--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: I do find life difficult at times … and I…" description: "\"I do find life difficult at times … and I behave childishly too, do foolish things, unworthy … I don't think one can have great imagination and great w..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/a01/alison-uttley-79745_behave_i-do-find-life-difficult-at-times-and-i_2072150.png" --- # I do find life difficult at times … and I behave… ![“I do find life difficult at times … and I behave childishly too, do foolish things, unworthy … I don't think one can have great imagination and great wisdom. Can one?” quote by Alison Uttley](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/a01/alison-uttley-79745_behave_i-do-find-life-difficult-at-times-and-i_2072150.png) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/a01/alison-uttley-79745_behave_i-do-find-life-difficult-at-times-and-i_2072150.png) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/a01/alison-uttley-79745_behave_i-do-find-life-difficult-at-times-and-i_2072150.png) > “I do find life difficult at times … and I behave childishly too, do foolish things, unworthy … I don't think one can have great imagination and great wisdom. Can one?” [Alison Uttley](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alison-uttley/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. She questions whether imagination and wisdom can coexist, implying a tension between childlike wonder and mature insight. **In simple terms:** Imagination vs. wisdom conflict. Key Takeaway Balance wonder with insight. Themes imagination wisdom childhood growth Mood contemplative thoughtful Type philosophical reflective When to use this quote - education - creative writing - parenting - self‑reflection Key Concepts philosophy developmental psychology Questions to Reflect On - Can wisdom enhance imagination? - What limits does adult logic place on creative thought? A Different Perspective Wisdom may stifle spontaneity. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Behave](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/behave/) [Behave Childishly](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/behave-childishly-4006179/) [Childishly](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/childishly-1224772/) [Childishly Foolish](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/childishly-foolish-4006180/) [Difficult](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/difficult/) [Foolish](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/foolish/) [Great imagination](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/great-imagination/) [Great wisdom](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/great-wisdom/) [Imagination](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/imagination/) [Life](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/life/) [Life Difficult](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/life-difficult/) [Thinking](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/thinking/) [Time](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/time/) [Unworthy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/unworthy/) [Wisdom](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/wisdom/) ## Related quotes > [There is the possibility that humankind can outgrow its infantile tendencies, as I suggested in 'Childhood's End.' But it is amazing how childishly gullible…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/arthur-c-clarke/there-is-the-possibility-that-humankind-can-outgrow-its-infantile/) [Arthur C. Clarke](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/arthur-c-clarke/) > [I actually think I'm still quite childishly optimistic in a certain way, which is maybe why I find life quite shocking.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/julia-davis/i-actually-think-i-m-still-quite-childishly-optimistic-in-a-certain/) [Julia Davis](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/julia-davis/) > [Wherever the human mind is healthy and vigorous in all its proportions, great in imagination and emotion no less than in intellect, and not…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-ruskin/wherever-the-human-mind-is-healthy-and-vigorous-in-all-its/) [John Ruskin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-ruskin/) > [I've carried on, in that same tradition, with my kids. Aside from just his brilliance, in my estimation, I think he had one of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/christopher-meledandri/i-ve-carried-on-in-that-same-tradition-with-my-kids-aside-from-just/) [Christopher Meledandri](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/christopher-meledandri/) > [The great successful men of the world have used their imaginations.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robert-collier/the-great-successful-men-of-the-world-have-used-their-imaginations/) [Robert Collier](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robert-collier/) > [Great imaginations are apt to work from hints and suggestions, and a single moment of emotion is sometimes sufficient to create a masterpiece.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lady-margaret-sackville/great-imaginations-are-apt-to-work-from-hints-and-suggestions-and-a/) [Lady Margaret Sackville](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lady-margaret-sackville/) > [Microsoft is a company that manages imagination.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bill-gates/microsoft-is-a-company-that-manages-imagination/) [Bill Gates](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bill-gates/) > [All the breaks you need in life wait within your imagination.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/napoleon-hill/all-the-breaks-you-need-in-life-wait-within-your-imagination/) [Napoleon Hill](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/napoleon-hill/) > [I think that is the secret of great acting. You have to bring your imagination to the party. You've got to have a great…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/steven-spielberg/i-think-that-is-the-secret-of-great-acting-you-have-to-bring-your/) [Steven Spielberg](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/steven-spielberg/) > [Mr. Bergman had a great imagination and saw the possibilities within every one of his actors, and he gave us great challenges. It was…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/max-von-sydow/mr-bergman-had-a-great-imagination-and-saw-the-possibilities-within/) [Max von Sydow](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/max-von-sydow/) > [Dreams are more powerful than facts.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robert-fulghum/dreams-are-more-powerful-than-facts/) [Robert Fulghum](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robert-fulghum/) > [True invective requires great imagination.