--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: I shall be richer all my life for this…" description: "\"I shall be richer all my life for this sorrow\" — Wallace Stegner" image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/c5f/wallace-stegner-1352_grief_i-shall-be-richer-all-my-life-for-this-s_1491531.png" --- # I shall be richer all my life for this sorrow ![“I shall be richer all my life for this sorrow” quote by Wallace Stegner](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/c5f/wallace-stegner-1352_grief_i-shall-be-richer-all-my-life-for-this-s_1491531.png) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/c5f/wallace-stegner-1352_grief_i-shall-be-richer-all-my-life-for-this-s_1491531.png) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/c5f/wallace-stegner-1352_grief_i-shall-be-richer-all-my-life-for-this-s_1491531.png) > “I shall be richer all my life for this sorrow” [Wallace Stegner](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/wallace-stegner/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Enduring sorrow can become a source of lasting wealth, shaping a richer inner life. **In simple terms:** Sorrow can enrich you over a lifetime. Key Takeaway Embrace pain as a teacher. Themes growth resilience inner wealth Mood reflective hopeful Type inspirational philosophical When to use this quote - personal loss - creative work - long‑term perspective Key Concepts philosophy emotional alchemy Questions to Reflect On - How can you transform current grief into lasting growth? - What aspects of your life feel richer because of sorrow? A Different Perspective Sorrow may also cause stagnation if not processed. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Grief](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/grief/) [Life](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/life/) [Life Sorrow](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/life-sorrow-338999/) [Money](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/money/) [Richer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/richer/) [Richer Life](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/richer-life-430942/) [Shall Richer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/shall-richer-5451857/) [Sorrow](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/sorrow/) ## Related quotes > [“Without a song, life is a sorrow.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lailah-gifty-akita/without-a-song-life-is-a-sorrow/) [Lailah Gifty Akita](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lailah-gifty-akita/) > [The truth is, you have a much richer life if you somehow lead one that you can hold together.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ralph-macchio/the-truth-is-you-have-a-much-richer-life-if-you-somehow-lead-one-that/) [Ralph Macchio](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ralph-macchio/) > [We repress the things we're scared of, but if we just look at and embrace the things we're scared of, it's a much fuller,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gary-ross/we-repress-the-things-we-re-scared-of-but-if-we-just-look-at-and/) [Gary Ross](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gary-ross/) > [When I'm finished with politics, I'll have a richer life. I'd like to go to the theatre.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nigel-farage/when-i-m-finished-with-politics-i-ll-have-a-richer-life-i-d-like-to/) [Nigel Farage](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nigel-farage/) > [Our country is the richer for her life and the poorer at her death.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-major/our-country-is-the-richer-for-her-life-and-the-poorer-at-her-death/) [John Major](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-major/) > [The more things for which you develop a fondness the richer the life you live.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dan-buettner/the-more-things-for-which-you-develop-a-fondness-the-richer-the-life/) [Dan Buettner](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dan-buettner/) > [“The more you become aware of and respond to the needs of others, the richer your own life becomes.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mollie-marti/the-more-you-become-aware-of-and-respond-to-the-needs-of-others-the/) [Mollie Marti](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mollie-marti/) > [Half my life is full of sorrow, Half of joy, still fresh and new; One of these lives is a fancy, But the other…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/adelaide-anne-procter/half-my-life-is-full-of-sorrow-half-of-joy-still-fresh-and-new-one-of/) [Adelaide Anne Procter](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/adelaide-anne-procter/) > [“Life is a sorrow, without a song.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lailah-gifty-akita/life-is-a-sorrow-without-a-song/) [Lailah Gifty Akita](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lailah-gifty-akita/) > [People do not like the tragic side of life. They deny pain and suffering as a facet of life. Even when someone writes about…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jeremy-limn/people-do-not-like-the-tragic-side-of-life-they-deny-pain-and/) [Jeremy Limn](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jeremy-limn/) > [ \[on Queen Mother\] Our country is the richer for her life and the poorer at her death. ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-major/on-queen-mother-our-country-is-the-richer-for-her-life-and-the-poorer/) [John Major](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-major/) > [The longer they hang out, the deeper the history, the richer the life. If you use that as a template or as a way…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/leonardo-drew/the-longer-they-hang-out-the-deeper-the-history-the-richer-the-life/) [Leonardo Drew](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/leonardo-drew/) > [“Life is just packed full of memories, the more memories you create, the richer your life becomes ! J Moulds”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tom-evans/life-is-just-packed-full-of-memories-the-more-memories-you-create-the/) [Tom Evans](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tom-evans/) > [“Progressive policies make your life better. Republican policies make billionaires richer and your life worse. Every lie Trump and Fox News tell you is…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/oliver-markus-malloy/progressive-policies-make-your-life-better-republican-policies-make/) [Oliver Markus Malloy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/oliver-markus-malloy/) > [“I long for a richer life with him. I know it's possible. People out there are living richer lives. Couples are making moussaka together…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/melanie-gideon-wife-22/i-long-for-a-richer-life-with-him-i-know-it-s-possible-people-out/) [Melanie Gideon Wife 22](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/melanie-gideon-wife-22/) ## More by Wallace Stegner > [“I have to blame myself for not finding any way of reaching him, but I can't feel that either Ruth or I had anything…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/wallace-stegner/i-have-to-blame-myself-for-not-finding-any-way-of-reaching-him-but-i/) [Wallace Stegner](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/wallace-stegner/) > [No life goes past so swiftly as an eventless one, no clock spins like a clock whose days are all alike.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/wallace-stegner/no-life-goes-past-so-swiftly-as-an-eventless-one-no-clock-spins-like/) [Wallace Stegner](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/wallace-stegner/) > [“within yourself, you became a grave for her as you were a grave for Chet, and you carried your dead unquietly within you. —”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/wallace-stegner/within-yourself-you-became-a-grave-for-her-as-you-were-a-grave-for/) [Wallace Stegner](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/wallace-stegner/) > [Towns are like people. Old ones often have character, the new ones are interchangeable.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/wallace-stegner/towns-are-like-people-old-ones-often-have-character-the-new-ones-are/) [Wallace Stegner](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/wallace-stegner/) > [By his very profession, a serious fiction writer is a vendor of the sensuous particulars of life, a perceiver and handler of things. His…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/wallace-stegner/by-his-very-profession-a-serious-fiction-writer-is-a-vendor-of-the/) [Wallace Stegner](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/wallace-stegner/) > [“The creative writer is compulsively concrete . . . . His fictional house should be haunted by ideas, not inhabited by them; they should…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/wallace-stegner/the-creative-writer-is-compulsively-concrete-his-fictional-house/) [Wallace Stegner](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/wallace-stegner/) > [Hard writing makes easy reading.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/wallace-stegner/hard-writing-makes-easy-reading/) [Wallace Stegner](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/wallace-stegner/) > [You married me...but you didn't marry what you could make out of me.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/wallace-stegner/you-married-me-but-you-didn-t-marry-what-you-could-make-out-of-me/) [Wallace Stegner](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/wallace-stegner/) > [Wisdom. . .is knowing what you have to accept.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/wallace-stegner/wisdom-is-knowing-what-you-have-to-accept/) [Wallace Stegner](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/wallace-stegner/) > [“His mouth is full of ecology, his mind is full of fumes.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/wallace-stegner/his-mouth-is-full-of-ecology-his-mind-is-full-of-fumes/) [Wallace Stegner](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/wallace-stegner/) > [I gave my heart to the mountains the minute I stood beside this river with its spray in my face and watched it thunder…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/wallace-stegner/i-gave-my-heart-to-the-mountains-the-minute-i-stood-beside-this-river/) [Wallace Stegner](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/wallace-stegner/) > [“Poetry ought to be a by-product of living, and you can't have a by-product unless you've got a product first .”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/wallace-stegner/poetry-ought-to-be-a-by-product-of-living-and-you-can-t-have-a-by/) [Wallace Stegner](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/wallace-stegner/) > [Something will have gone out of us as a people if we ever let the remaining wilderness be destroyed; if we permit the last…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/wallace-stegner/something-will-have-gone-out-of-us-as-a-people-if-we-ever-let-the/) [Wallace Stegner](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/wallace-stegner/) > [“Some people, I am told, have memories like computers, nothing to do but punch the button and wait for the print-out. Mine is more…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/wallace-stegner/some-people-i-am-told-have-memories-like-computers-nothing-to-do-but/) [Wallace Stegner](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/wallace-stegner/) > [ “\[Y\]ou were too alert to the figurative possibilities of words not to see the phrase \[angle of repose\] as descriptive of human as well… ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/wallace-stegner/y-ou-were-too-alert-to-the-figurative-possibilities-of-words-not-to/) [Wallace Stegner](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/wallace-stegner/) [Explore all 251 Wallace Stegner quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/wallace-stegner/) ## More Grief quotes > [“...they had lived, they'd lived intensely. But no matter how deeply you live, it comes to this in the end: one of you will…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/brian-morton/they-had-lived-they-d-lived-intensely-but-no-matter-how-deeply-you/) [Brian Morton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/brian-morton/) > [“You must understand the pain and grief of losing someone is nothing more than a function of survival.