---
title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: My parents put me in the water very…"
description: "\"My parents put me in the water very early, and also had me skiing at a very early age. They put me on skis when I was one and a half. I was fortunate t..."
image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/b48/benoit-lecomte-53698_activity_my-parents-put-me-in-the-water-very-earl_42043.jpg"
---

#  My parents put me in the water very early, and also had me…

![“My parents put me in the water very early, and also had me skiing at a very early age. They put me on skis when I was one and a half. I was fortunate to have parents who understood the importance of exposing their kids to different sports, different cultures and different activities in order to…” quote by Benoit Lecomte](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/b48/benoit-lecomte-53698_activity_my-parents-put-me-in-the-water-very-earl_42043.jpg)   [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/b48/benoit-lecomte-53698_activity_my-parents-put-me-in-the-water-very-earl_42043.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/b48/benoit-lecomte-53698_activity_my-parents-put-me-in-the-water-very-earl_42043.jpg)

> “My parents put me in the water very early, and also had me skiing at a very early age. They put me on skis when I was one and a half. I was fortunate to have parents who understood the importance of exposing their kids to different sports, different cultures and different activities in order to discover what we liked and what we didn't like. They didn't push us, they just gave us many things to choose from.”

[Benoit Lecomte](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/benoit-lecomte/)

## About This Quote

This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation.

Early, varied exposure to activities lets children discover genuine interests, fostering autonomy rather than pressured specialization.

**In simple terms:** Broad early experiences nurture self‑directed passions.

Key Takeaway

Choice, not pressure, fuels authentic development.

Themes

parenting development sports culture

Mood

encouraging warm

Type

parenting advice reflective

When to use this quote

- family vacation planning
- school extracurricular programs
- talent scouting

Key Concepts

autonomy exploratory learning

Practical Applications

- Offer diverse activity options
- Encourage child‑led selection

Questions to Reflect On

- How many choices are optimal for a child?
- When does guidance become pressure?

A Different Perspective

Too many options can overwhelm and dilute focus.

★ ★ ★ ★ ★   No ratings yet

[Age](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/age/) [Culture](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/culture/) [Different cultures](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/different-cultures/) [Early age](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/early-age/) [Kids](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/kids/) [Order](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/order/) [Parent](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/parent/) [Parenting](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/parenting/) [Parents](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/parents/) [Skiing](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/skiing/) [Skis](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/skis/) [Sports](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/sports/) [Water](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/water/)

## Related quotes

> [I think it helped all of us that we had creative parents. They understood what it was like when a kid wanted to get…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-penn/i-think-it-helped-all-of-us-that-we-had-creative-parents-they/)

[Michael Penn](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michael-penn/)

> [“language his parents understood best was a discourse of violent action, not words. Morris, in particular, was a heavy drug user and an alcoholic,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/laura-schroff/language-his-parents-understood-best-was-a-discourse-of-violent/)

[Laura Schroff](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/laura-schroff/)

> [My parents never understood me; they were Japanese.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/chic-murray/my-parents-never-understood-me-they-were-japanese/)

[Chic Murray](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/chic-murray/)

> [“By 1948 I was safe on my feet and able to get about quite normally, but I was thirty-four and life was slipping past…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nevil-shute/by-1948-i-was-safe-on-my-feet-and-able-to-get-about-quite-normally/)

[Nevil Shute](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nevil-shute/)

> [I'm straightforward with my kids, I take my kids out and I bring my daughter to dance lessons. I'm teaching my son how to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rob-ford/i-m-straightforward-with-my-kids-i-take-my-kids-out-and-i-bring-my/)

[Rob Ford](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rob-ford/)

> [Here in the deep powder snow you don't hear yourself ski. You don't hear your long turns or your short turns. You just float.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jacques-labrie/here-in-the-deep-powder-snow-you-don-t-hear-yourself-ski-you-don-t/)

Jacques Labrie

> [With ski jumping I reached a plateau and the more I did it the worse I got.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mike-tindall/with-ski-jumping-i-reached-a-plateau-and-the-more-i-did-it-the-worse/)

[Mike Tindall](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mike-tindall/)

> [Jet ski and wild noises.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dj-khaled/jet-ski-and-wild-noises/)

