---
title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: The past is always waiting to entangle…"
description: "\"The past is always waiting to entangle and deflect us.\" — Mason Cooley"
image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/a1c/mason-cooley-92_always-waiting_the-past-is-always-waiting-to-entangle-a_2960955.png"
---

#  The past is always waiting to entangle and deflect us.

![“The past is always waiting to entangle and deflect us.” quote by Mason Cooley](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/a1c/mason-cooley-92_always-waiting_the-past-is-always-waiting-to-entangle-a_2960955.png)   [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/a1c/mason-cooley-92_always-waiting_the-past-is-always-waiting-to-entangle-a_2960955.png) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/a1c/mason-cooley-92_always-waiting_the-past-is-always-waiting-to-entangle-a_2960955.png)

> “The past is always waiting to entangle and deflect us.”

[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.

Past experiences can trap us, diverting focus from present goals.

**In simple terms:** The past can entangle us.

Key Takeaway

Stay present, avoid past traps.

Themes

psychology history focus

Mood

reflective thoughtful

Type

philosophical motivational

When to use this quote

- personal planning
- relationship counseling
- career decisions

Key Concepts

memory bias mental distraction

Questions to Reflect On

- What past patterns hold you back?
- How can you reframe past events?

A Different Perspective

Overemphasis on past can cause paralysis.

★ ★ ★ ★ ★   No ratings yet

[Always waiting](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/always-waiting/) [Past](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/past/) [Time](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/time/)

## Related quotes

> [Our past is always waiting for an opportunity to mess with our present But running away from your problems doesn't really help unless you…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sanchari/our-past-is-always-waiting-for-an-opportunity-to-mess-with-our/)

Sanchari

> [It is not the outer objects that entangle us. It is the inner clinging that entangles us.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tilopa/it-is-not-the-outer-objects-that-entangle-us-it-is-the-inner-clinging-2/)

[Tilopa](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tilopa/)

> [“It is not the outer objects that entangle us. It is the inner clinging that entangles us." - Tilopa”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lama-surya-das/it-is-not-the-outer-objects-that-entangle-us-it-is-the-inner-clinging/)

[Lama Surya Das](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lama-surya-das/)

> [The world is always waiting for someone to save the day, make things better. We've lost hope in politics, preachers. ... As a child…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kirk-franklin/the-world-is-always-waiting-for-someone-to-save-the-day-make-things/)

[Kirk Franklin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kirk-franklin/)

> [I love baseball. What I love about baseball is that you are always waiting.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/frederick-busch/i-love-baseball-what-i-love-about-baseball-is-that-you-are-always/)

[Frederick Busch](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/frederick-busch/)

> [I'm a very un-excitable person. I always take things with a grain of salt, I'm always very even-keeled, and I'm always waiting for the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mike-colter/i-m-a-very-un-excitable-person-i-always-take-things-with-a-grain-of/)

[Mike Colter](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mike-colter/)

> [Bless all useful objects, the spoons made of bone, the mattress I cook my dreams upon, the typewriter that is my church with an…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anne-sexton/bless-all-useful-objects-the-spoons-made-of-bone-the-mattress-i-cook/)

[Anne Sexton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anne-sexton/)

> [I'm always waiting for you, hoping that you'll be really interested, that you'll try completely. In every life I wait for you. I've always…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/frederick-lenz/i-m-always-waiting-for-you-hoping-that-you-ll-be-really-interested/)

[Frederick Lenz](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/frederick-lenz/)

> [It's hard to visualize someone as a leader, if she is always waiting to be told what to do.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sheryl-sandberg/it-s-hard-to-visualize-someone-as-a-leader-if-she-is-always-waiting/)

[Sheryl Sandberg](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sheryl-sandberg/)

> [Baseball is a game where you are always waiting, and then when something happens it's like turning a kaleidoscope when you were a kid.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/frederick-busch/baseball-is-a-game-where-you-are-always-waiting-and-then-when/)

[Frederick Busch](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/frederick-busch/)

> [Whenever I'm making music I'm always waiting for the shivers to happen - that's an important thing for me.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/grimes/whenever-i-m-making-music-i-m-always-waiting-for-the-shivers-to/)

[Grimes](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/grimes/)

> [That rock and roll, eh? That rock and roll, it just won't go away. It might hibernate from time to time, sink back into…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alex-turner/that-rock-and-roll-eh-that-rock-and-roll-it-just-won-t-go-away-it/)

[Alex Turner](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alex-turner/)

> [If you are always waiting to be, do, or have what you want, your energy becomes blocked. Your body may reflect this in excess…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/shakti-gawain/if-you-are-always-waiting-to-be-do-or-have-what-you-want-your-energy/)

[Shakti Gawain](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/shakti-gawain/)

> [ People have to allow themselves to be used by God and Martin \[Luther King, Jr.\] committed himself totally to God's will and purpose and… ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/coretta-scott-king/people-have-to-allow-themselves-to-be-used-by-god-and-martin-luther/)

[Coretta Scott King](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/coretta-scott-king/)

> [If you're waiting with God, waiting is okay. If you're always waiting on God, you'll be frustrated. God never seems to work at the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/louie-giglio/if-you-re-waiting-with-god-waiting-is-okay-if-you-re-always-waiting/)

[Louie Giglio](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/louie-giglio/)

