--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: I paid a higher price than anyone will…" description: "\"“I paid a higher price than anyone will ever know, but I lived with the bargain I made just the same. I did more than that. When the dust bunnies and t..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/a84/stephen-king-13_dust-bunnies_i-paid-a-higher-price-than-anyone-will-e_2887872.jpg" --- # I paid a higher price than anyone will ever know, but I… ![“I paid a higher price than anyone will ever know, but I lived with the bargain I made just the same. I did more than that. When the dust bunnies and the dreams of what could have been were all I had left, I took the dreams and made them my own. The dust bunnies? Well, they might have gotten me in…” quote by Stephen King](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/a84/stephen-king-13_dust-bunnies_i-paid-a-higher-price-than-anyone-will-e_2887872.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/a84/stephen-king-13_dust-bunnies_i-paid-a-higher-price-than-anyone-will-e_2887872.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/a84/stephen-king-13_dust-bunnies_i-paid-a-higher-price-than-anyone-will-e_2887872.jpg) > ““I paid a higher price than anyone will ever know, but I lived with the bargain I made just the same. I did more than that. When the dust bunnies and the dreams of what could have been were all I had left, I took the dreams and made them my own. The dust bunnies? Well, they might have gotten me in the end, but I lived with them for a lot of years before they did. Now you've got a bunch of your own to deal with, but if you've lost the guts you had on the day when you told me that firing the Jolander girl was a boogery thing to do, go on. Go on and jump. Because without your guts, Dolores Claiborne, you're just another stupid old woman.”” [Stephen King](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stephen-king/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. A character reflects on paying a high price, living with regrets, and urging courage to move forward. **In simple terms:** Paying a price, living with it, and finding courage. Key Takeaway Face past costs, seize new dreams. Themes regret courage redemption Mood determined somber Type literary inspirational When to use this quote - career setbacks - personal loss - self‑reinvention Key Concepts Life choices personal responsibility Questions to Reflect On - What costs are you willing to bear for growth? - How can you transform regret into action? A Different Perspective May romanticize suffering as necessary. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Bunnies Dreams](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/bunnies-dreams-4038533/) [Dust bunnies](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/dust-bunnies-51917/) [Firing Jolander](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/firing-jolander-4038531/) [Guts Dolores](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/guts-dolores-4038530/) [Told Firing](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/told-firing-4038532/) ## Related quotes > [Mr. Bumpy from Bump in the Night was this funky little guy who lived under the bed and thought eating dust bunnies was a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jim-cummings/mr-bumpy-from-bump-in-the-night-was-this-funky-little-guy-who-lived/) [Jim Cummings](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jim-cummings/) > [Bland writing - timid, antiseptic, vanilla writing - is nearly as unhealthy as the brutal and dark. Instead of sipping, say, elixir, nectar, tequila,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tom-robbins/bland-writing-timid-antiseptic-vanilla-writing-is-nearly-as-unhealthy/) [Tom Robbins](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tom-robbins/) > [“Jason had joked that dust bunnies under the bed were pets he didn’t mind keeping: they never whined for food and didn’t require a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/erik-bundy/jason-had-joked-that-dust-bunnies-under-the-bed-were-pets-he-didn-t/) [Erik Bundy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/erik-bundy/) > [“Let’s call me a shadow child, overlooked rather than broken. I’m the teddy bear gathering dust bunnies under the bed, not the one-legged soldier.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dot-hutchison/let-s-call-me-a-shadow-child-overlooked-rather-than-broken-i-m-the/) [Dot Hutchison](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dot-hutchison/) > [No matter how many times Percy killed them and watched them crumble to powder, they just kept re-forming like large evil dust bunnies.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rick-riordan/no-matter-how-many-times-percy-killed-them-and-watched-them-crumble/) [Rick Riordan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rick-riordan/) ## More by Stephen King > [Shall there be truth between us, as two men? Not as friends, but as enemies and equals?](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stephen-king/shall-there-be-truth-between-us-as-two-men-not-as-friends-but-as/) [Stephen King](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stephen-king/) > [The worst advice? 'Don't listen to the critics.' I think that you really ought to listen to the critics, because sometimes they're telling you…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stephen-king/the-worst-advice-don-t-listen-to-the-critics-i-think-that-you-really/) [Stephen King](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stephen-king/) > [“October 3, 2017 The clown, Hagarty said, looked like a cross between Ronald McDonald and that old TV clown, Bozo—or so he thought at…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stephen-king/october-3-2017-the-clown-hagarty-said-looked-like-a-cross-between/) [Stephen King](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stephen-king/) > [“Eddie saw great things and near misses. Albert Einstein as a child, not quite struck by a run-away milk-wagon as he crossed a street.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stephen-king/eddie-saw-great-things-and-near-misses-albert-einstein-as-a-child-not/) [Stephen King](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stephen-king/) > [It hurt, of course, but more often than not the best things do, I've found.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stephen-king/it-hurt-of-course-but-more-often-than-not-the-best-things-do-i-ve/) [Stephen King](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stephen-king/) > [“The idea that creative endeavor and mind-altering substances are entwined is one of the great pop-intellectual myths of our time... Creative people probably do…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stephen-king/the-idea-that-creative-endeavor-and-mind-altering-substances-are/) [Stephen King](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stephen-king/) > [“The sun had burned through and the day had gone from dull to dazzling, yet in the west blask-satin thunderheads continued to stack up.