[DJ Khaled](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dj-khaled/)

> [I've always been big into snowmobiles, four-wheelers, jet skis, all kinds of those X Games kind of things.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ben-roethlisberger/i-ve-always-been-big-into-snowmobiles-four-wheelers-jet-skis-all/)

[Ben Roethlisberger](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ben-roethlisberger/)

> [If I ask any­body who learned to ski after the age of five, they can remem­ber their first day of skiing-what the weather was…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/warren-miller/if-i-ask-any-body-who-learned-to-ski-after-the-age-of-five-they-can/)

[Warren Miller](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/warren-miller/)

> [I enjoy just showing people other sides of me, especially everyone always sees me in my helmet and ski suit. It's nice to just…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lindsey-vonn/i-enjoy-just-showing-people-other-sides-of-me-especially-everyone/)

[Lindsey Vonn](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lindsey-vonn/)

> [I'd be nervous about skiing, wondering what I'd do if I felt shaky on top of a mountain; but other diabetics do ski, so…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dana-hill/i-d-be-nervous-about-skiing-wondering-what-i-d-do-if-i-felt-shaky-on/)

[Dana Hill](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dana-hill/)

> [I sort of gave up on this whole human adventure a long time ago, divorced myself from it emotionally. It gives me an artistic…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-carlin/i-sort-of-gave-up-on-this-whole-human-adventure-a-long-time-ago/)

[George Carlin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-carlin/)

> [If you've never seen an elephant ski, then you've never been on acid.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/eddie-izzard/if-you-ve-never-seen-an-elephant-ski-then-you-ve-never-been-on-acid/)

[Eddie Izzard](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/eddie-izzard/)

> [I tried to be a ski bum when I stepped away from Twitter, and I wasn't a very good skier.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/evan-williams/i-tried-to-be-a-ski-bum-when-i-stepped-away-from-twitter-and-i-wasn-t/)

[Evan Williams](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/evan-williams/)

## More by Benoit Lecomte

> [If you think you cannot do it, you set yourself up to fail anyway. Maybe it will take one more try to do it,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/benoit-lecomte/if-you-think-you-cannot-do-it-you-set-yourself-up-to-fail-anyway/)

[Benoit Lecomte](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/benoit-lecomte/)

> [After I finished the Atlantic swim I said "never again," but it didn't take long for me to change my mind. I like to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/benoit-lecomte/after-i-finished-the-atlantic-swim-i-said-never-again-but-it-didn-t/)

[Benoit Lecomte](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/benoit-lecomte/)

> [The moments that you share with a person do not stop when that person is not in your life anymore. The relationship that I…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/benoit-lecomte/the-moments-that-you-share-with-a-person-do-not-stop-when-that-person/)

[Benoit Lecomte](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/benoit-lecomte/)

> [One of the things that I learned is that you never truly know yourself until you challenge yourself. It is when you are confronted…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/benoit-lecomte/one-of-the-things-that-i-learned-is-that-you-never-truly-know/)

[Benoit Lecomte](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/benoit-lecomte/)

> [I go into a meditative state but I don't follow a path that people who meditate take, like sitting in a room and getting…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/benoit-lecomte/i-go-into-a-meditative-state-but-i-don-t-follow-a-path-that-people/)

[Benoit Lecomte](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/benoit-lecomte/)

[Explore all 6 Benoit Lecomte quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/benoit-lecomte/)

## More Activity quotes

> [Where I grew up, learning was a collective activity. But when I got to school and tried to share learning with other students that…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/henry-giroux/where-i-grew-up-learning-was-a-collective-activity-but-when-i-got-to/)

[Henry Giroux](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/henry-giroux/)

> [It must be assumed and established as a principle, that the right of private property must be regarded as sacred. Wherefore, the law ought…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/pope-leo-xiii/it-must-be-assumed-and-established-as-a-principle-that-the-right-of/)

[Pope Leo XIII](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/pope-leo-xiii/)

> [Each man is capable of doing one thing well. If he attempts several, he will fail to achieve distinction in any.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/plato/each-man-is-capable-of-doing-one-thing-well-if-he-attempts-several-he/)

[Plato](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/plato/)

