--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: Growing old is to be set free. It is a…" description: "\"“Growing old is to be set free. It is a slow and long-simmering process that extracts you from what you are really made of. But it requires acceptance...." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/26f/samantha-sotto-16543_growing-old_growing-old-is-to-be-set-free-it-is-a-sl_2237191.jpg" --- # Growing old is to be set free. It is a slow and… ![“Growing old is to be set free. It is a slow and long-simmering process that extracts you from what you are really made of. But it requires acceptance. You cannot put a flailing chicken in a boiling pot. You must accept the heat and the pain with serenity so that the full flavors of your life maybe…” quote by Samantha Sotto](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/26f/samantha-sotto-16543_growing-old_growing-old-is-to-be-set-free-it-is-a-sl_2237191.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/26f/samantha-sotto-16543_growing-old_growing-old-is-to-be-set-free-it-is-a-sl_2237191.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/26f/samantha-sotto-16543_growing-old_growing-old-is-to-be-set-free-it-is-a-sl_2237191.jpg) > ““Growing old is to be set free. It is a slow and long-simmering process that extracts you from what you are really made of. But it requires acceptance. You cannot put a flailing chicken in a boiling pot. You must accept the heat and the pain with serenity so that the full flavors of your life maybe released.”” [Samantha Sotto](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/samantha-sotto/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Aging is a gradual, inevitable process that strips away pretensions, demanding calm acceptance of pain to reveal life's true essence. **In simple terms:** Aging requires calm acceptance to reveal life's meaning. Key Takeaway Embrace aging with serenity. Themes acceptance aging transformation Mood reflective melancholic Type philosophical inspirational When to use this quote - health care - personal reflection - creative work - family dynamics Key Concepts existentialism mindfulness impermanence Questions to Reflect On - How can you cultivate serenity amid aging? - What aspects of yourself might you discover through acceptance? A Different Perspective Pain may be unavoidable and can still overwhelm. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Growing old](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/growing-old/) [Life](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/life/) [Life and living](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/life-and-living/) [Youth](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/youth/) ## Related quotes > [I have heard a greater storm in a boiling pot.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/athenaeus/i-have-heard-a-greater-storm-in-a-boiling-pot/) [Athenaeus](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/athenaeus/) > [As you heat the planet up, it's just like boiling a pot.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/elon-musk/as-you-heat-the-planet-up-it-s-just-like-boiling-a-pot/) [Elon Musk](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/elon-musk/) > [So long as I know what's boiling in my pot I don't bother my head about what's in other people's.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/marcel-proust/so-long-as-i-know-what-s-boiling-in-my-pot-i-don-t-bother-my-head/) [Marcel Proust](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/marcel-proust/) > [We're just a bubble in a boiling pot.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jack-johnson/we-re-just-a-bubble-in-a-boiling-pot/) [Jack Johnson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jack-johnson/) > [“A large boiling pot of water is not a Jacuzzi. Still, I think you should jump in.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jarod-kintz/a-large-boiling-pot-of-water-is-not-a-jacuzzi-still-i-think-you/) [Jarod Kintz](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jarod-kintz/) > [To a boiling pot flies come not.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-herbert/to-a-boiling-pot-flies-come-not/) [George Herbert](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-herbert/) > [“A turtle should take fright at the sound of a boiling pot.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/carol-kendall/a-turtle-should-take-fright-at-the-sound-of-a-boiling-pot/) [Carol Kendall](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/carol-kendall/) > [“Growing old is to be set free, Brother. It is aslow and long-simmering process that extracts from you what you are really made of.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/samantha-sotto/growing-old-is-to-be-set-free-brother-it-is-aslow-and-long-simmering/) [Samantha Sotto](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/samantha-sotto/) > [He was sailing over a boundless expanse of sea, with a blood-red sky above, and the angry waters, lashed into fury beneath, boiling and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/charles-dickens/he-was-sailing-over-a-boundless-expanse-of-sea-with-a-blood-red-sky/) [Charles Dickens](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/charles-dickens/) > [If you're not spending every waking moment of your day radically rethinking the nature of the world-if you're not plotting every moment boiling the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/douglas-coupland/if-you-re-not-spending-every-waking-moment-of-your-day-radically/) [Douglas Coupland](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/douglas-coupland/) > [That's just the way people's brains work. If you want to talk about something, you have to reduce it to a form that can…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-dieterich/that-s-just-the-way-people-s-brains-work-if-you-want-to-talk-about/) [John Dieterich](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-dieterich/) > [I drank some boiling water because I wanted to whistle.