--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: I should have thought of this years ago…" description: "\"I should have thought of this years ago. But that was the problem with being sane. Sane people played by the rules. They looked for rational explanatio..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/348/sherrilyn-kenyon-25_explanation_i-should-have-thought-of-this-years-ago_3054998.jpg" --- # I should have thought of this years ago. But that was the… ![“I should have thought of this years ago. But that was the problem with being sane. Sane people played by the rules. They looked for rational explanations and solutions in an insane universe.” quote by Sherrilyn Kenyon](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/348/sherrilyn-kenyon-25_explanation_i-should-have-thought-of-this-years-ago_3054998.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/348/sherrilyn-kenyon-25_explanation_i-should-have-thought-of-this-years-ago_3054998.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/348/sherrilyn-kenyon-25_explanation_i-should-have-thought-of-this-years-ago_3054998.jpg) > “I should have thought of this years ago. But that was the problem with being sane. Sane people played by the rules. They looked for rational explanations and solutions in an insane universe.” [Sherrilyn Kenyon](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sherrilyn-kenyon/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Rational thinkers struggle in an irrational world, seeking order where none exists. **In simple terms:** Rationality clashes with chaos. Key Takeaway Accept uncertainty alongside logic. Themes rationality chaos existential Mood thoughtful serious Type philosophical literary When to use this quote - science - policy making - personal decisions Key Concepts philosophy psychology cosmology Questions to Reflect On - How do you balance reason and chaos? - When is irrationality useful? A Different Perspective Logic alone can't solve everything. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Madness](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/madness/) [People](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/people/) [Problem](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/problem/) [Universe](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/universe/) ## Related quotes > [“Sane people played by the rules. They looked for rational explanations and solutions in an insane universe.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sherrilyn-kenyon/sane-people-played-by-the-rules-they-looked-for-rational-explanations/) [Sherrilyn Kenyon](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sherrilyn-kenyon/) > [“That’s the problem with sane people. They almost always have a license to kill those they think are insane.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/cameron-jace/that-s-the-problem-with-sane-people-they-almost-always-have-a-license/) [Cameron Jace](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/cameron-jace/) > [The Internet has a lot of solutions. I found an insane way to trap chipmunks - it was too crazy not to try.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/wade-guyton/the-internet-has-a-lot-of-solutions-i-found-an-insane-way-to-trap/) [Wade Guyton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/wade-guyton/) > [The difference between mad people and sane people... is that sane people have variety when they talk-story. Mad people have only one story that…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/maxine-hong-kingston/the-difference-between-mad-people-and-sane-people-is-that-sane-people/) [Maxine Hong Kingston](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/maxine-hong-kingston/) > [The idea that all the people locked up in mental hospitals are sane while all the people walking about are mad is merely a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tom-stoppard/the-idea-that-all-the-people-locked-up-in-mental-hospitals-are-sane/) [Tom Stoppard](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tom-stoppard/) > [Prayer, among sane people, has never superseded practical efforts to secure the desired end.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-santayana/prayer-among-sane-people-has-never-superseded-practical-efforts-to/) [George Santayana](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-santayana/) > [All inventors, they say, are a little mad. I reckon that only completely sane people are willing to admit they are slightly crazy.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/trevor-baylis/all-inventors-they-say-are-a-little-mad-i-reckon-that-only-completely/) [Trevor Baylis](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/trevor-baylis/) > [Insane people are always sure that they are fine. It is only the sane people who are willing to admit that they are crazy.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nora-ephron/insane-people-are-always-sure-that-they-are-fine-it-is-only-the-sane/) [Nora Ephron](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nora-ephron/) > [If the world is crazy, maybe it needs a few sane people in the middle of it. Why do monks lock themselves up in…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tim-ward/if-the-world-is-crazy-maybe-it-needs-a-few-sane-people-in-the-middle/) [Tim Ward](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tim-ward/) > [Most sane people think that no insane person can reason logically. But this is not so.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/clifford-whittingham-beers/most-sane-people-think-that-no-insane-person-can-reason-logically-but/) [Clifford Whittingham Beers](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/clifford-whittingham-beers/) > [“Tell me. Why would you consider me insane, but the man who can't hold a job, who cheats on his wife, who can't keep…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/brandon-sanderson/tell-me-why-would-you-consider-me-insane-but-the-man-who-can-t-hold-a/) [Brandon Sanderson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/brandon-sanderson/) > [“The things sane societies loved, it hated. The things sane societies hated, it loved; the things sane societies tried to do, it tried to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alice-lucy-trent/the-things-sane-societies-loved-it-hated-the-things-sane-societies/) Alice Lucy Trent > [“Of course sane people always thought the aim of marriage was the procreation of children to the glory of God or according to the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/g-k-chesterton/of-course-sane-people-always-thought-the-aim-of-marriage-was-the/) [G.K. Chesterton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/g-k-chesterton/) > [Insane people are always sure they're just fine. It's only the sane people who are willing to admit they're crazy.