-dwell-on-the-past-that-s-where-you-end-up-living/) [Simon Weston](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/simon-weston/) > [Every second you dwell on the past you steal from your future. Every minute you spend focusing on your problems you take away from…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robin-sharma/every-second-you-dwell-on-the-past-you-steal-from-your-future-every/) [Robin Sharma](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robin-sharma/) > [“) In nature, a dog's life is very simple. Because dog's realities are formed primarily by the senses, they live moment by moment, and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/cesar-millan/in-nature-a-dog-s-life-is-very-simple-because-dog-s-realities-are/) [Cesar Millan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/cesar-millan/) > [Everyone has a right to be sad about things. But don't dwell on the past. Things change, people change, and life goes on.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/everyone-has-a-right-to-be-sad-about-things-but-don-t-dwell-on-the/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) [Browse all 68 Dwell on the past quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/dwell-on-the-past/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "“We grow crisp and crotchety, fully half our organs ignore our commands--whistling to themselves, as it were, while we struggle to bring them to attention--but to balance the ledger we are allowed to dwell on the past, revisit the sites of our old humiliations, reread (without the aid of spectacles) our own misjudgments. 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