--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: It’s important not to be embarrassed by…" description: "\"It’s important not to be embarrassed by your past. The contradictions are part of what we are.\" — Richey Edwards" image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/2ad/richey-edwards-13389_contradiction_it-s-important-not-to-be-embarrassed-by_210908.jpg" --- # It’s important not to be embarrassed by your past. The… ![“It’s important not to be embarrassed by your past. The contradictions are part of what we are.” quote by Richey Edwards](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/2ad/richey-edwards-13389_contradiction_it-s-important-not-to-be-embarrassed-by_210908.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/2ad/richey-edwards-13389_contradiction_it-s-important-not-to-be-embarrassed-by_210908.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/2ad/richey-edwards-13389_contradiction_it-s-important-not-to-be-embarrassed-by_210908.jpg) > “It’s important not to be embarrassed by your past. The contradictions are part of what we are.” [Richey Edwards](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/richey-edwards/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Accepting past contradictions shapes identity and growth. **In simple terms:** Past contradictions shape who we are. Key Takeaway Embrace your past to grow. Themes identity self-acceptance growth Mood reflective introspective Type philosophical inspirational When to use this quote - therapy sessions - personal reflection - creative writing Key Concepts psychology personal narrative Questions to Reflect On - How does acknowledging contradictions empower you? - What parts of your past do you resist? A Different Perspective Past cannot be changed, only integrated. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Contradiction](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/contradiction/) [Contradictions](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/contradictions/) [Embarrassed](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/embarrassed/) [Our past](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/our-past/) [Past](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/past/) [Time](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/time/) [Your past](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/your-past/) ## Related quotes > [Its important not to be embarrassed by your past. The contradictions are part of what we are.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/richey-edwards/its-important-not-to-be-embarrassed-by-your-past-the-contradictions/) [Richey Edwards](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/richey-edwards/) > [Nations without a past are contradictions in terms. What makes a nation is the past, what justifies one nation against others is the past,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/eric-hobsbawm/nations-without-a-past-are-contradictions-in-terms-what-makes-a/) [Eric Hobsbawm](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/eric-hobsbawm/) > [“I didn't like people knowing things about me. I wasn't embarrassed by my past, because it couldn't be helped, but people were cruel and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lynda-leeanne/i-didn-t-like-people-knowing-things-about-me-i-wasn-t-embarrassed-by/) [Lynda LeeAnne](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lynda-leeanne/) > [It's important that you are not embarrassed when you try something new.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/neena-gupta/it-s-important-that-you-are-not-embarrassed-when-you-try-something-new/) [Neena Gupta](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/neena-gupta/) > [I'm black, and it's a very important part of what I am. I'm not embarrassed about it.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/chris-ofili/i-m-black-and-it-s-a-very-important-part-of-what-i-am-i-m-not/) [Chris Ofili](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/chris-ofili/) > [Remember your past mistakes just long enough to profit by them.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/clinton-d-mckinnon/remember-your-past-mistakes-just-long-enough-to-profit-by-them/) Clinton D. McKinnon > [When you have a problem, if you tell the truth, the problem becomes part of your past. If you lie, it becomes part of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rick-pitino/when-you-have-a-problem-if-you-tell-the-truth-the-problem-becomes/) [Rick Pitino](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rick-pitino/) > [If you don't let your past die, then it won't let you live. Period.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/perry-noble/if-you-don-t-let-your-past-die-then-it-won-t-let-you-live-period/) [Perry Noble](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/perry-noble/) > [Don't be so bitter about a bad experience from your past that you miss the opportunities in front of you.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robert-kiyosaki/don-t-be-so-bitter-about-a-bad-experience-from-your-past-that-you/) [Robert Kiyosaki](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robert-kiyosaki/) > [You can accept or reject the way you are treated by other people, but until you heal the wounds of your past, you will…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/iyanla-vanzant/you-can-accept-or-reject-the-way-you-are-treated-by-other-people-but/) [Iyanla Vanzant](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/iyanla-vanzant/) > [At each point in our lives, we are at a crossroads. We are the fruit of our past and we are the architects of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/matthieu-ricard/at-each-point-in-our-lives-we-are-at-a-crossroads-we-are-the-fruit-of/) [Matthieu Ricard](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/matthieu-ricard/) > [I don't want your future I don't need your past One bright moment Is all I ask](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/florence-welch/i-don-t-want-your-future-i-don-t-need-your-past-one-bright-moment-is/) [Florence Welch](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/florence-welch/) > [People should learn that you cannot dwell in your past. One who dwells in the past hurts not only himself, but also the people…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jun-mochizuki/people-should-learn-that-you-cannot-dwell-in-your-past-one-who-dwells/) [Jun