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nora-ephron/insane-people-are-always-sure-they-re-just-fine-it-s-only-the-sane/) [Nora Ephron](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nora-ephron/) > [“Sane people did what their neighbours did, so that if any lunatics were at large, one might know and avoid them.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-eliot/sane-people-did-what-their-neighbours-did-so-that-if-any-lunatics/) [George Eliot](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-eliot/) ## More by Sherrilyn Kenyon > [Grandma, please. It’s okay. Dad’s doing a great job. I give him kudos for at least being calm and rational, and not losing his…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sherrilyn-kenyon/grandma-please-it-s-okay-dad-s-doing-a-great-job-i-give-him-kudos-for/) [Sherrilyn Kenyon](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sherrilyn-kenyon/) > [I just can’t, Nick, okay? Now, please give me a second to lie here in silence and bleed.” – Caleb](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sherrilyn-kenyon/i-just-can-t-nick-okay-now-please-give-me-a-second-to-lie-here-in/) [Sherrilyn Kenyon](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sherrilyn-kenyon/) > [“You are my life.” -Maris”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sherrilyn-kenyon/you-are-my-life-maris/) [Sherrilyn Kenyon](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sherrilyn-kenyon/) > [It's easy to make mistakes. It's living with the consequences of them that's the hardest.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sherrilyn-kenyon/it-s-easy-to-make-mistakes-it-s-living-with-the-consequences-of-them/) [Sherrilyn Kenyon](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sherrilyn-kenyon/) > [“I don't know," Valerius said. " I hear some godawful kind of music from outside, horns blaring, and I'm in a house with a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sherrilyn-kenyon/i-don-t-know-valerius-said-i-hear-some-godawful-kind-of-music-from/) [Sherrilyn Kenyon](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sherrilyn-kenyon/) > [Got to say, dying would really wreck my best day. Been there, done that, and now that I think about it, Artemis forgot to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sherrilyn-kenyon/got-to-say-dying-would-really-wreck-my-best-day-been-there-done-that/) [Sherrilyn Kenyon](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sherrilyn-kenyon/) > [May the gods have mercy on whoever pisses them off, because Zarek and Jericho will have none for them. (Madoc) You’d better be glad…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sherrilyn-kenyon/may-the-gods-have-mercy-on-whoever-pisses-them-off-because-zarek-and/) [Sherrilyn Kenyon](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sherrilyn-kenyon/) > [“Careful, human,” Hauk warned, showing Darling his fangs. “I might get hungry one of these nights and decide we no longer need a weaptech.”…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sherrilyn-kenyon/careful-human-hauk-warned-showing-darling-his-fangs-i-might-get/) [Sherrilyn Kenyon](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sherrilyn-kenyon/) > [“Be that as it may, we do need you in particular to complete this assignment. (Syd) What is it with you government assholes that…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sherrilyn-kenyon/be-that-as-it-may-we-do-need-you-in-particular-to-complete-this/) [Sherrilyn Kenyon](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sherrilyn-kenyon/) > [The only way to have eternal love is to never let your heart forget what it’s like to live without it.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sherrilyn-kenyon/the-only-way-to-have-eternal-love-is-to-never-let-your-heart-forget/) [Sherrilyn Kenyon](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sherrilyn-kenyon/) > [“I'm only one kill away from Command Assassin. Be a damn shame for that kill to be you" (Darion)”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sherrilyn-kenyon/i-m-only-one-kill-away-from-command-assassin-be-a-damn-shame-for-that/) [Sherrilyn Kenyon](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sherrilyn-kenyon/) > [I’m getting all warm and fuzzy inside at the prospect of these demon things roaming the street, preying on us. (Tate)](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sherrilyn-kenyon/i-m-getting-all-warm-and-fuzzy-inside-at-the-prospect-of-these-demon/) [Sherrilyn Kenyon](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sherrilyn-kenyon/) > [“Then Olympus it is. But do try to behave. I know it’s hard for you, but… (Delphine) I won’t piss on the floor. (Jericho)…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sherrilyn-kenyon/then-olympus-it-is-but-do-try-to-behave-i-know-it-s-hard-for-you-but/) [Sherrilyn Kenyon](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sherrilyn-kenyon/) > [Funny how internal scars never healed. They were the souvenirs of the past.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sherrilyn-kenyon/funny-how-internal-scars-never-healed-they-were-the-souvenirs-of-the/) [Sherrilyn Kenyon](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sherrilyn-kenyon/) > [“Hear me Isis as I pray. See her pain and take it all away. Let the heaven's light shine bright from above. And wrap…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sherrilyn-kenyon/hear-me-isis-as-i-pray-see-her-pain-and-take-it-all-away-let-the/) [Sherrilyn Kenyon](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sherrilyn-kenyon/) [Explore all 3,050 Sherrilyn Kenyon quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sherrilyn-kenyon/) ## More Explanation quotes > [Let us remember that every worldview-not just Christianity's-must give an explanation or an answer for evil and suffering...this is not just a problem distinctive…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ravi-zacharias/let-us-remember-that-every-worldview-not-just-christianity-s-must/) [Ravi Zacharias](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ravi-zacharias/) > [Yesterday's truth is today's bullshit. Even yesterday's liberating insight is today's jail of stale explanation.