--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: Well now I know I can control my tongue…" description: "\"“Well now I know I can control my tongue, my temper & my appetites, but that's it. I have no effect on weather, traffic or luck. I can't make good thin..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/e9c/abigail-thomas-28792_good-thing_well-now-i-know-i-can-control-my-tongue_2091561.jpg" --- # Well now I know I can control my tongue, my temper & my… ![“Well now I know I can control my tongue, my temper & my appetites, but that's it. I have no effect on weather, traffic or luck. I can't make good things happen; I can't keep anybody safe; I can't influence the future & I can't fix up the past. What a relief!" from book A Three Dog Life by Abigail…” quote by Abigail Thomas](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/e9c/abigail-thomas-28792_good-thing_well-now-i-know-i-can-control-my-tongue_2091561.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/e9c/abigail-thomas-28792_good-thing_well-now-i-know-i-can-control-my-tongue_2091561.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/e9c/abigail-thomas-28792_good-thing_well-now-i-know-i-can-control-my-tongue_2091561.jpg) > ““Well now I know I can control my tongue, my temper & my appetites, but that's it. I have no effect on weather, traffic or luck. I can't make good things happen; I can't keep anybody safe; I can't influence the future & I can't fix up the past. What a relief!" from book A Three Dog Life by Abigail Thomas”” [Abigail Thomas](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/abigail-thomas/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Recognizing personal limits can be freeing; we control only our own actions, not external forces. **In simple terms:** Accepting what we can’t control brings peace. Key Takeaway Focus on what you can change. Themes self-awareness acceptance control relief Mood reflective calm Type philosophical inspirational When to use this quote - daily decisions - stress management - personal growth - relationship dynamics Key Concepts personal agency stoicism Questions to Reflect On - What aspects of your life can you influence? - How does accepting limits affect your motivation? A Different Perspective It may lead to passivity if over‑emphasized. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Dog Life](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/dog-life/) [Good things](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/good-things/) [Life](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/life/) [Temper](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/temper/) [Things happen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/things-happen/) [Three dog](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/three-dog/) ## Related quotes > [She got her daddy's tongue and temper... Sometimes her mouth could use a filter... God shook his head the day he built her Oh,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/she-got-her-daddy-s-tongue-and-temper-sometimes-her-mouth-could-use-a/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [If we cannot control our tongue, we cannot be a good worshipper.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/babloo/if-we-cannot-control-our-tongue-we-cannot-be-a-good-worshipper/) [Babloo](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/babloo/) > [A learned man's knowledge will be of no avail to him if he doesn't have control over his tongue](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kabir/a-learned-man-s-knowledge-will-be-of-no-avail-to-him-if-he-doesn-t/) [Kabir](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kabir/) > [Filthy talk makes us feel comfortable with filthy action. But the one who knows how to control the tongue is prepared to resist the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/pope-clement-i/filthy-talk-makes-us-feel-comfortable-with-filthy-action-but-the-one/) [Pope Clement I](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/pope-clement-i/) > [“He tucks me in and says good night but I catch his hand and hold him there. A side effect of the sleep syrup…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/suzanne-collins/he-tucks-me-in-and-says-good-night-but-i-catch-his-hand-and-hold-him/) [Suzanne Collins](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/suzanne-collins/) > [He who has learnt to control his tongue has attained self-control in a great measure. When such a person speaks he will be heard…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/b-k-s-iyengar/he-who-has-learnt-to-control-his-tongue-has-attained-self-control-in/) [B.K.S. Iyengar](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/b-k-s-iyengar/) > [The wise who control their body, who control their tongue, the wise who control their mind, are indeed well controlled.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/max-muller/the-wise-who-control-their-body-who-control-their-tongue-the-wise-who/) [Max Muller](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/max-muller/) > [I'm doing pretty good on my own, when I can control my tongue.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/pimp-c/i-m-doing-pretty-good-on-my-own-when-i-can-control-my-tongue/) [Pimp C](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/pimp-c/) > [“The apostle James tells us that a man who can control his tongue can control the rest of his body as well. This goes…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/douglas-wilson/the-apostle-james-tells-us-that-a-man-who-can-control-his-tongue-can/) [Douglas Wilson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/douglas-wilson/) > [“New Rule: Apple's next device must be a computer that you control with your tongue. Thanks for eliminating the keyboard and the mouse, but…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bill-maher/new-rule-apple-s-next-device-must-be-a-computer-that-you-control-with/) [Bill Maher](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bill-maher/) > [Stay positive and encourage others with kind words. Learn to control your tongue; its the only tool that gets sharper with constant use.