--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: I think because my parents died in their…" description: "\"I think because my parents died in their early 50s, mid 50s, I always thought I would die young. And that's been both a useful thing and I suspect some..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/d59/stephen-dunn-15620_die-young_i-think-because-my-parents-died-in-their_1993543.png" --- # I think because my parents died in their early 50s, mid… ![“I think because my parents died in their early 50s, mid 50s, I always thought I would die young. And that's been both a useful thing and I suspect something that's haunted me a little bit.” quote by Stephen Dunn](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/d59/stephen-dunn-15620_die-young_i-think-because-my-parents-died-in-their_1993543.png) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/d59/stephen-dunn-15620_die-young_i-think-because-my-parents-died-in-their_1993543.png) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/d59/stephen-dunn-15620_die-young_i-think-because-my-parents-died-in-their_1993543.png) > “I think because my parents died in their early 50s, mid 50s, I always thought I would die young. And that's been both a useful thing and I suspect something that's haunted me a little bit.” [Stephen Dunn](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stephen-dunn/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. He reflects on early parental loss shaping his view of mortality, both motivating and haunting. **In simple terms:** Early loss influences fear of dying young. Key Takeaway Acknowledge and work through inherited anxieties. Themes mortality family psychology legacy Mood somber introspective Type poetic psychological When to use this quote - therapy - writing - family discussions Key Concepts existentialism grief generational trauma Questions to Reflect On - How does this fear affect your choices? - Can you transform this anxiety into purpose? A Different Perspective Focusing on death may limit life enjoyment. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Parent](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/parent/) [Parenting](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/parenting/) [Thinking](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/thinking/) [Useful things](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/useful-things/) ## Related quotes > [Nobody who lived through the '50s thought the '60s could've existed. 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They're so unique.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-lasseter/i-love-french-auto-design-of-the-early-50s-60s-early-70s-of-citorens/) [John Lasseter](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-lasseter/) > [When I made my first film, I think the thing was probably helped me the most was that it was such an unusual thing…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stanley-kubrick/when-i-made-my-first-film-i-think-the-thing-was-probably-helped-me/) [Stanley Kubrick](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stanley-kubrick/) > ['Carol' takes place in the really early '50s, before Eisenhower has taken office. It's based on a Patricia Highsmith novel, her second and most…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/todd-haynes/carol-takes-place-in-the-really-early-50s-before-eisenhower-has-taken/) [Todd Haynes](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/todd-haynes/) > [I like digging around. I'm a real magpie. I used to raid the old music shops in the early '50s in Paris and Brussels.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/richard-bonynge/i-like-digging-around-i-m-a-real-magpie-i-used-to-raid-the-old-music/) [Richard Bonynge](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/richard-bonynge/) > [When you go on a movie set, there used to be one woman: script supervisor. Now they were in all capacities in addition to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robert-vaughn/when-you-go-on-a-movie-set-there-used-to-be-one-woman-script/) [Robert Vaughn](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robert-vaughn/) > [When I was 19 years old, both of my parents died in the same year; my mom of cancer and my dad in a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/andy-andrews/when-i-was-19-years-old-both-of-my-parents-died-in-the-same-year-my/) [Andy Andrews](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/andy-andrews/) > [My mother's parents died when I was quite young, so I would like to be able to go back and know those people as…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rachel-mcadams/my-mother-s-parents-died-when-i-was-quite-young-so-i-would-like-to-be/) [Rachel McAdams](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rachel-mcadams/) > [“since my parents died. The circumstances were public knowledge, minus the details you would expect only if you were there, yet it remained something…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/taryn-plendl/since-my-parents-died-the-circumstances-were-public-knowledge-minus/) [Taryn Plendl](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/taryn-plendl/) > [I talk to my kids about my mothers energy and how she would have loved them. I talk about how kind and polite