--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: Do not deprive me of my age. I have…" description: "\"Do not deprive me of my age. I have earned it.\" — May Sarton" image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/c55/may-sarton-897_age_do-not-deprive-me-of-my-age-i-have-earne_2799898.jpg" --- # Do not deprive me of my age. I have earned it. ![“Do not deprive me of my age. I have earned it.” quote by May Sarton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/c55/may-sarton-897_age_do-not-deprive-me-of-my-age-i-have-earne_2799898.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/c55/may-sarton-897_age_do-not-deprive-me-of-my-age-i-have-earne_2799898.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/c55/may-sarton-897_age_do-not-deprive-me-of-my-age-i-have-earne_2799898.jpg) > “Do not deprive me of my age. I have earned it.” [May Sarton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/may-sarton/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Acknowledging the value of lived years and the wisdom they bring. **In simple terms:** Age is earned, not taken away. Key Takeaway Respect your own life journey. Themes self‑esteem age wisdom Mood reflective proud Type philosophical inspirational When to use this quote - career milestones - personal milestones - aging gracefully - intergenerational dialogue Key Concepts existential reflection personal growth Questions to Reflect On - How does society undervalue age? - What does “earned” mean to you? A Different Perspective May may overlook the value of youth. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Age](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/age/) [Age Earned](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/age-earned-3442561/) [Aging](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/aging/) [Deprive](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/deprive/) [Deprive Age](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/deprive-age-3442562/) [Earned](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/earned/) [Older](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/older/) ## Related quotes > [Don't deprive someone of hope, it might be all they have left…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/don-t-deprive-someone-of-hope-it-might-be-all-they-have-left/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [Some days I do well and I eat really healthfully. But I don't think we should deprive ourselves of anything, so some days I…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/martina-mcbride/some-days-i-do-well-and-i-eat-really-healthfully-but-i-don-t-think-we/) [Martina McBride](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/martina-mcbride/) > [Never deprive someone of their hope...it may be all they have.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/never-deprive-someone-of-their-hope-it-may-be-all-they-have/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [“Bestow on an individual the useless and deprive him of the necessary, and you have the gamin.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/victor-hugo/bestow-on-an-individual-the-useless-and-deprive-him-of-the-necessary/) [Victor Hugo](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/victor-hugo/) > [She had her reward! - that reward of which no enemie could deprive her, which no slanders could make less precious - the eternal…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/she-had-her-reward-that-reward-of-which-no-enemie-could-deprive-her/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [If you deprive yourself of something, you're going to want it more.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/katharine-mcphee/if-you-deprive-yourself-of-something-you-re-going-to-want-it-more/) [Katharine McPhee](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/katharine-mcphee/) > [I try not to deprive myself of anything. I don't do the low-carb thing or anything like that.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alicia-sacramone/i-try-not-to-deprive-myself-of-anything-i-don-t-do-the-low-carb-thing/) [Alicia Sacramone](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alicia-sacramone/) > [“Too bad to deprive them, but if a person doesn't look after herself in this world, no one else is likely to.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/margaret-laurence/too-bad-to-deprive-them-but-if-a-person-doesn-t-look-after-herself-in/) [Margaret Laurence](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/margaret-laurence/) > [“Before I was married, I thought the sound of bangles jangling on my forearms would be delightful. I looked forward to being able to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/phoolan-devi/before-i-was-married-i-thought-the-sound-of-bangles-jangling-on-my/) [Phoolan Devi](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/phoolan-devi/) > [Give to a being the useless, and deprive him of the needful, and you have the gamin.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/victor-hugo/give-to-a-being-the-useless-and-deprive-him-of-the-needful-and-you/) [Victor Hugo](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/victor-hugo/) > [The purpose of farming is to deprive other species of the land and sequester it for our own use. But by perfecting the art…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tristram-stuart/the-purpose-of-farming-is-to-deprive-other-species-of-the-land-and/) [Tristram Stuart](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tristram-stuart/) > [The Emancipation Proclamation is predicated upon the idea that the President may so annul the constitutions and laws of sovereign states, overthrow their domestic…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/melville-fuller/the-emancipation-proclamation-is-predicated-upon-the-idea-that-the/) [Melville Fuller](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/melville-fuller/) > [“Purge everything that's holding you back. Whatever it is you feel you are being deprived of, trust the limitation serves