The ways we miss our lives are life.
One of the most obvious facts about grownups to a child is that they have forgotten what it is like to be a child.
Interpretation
What this quote means
Adults often lose touch with the simplicity of childhood experiences.
This quote by Randall Jarrell suggests that as people grow up, they tend to forget the essence of being a child, including the innocence, wonder, and imaginative potential that defines childhood. Children are acutely aware of this shift, observing that adults may no longer value or remember the joys and simplicity of their early years, reflecting a broader theme of how life experiences and responsibilities can shape one's perspective over time.
Themes
In practice
Example use cases
In a speech about the importance of childhood education, one could use this quote to highlight the need for adults to remember the impact of their formative years.
More from Randall Jarrell
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Where nothing in a person's earlier years lends itself to an old age devoted to continuing intellectual and physical pursuits, a late-life interest in Tolstoy or even crossword puzzles is unlikely to appear, no matter the urging by well-intentioned social workers or people like me who write books about it.
You are your own raw material. When you know what you consist of and what you want to make of it, then you can invent yourself.
He is a despicable sage whose wisdom does not profit himself.
Never did a great man hate good wine.
Wish and learn to smooth away the surly wrinkles, to raise your lids frankly, and change the fiends to confident, innocent angels, suspecting and doubting nothing, and always seeing friends where they are not sure of foes.
To preach the gospel is to stae every doctrine contained in God's word, and to give every truth its proper prominence.