my…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lemon-andersen/i-talk-to-my-kids-about-my-mothers-energy-and-how-she-would-have/) [Lemon Andersen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lemon-andersen/) > [My parents died a long time ago. And you know the sad thing? I still miss them every day. I spent my entire youth…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sherrilyn-kenyon/my-parents-died-a-long-time-ago-and-you-know-the-sad-thing-i-still/) [Sherrilyn Kenyon](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sherrilyn-kenyon/) > [My father came by himself across the North Korean border when he was seventeen. And hasn't seen his brothers or sisters or parents since…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jim-yong-kim/my-father-came-by-himself-across-the-north-korean-border-when-he-was/) [Jim Yong Kim](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jim-yong-kim/) ## More by Stephen Dunn > [“He held her like a new woman and what she felt felt almost as good as love had, and each of them called it…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stephen-dunn/he-held-her-like-a-new-woman-and-what-she-felt-felt-almost-as-good-as/) [Stephen Dunn](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stephen-dunn/) > [I will try to disappoint you better than anyone ever has.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stephen-dunn/i-will-try-to-disappoint-you-better-than-anyone-ever-has/) [Stephen Dunn](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stephen-dunn/) > [If the motive of writing is for some people a kind of exercise in dirty laundry, that's one thing. I've always thought of my…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stephen-dunn/if-the-motive-of-writing-is-for-some-people-a-kind-of-exercise-in/) [Stephen Dunn](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stephen-dunn/) > [The world is always somewhat vicious. I take that as a given, but at various times in various circumstances that fact will be no…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stephen-dunn/the-world-is-always-somewhat-vicious-i-take-that-as-a-given-but-at/) [Stephen Dunn](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stephen-dunn/) > [A good many of my poems over the years have alluded to or taken on the political. Stevens has a line in one of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stephen-dunn/a-good-many-of-my-poems-over-the-years-have-alluded-to-or-taken-on/) [Stephen Dunn](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stephen-dunn/) > [What feeling feels like over time. An attempt to screw up what feeling feels like over time. Heartbreak and a high C… The often…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stephen-dunn/what-feeling-feels-like-over-time-an-attempt-to-screw-up-what-feeling/) [Stephen Dunn](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stephen-dunn/) > [“God knows nothing we don't know. We gave him every word he ever said.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stephen-dunn/god-knows-nothing-we-don-t-know-we-gave-him-every-word-he-ever-said/) [Stephen Dunn](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stephen-dunn/) > [A moment of something between acceptance and resignation of one's smallness in the world.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stephen-dunn/a-moment-of-something-between-acceptance-and-resignation-of-one-s/) [Stephen Dunn](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stephen-dunn/) > [“That time I thought I was in love and calmly said so was not much different from the time I was truly in love…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stephen-dunn/that-time-i-thought-i-was-in-love-and-calmly-said-so-was-not-much/) [Stephen Dunn](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stephen-dunn/) > [“I'll say I love you, Which will lead, of course, to disappointment, but those words unsaid poison every next moment. I will try to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stephen-dunn/i-ll-say-i-love-you-which-will-lead-of-course-to-disappointment-but/) [Stephen Dunn](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stephen-dunn/) > [Perhaps basketball and poetry have just a few things in common, but the most important is the possibility of transcendence. The opposite is labor.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stephen-dunn/perhaps-basketball-and-poetry-have-just-a-few-things-in-common-but/) [Stephen Dunn](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stephen-dunn/) > [There's a certain pleasure in violating the strictures of your education. The trick is, if you're going to explore ideas in a poem, to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stephen-dunn/there-s-a-certain-pleasure-in-violating-the-strictures-of-your/) [Stephen Dunn](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stephen-dunn/) > [“He didn’t want to be this thin man whose desires were barely covered by skin, standing absolutely still. But everytime he moved there was…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stephen-dunn/he-didn-t-want-to-be-this-thin-man-whose-desires-were-barely-covered/) [Stephen Dunn](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stephen-dunn/) > [Bring to me, it said, continual proof / you've been alive.