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mitch-hedberg/i-drank-some-boiling-water-because-i-wanted-to-whistle/) [Mitch Hedberg](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mitch-hedberg/) > [I'm never going again on Met Gala. It was so un-fun. It was boiling. It was too crowded. I did not enjoy it at…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gwyneth-paltrow/i-m-never-going-again-on-met-gala-it-was-so-un-fun-it-was-boiling-it/) [Gwyneth Paltrow](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gwyneth-paltrow/) > [how cruel, your veins are full of ice-water and mine are boiling](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/emily-bronte/how-cruel-your-veins-are-full-of-ice-water-and-mine-are-boiling/) [Emily Bronte](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/emily-bronte/) > [That devilish Iron Horse, whose ear-rending neigh is heard throughout the town, has muddied the Boiling Spring with his foot, and he it is…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/henry-david-thoreau/that-devilish-iron-horse-whose-ear-rending-neigh-is-heard-throughout/) [Henry David Thoreau](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/henry-david-thoreau/) ## More by Samantha Sotto > [“If we accept time for what it is, how it flows and how we flow with it, I doubt very much that we would…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/samantha-sotto/if-we-accept-time-for-what-it-is-how-it-flows-and-how-we-flow-with-it/) [Samantha Sotto](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/samantha-sotto/) > [“You can make a child believe a lot of things. Santa Claus, the Tooth Fairy, the Easter Bunny... just about anything really, except love.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/samantha-sotto/you-can-make-a-child-believe-a-lot-of-things-santa-claus-the-tooth/) [Samantha Sotto](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/samantha-sotto/) > [“Children know when they're loved. It's when you grow up that you're more easily fooled.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/samantha-sotto/children-know-when-they-re-loved-it-s-when-you-grow-up-that-you-re/) [Samantha Sotto](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/samantha-sotto/) > [“It appears that you were meant to be mine only for a little while.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/samantha-sotto/it-appears-that-you-were-meant-to-be-mine-only-for-a-little-while/) [Samantha Sotto](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/samantha-sotto/) > [“The gnomons's shadow falls where it falls - and so do we. Where we are now is where a lifetime's worth of steps have…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/samantha-sotto/the-gnomons-s-shadow-falls-where-it-falls-and-so-do-we-where-we-are/) [Samantha Sotto](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/samantha-sotto/) > [“Life is a strong drink served up in an extremely short, and fragile shot glass. We shouldn't waste a single drop.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/samantha-sotto/life-is-a-strong-drink-served-up-in-an-extremely-short-and-fragile/) [Samantha Sotto](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/samantha-sotto/) > [“Dying is not the real tragedy. Forgetting is.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/samantha-sotto/dying-is-not-the-real-tragedy-forgetting-is/) [Samantha Sotto](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/samantha-sotto/) > [“... I'll always have something that not even time can take away. Pain. ...because when I've forgotten everything else, I'll feel that ache... that…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/samantha-sotto/i-ll-always-have-something-that-not-even-time-can-take-away-pain/) [Samantha Sotto](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/samantha-sotto/) > [“Things couldn't end if she didn't let them begin.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/samantha-sotto/things-couldn-t-end-if-she-didn-t-let-them-begin/) [Samantha Sotto](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/samantha-sotto/) > [“I said you weren’t inconsequential. No one is. We change at least one person’s life just by being born. If you don’t believe me,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/samantha-sotto/i-said-you-weren-t-inconsequential-no-one-is-we-change-at-least-one/) [Samantha Sotto](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/samantha-sotto/) > [“I just didn't think you actually had to die to live forever.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/samantha-sotto/i-just-didn-t-think-you-actually-had-to-die-to-live-forever/) [Samantha Sotto](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/samantha-sotto/) > [“Antoine knew what it was like to flee, to shed a life as though it were a cloak. He had learned to pack light.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/samantha-sotto/antoine-knew-what-it-was-like-to-flee-to-shed-a-life-as-though-it/) [Samantha Sotto](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/samantha-sotto/) > [“A kiss can be dreadfully terrifying for the males of our species, I'm afraid." Rose said knowingly. "Sex is easy. All they really need…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/samantha-sotto/a-kiss-can-be-dreadfully-terrifying-for-the-males-of-our-species-i-m/) [Samantha Sotto](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/samantha-sotto/) > [“But I am half a man, wholly in love, and so I have chosen to let you leave me instead.