to bring you more…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/holly-lynn-payne/purge-everything-that-s-holding-you-back-whatever-it-is-you-feel-you/) [Holly Lynn Payne](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/holly-lynn-payne/) > [Democrats who see virtue in the estate tax are doing the equivalent of aborting future enterprises. They deprive businesses of oxygen with their support…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/amity-shlaes/democrats-who-see-virtue-in-the-estate-tax-are-doing-the-equivalent/) [Amity Shlaes](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/amity-shlaes/) > [When you deprive people of their right to live in dignity, to hope for a better future, to have control over their lives, when…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/queen-rania-of-jordan/when-you-deprive-people-of-their-right-to-live-in-dignity-to-hope-for/) [Queen Rania of Jordan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/queen-rania-of-jordan/) ## More by May Sarton > [“I felt pain like an assault, The old pain again When the world thrusts itself inside, When we have to take in the outside,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/may-sarton/i-felt-pain-like-an-assault-the-old-pain-again-when-the-world-thrusts/) [May Sarton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/may-sarton/) > [Most people have to talk so they won't hear.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/may-sarton/most-people-have-to-talk-so-they-won-t-hear/) [May Sarton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/may-sarton/) > [People who cannot feel punish those who do.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/may-sarton/people-who-cannot-feel-punish-those-who-do/) [May Sarton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/may-sarton/) > [This suspension of one's own reality, this being entirely alone in a strange city (at times I wondered if I had lost the power…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/may-sarton/this-suspension-of-one-s-own-reality-this-being-entirely-alone-in-a/) [May Sarton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/may-sarton/) > [One must think like a hero to behave like a merely decent human being.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/may-sarton/one-must-think-like-a-hero-to-behave-like-a-merely-decent-human-being/) [May Sarton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/may-sarton/) > [Real joy is becoming exceedingly rare among artists of any kind. And I have an idea that those who can and do communicate it…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/may-sarton/real-joy-is-becoming-exceedingly-rare-among-artists-of-any-kind-and-i/) [May Sarton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/may-sarton/) > [For to be desperate is to discover strength. / We die of comfort and by conflict live.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/may-sarton/for-to-be-desperate-is-to-discover-strength-we-die-of-comfort-and-by/) [May Sarton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/may-sarton/) > [“I see you with that shell Held to your sensitive abstracted ear, Hunting the ocean’s rumor till you hear it well, Until you can…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/may-sarton/i-see-you-with-that-shell-held-to-your-sensitive-abstracted-ear/) [May Sarton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/may-sarton/) > [There is a wilder solitude in winter When every sense is pricked alive and keen.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/may-sarton/there-is-a-wilder-solitude-in-winter-when-every-sense-is-pricked/) [May Sarton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/may-sarton/) > [I long for the bulbs to arrive, for the early autumn chores are melancholy, but the planting of bulbs is the work of hope…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/may-sarton/i-long-for-the-bulbs-to-arrive-for-the-early-autumn-chores-are/) [May Sarton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/may-sarton/) > [Why is it that people who cannot show feeling presume that that is a strength and not a weakness?](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/may-sarton/why-is-it-that-people-who-cannot-show-feeling-presume-that-that-is-a/) [May Sarton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/may-sarton/) > [Innocence is not pure so much as pleased, Always expectant, bright-eyed, self-enclosed](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/may-sarton/innocence-is-not-pure-so-much-as-pleased-always-expectant-bright-eyed/) [May Sarton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/may-sarton/) > [I have written every poem, every novel, for the same purpose-to find out what I think, to know where I stand.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/may-sarton/i-have-written-every-poem-every-novel-for-the-same-purpose-to-find/) [May Sarton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/may-sarton/) > [For art is order, but it is born out of the chaos of life.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/may-sarton/for-art-is-order-but-it-is-born-out-of-the-chaos-of-life/) [May Sarton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/may-sarton/) > [all great people are humble because great people have great work and are humbled by the largeness of their dreams.