--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: As a child I was middle-aged and cautious…" description: "\"As a child I was middle-aged and cautious compared to my impulsive father.\" — Mason Cooley" image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/7d8/mason-cooley-92_cautious_as-a-child-i-was-middle-aged-and-cautiou_2084190.png" --- # As a child I was middle-aged and cautious compared to my… ![“As a child I was middle-aged and cautious compared to my impulsive father.” quote by Mason Cooley](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/7d8/mason-cooley-92_cautious_as-a-child-i-was-middle-aged-and-cautiou_2084190.png) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/7d8/mason-cooley-92_cautious_as-a-child-i-was-middle-aged-and-cautiou_2084190.png) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/7d8/mason-cooley-92_cautious_as-a-child-i-was-middle-aged-and-cautiou_2084190.png) > “As a child I was middle-aged and cautious compared to my impulsive father.” [Mason Cooley](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mason-cooley/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. The speaker reflects on feeling older and more cautious than his reckless father during childhood. **In simple terms:** Child felt older and careful than impulsive dad. Key Takeaway Embrace youthful caution while learning from impulsive behavior. Themes family selfreflection growth Mood nostalgic reflective Type anecdotal philosophical When to use this quote - parent‑child relationships - self‑assessment - life lessons Key Concepts generational contrast personal identity Questions to Reflect On - How does caution shape your decisions? - What can you learn from impulsive traits? A Different Perspective Caution may limit spontaneity and missed opportunities. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Aged Cautious](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/aged-cautious-4086479/) [Cautious](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/cautious/) [Cautious Compared](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/cautious-compared-4086481/) [Childhood](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/childhood/) [Children](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/children/) [Compared Impulsive](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/compared-impulsive-4086480/) [Father](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/father/) [Impulsive](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/impulsive/) [Impulsive Father](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/impulsive-father-4086478/) [Middle](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/middle/) [Middle aged](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/middle-aged/) [Parenting](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/parenting/) ## Related quotes > [An adolescent is both an impulsive child and a self-starting adult.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mason-cooley/an-adolescent-is-both-an-impulsive-child-and-a-self-starting-adult/) [Mason Cooley](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mason-cooley/) > [Middle-aged adolescents are a libel on the real thing.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mason-cooley/middle-aged-adolescents-are-a-libel-on-the-real-thing/) [Mason Cooley](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mason-cooley/) > [Interpreting the dance: young women in white dancing in a ring can only be virgins; old women in black dancing in a ring can…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mason-cooley/interpreting-the-dance-young-women-in-white-dancing-in-a-ring-can/) [Mason Cooley](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mason-cooley/) > [A major cause of the Roman Empire's decline, after six centuries of world dominance was its replacement of stone aqueducts by lead pipes for…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/harris-l-coulter/a-major-cause-of-the-roman-empire-s-decline-after-six-centuries-of/) [Harris L Coulter](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/harris-l-coulter/) > [Generations of thinkers have made typewriters their frenemies, and long before there were Gmail inboxes, print correspondence stacked up, some hastily written and impulsive…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mary-pilon/generations-of-thinkers-have-made-typewriters-their-frenemies-and/) [Mary Pilon](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mary-pilon/) > [I think I'm slightly impulsive, sometimes organised and always in search of a bargain!](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/i-think-i-m-slightly-impulsive-sometimes-organised-and-always-in/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [I was kind of a misfit, actually. When you're young, you want to be like everybody else, and I was like nobody else. I…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/howie-mandel/i-was-kind-of-a-misfit-actually-when-you-re-young-you-want-to-be-like/) [Howie Mandel](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/howie-mandel/) > [We cannot know the young child's personality by studying his systems of interest, for his attention is as yet too labile, his reactions impulsive,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/we-cannot-know-the-young-child-s-personality-by-studying-his-systems/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [“Impulsive isn’t something you choose. It’s something you are.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kirsten-hubbard/impulsive-isn-t-something-you-choose-it-s-something-you-are/) [Kirsten Hubbard](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kirsten-hubbard/) > [More errors arise from inhibited indecision than from impulsive behavior.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/morris-l-ernst/more-errors-arise-from-inhibited-indecision-than-from-impulsive/) [Morris L. Ernst](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/morris-l-ernst/) > [Courage is impulsive; it is narcissism tempered with nihilism.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ayelet-waldman/courage-is-impulsive-it-is-narcissism-tempered-with-nihilism/) [Ayelet Waldman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ayelet-waldman/) > [“A lot of impulsive mistakes are made by people who simply aren’t willing to stay bored a little longer.