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stephen-dunn/bring-to-me-it-said-continual-proof-you-ve-been-alive/) [Stephen Dunn](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stephen-dunn/) > [Connubial Because with alarming accuracy she’d been identifying patterns I was unaware of—this tic, that tendency, like the way I've mastered the language of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stephen-dunn/connubial-because-with-alarming-accuracy-she-d-been-identifying/) [Stephen Dunn](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stephen-dunn/) [Explore all 42 Stephen Dunn quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stephen-dunn/) ## More Die young quotes > [“Exactly. I think the original tantric Buddhists took notice of was some very wise old people who never studied in their youth, but took…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joe-niemczura/exactly-i-think-the-original-tantric-buddhists-took-notice-of-was/) [Joe Niemczura](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joe-niemczura/) > [Only the good die young.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/billy-joel/only-the-good-die-young/) [Billy Joel](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/billy-joel/) > [“The strength of my parents’ feelings for each other, however, was a worry to my grandmother. She warned them that if a couple loved…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/hyeonseo-lee/the-strength-of-my-parents-feelings-for-each-other-however-was-a/) [Hyeonseo Lee](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/hyeonseo-lee/) > [“If humans can live for 100 years, why do companies die so young.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sukant-ratnakar/if-humans-can-live-for-100-years-why-do-companies-die-so-young/) [Sukant Ratnakar](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sukant-ratnakar/) > [The good die young but not always. The wicked prevail but not consistently. I am confused by life, and I feel safe within the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/helen-hayes/the-good-die-young-but-not-always-the-wicked-prevail-but-not/) [Helen Hayes](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/helen-hayes/) > [Sometimes artists die young, and we don't know exactly why. I think that, in life, you have these special individuals, whether it's Jimi Hendrix…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robert-trujillo/sometimes-artists-die-young-and-we-don-t-know-exactly-why-i-think/) [Robert Trujillo](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robert-trujillo/) > [“…LondonLane: I’m sure I don’t remember everything. I remember the future the way you remember the past. You remember the really good and bad…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/cat-patrick/londonlane-i-m-sure-i-don-t-remember-everything-i-remember-the-future/) [Cat Patrick](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/cat-patrick/) > [Pulvis et umbra sumus. It's a line from Horace. 'We are dust and shadows'. Appropriate, don't you think?" Will said. "It's not a long…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/cassandra-clare/pulvis-et-umbra-sumus-it-s-a-line-from-horace-we-are-dust-and-shadows/) [Cassandra Clare](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/cassandra-clare/) > [“In the end though, everybody dies, but not everybody lives—the climber, though he may die young, will have lived.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mark-lawrence/in-the-end-though-everybody-dies-but-not-everybody-lives-the-climber/) [Mark Lawrence](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mark-lawrence/) > [Die young, and I shall accept your death-but not if you have lived without glory, without being useful to your country, without leaving a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/napoleon-bonaparte/die-young-and-i-shall-accept-your-death-but-not-if-you-have-lived/) [Napoleon Bonaparte](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/napoleon-bonaparte/) > [“Mean girls die young, sweetie. Take my word for it.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lena-brown/mean-girls-die-young-sweetie-take-my-word-for-it/) Lena Brown > [When you're young, you want to live fast, but you definitely don't want to die young. At the same time, you want to do…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/harbhajan-singh/when-you-re-young-you-want-to-live-fast-but-you-definitely-don-t-want/) [Harbhajan Singh](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/harbhajan-singh/) > [No matter how long you live, die young.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/elbert-hubbard/no-matter-how-long-you-live-die-young/) [Elbert Hubbard](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/elbert-hubbard/) > [People who deserve to stay alive die young, we the wicked stay n endure are one n only hell, ring a bell?](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/massmurder/people-who-deserve-to-stay-alive-die-young-we-the-wicked-stay-n/) Massmurder > [All geniuses die young.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/groucho-marx/all-geniuses-die-young/) [Groucho Marx](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/groucho-marx/) Browse all 250 Die young quotes ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "I think because my parents died in their early 50s, mid 50s, I always thought I would die young. 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