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/steven-cooper/you-must-understand-the-pain-and-grief-of-losing-someone-is-nothing/) [Steven Cooper](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/steven-cooper/) > [You felt a deep sorrow, the kind of melancholy you feel when you're in a beautiful place and the sun is going down](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/thrity-umrigar/you-felt-a-deep-sorrow-the-kind-of-melancholy-you-feel-when-you-re-in/) [Thrity Umrigar](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/thrity-umrigar/) > [... how much of our inner substance is it good for us to give to public griefs? The whole modern tendency to agonize over…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/louise-bogan/how-much-of-our-inner-substance-is-it-good-for-us-to-give-to-public/) [Louise Bogan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/louise-bogan/) > [You dont choose your life; it chooses you. Theres no point asking why life has reserved certain joys or griefs, you just accept them…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/paulo-coelho/you-dont-choose-your-life-it-chooses-you-theres-no-point-asking-why/) [Paulo Coelho](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/paulo-coelho/) > [“When we learn to attribute meaning to the events in our lives, we connect with our Higher Purpose, Higher Wisdom, or Source; we become…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/susan-barbara-apollon/when-we-learn-to-attribute-meaning-to-the-events-in-our-lives-we/) [Susan Barbara Apollon](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/susan-barbara-apollon/) > [Only to have a grief equal to all these tears!](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/adrienne-rich/only-to-have-a-grief-equal-to-all-these-tears/) [Adrienne Rich](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/adrienne-rich/) > [Nowadays most people wear black most of the time anyway: go to a literary party and one would imagine everyone there was in perpetual…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/fay-weldon/nowadays-most-people-wear-black-most-of-the-time-anyway-go-to-a/) [Fay Weldon](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/fay-weldon/) > [Suppressed grief suffocates, it rages within the breast, and is forced to multiply its strength.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ovid/suppressed-grief-suffocates-it-rages-within-the-breast-and-is-forced/) [Ovid](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ovid/) > [That Woman is in love with her own grief.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gabrielle-zevin/that-woman-is-in-love-with-her-own-grief/) [Gabrielle Zevin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gabrielle-zevin/) > [Short time seems long in sorrow's sharp sustaining.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-shakespeare/short-time-seems-long-in-sorrow-s-sharp-sustaining/) [William Shakespeare](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-shakespeare/) > [These days grief seems like walking on a frozen river; most of the time he feels safe enough, but there is always that danger…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-nicholls/these-days-grief-seems-like-walking-on-a-frozen-river-most-of-the/) [David Nicholls](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-nicholls/) > [“You've been my beacon of light in my storm of grief, and I don't know if I could live without you.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/katie-ashley/you-ve-been-my-beacon-of-light-in-my-storm-of-grief-and-i-don-t-know/) [Katie Ashley](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/katie-ashley/) > [Ancient eyes had stared at me, filled with ancient grief. And something more. Something so alien and unexpected that I'd almost burst into tears.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/karen-marie-moning/ancient-eyes-had-stared-at-me-filled-with-ancient-grief-and-something/) [Karen Marie Moning](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/karen-marie-moning/) > [Meanwhile, the trees were just as green as before; the birds sang and the sun shone as clearly now as ever. The familiar surroundings…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/thomas-hardy/meanwhile-the-trees-were-just-as-green-as-before-the-birds-sang-and/) [Thomas Hardy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/thomas-hardy/) [Browse all 8,012 Grief quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/grief/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "I shall be richer all my life for this sorrow", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "Wallace Stegner" }, "isPartOf": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website" }, "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/wallace-stegner/i-shall-be-richer-all-my-life-for-this-sorrow/", "about": { "@type": "Thing", "name": "Grief" }, "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/wallace-stegner/i-shall-be-richer-all-my-life-for-this-sorrow/#quotation", "image": { "@type": "ImageObject", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/c5f/wallace-stegner-1352_grief_i-shall-be-richer-all-my-life-for-this-s_1491531.png", "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/c5f/wallace-stegner-1352_grief_i-shall-be-richer-all-my-life-for-this-s_1491531.png", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/c5f/wallace-stegner-1352_grief_i-shall-be-richer-all-my-life-for-this-s_1491531.png", "width": 1080, "height": 1080, "caption": "“I shall be richer all my life for this sorrow” — Wallace Stegner", "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": "Wallace Stegner", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/wallace-stegner/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 4, "name": "I shall be richer all my...", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/wallace-stegner/i-shall-be-richer-all-my-life-for-this-sorrow/" } ], "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/wallace-stegner/i-shall-be-richer-all-my-life-for-this-sorrow/#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 } } ] } ```