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/paul-aurandt/a-lot-of-impulsive-mistakes-are-made-by-people-who-simply-aren-t/) [Paul Aurandt](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/paul-aurandt/) > [I've always been impulsive. My thinking is usually pretty good, but I always seem to do it after I do my talking — by…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/roger-zelazny/i-ve-always-been-impulsive-my-thinking-is-usually-pretty-good-but-i/) [Roger Zelazny](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/roger-zelazny/) > [I think you have to sort of accept that nobody really knows where it's going so there has to be a lot of impulsive…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lars-ulrich/i-think-you-have-to-sort-of-accept-that-nobody-really-knows-where-it/) [Lars Ulrich](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lars-ulrich/) > [Music comes from the heart and returns to the heart... music is spontaneous, impulsive expression... its range is without limit... music is forever growing...…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/leopold-stokowski/music-comes-from-the-heart-and-returns-to-the-heart-music-is/) [Leopold Stokowski](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/leopold-stokowski/) ## More by Mason Cooley > [Nostalgia keeps dissolving the ironic narratives in which I have contained my past.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mason-cooley/nostalgia-keeps-dissolving-the-ironic-narratives-in-which-i-have/) [Mason Cooley](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mason-cooley/) > [The modernist writers found despair inspirational.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mason-cooley/the-modernist-writers-found-despair-inspirational/) [Mason Cooley](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mason-cooley/) > [Even the most abject have a sense of superiority based on powerful though undefined merits.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mason-cooley/even-the-most-abject-have-a-sense-of-superiority-based-on-powerful/) [Mason Cooley](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mason-cooley/) > [Money comes to life as it is spent.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mason-cooley/money-comes-to-life-as-it-is-spent/) [Mason Cooley](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mason-cooley/) > [Even the most fickle are faithful to a few bad habits.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mason-cooley/even-the-most-fickle-are-faithful-to-a-few-bad-habits/) [Mason Cooley](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mason-cooley/) > [Rage is exciting, but leaves me confused and exhausted.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mason-cooley/rage-is-exciting-but-leaves-me-confused-and-exhausted/) [Mason Cooley](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mason-cooley/) > [Literary tradition is full of lies about poverty-the jolly beggar, the poor but happy milkmaid, the wholesome diet of porridge, etc.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mason-cooley/literary-tradition-is-full-of-lies-about-poverty-the-jolly-beggar-the/) [Mason Cooley](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mason-cooley/) > [Experience teaches us, but we scarcely know what.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mason-cooley/experience-teaches-us-but-we-scarcely-know-what/) [Mason Cooley](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mason-cooley/) > [The body has a mind of its own.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mason-cooley/the-body-has-a-mind-of-its-own/) [Mason Cooley](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mason-cooley/) > [In retirement, I look for days off from my days off. Mason Cooley](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mason-cooley/in-retirement-i-look-for-days-off-from-my-days-off-mason-cooley/) [Mason Cooley](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mason-cooley/) > [My intentions go one way, my desires another. Thus I feel both self-indulgent and deprived.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mason-cooley/my-intentions-go-one-way-my-desires-another-thus-i-feel-both-self/) [Mason Cooley](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mason-cooley/) > [The Puritan sours his pleasures by disguising them as duties.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mason-cooley/the-puritan-sours-his-pleasures-by-disguising-them-as-duties/) [Mason Cooley](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mason-cooley/) > [Unlike the actual, the fictional explains itself.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mason-cooley/unlike-the-actual-the-fictional-explains-itself/) [Mason Cooley](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mason-cooley/) > [Vacations prove that a life of pleasure is overrated.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mason-cooley/vacations-prove-that-a-life-of-pleasure-is-overrated/) [Mason Cooley](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mason-cooley/) > [Outside literature, high-flown sentiments are merely exasperating.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mason-cooley/outside-literature-high-flown-sentiments-are-merely-exasperating/) [Mason Cooley](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mason-cooley/) [Explore all 1,401 Mason Cooley quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mason-cooley/) ## More Cautious quotes > [When I became successful, I put up a caution. I didn't think it was fair to have the shadow of that kind of success…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robert-redford/when-i-became-successful-i-put-up-a-caution-i-didn-t-think-it-was/) [Robert Redford](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robert-redford/) > [Having an eating disorder doesn't show ‘strength.’ Strength is when are able to overcome your demons after being sick and tired for so long.