--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: Once upon a time, when men and women…" description: "\"Once upon a time, when men and women hurtled through the air on metal wings, when they wore webbed feet and walked on the bottom of the sea, learning t..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/7d0/anonymous-1_air_once-upon-a-time-when-men-and-women-hurt_2926615.jpg" --- # Once upon a time, when men and women hurtled through the… ![“Once upon a time, when men and women hurtled through the air on metal wings, when they wore webbed feet and walked on the bottom of the sea, learning the speech of whales and the songs of the dolphins, when pearly-fleshed and jewelled apparitions of Texan herdsmen and houris shimmered in the dusk…” quote by Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/7d0/anonymous-1_air_once-upon-a-time-when-men-and-women-hurt_2926615.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/7d0/anonymous-1_air_once-upon-a-time-when-men-and-women-hurt_2926615.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/7d0/anonymous-1_air_once-upon-a-time-when-men-and-women-hurt_2926615.jpg) > “Once upon a time, when men and women hurtled through the air on metal wings, when they wore webbed feet and walked on the bottom of the sea, learning the speech of whales and the songs of the dolphins, when pearly-fleshed and jewelled apparitions of Texan herdsmen and houris shimmered in the dusk on Nicaraguan hillsides, when folk in Norway and Tasmania in dead of winter could dream of fresh strawberries, dates, guavas and passion fruits and find them spread next morning on their tables, there was a woman who was largely irrelevant, and therefore happy.” [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. A fantastical world of diverse wonders contrasts with a woman who feels irrelevant, suggesting that happiness can arise from detachment from grand expectations. **In simple terms:** Irrelevance can bring contentment. Key Takeaway Find peace by letting go of societal pressures. Themes contentment identity detachment fantasy Mood contemplative melancholic Type literary philosophical When to use this quote - creative writing retreats - mindfulness practice - social media detox - career stagnation Key Concepts existentialism world‑building personal freedom Questions to Reflect On - What does “irrelevant” mean to you? - Can detachment coexist with ambition? A Different Perspective Ignoring larger issues may lead to missed opportunities for impact. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Air](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/air/) [Apparitions](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/apparitions/) [Bottom](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/bottom/) [Dolphins](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/dolphins/) [Dream](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/dream/) [Dusk](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/dusk/) [Feet](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/feet/) [Folk](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/folk/) [Folks](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/folks/) [Fruit](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/fruit/) [Irrelevant](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/irrelevant/) [Men](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/men/) [Men and women](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/men-and-women/) [Men Women](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/men-women/) [Metals](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/metals/) [Morning](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/morning/) [Next](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/next/) [Norway](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/norway/) [Once upon a time](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/once-upon-a-time/) [Passion](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/passion/) [Sea](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/sea/) [Song](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/song/) [Speech](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/speech/) [Speech Whales](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/speech-whales-4291274/) [Spread](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/spread/) [Strawberries](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/strawberries/) [Tables](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/tables/) [Tasmania](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/tasmania/) [Texan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/texan/) [Time](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/time/) [Whales](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/whales/) [Whales Songs](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/whales-songs-4291273/) [Wings](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/wings/) [Wings Wore](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/wings-wore-4291272/) [Winter](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/winter/) ## Related quotes > [“Towns like Launceston, Longford, Evandale and other current-day hubs of poppy production in north and central Tasmania had been settled by tens of thousands…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/towns-like-launceston-longford-evandale-and-other-current-day-hubs-of/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [In every block of marble I see a statue as plain as though it stood before me, shaped and perfect in attitude and action.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/in-every-block-of-marble-i-see-a-statue-as-plain-as-though-it-stood/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [Life has always seemed to me like a plant that lives on its rhizome. Its true life is invisible, hidden in the rhizome. The…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/life-has-always-seemed-to-me-like-a-plant-that-lives-on-its-rhizome/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [Our community in North Texas is fortunate to have two thriving airports. We serve millions of satisfied customers and employ hundreds of thousands of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/our-community-in-north-texas-is-fortunate-to-have-two-thriving/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [“We'd better get. But y'all have a nice night,' I say. Apparently, fear turns me Texan. 