Mochizuki](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jun-mochizuki/) > [Do not look down, brooding over your weakness! Do not look back upon your past, strewn with failure! Look up to the living Christ!](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/f-b-meyer/do-not-look-down-brooding-over-your-weakness-do-not-look-back-upon/) [F.B. Meyer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/f-b-meyer/) > [I have a way to photograph. You work with space, you have a camera, you have a frame, and then a fraction of a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sebastiao-salgado/i-have-a-way-to-photograph-you-work-with-space-you-have-a-camera-you/) [Sebastiao Salgado](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sebastiao-salgado/) ## More by Richey Edwards > [Whenever I've got close to having any kind of relationship at all I know it's kind of fraudulent, because I still find other people…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/richey-edwards/whenever-i-ve-got-close-to-having-any-kind-of-relationship-at-all-i/) [Richey Edwards](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/richey-edwards/) > [I'm the sort of person who wakes up in the morning and needs to pour a bottle down my throat.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/richey-edwards/i-m-the-sort-of-person-who-wakes-up-in-the-morning-and-needs-to-pour/) [Richey Edwards](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/richey-edwards/) > [Are we intelligent rock music? I just think that we chose to write about different sorts of subjects. I'm much more interested in the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/richey-edwards/are-we-intelligent-rock-music-i-just-think-that-we-chose-to-write/) [Richey Edwards](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/richey-edwards/) > [I think the public's perception of a rock fan is that they are neandethal, macho shitheads; and there's probably a massive proportion that are.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/richey-edwards/i-think-the-public-s-perception-of-a-rock-fan-is-that-they-are/) [Richey Edwards](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/richey-edwards/) > [People say to the mentally ill, ‘You know so many people think the world of you.’ But when they don’t like themselves they don’t…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/richey-edwards/people-say-to-the-mentally-ill-you-know-so-many-people-think-the/) [Richey Edwards](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/richey-edwards/) > [When I sit in my bedroom with a book and a bottle of vodka, I do it because I'm sad, not because I think…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/richey-edwards/when-i-sit-in-my-bedroom-with-a-book-and-a-bottle-of-vodka-i-do-it/) [Richey Edwards](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/richey-edwards/) > [We've never changed for anybody I think that the whole of the first world, it's suffering is very self-indulgent, there's no real reason to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/richey-edwards/we-ve-never-changed-for-anybody-i-think-that-the-whole-of-the-first/) [Richey Edwards](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/richey-edwards/) > [I think there's something that you just feel is missing from your life. I think it's very difficult to trust people, very difficult to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/richey-edwards/i-think-there-s-something-that-you-just-feel-is-missing-from-your/) [Richey Edwards](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/richey-edwards/) > [I have no regrets. Regrets are meaningless. You can't change yesterday or tomorrow. You can change only this present moment.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/richey-edwards/i-have-no-regrets-regrets-are-meaningless-you-can-t-change-yesterday/) [Richey Edwards](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/richey-edwards/) > [I'm not a person who can scream and shout so this is my only outlet. It's all done very logically.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/richey-edwards/i-m-not-a-person-who-can-scream-and-shout-so-this-is-my-only-outlet/) [Richey Edwards](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/richey-edwards/) > [I have a very childlike rage, and a very childlike loneliness.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/richey-edwards/i-have-a-very-childlike-rage-and-a-very-childlike-loneliness/) [Richey Edwards](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/richey-edwards/) > [Self abuse is anti-social, aggression still natural.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/richey-edwards/self-abuse-is-anti-social-aggression-still-natural/) [Richey Edwards](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/richey-edwards/) > [There's an awful lot of white British kids who have never really gone hungry, always had a roof to live under but at the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/richey-edwards/there-s-an-awful-lot-of-white-british-kids-who-have-never-really-gone/) [Richey Edwards](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/richey-edwards/) > [I believe in nothing but it is my nothing.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/richey-edwards/i-believe-in-nothing-but-it-is-my-nothing/) [Richey Edwards](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/richey-edwards/) > [Its important not to be embarrassed by your past. The contradictions are part of what we are.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/richey-edwards/its-important-not-to-be-embarrassed-by-your-past-the-contradictions/) [Richey Edwards](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/richey-edwards/) [Explore all 50 Richey Edwards quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/richey-edwards/) ## More Contradiction quotes > [The inner defenses are unconscious. They consist of a kind of magic aura which the mind builds around cherished belief. Arguments which penetrate into…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/arthur-koestler/the-inner-defenses-are-unconscious-they-consist-of-a-kind-of-magic/) [Arthur Koestler](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/arthur-koestler/) > [Courage is almost a contradiction in terms. It means a strong desire to live taking the form of readiness to die.