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mufti-ismail-menk/stay-positive-and-encourage-others-with-kind-words-learn-to-control/) [Mufti Ismail Menk](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mufti-ismail-menk/) > [Control your tongue, let your house be enough for you, and weep for your sins.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/control-your-tongue-let-your-house-be-enough-for-you-and-weep-for/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [Control your tongue.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rosie/control-your-tongue/) [Rosie](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rosie/) > [Control of the tongue! Vital for the man who would try to tread the Path, for no harsh or unkind word, no hasty impatient…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/annie-besant/control-of-the-tongue-vital-for-the-man-who-would-try-to-tread-the/) [Annie Besant](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/annie-besant/) > [He who dose not control his tongue will be sorry for it](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/hazrat-ali/he-who-dose-not-control-his-tongue-will-be-sorry-for-it/) [Hazrat Ali](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/hazrat-ali/) ## More by Abigail Thomas > [“The past is in the wastebasket.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/abigail-thomas/the-past-is-in-the-wastebasket/) [Abigail Thomas](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/abigail-thomas/) > [“Forget career, forget the future, forget existential worries, just get yourselves a couple of dogs, and everything will be all right.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/abigail-thomas/forget-career-forget-the-future-forget-existential-worries-just-get/) [Abigail Thomas](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/abigail-thomas/) > [“There are those people who can eat one piece of chocolate, one piece of cake, drink one glass of wine. There are even people…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/abigail-thomas/there-are-those-people-who-can-eat-one-piece-of-chocolate-one-piece/) [Abigail Thomas](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/abigail-thomas/) > [“There is nothing like calamity for refreshing the moment. Ironically, the last several years my life had begun to feel shapeless, like underwear with…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/abigail-thomas/there-is-nothing-like-calamity-for-refreshing-the-moment-ironically/) [Abigail Thomas](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/abigail-thomas/) > [“Part of what I've learned is that if it isn't life and death, it isn't life and death.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/abigail-thomas/part-of-what-i-ve-learned-is-that-if-it-isn-t-life-and-death-it-isn-t/) [Abigail Thomas](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/abigail-thomas/) > [“He is wearing an old overcoat from the Salvation Army in Easton, Pennsylvania. It cost five bucks ten years ago, Louise remembers. Henry is…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/abigail-thomas/he-is-wearing-an-old-overcoat-from-the-salvation-army-in-easton/) [Abigail Thomas](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/abigail-thomas/) > [“Take any ten years of your life, reduce them to two pages, and every sentence has to be three words long. It's a good…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/abigail-thomas/take-any-ten-years-of-your-life-reduce-them-to-two-pages-and-every/) [Abigail Thomas](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/abigail-thomas/) > [“Is memory property? If two people remember something differently is one of them wrong?”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/abigail-thomas/is-memory-property-if-two-people-remember-something-differently-is/) [Abigail Thomas](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/abigail-thomas/) > [“Good things happen slowly,” said a doctor in the ICU months ago, “and bad things happen fast.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/abigail-thomas/good-things-happen-slowly-said-a-doctor-in-the-icu-months-ago-and-bad/) [Abigail Thomas](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/abigail-thomas/) > [“A friend's mother ate nothing but clams for six months. Morning, noon, and night, nothing but clams. 'I don't know what it is -…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/abigail-thomas/a-friend-s-mother-ate-nothing-but-clams-for-six-months-morning-noon/) [Abigail Thomas](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/abigail-thomas/) > [“...but they were writers and writers suggest things just to see what happens next.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/abigail-thomas/but-they-were-writers-and-writers-suggest-things-just-to-see-what/) [Abigail Thomas](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/abigail-thomas/) > [“For better or for worse, but not for lunch,...”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/abigail-thomas/for-better-or-for-worse-but-not-for-lunch/) [Abigail Thomas](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/abigail-thomas/) > [“She would (if she could) put her arm around the girl she'd been and try to tell her Take it easy, but the girl…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/abigail-thomas/she-would-if-she-could-put-her-arm-around-the-girl-she-d-been-and-try/) [Abigail Thomas](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/abigail-thomas/) > [“Shopping is hope.