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/samantha-sotto/but-i-am-half-a-man-wholly-in-love-and-so-i-have-chosen-to-let-you/) [Samantha Sotto](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/samantha-sotto/) > [“Meet. Date. Run.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/samantha-sotto/meet-date-run/) [Samantha Sotto](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/samantha-sotto/) [Explore all 38 Samantha Sotto quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/samantha-sotto/) ## More Boiling quotes > [That devilish Iron Horse, whose ear-rending neigh is heard throughout the town, has muddied the Boiling Spring with his foot, and he it is…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/henry-david-thoreau/that-devilish-iron-horse-whose-ear-rending-neigh-is-heard-throughout/) [Henry David Thoreau](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/henry-david-thoreau/) > [how cruel, your veins are full of ice-water and mine are boiling](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/emily-bronte/how-cruel-your-veins-are-full-of-ice-water-and-mine-are-boiling/) [Emily Bronte](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/emily-bronte/) > [I'm never going again on Met Gala. It was so un-fun. It was boiling. It was too crowded. I did not enjoy it at…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gwyneth-paltrow/i-m-never-going-again-on-met-gala-it-was-so-un-fun-it-was-boiling-it/) [Gwyneth Paltrow](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gwyneth-paltrow/) > [I drank some boiling water because I wanted to whistle.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mitch-hedberg/i-drank-some-boiling-water-because-i-wanted-to-whistle/) [Mitch Hedberg](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mitch-hedberg/) > [That's just the way people's brains work. If you want to talk about something, you have to reduce it to a form that can…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-dieterich/that-s-just-the-way-people-s-brains-work-if-you-want-to-talk-about/) [John Dieterich](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-dieterich/) > [If you're not spending every waking moment of your day radically rethinking the nature of the world-if you're not plotting every moment boiling the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/douglas-coupland/if-you-re-not-spending-every-waking-moment-of-your-day-radically/) [Douglas Coupland](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/douglas-coupland/) > [He was sailing over a boundless expanse of sea, with a blood-red sky above, and the angry waters, lashed into fury beneath, boiling and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/charles-dickens/he-was-sailing-over-a-boundless-expanse-of-sea-with-a-blood-red-sky/) [Charles Dickens](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/charles-dickens/) > [Into this pour the purified juice: and put it into a pan of water come almost to a boil and continue nearly in the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/james-lind/into-this-pour-the-purified-juice-and-put-it-into-a-pan-of-water-come/) [James Lind](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/james-lind/) > [God is a God of galaxies, of storms, of roaring seas and boiling thunder, but He is also the God of bread baking, of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/n-d-wilson/god-is-a-god-of-galaxies-of-storms-of-roaring-seas-and-boiling/) [N.D. Wilson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/n-d-wilson/) > [In the name of celibacy, sex has been repressed for centuries and you have become just full of sexuality. Rather than transcending it you…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rajneesh/in-the-name-of-celibacy-sex-has-been-repressed-for-centuries-and-you/) [Rajneesh](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rajneesh/) > [“Tea was more than boiling water. There were decisions to be made and a frame of mind to develop, no matter how imperceptible.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/l-l-barkat/tea-was-more-than-boiling-water-there-were-decisions-to-be-made-and-a/) [L.L. Barkat](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/l-l-barkat/) > [Given that you're meeting a sloth, that feeling is generally joy, excitement, warmth, and love. What do those feelings smell like, you ask? Like…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ann-burton/given-that-you-re-meeting-a-sloth-that-feeling-is-generally-joy/) [Ann Burton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ann-burton/) > [If a lobster didn't look like a sci-fi monster, people would be less able to drop him alive into boiling water.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-carlin/if-a-lobster-didn-t-look-like-a-sci-fi-monster-people-would-be-less/) [George Carlin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-carlin/) > [Since the advent of the Internet - more recently compounded by blogging - everyone can be a published voice. Any cowardly, anonymous anger-monger can…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lynda-resnick/since-the-advent-of-the-internet-more-recently-compounded-by-blogging/) [Lynda Resnick](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lynda-resnick/) > [If you throw a frog in a pot of boiling water, it will hop right out. But if you put that frog in a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stephenie-meyer/if-you-throw-a-frog-in-a-pot-of-boiling-water-it-will-hop-right-out/) [Stephenie Meyer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stephenie-meyer/) Browse all 156 Boiling quotes ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "“Growing old is to be set free. It is a slow and long-simmering process that extracts you from what you are really made of. But it requires acceptance. You cannot put a flailing chicken in a boiling pot. 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