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stephen-king/the-sun-had-burned-through-and-the-day-had-gone-from-dull-to-dazzling/) [Stephen King](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stephen-king/) > [“God, you had enough time to have been through it three times. You've been through my stuff. I bet you over and let one…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stephen-king/god-you-had-enough-time-to-have-been-through-it-three-times-you-ve/) [Stephen King](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stephen-king/) > [“Flakes of snow swirled and danced across the porch. The Overlook faced it as it had for nearly three-quarters of a century, its darkened…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stephen-king/flakes-of-snow-swirled-and-danced-across-the-porch-the-overlook-faced/) [Stephen King](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stephen-king/) > [“In that instant it all seemed to come clear to him- it came in a grisly flash of light, and he realized that the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stephen-king/in-that-instant-it-all-seemed-to-come-clear-to-him-it-came-in-a/) [Stephen King](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stephen-king/) > [Who gets to be best-liked in any community? Who is the most trusted? Why, the man who does the dirty job, of course, and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stephen-king/who-gets-to-be-best-liked-in-any-community-who-is-the-most-trusted/) [Stephen King](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stephen-king/) > [“¿Lo ves, tonto? Volvió a regañarse. Tú lo inventaste todo, gato asustado. No fue más que tu imaginación, gato asustado, gato asustado... No te…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stephen-king/lo-ves-tonto-volvi-a-rega-arse-t-lo-inventaste-todo-gato-asustado-no/) [Stephen King](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stephen-king/) > [“Death . . . but not for you. That was what Walter, clever as Satan even at the end, had said. A lawyer’s answer . . . so close to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stephen-king/death-but-not-for-you-that-was-what-walter-clever-as-satan-even-at/) [Stephen King](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stephen-king/) > [The ghost story movie that scared me the most was The Changeling with George C. Scott. I think that's sometimes overlooked, but it's a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stephen-king/the-ghost-story-movie-that-scared-me-the-most-was-the-changeling-with/) [Stephen King](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stephen-king/) > [“Climb aboard, Jonesy. I'm going to send you up where the air is rare and the view is much more than fair.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stephen-king/climb-aboard-jonesy-i-m-going-to-send-you-up-where-the-air-is-rare/) [Stephen King](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stephen-king/) [Explore all 3,589 Stephen King quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stephen-king/) ## More Dust bunnies quotes > [Mr. Bumpy from Bump in the Night was this funky little guy who lived under the bed and thought eating dust bunnies was a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jim-cummings/mr-bumpy-from-bump-in-the-night-was-this-funky-little-guy-who-lived/) [Jim Cummings](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jim-cummings/) > [Bland writing - timid, antiseptic, vanilla writing - is nearly as unhealthy as the brutal and dark. Instead of sipping, say, elixir, nectar, tequila,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tom-robbins/bland-writing-timid-antiseptic-vanilla-writing-is-nearly-as-unhealthy/) [Tom Robbins](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tom-robbins/) > [“Jason had joked that dust bunnies under the bed were pets he didn’t mind keeping: they never whined for food and didn’t require a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/erik-bundy/jason-had-joked-that-dust-bunnies-under-the-bed-were-pets-he-didn-t/) [Erik Bundy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/erik-bundy/) > [“Let’s call me a shadow child, overlooked rather than broken. I’m the teddy bear gathering dust bunnies under the bed, not the one-legged soldier.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dot-hutchison/let-s-call-me-a-shadow-child-overlooked-rather-than-broken-i-m-the/) [Dot Hutchison](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dot-hutchison/) > [No matter how many times Percy killed them and watched them crumble to powder, they just kept re-forming like large evil dust bunnies.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rick-riordan/no-matter-how-many-times-percy-killed-them-and-watched-them-crumble/) [Rick Riordan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rick-riordan/) [Browse all 6 Dust bunnies quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/dust-bunnies-51917/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "“I paid a higher price than anyone will ever know, but I lived with the bargain I made just the same. I did more than that. When the dust bunnies and the dreams of what could have been were all I had left, I took the dreams and made them my own. The dust bunnies? Well, they might have gotten me in the end, but I lived with them for a lot of years before they did. Now you've got a bunch of your own to deal with, but if you've lost the guts you had on the day when you told me that firing the Jolander girl was a boogery thing to do, go on. Go on and jump. Because without your guts, Dolores Claiborne, you're just another stupid old woman.”", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "Stephen King" }, "isPartOf": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website" }, "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stephen-king/i-paid-a-higher-price-than-anyone-will-ever-know-but-i-lived-with-the/", "about": { "@type": "Thing", "name": "Dust bunnies" }, "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stephen-king/i-paid-a-higher-price-than-anyone-will-ever-know-but-i-lived-with-the/#quotation", "image": { "@type": "ImageObject", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/a84/stephen-king-13_dust-bunnies_i-paid-a-higher-price-than-anyone-will-e_2887872.jpg", "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/a84/stephen-king-13_dust-bunnies_i-paid-a-higher-price-than-anyone-will-e_2887872.jpg", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/a84/stephen-king-13_dust-bunnies_i-paid-a-higher-price-than-anyone-will-e_2887872.jpg", "width": 1080, "height": 1080, "caption": "“I paid a higher price than anyone will ever know, but I lived with the bargain I made just the same. I did…” — Stephen King", "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": "Stephen King", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stephen-king/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 4, "name": "“I paid a higher price than...", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stephen-king/i-paid-a-higher-price-than-anyone-will-ever-know-but-i-lived-with-the/" } ], "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stephen-king/i-paid-a-higher-price-than-anyone-will-ever-know-but-i-lived-with-the/#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 } } ] } ```