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They are dark, big, gloomy paintings and he…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ben-quilty/there-is-that-interesting-thing-that-haughton-forrest-was-imagining/) [Ben Quilty](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ben-quilty/) > [ We calculate the amount spent \[by Brethren and other anti- Green groups\] was between $500,000 and $1 million - that's a huge amount for… ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bob-brown/we-calculate-the-amount-spent-by-brethren-and-other-anti-green-groups/) [Bob Brown](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bob-brown/) > [Perhaps the virtue of coming from a place like Tasmania is that you had the great gift of knowing that you were not the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/richard-flanagan/perhaps-the-virtue-of-coming-from-a-place-like-tasmania-is-that-you/) [Richard Flanagan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/richard-flanagan/) > [In Tasmania, an island the size of Ireland whose primeval forests astonished 19th-century Europeans, an incomprehensible ecological tragedy is being played out.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/richard-flanagan/in-tasmania-an-island-the-size-of-ireland-whose-primeval-forests/) [Richard Flanagan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/richard-flanagan/) > [The journey is long, the road is dark and frightening, but together we can reach our destination: the Tasmania of which we all dream,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/richard-flanagan/the-journey-is-long-the-road-is-dark-and-frightening-but-together-we/) [Richard Flanagan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/richard-flanagan/) > [I'm able to actually choose places to go which have intrigued me for the last god knows how many years, and Tasmania's always been…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robert-plant/i-m-able-to-actually-choose-places-to-go-which-have-intrigued-me-for/) [Robert Plant](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robert-plant/) > [We want to appeal to everyone and get rich quick. We want to be millionaires. I've got this plan to buy Tasmania you see.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/angus-young/we-want-to-appeal-to-everyone-and-get-rich-quick-we-want-to-be/) [Angus Young](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/angus-young/) > [I tell my friends that 'you don't know how lucky you are to be in Tasmania, because when you go away internationally, you get…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/saroo-brierley/i-tell-my-friends-that-you-don-t-know-how-lucky-you-are-to-be-in/) [Saroo Brierley](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/saroo-brierley/) > [The number of those identifying as Aborigine in Tasmania rapidly rose in the late 20th century.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/richard-flanagan/the-number-of-those-identifying-as-aborigine-in-tasmania-rapidly-rose/) [Richard Flanagan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/richard-flanagan/) ## More by Anonymous > [And a tear rolled down her cheek, as she said goodbye; because she's walking away, and she's never looking back](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/and-a-tear-rolled-down-her-cheek-as-she-said-goodbye-because-she-s/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [Life is full of change. That's how we learn and grow.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/life-is-full-of-change-that-s-how-we-learn-and-grow/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [You'll seldom experience regret for anything that you've done. It is what you haven't done that will torment you. The message, therefore, is clear.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/you-ll-seldom-experience-regret-for-anything-that-you-ve-done-it-is/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [Scrabble - The game is available in Braille. That’s a nice fact. This makes me feel better about humanity for some reason. I can’t…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/scrabble-the-game-is-available-in-braille-that-s-a-nice-fact-this/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [Everyone needs someone to love, and I choose you.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/everyone-needs-someone-to-love-and-i-choose-you/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [“THIS tale of my sore-troubled life I write,    To thank the God of nature, who conveyed    My soul to me, and with such care…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/this-tale-of-my-sore-troubled-life-i-write-to-thank-the-god-of-nature/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [Put on my J's and dance the whole night away Im naughty by nature like Im hip-hop hooray With my hands in the sky,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/put-on-my-j-s-and-dance-the-whole-night-away-im-naughty-by-nature/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [Me.. I have been through a lot, but I still manage to have a smile on my face. Im not worried about the past…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/me-i-have-been-through-a-lot-but-i-still-manage-to-have-a-smile-on-my/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [Distance is a test of love. many will fail for those who can't withstand it, but for those who can, theres only one answer…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/distance-is-a-test-of-love-many-will-fail-for-those-who-can-t/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [Im sorry I ever tried...](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/im-sorry-i-ever-tried/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [Being betrayed by the one you love is the worst feeling in the world...](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/being-betrayed-by-the-one-you-love-is-the-worst-feeling-in-the-world/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [Let children support their parents or be imprisoned.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/let-children-support-their-parents-or-be-imprisoned/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [The only person I've ever purposely caused pain here is myself...By simply sharing, caring too much.