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/courage-is-almost-a-contradiction-in-terms-it-means-a-strong-desire/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [It is also plausible that those movements with the greatest inner contradiction and between profession and practice - that is to say with a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/eric-hoffer/it-is-also-plausible-that-those-movements-with-the-greatest-inner/) [Eric Hoffer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/eric-hoffer/) > [Contradictions in human character are one of its most consistent notes.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/muriel-spark/contradictions-in-human-character-are-one-of-its-most-consistent-notes/) [Muriel Spark](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/muriel-spark/) > [“The tiny features below, taken together with the gentle mass of Montblanc towering above them, the Vanoise glacier almost invisible in the shimmering distance,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/w-g-sebald-2/the-tiny-features-below-taken-together-with-the-gentle-mass-of/) [W.G. Sebald](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/w-g-sebald-2/) > [I’m a skeptic not because I do not want to believe, but because I want to know.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-shermer/i-m-a-skeptic-not-because-i-do-not-want-to-believe-but-because-i-want/) [Michael Shermer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michael-shermer/) > [There are evidently limits to the achievements of science; and there are irresolvable contradictions both between prosperity and virtue, and between happiness and ''the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/reinhold-niebuhr/there-are-evidently-limits-to-the-achievements-of-science-and-there/) [Reinhold Niebuhr](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/reinhold-niebuhr/) > [To exist (in mathematics), said Henri Poincaré, is to be free from contradiction. But mere existence does not guarantee survival. To survive in mathematics…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mark-kac/to-exist-in-mathematics-said-henri-poincar-is-to-be-free-from/) [Mark Kac](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mark-kac/) > [“In these creations, life and symbolic value are not in contradiction: they intensify each other.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/victor-hugo/in-these-creations-life-and-symbolic-value-are-not-in-contradiction/) [Victor Hugo](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/victor-hugo/) > [I have never agreed with my other self wholly. The truth of the matter seems to lie between us.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/khalil-gibran/i-have-never-agreed-with-my-other-self-wholly-the-truth-of-the-matter/) [Khalil Gibran](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/khalil-gibran/) > [“A truth is not necessary, because we negatively are not able to conceive the actual existence of the opposite thereof;but a truth is necessary…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/r-l-dabney/a-truth-is-not-necessary-because-we-negatively-are-not-able-to/) R.L. Dabney > [The pictures that were coming from Vietnam were showing us what was really happening on the ground level. It was in contradiction to what…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/james-nachtwey/the-pictures-that-were-coming-from-vietnam-were-showing-us-what-was/) [James Nachtwey](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/james-nachtwey/) > [Here I encounter the most popular fallacy of our times. It is not considered sufficient that the law should guarantee to every citizen the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/frederic-bastiat/here-i-encounter-the-most-popular-fallacy-of-our-times-it-is-not/) [Frederic Bastiat](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/frederic-bastiat/) > [That the sun will not rise tomorrow is no less intelligible a proposition, and implies no more contradiction, than the affirmation, that it will…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-hume/that-the-sun-will-not-rise-tomorrow-is-no-less-intelligible-a/) [David Hume](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-hume/) > [The reflection of nature in man's thought must be understood not lifelessly but in the eternal process of movement, the arising of contradictions and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/vladimir-lenin/the-reflection-of-nature-in-man-s-thought-must-be-understood-not/) [Vladimir Lenin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/vladimir-lenin/) [Browse all 1,263 Contradiction quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/contradiction/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "It’s important not to be embarrassed by your past. The contradictions are part of what we are.", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "Richey Edwards" }, "isPartOf": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website" }, "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/richey-edwards/it-s-important-not-to-be-embarrassed-by-your-past-the-contradictions/", "about": { "@type": "Thing", "name": "Contradiction" }, "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/richey-edwards/it-s-important-not-to-be-embarrassed-by-your-past-the-contradictions/#quotation", "image": { "@type": "ImageObject", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/2ad/richey-edwards-13389_contradiction_it-s-important-not-to-be-embarrassed-by_210908.jpg", "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/2ad/richey-edwards-13389_contradiction_it-s-important-not-to-be-embarrassed-by_210908.jpg", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/2ad/richey-edwards-13389_contradiction_it-s-important-not-to-be-embarrassed-by_210908.jpg", "width": 1080, "height": 1080, "caption": "“It’s important not to be embarrassed by your past. The contradictions are part of what we are.” — Richey Edwards", "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": "Richey Edwards", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/richey-edwards/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 4, "name": "It’s important not to be embarrassed...", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/richey-edwards/it-s-important-not-to-be-embarrassed-by-your-past-the-contradictions/" } ], "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/richey-edwards/it-s-important-not-to-be-embarrassed-by-your-past-the-contradictions/#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 } } ] } ```