--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: If I could do my life over, I would try…" description: "\"If I could do my life over, I would try to cleanse at least my pleasures of self-pity.\" — Mason Cooley" image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/2a2/mason-cooley-92_if-i-could_if-i-could-do-my-life-over-i-would-try-t_1530412.png" --- # If I could do my life over, I would try to cleanse at… ![“If I could do my life over, I would try to cleanse at least my pleasures of self-pity.” quote by Mason Cooley](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/2a2/mason-cooley-92_if-i-could_if-i-could-do-my-life-over-i-would-try-t_1530412.png) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/2a2/mason-cooley-92_if-i-could_if-i-could-do-my-life-over-i-would-try-t_1530412.png) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/2a2/mason-cooley-92_if-i-could_if-i-could-do-my-life-over-i-would-try-t_1530412.png) > “If I could do my life over, I would try to cleanse at least my pleasures of self-pity.” [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. A desire to eliminate self‑pity from enjoyment, seeking more authentic pleasure. **In simple terms:** Remove self‑pity from joy. Key Takeaway Seek pleasure without self‑pity. Themes self‑awareness authenticity pleasure Mood reflective thoughtful Type advice philosophical When to use this quote - personal reflection - creative pursuits - relationship building Key Concepts psychology philosophy Questions to Reflect On - How does self‑pity affect your enjoyment? - What steps can you take to experience pleasure more authentically? A Different Perspective Self‑pity may be a protective mechanism, not easily discarded. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Cleanse Pleasures](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/cleanse-pleasures-5676320/) [If i could](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/if-i-could/) [Ifs](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/ifs/) [Life](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/life/) [Pity](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/pity/) [Pleasure](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/pleasure/) [Pleasures Self](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/pleasures-self-5676321/) [Self](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/self/) [Self pity](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/self-pity/) [Try Cleanse](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/try-cleanse-411776/) [Trying](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/trying/) ## Related quotes > [Sunday, if I'm lucky, I'll go to church or listen to some good spiritual advice on the television or on the radio. I take…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/maya-angelou/sunday-if-i-m-lucky-i-ll-go-to-church-or-listen-to-some-good/) [Maya Angelou](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/maya-angelou/) > [Self-pity dries up our sympathy for others.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mason-cooley/self-pity-dries-up-our-sympathy-for-others/) [Mason Cooley](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mason-cooley/) > [Self-pity makes people callous.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mason-cooley/self-pity-makes-people-callous/) [Mason Cooley](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mason-cooley/) > [Self-satisfaction and self-pity are both condemned. 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Boss up and find a way to get going again.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/germany-kent/wallowing-in-self-pity-hurts-no-one-except-you-boss-up-and-find-a-way/) [Germany Kent](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/germany-kent/) > [“Self-pity is the worst disability a person can have, Callie. It's crippling.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/shelley-terrell/self-pity-is-the-worst-disability-a-person-can-have-callie-it-s/) [Shelley Terrell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/shelley-terrell/) > [But victimhood was seductive, a release from responsibility and caring. Fear would be transmuted into weary resignation; failure would no longer generate guilt but,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dean-koontz/but-victimhood-was-seductive-a-release-from-responsibility-and-caring/) [Dean Koontz](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dean-koontz/) ## 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. 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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 If i could quotes > [If I could find the right kind of property, get tied in with the right movie, I'd love to be involved, but I just…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/al-yankovic/if-i-could-find-the-right-kind-of-property-get-tied-in-with-the-right/) [Al Yankovic](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/al-yankovic/) > [If I could be anyone, I'd choose the lead singer of Arcade Fire, Win Butler.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rob-kardashian/if-i-could-be-anyone-i-d-choose-the-lead-singer-of-arcade-fire-win/) [Rob Kardashian](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rob-kardashian/) > [If I could ever be on a Missy Elliott record, I could then die. 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