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-william-curtis/true-invective-requires-great-imagination/) [George William Curtis](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-william-curtis/) > [In physics, one of the most exciting areas is in nanotech. With computers exhausting the power of silicon, Silicon Valley could become a Rust…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michio-kaku/in-physics-one-of-the-most-exciting-areas-is-in-nanotech-with/) [Michio Kaku](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michio-kaku/) > [Fancy, an animal faculty, is very different from imagination, which is intellectual. The former is passive; but the latter is active and creative. Children,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joseph-joubert/fancy-an-animal-faculty-is-very-different-from-imagination-which-is/) [Joseph Joubert](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joseph-joubert/) > [I think the secret of great acting is that you have to bring your imagination to the party. You have to have a great…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/steven-spielberg/i-think-the-secret-of-great-acting-is-that-you-have-to-bring-your/) [Steven Spielberg](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/steven-spielberg/) ## More by Alison Uttley > [For a long time we dreamed of a real leather ball, and at last my brother had one for his birthday. The feel of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alison-uttley/for-a-long-time-we-dreamed-of-a-real-leather-ball-and-at-last-my/) [Alison Uttley](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alison-uttley/) > [“Everything seemed to move. The chimney-stacks swept across the Great Bear, the Pleiades were entangled in the elm’s boughs, a shooting star fell with…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alison-uttley/everything-seemed-to-move-the-chimney-stacks-swept-across-the-great/) [Alison Uttley](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alison-uttley/) [Explore all 3 Alison Uttley quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alison-uttley/) ## More Behave quotes > [If you are well-mannered towards those whose views are similar to yours, you may be said to exhibit a fairly good character. But, if…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/if-you-are-well-mannered-towards-those-whose-views-are-similar-to/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [To behave creatively in art means behavior with skill; and skill comes from discipline, not derangement. The artist who knows the rules -and proportion…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/burne-hogarth/to-behave-creatively-in-art-means-behavior-with-skill-and-skill-comes/) [Burne Hogarth](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/burne-hogarth/) > [You can behave as badly as you like in America. Nobody notices.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/quentin-crisp/you-can-behave-as-badly-as-you-like-in-america-nobody-notices/) [Quentin Crisp](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/quentin-crisp/) > [For war to man, like childbirth to women, is simplifying in its emotions and activities. All the real problems of life can be put…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/pearl-s-buck/for-war-to-man-like-childbirth-to-women-is-simplifying-in-its/) [Pearl S. Buck](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/pearl-s-buck/) > [“Then Olympus it is. But do try to behave. I know it’s hard for you, but… (Delphine) I won’t piss on the floor. (Jericho)…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sherrilyn-kenyon/then-olympus-it-is-but-do-try-to-behave-i-know-it-s-hard-for-you-but/) [Sherrilyn Kenyon](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sherrilyn-kenyon/) > [The possibility of saying anything about a thing rests on the assumption that it preserves its identity, or continues to be the same thing…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/frank-knight/the-possibility-of-saying-anything-about-a-thing-rests-on-the/) [Frank Knight](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/frank-knight/) > [Why does man behave like perfect idiot? This is the problem I wish to deal with.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/albert-szent-gyorgyi/why-does-man-behave-like-perfect-idiot-this-is-the-problem-i-wish-to/) [Albert Szent-Gyorgyi](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/albert-szent-gyorgyi/) > [This is a time in my life where I'm gonna behave like an elegant human being. Or not.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/elaine-stritch/this-is-a-time-in-my-life-where-i-m-gonna-behave-like-an-elegant/) [Elaine Stritch](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/elaine-stritch/) > [Most people, even in simple risky situations, don't behave the way the theory of utility would have them behave.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/howard-raiffa/most-people-even-in-simple-risky-situations-don-t-behave-the-way-the/) [Howard Raiffa](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/howard-raiffa/) > [As a club, we have an educational purpose: to give back to those people who love Arsenal so that they learn moral values from…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/arsene-wenger/as-a-club-we-have-an-educational-purpose-to-give-back-to-those-people/) [Arsene Wenger](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/arsene-wenger/) > [What astonishes many of us is not so much that human nature is fundamentally corrupt; we are astonished rather that it does not behave…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/morton-irving-seiden/what-astonishes-many-of-us-is-not-so-much-that-human-nature-is/) [Morton Irving Seiden](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/morton-irving-seiden/) > [Do we behave out of fear of punishment, or out of the demands of our heart? For me, it is the latter, as I…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/do-we-behave-out-of-fear-of-punishment-or-out-of-the-demands-of-our/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [When you are in hard labor, remember that the length of labor is usually proportional to the number of people around. Avoid the presence…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michel-odent/when-you-are-in-hard-labor-remember-that-the-length-of-labor-is/) [Michel Odent](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michel-odent/) > [The superpowers often behave like two heavily armed blind men feeling their way around a room, each believing himself in mortal peril from the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/the-superpowers-often-behave-like-two-heavily-armed-blind-men-feeling/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [For political and bureaucratic reasons, governments at all levels are telling far less to the public than to insiders about how to prepare for…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/barton-gellman/for-political-and-bureaucratic-reasons-governments-at-all-levels-are/) [Barton Gellman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/barton-gellman/) [Browse all 1,587 Behave quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/behave/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "I do find life difficult at times … and I behave childishly too, do foolish things, unworthy … I don't think one can have great imagination and great wisdom. Can one?", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "Alison Uttley" }, "isPartOf": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website" }, "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alison-uttley/i-do-find-life-difficult-at-times-and-i-behave-childishly-too-do/", "about": { "@type": "Thing", "name": "Behave" }, "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alison-uttley/i-do-find-life-difficult-at-times-and-i-behave-childishly-too-do/#quotation", "image": { "@type": "ImageObject", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/a01/alison-uttley-79745_behave_i-do-find-life-difficult-at-times-and-i_2072150.png", "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/a01/alison-uttley-79745_behave_i-do-find-life-difficult-at-times-and-i_2072150.png", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/a01/alison-uttley-79745_behave_i-do-find-life-difficult-at-times-and-i_2072150.png", "width": 1080, "height": 1080, "caption": "“I do find life difficult at times … and I behave childishly too, do foolish things, unworthy … I don't think…” — Alison Uttley", "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": "Alison Uttley", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alison-uttley/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 4, "name": "I do find life difficult at...", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alison-uttley/i-do-find-life-difficult-at-times-and-i-behave-childishly-too-do/" } ], "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alison-uttley/i-do-find-life-difficult-at-times-and-i-behave-childishly-too-do/#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 } } ] } ```