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/brad-blanton/yesterday-s-truth-is-today-s-bullshit-even-yesterday-s-liberating/) [Brad Blanton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/brad-blanton/) > [Before I had kids, I thought you should never lie to a kid. But now I've had them, I realize you almost lie to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/emma-donoghue/before-i-had-kids-i-thought-you-should-never-lie-to-a-kid-but-now-i/) [Emma Donoghue](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/emma-donoghue/) > [To prevent discussion of any other explanations of human origins is hardly what I would expect from open-minded educators.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tony-campolo/to-prevent-discussion-of-any-other-explanations-of-human-origins-is/) [Tony Campolo](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tony-campolo/) > [ They \[scientists of centuries past\] call on God only from the lonely and precarious edge of incomprehension. Where they feel certain about their explanations,… ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/neil-degrasse-tyson/they-scientists-of-centuries-past-call-on-god-only-from-the-lonely/) [Neil deGrasse Tyson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/neil-degrasse-tyson/) > [What most needs explanation is not why some people are criminals, but why most people are not.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/james-q-wilson/what-most-needs-explanation-is-not-why-some-people-are-criminals-but/) [James Q. Wilson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/james-q-wilson/) > [In his anti-Darwinian book... (and eponymously named The Neck of the Giraffe ), Francis Hitching tells the story... "The need to survive by reaching…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stephen-jay-gould/in-his-anti-darwinian-book-and-eponymously-named-the-neck-of-the/) [Stephen Jay Gould](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stephen-jay-gould/) > [The goal of faithfulness is not that we will do work for God, but that He will be free to do His work through…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/oswald-chambers/the-goal-of-faithfulness-is-not-that-we-will-do-work-for-god-but-that/) [Oswald Chambers](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/oswald-chambers/) > [“But let the wise be warned against too great readiness at explanation: it multiplies the sources of mistake, lengthening the sum for reckoners sure…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-eliot/but-let-the-wise-be-warned-against-too-great-readiness-at-explanation/) [George Eliot](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-eliot/) > [ \[Barack Obama\] will spend long periods of time explaining to people why he won't use it. At the end of the explanation, nobody knows… ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/donald-trump/barack-obama-will-spend-long-periods-of-time-explaining-to-people-why/) [Donald Trump](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/donald-trump/) > [Being a moral realist I see normative ethics as a search of the truth about our obligations and a search of explanation; the idea…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/torbjorn-tannsjo/being-a-moral-realist-i-see-normative-ethics-as-a-search-of-the-truth/) [Torbjorn Tannsjo](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/torbjorn-tannsjo/) > [Take the story of Cain and Abel. Why were we given that story? Scientifically, you may have an explanation for it, but I'm not…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/elie-wiesel/take-the-story-of-cain-and-abel-why-were-we-given-that-story/) [Elie Wiesel](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/elie-wiesel/) > [It is amazing how soon one becomes accustomed to the sound of ones voice, when forced to repeat a speech five or six times…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/j-william-fulbright/it-is-amazing-how-soon-one-becomes-accustomed-to-the-sound-of-ones/) [J. William Fulbright](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/j-william-fulbright/) > [I don't listen to music. I know it's weird, and I have no explanation for that. But I never do.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/leila-slimani/i-don-t-listen-to-music-i-know-it-s-weird-and-i-have-no-explanation/) [Leila Slimani](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/leila-slimani/) > [There are situations when all answers and explanations fade. When you fully accept that you do not know, you give up struggling to find…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/eckhart-tolle/there-are-situations-when-all-answers-and-explanations-fade-when-you/) [Eckhart Tolle](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/eckhart-tolle/) Browse all 1,440 Explanation quotes ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "I should have thought of this years ago. But that was the problem with being sane. Sane people played by the rules. They looked for rational explanations and solutions in an insane universe.", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "Sherrilyn Kenyon" }, "isPartOf": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website" }, "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sherrilyn-kenyon/i-should-have-thought-of-this-years-ago-but-that-was-the-problem-with/", "about": { "@type": "Thing", "name": "Explanation" }, "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sherrilyn-kenyon/i-should-have-thought-of-this-years-ago-but-that-was-the-problem-with/#quotation", "image": { "@type": "ImageObject", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/348/sherrilyn-kenyon-25_explanation_i-should-have-thought-of-this-years-ago_3054998.jpg", "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/348/sherrilyn-kenyon-25_explanation_i-should-have-thought-of-this-years-ago_3054998.jpg", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/348/sherrilyn-kenyon-25_explanation_i-should-have-thought-of-this-years-ago_3054998.jpg", "width": 1080, "height": 1080, "caption": "“I should have thought of this years ago. But that was the problem with being sane. Sane people played by the…” — Sherrilyn Kenyon", "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": "Sherrilyn Kenyon", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sherrilyn-kenyon/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 4, "name": "I should have thought of this...", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sherrilyn-kenyon/i-should-have-thought-of-this-years-ago-but-that-was-the-problem-with/" } ], "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sherrilyn-kenyon/i-should-have-thought-of-this-years-ago-but-that-was-the-problem-with/#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 } } ] } ```