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/abigail-thomas/shopping-is-hope/) [Abigail Thomas](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/abigail-thomas/) > [“the last several years my life had begun to feel shapeless, like underwear with the elastic gone, the days down around my ankles.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/abigail-thomas/the-last-several-years-my-life-had-begun-to-feel-shapeless-like/) [Abigail Thomas](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/abigail-thomas/) [Explore all 19 Abigail Thomas quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/abigail-thomas/) ## More Good thing quotes > [It can sometimes make people fold into themselves and kind of run away, but I think in this case these characters are being forced…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/emily-deschanel/it-can-sometimes-make-people-fold-into-themselves-and-kind-of-run/) [Emily Deschanel](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/emily-deschanel/) > [“Of the good things they do many will pass unnoticed, or will even not be considered good at all; but they need not fear…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/teresa-of-vila/of-the-good-things-they-do-many-will-pass-unnoticed-or-will-even-not/) [Teresa of Ávila](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/teresa-of-vila/) > [Certainly, it is. Love is love, and loss is loss. We all love, and we all die, and everyone suffers the pain of grieving.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lynsay-sands/certainly-it-is-love-is-love-and-loss-is-loss-we-all-love-and-we-all/) [Lynsay Sands](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lynsay-sands/) > [It is a sweet thing that we serve a dissatisfied God who has destinations in mind for us that we would never choose for…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/paul-david-tripp/it-is-a-sweet-thing-that-we-serve-a-dissatisfied-god-who-has/) [Paul David Tripp](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/paul-david-tripp/) > [“At times, competition can be a good thing. But a person's value isn't something that can be ranked, is it?”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/hotaru-odagiri/at-times-competition-can-be-a-good-thing-but-a-person-s-value-isn-t/) [Hotaru Odagiri](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/hotaru-odagiri/) > [Here are the good things about independent films: They do the more interesting, chancy scripts. They're run by love.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-h-macy/here-are-the-good-things-about-independent-films-they-do-the-more/) [William H. Macy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-h-macy/) > [...Gratitude transforms the torment of memory of good things now gone into silent joy. One bears what was lovely in the past not as…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dietrich-bonhoeffer/gratitude-transforms-the-torment-of-memory-of-good-things-now-gone/) [Dietrich Bonhoeffer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dietrich-bonhoeffer/) > [“The absence of judgment becomes a catalyst and an enabler for greater injustice. Contrary to popular thought, judgment is a GOOD thing when it…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/j-chace-gordon/the-absence-of-judgment-becomes-a-catalyst-and-an-enabler-for-greater/) [J. Chace Gordon](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/j-chace-gordon/) > [“I took that warm feeling running through my veins as a good thing and embraced the darkness for I knew it was only temporary.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/james-cox/i-took-that-warm-feeling-running-through-my-veins-as-a-good-thing-and/) [James Cox](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/james-cox/) > [If good things come to those who wait then I must have something ridiculously awesome coming!!!](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nishan-panwar/if-good-things-come-to-those-who-wait-then-i-must-have-something/) [Nishan Panwar](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nishan-panwar/) > [IVE LEARNED THE BEST WAY FOR YOU TO HAVE GOOD THINGS HAPPEN TO YOU , ALL THE TIME, IS TO DO GOOD THINGS FOR…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/leonard-paul-rose/ive-learned-the-best-way-for-you-to-have-good-things-happen-to-you/) [LEONARD PAUL ROSE](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/leonard-paul-rose/) > [In my rear view mirror the sun is going down sinking behind bridges in the road and I think of all the good things…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/roger-waters/in-my-rear-view-mirror-the-sun-is-going-down-sinking-behind-bridges/) [Roger Waters](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/roger-waters/) > [“These are all good things, I said. But no one knows where your country is or who you are. You don't have a familiar…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gary-shteyngart/these-are-all-good-things-i-said-but-no-one-knows-where-your-country/) [Gary Shteyngart](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gary-shteyngart/) > [Good things come to those who hustle](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/chuck-noll/good-things-come-to-those-who-hustle/) [Chuck Noll](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/chuck-noll/) > [Too many good things all seem the same after a while.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/amy-tan/too-many-good-things-all-seem-the-same-after-a-while/) [Amy Tan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/amy-tan/) Browse all 6,343 Good thing quotes ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "“Well now I know I can control my tongue, my temper & my appetites, but that's it. I have no effect on weather, traffic or luck. 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