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/the-only-person-i-ve-ever-purposely-caused-pain-here-is-myself-by/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [“Start a business, not a startup”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/start-a-business-not-a-startup/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [The truth is, of course, that the curtness of the Ten Commandments is an evidence, not of the gloom and narrowness of a religion,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/the-truth-is-of-course-that-the-curtness-of-the-ten-commandments-is/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) [Explore all 162,899 Anonymous quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) ## More Air quotes > [I will be a tireless advocate for our District's defense priorities including Sheppard Air Force Base, Pantex, Bell Helicopter, universities conducting important research, and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ronny-jackson/i-will-be-a-tireless-advocate-for-our-district-s-defense-priorities/) [Ronny Jackson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ronny-jackson/) > [I have lifted my plane . . . for perhaps a thousand flights and I have never felt her wheels glide from the Earth…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/beryl-markham/i-have-lifted-my-plane-for-perhaps-a-thousand-flights-and-i-have/) [Beryl Markham](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/beryl-markham/) > [If U.S. air, naval, missile, and ground forces were not in and around Korea, and if we were not treaty-bound to fight alongside South…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/pat-buchanan/if-u-s-air-naval-missile-and-ground-forces-were-not-in-and-around/) [Pat Buchanan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/pat-buchanan/) > [The cooler days have brought a wistful mood upon him. The smell of coalsmoke in the air at night. Old times, dead years. For…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/cormac-mccarthy/the-cooler-days-have-brought-a-wistful-mood-upon-him-the-smell-of/) [Cormac McCarthy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/cormac-mccarthy/) > [It's easy to say, let's go in and get the bad guys. But you have a divided country of Sunnis and Shias. The United…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tulsi-gabbard/it-s-easy-to-say-let-s-go-in-and-get-the-bad-guys-but-you-have-a/) [Tulsi Gabbard](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tulsi-gabbard/) > [I'm a candle flame that sways in currents of air you can't see. You need to be the one who steadies me to burn.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nadine-gordimer/i-m-a-candle-flame-that-sways-in-currents-of-air-you-can-t-see-you/) [Nadine Gordimer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nadine-gordimer/) > [It is sometimes said that scientists are unromantic, that their passion to figure out robs the world of beauty and mystery. But is it…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/carl-sagan/it-is-sometimes-said-that-scientists-are-unromantic-that-their/) [Carl Sagan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/carl-sagan/) > [ Just between you and me, shouldn’t the World Bank be encouraging MORE migration of the dirty industries to the LDCs \[Less Developed Countries\]?... I… ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lawrence-summers/just-between-you-and-me-shouldn-t-the-world-bank-be-encouraging-more/) [Lawrence Summers](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lawrence-summers/) > [After a few mouthfuls of moon-flavored air, even the stubbornly drowsy can find themselves wide-eyed.. All the normal noises of life were gone, leaving…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/n-d-wilson/after-a-few-mouthfuls-of-moon-flavored-air-even-the-stubbornly-drowsy/) [N.D. 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The logical consequence is…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ron-paul/washington-bureaucrats-have-classified-the-very-air-we-exhale-as-a/) [Ron Paul](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ron-paul/) > [“It is unnatural to fear something natural.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/steven-magee/it-is-unnatural-to-fear-something-natural/) [Steven Magee](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/steven-magee/) [Browse all 6,278 Air quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/air/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "Once upon a time, when men and women hurtled through the air on metal wings, when they wore webbed feet and walked on the bottom of the sea, learning the speech of whales and the songs of the dolphins, when pearly-fleshed and jewelled apparitions of Texan herdsmen and houris shimmered in the dusk on Nicaraguan hillsides, when folk in Norway and Tasmania in dead of winter could dream of fresh strawberries, dates, guavas and passion fruits and find them spread next morning on their tables, there was a woman who was largely irrelevant, and therefore happy.", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "Anonymous" }, "isPartOf": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website" }, "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/once-upon-a-time-when-men-and-women-hurtled-through-the-air-on-metal/", "about": { "@type": "Thing", "name": "Air" }, "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/once-upon-a-time-when-men-and-women-hurtled-through-the-air-on-metal/#quotation", "image": { "@type": "ImageObject", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/7d0/anonymous-1_air_once-upon-a-time-when-men-and-women-hurt_2926615.jpg", "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/7d0/anonymous-1_air_once-upon-a-time-when-men-and-women-hurt_2926615.jpg", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/7d0/anonymous-1_air_once-upon-a-time-when-men-and-women-hurt_2926615.jpg", "width": 1080, "height": 1080, "caption": "“Once upon a time, when men and women hurtled through the air on metal wings, when they wore webbed feet and…” — Anonymous", "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": "Anonymous", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 4, "name": "Once upon a time, when men...", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/once-upon-a-time-when-men-and-women-hurtled-through-the-air-on-metal/" } ], "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/once-upon-a-time-when-men-and-women-hurtled-through-the-air-on-metal/#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 } } ] } ```