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/demi-lovato/having-an-eating-disorder-doesn-t-show-strength-strength-is-when-are/) [Demi Lovato](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/demi-lovato/) > [I'm pretty cautious and not very athletic, so I've only had really dumb injuries, like sprained ankles and allergic reactions. I did have to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mara-wilson/i-m-pretty-cautious-and-not-very-athletic-so-i-ve-only-had-really/) [Mara Wilson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mara-wilson/) > [When you jump across a canyon, cautious small steps and vacillation won't work. Sometimes you just have to go for it.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rick-warren/when-you-jump-across-a-canyon-cautious-small-steps-and-vacillation/) [Rick Warren](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rick-warren/) > [Fear and caution are two different things. Be cautious - be conscious - but do not be fearful. Fear only paralyzes, while consciousness mobilizes.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/neale-donald-walsch/fear-and-caution-are-two-different-things-be-cautious-be-conscious/) [Neale Donald Walsch](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/neale-donald-walsch/) > [While we are contending for our own liberty, we should be very cautious not to violate the conscience of others, ever considering that God…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-washington/while-we-are-contending-for-our-own-liberty-we-should-be-very/) [George Washington](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-washington/) > [Courage is not the absence of fear but rather the judgement that something is more important than fear; The brave may not live forever…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/meg-cabot/courage-is-not-the-absence-of-fear-but-rather-the-judgement-that/) [Meg Cabot](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/meg-cabot/) > [Americans want a strong military but one that is extremely cautious about getting involved in war.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mollie-hemingway/americans-want-a-strong-military-but-one-that-is-extremely-cautious/) [Mollie Hemingway](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mollie-hemingway/) > [We old roosters must be cautious. Don't try to outwit your arteries.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/s-j-perelman/we-old-roosters-must-be-cautious-don-t-try-to-outwit-your-arteries/) [S. J. Perelman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/s-j-perelman/) > [The more a race is governed by its passions, the less it has acquired the habit of cautious and reasoned argument, the more intense…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stendhal/the-more-a-race-is-governed-by-its-passions-the-less-it-has-acquired/) [Stendhal](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stendhal/) > [The coward regards himself as cautious, the miser as thrifty.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/publilius-syrus/the-coward-regards-himself-as-cautious-the-miser-as-thrifty/) [Publilius Syrus](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/publilius-syrus/) > [It's kind of an unwritten law, I think, being - carrying the name - George Bush. At times I ask myself, 'Am I going…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-p-bush/it-s-kind-of-an-unwritten-law-i-think-being-carrying-the-name-george/) [George P. Bush](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-p-bush/) > [You ought to be extremely cautious, watchful, jealous of your liberty; for instead of securing your rights, you may lose them forever.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/patrick-henry/you-ought-to-be-extremely-cautious-watchful-jealous-of-your-liberty/) [Patrick Henry](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/patrick-henry/) > [I'm not paranoid, but I am cautious. I don't drink tea with strangers, I don't fly Aeroflot and I avoid certain countries with close…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/garry-kasparov/i-m-not-paranoid-but-i-am-cautious-i-don-t-drink-tea-with-strangers-i/) [Garry Kasparov](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/garry-kasparov/) > [Candidates should be extremely cautious in displaying a sense of humor. If he or she tells a joke with a point, there is almost…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jack-germond/candidates-should-be-extremely-cautious-in-displaying-a-sense-of/) [Jack Germond](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jack-germond/) [Browse all 501 Cautious quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/cautious/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "As a child I was middle-aged and cautious compared to my impulsive father.", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "Mason Cooley" }, "isPartOf": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website" }, "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mason-cooley/as-a-child-i-was-middle-aged-and-cautious-compared-to-my-impulsive/", "about": { "@type": "Thing", "name": "Cautious" }, "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mason-cooley/as-a-child-i-was-middle-aged-and-cautious-compared-to-my-impulsive/#quotation", "image": { "@type": "ImageObject", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/7d8/mason-cooley-92_cautious_as-a-child-i-was-middle-aged-and-cautiou_2084190.png", "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/7d8/mason-cooley-92_cautious_as-a-child-i-was-middle-aged-and-cautiou_2084190.png", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/7d8/mason-cooley-92_cautious_as-a-child-i-was-middle-aged-and-cautiou_2084190.png", "width": 1080, "height": 1080, "caption": "“As a child I was middle-aged and cautious compared to my impulsive father.” — Mason Cooley", "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": "Mason Cooley", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mason-cooley/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 4, "name": "As a child I was middle-aged...", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mason-cooley/as-a-child-i-was-middle-aged-and-cautious-compared-to-my-impulsive/" } ], "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mason-cooley/as-a-child-i-was-middle-aged-and-cautious-compared-to-my-impulsive/#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 } } ] } ```