## 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 Always waiting quotes

> [The world is always waiting for someone to save the day, make things better. We've lost hope in politics, preachers. ... As a child…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kirk-franklin/the-world-is-always-waiting-for-someone-to-save-the-day-make-things/)

[Kirk Franklin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kirk-franklin/)

> [I love baseball. What I love about baseball is that you are always waiting.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/frederick-busch/i-love-baseball-what-i-love-about-baseball-is-that-you-are-always/)

[Frederick Busch](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/frederick-busch/)

> [That rock and roll, eh? That rock and roll, it just won't go away. It might hibernate from time to time, sink back into…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alex-turner/that-rock-and-roll-eh-that-rock-and-roll-it-just-won-t-go-away-it/)

[Alex Turner](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alex-turner/)

> [I'm a very un-excitable person. I always take things with a grain of salt, I'm always very even-keeled, and I'm always waiting for the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mike-colter/i-m-a-very-un-excitable-person-i-always-take-things-with-a-grain-of/)

[Mike Colter](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mike-colter/)

> [ People have to allow themselves to be used by God and Martin \[Luther King, Jr.\] committed himself totally to God's will and purpose and… ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/coretta-scott-king/people-have-to-allow-themselves-to-be-used-by-god-and-martin-luther/)

[Coretta Scott King](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/coretta-scott-king/)

> [If you are always waiting to be, do, or have what you want, your energy becomes blocked. Your body may reflect this in excess…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/shakti-gawain/if-you-are-always-waiting-to-be-do-or-have-what-you-want-your-energy/)

[Shakti Gawain](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/shakti-gawain/)

> [If you're waiting with God, waiting is okay. If you're always waiting on God, you'll be frustrated. God never seems to work at the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/louie-giglio/if-you-re-waiting-with-god-waiting-is-okay-if-you-re-always-waiting/)

[Louie Giglio](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/louie-giglio/)

> [Whenever I'm making music I'm always waiting for the shivers to happen - that's an important thing for me.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/grimes/whenever-i-m-making-music-i-m-always-waiting-for-the-shivers-to/)

[Grimes](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/grimes/)

> [Baseball is a game where you are always waiting, and then when something happens it's like turning a kaleidoscope when you were a kid.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/frederick-busch/baseball-is-a-game-where-you-are-always-waiting-and-then-when/)

[Frederick Busch](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/frederick-busch/)

> [It's hard to visualize someone as a leader, if she is always waiting to be told what to do.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sheryl-sandberg/it-s-hard-to-visualize-someone-as-a-leader-if-she-is-always-waiting/)

[Sheryl Sandberg](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sheryl-sandberg/)

> [I'm always waiting for you, hoping that you'll be really interested, that you'll try completely. In every life I wait for you. I've always…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/frederick-lenz/i-m-always-waiting-for-you-hoping-that-you-ll-be-really-interested/)

[Frederick Lenz](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/frederick-lenz/)

> [Bless all useful objects, the spoons made of bone, the mattress I cook my dreams upon, the typewriter that is my church with an…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anne-sexton/bless-all-useful-objects-the-spoons-made-of-bone-the-mattress-i-cook/)

[Anne Sexton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anne-sexton/)

> [In the arts, people are always waiting for someone or some movement to "fulfill her/its/his promise." Then, half-a-dozen or a dozen years on, others…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/samuel-r-delany/in-the-arts-people-are-always-waiting-for-someone-or-some-movement-to/)

[Samuel R. Delany](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/samuel-r-delany/)

> [My whole life is a contradiction on purpose - to make you think. I think people have forgetten how to have their own opinions.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jeffree-star/my-whole-life-is-a-contradiction-on-purpose-to-make-you-think-i-think/)

[Jeffree Star](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jeffree-star/)

> [Deep down in the human spirit, there is a reservoir of courage. It is always available, always waiting to be discovered.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/pema-ch-dr-n/deep-down-in-the-human-spirit-there-is-a-reservoir-of-courage-it-is/)

[Pema Chodron](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/pema-ch-dr-n/)

[Browse all 32 Always waiting quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/always-waiting/)

```json
{
    "@context": "https://schema.org",
    "@graph": [
        {
            "@type": "Quotation",
            "text": "The past is always waiting to entangle and deflect us.",
            "creator": {
                "@type": "Person",
                "name": "Mason Cooley"
            },
            "isPartOf": {
                "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website"
            },
            "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mason-cooley/the-past-is-always-waiting-to-entangle-and-deflect-us/",
            "about": {
                "@type": "Thing",
                "name": "Always waiting"
            },
            "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mason-cooley/the-past-is-always-waiting-to-entangle-and-deflect-us/#quotation",
            "image": {
                "@type": "ImageObject",
                "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/a1c/mason-cooley-92_always-waiting_the-past-is-always-waiting-to-entangle-a_2960955.png",
                "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/a1c/mason-cooley-92_always-waiting_the-past-is-always-waiting-to-entangle-a_2960955.png",
                "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/a1c/mason-cooley-92_always-waiting_the-past-is-always-waiting-to-entangle-a_2960955.png",
                "width": 1080,
                "height": 1080,
                "caption": "“The past is always waiting to entangle and deflect us.” — 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": "The past is always waiting to...",
                    "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mason-cooley/the-past-is-always-waiting-to-entangle-and-deflect-us/"
                }
            ],
            "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mason-cooley/the-past-is-always-waiting-to-entangle-and-deflect-us/#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
            }
        }
    ]
}
```