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/may-sarton/all-great-people-are-humble-because-great-people-have-great-work-and/) [May Sarton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/may-sarton/) [Explore all 336 May Sarton quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/may-sarton/) ## More Age quotes > [I need a bath." He chuckled. "You smell of smoke, as do I." The duke turned, leaning heavily on his cane. "Jameson, open the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/karen-hawkins/i-need-a-bath-he-chuckled-you-smell-of-smoke-as-do-i-the-duke-turned/) [Karen Hawkins](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/karen-hawkins/) > [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/) > [It's easier to change a law than an age-old mentality. Deep down, many prejudices, many hostilities, many fears persist. But if we take a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dacia-maraini/it-s-easier-to-change-a-law-than-an-age-old-mentality-deep-down-many/) [Dacia Maraini](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dacia-maraini/) > [When I first started writing, when I was 15, I would go to work with people and they would tell me my lyrics were…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sabrina-claudio/when-i-first-started-writing-when-i-was-15-i-would-go-to-work-with/) [Sabrina Claudio](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sabrina-claudio/) > [Real people speak in my books about the main events of the age, such as the war, the Chernobyl disaster, and the downfall of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/svetlana-alexievich/real-people-speak-in-my-books-about-the-main-events-of-the-age-such/) [Svetlana Alexievich](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/svetlana-alexievich/) > [As a child I was very involved with sports and I knew at age 9 that I wanted to be an Olympic champion.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/marion-jones/as-a-child-i-was-very-involved-with-sports-and-i-knew-at-age-9-that-i/) [Marion Jones](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/marion-jones/) > [If there is any period one would desire to be born in, is it not the age of Revolution; when the old and the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ralph-waldo-emerson/if-there-is-any-period-one-would-desire-to-be-born-in-is-it-not-the/) [Ralph Waldo Emerson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ralph-waldo-emerson/) > [By making conscious choices in our behavior and where we focus our attention, we can transform our experience of our body, decrease our biological…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/deepak-chopra/by-making-conscious-choices-in-our-behavior-and-where-we-focus-our/) [Deepak Chopra](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/deepak-chopra/) > [I am just enjoying the dream of being Milan coach at the age of 40.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gennaro-gattuso/i-am-just-enjoying-the-dream-of-being-milan-coach-at-the-age-of-40/) [Gennaro Gattuso](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gennaro-gattuso/) > [Age is an accumulation of life and loss. Adulthood is a series of lines crossed.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ellen-goodman/age-is-an-accumulation-of-life-and-loss-adulthood-is-a-series-of/) [Ellen Goodman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ellen-goodman/) > [I calculated that if I live up to the age of 80, then I end up using 450 toothbrushes in my life. All that…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dia-mirza/i-calculated-that-if-i-live-up-to-the-age-of-80-then-i-end-up-using/) [Dia Mirza](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dia-mirza/) > [Why is wisdom so fair? Why is beauty so wise? Because all else is temporary, while beauty and wisdom are the only real and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/vera-nazarian/why-is-wisdom-so-fair-why-is-beauty-so-wise-because-all-else-is/) [Vera Nazarian](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/vera-nazarian/) > [It was only when I went to acting school that I was like, "You are absolutely such a pigheaded freak show that you thought…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/giles-matthey/it-was-only-when-i-went-to-acting-school-that-i-was-like-you-are/) [Giles Matthey](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/giles-matthey/) > [That old man dies prematurely whose memory records no benefits conferred. They only have lived long who have lived virtuously.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/richard-brinsley-sheridan/that-old-man-dies-prematurely-whose-memory-records-no-benefits/) [Richard Brinsley Sheridan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/richard-brinsley-sheridan/) > [We have started to make music at age seven. That was a hard work.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bill-kaulitz/we-have-started-to-make-music-at-age-seven-that-was-a-hard-work/) [Bill Kaulitz](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bill-kaulitz/) [Browse all 18,948 Age quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/age/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "Do not deprive me of my age. I have earned it.", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "May Sarton" }, "isPartOf": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website" }, "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/may-sarton/do-not-deprive-me-of-my-age-i-have-earned-it/", "about": { "@type": "Thing", "name": "Age" }, "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/may-sarton/do-not-deprive-me-of-my-age-i-have-earned-it/#quotation", "image": { "@type": "ImageObject", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/c55/may-sarton-897_age_do-not-deprive-me-of-my-age-i-have-earne_2799898.jpg", "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/c55/may-sarton-897_age_do-not-deprive-me-of-my-age-i-have-earne_2799898.jpg", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/c55/may-sarton-897_age_do-not-deprive-me-of-my-age-i-have-earne_2799898.jpg", "width": 1080, "height": 1080, "caption": "“Do not deprive me of my age. I have earned it.” — May Sarton", "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": "May Sarton", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/may-sarton/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 4, "name": "Do not deprive me of my...", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/may-sarton/do-not-deprive-me-of-my-age-i-have-earned-it/" } ], "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/may-sarton/do-not-deprive-me-of-my-age-i-have-earned-it/#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 } } ] } ```