> [And also I think the rise of other, you could say, destinations for international jihadis mean that Pakistan isn't necessarily the place where people…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mohsin-hamid/and-also-i-think-the-rise-of-other-you-could-say-destinations-for/)

[Mohsin Hamid](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mohsin-hamid/)

> [To evoke in oneself a feeling one has once experienced, and having evoked it in oneself, then by means of movements, lines, colors, sounds,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/leo-tolstoy/to-evoke-in-oneself-a-feeling-one-has-once-experienced-and-having/)

[Leo Tolstoy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/leo-tolstoy/)

> [Fighting's fun, man. It's a great activity, it's a great sport.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/matt-mitrione/fighting-s-fun-man-it-s-a-great-activity-it-s-a-great-sport/)

[Matt Mitrione](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/matt-mitrione/)

> [There were books everywhere in my house. Books were very present. I just loved books. I never understood reading as anything but a pleasurable…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lisa-lucas/there-were-books-everywhere-in-my-house-books-were-very-present-i/)

[Lisa Lucas](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lisa-lucas/)

> [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/)

> [The only activity a cynic will find contagious is yawning, that is, with other people, at other people.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/criss-jami/the-only-activity-a-cynic-will-find-contagious-is-yawning-that-is/)

[Criss Jami](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/criss-jami/)

> [For the longest time, neuroscientists were forced to be passive observers of brain activity.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gero-miesenbock/for-the-longest-time-neuroscientists-were-forced-to-be-passive/)

Gero Miesenbock

> [Enjoyment is not a goal, it is a feeling that accompanies important ongoing activity.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/paul-goodman/enjoyment-is-not-a-goal-it-is-a-feeling-that-accompanies-important/)

[Paul Goodman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/paul-goodman/)

> [Once an activity has been socialized, it is impossible to point out, by concrete example, how men in a free market could better conduct…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/leonard-read/once-an-activity-has-been-socialized-it-is-impossible-to-point-out-by/)

[Leonard Read](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/leonard-read/)

> [“Fun is not an activity, it is a state of mind.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bryant-mcgill/fun-is-not-an-activity-it-is-a-state-of-mind/)

[Bryant McGill](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bryant-mcgill/)

> [I have to consider everything I eat; I consider every activity I do.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/charlie-kimball/i-have-to-consider-everything-i-eat-i-consider-every-activity-i-do/)

[Charlie Kimball](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/charlie-kimball/)

> [Almost all good businesses engage in 'pain today, gain tomorrow' activities.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/charlie-munger/almost-all-good-businesses-engage-in-pain-today-gain-tomorrow/)

[Charlie Munger](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/charlie-munger/)

Browse all 3,263 Activity quotes

```json
{
    "@context": "https://schema.org",
    "@graph": [
        {
            "@type": "Quotation",
            "text": "My parents put me in the water very early, and also had me skiing at a very early age. They put me on skis when I was one and a half. I was fortunate to have parents who understood the importance of exposing their kids to different sports, different cultures and different activities in order to discover what we liked and what we didn't like. They didn't push us, they just gave us many things to choose from.",
            "creator": {
                "@type": "Person",
                "name": "Benoit Lecomte"
            },
            "isPartOf": {
                "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website"
            },
            "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/benoit-lecomte/my-parents-put-me-in-the-water-very-early-and-also-had-me-skiing-at-a/",
            "about": {
                "@type": "Thing",
                "name": "Activity"
            },
            "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/benoit-lecomte/my-parents-put-me-in-the-water-very-early-and-also-had-me-skiing-at-a/#quotation",
            "image": {
                "@type": "ImageObject",
                "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/b48/benoit-lecomte-53698_activity_my-parents-put-me-in-the-water-very-earl_42043.jpg",
                "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/b48/benoit-lecomte-53698_activity_my-parents-put-me-in-the-water-very-earl_42043.jpg",
                "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/b48/benoit-lecomte-53698_activity_my-parents-put-me-in-the-water-very-earl_42043.jpg",
                "width": 1080,
                "height": 1080,
                "caption": "“My parents put me in the water very early, and also had me skiing at a very early age. They put me on skis…” — Benoit Lecomte",
                "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": "Benoit Lecomte",
                    "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/benoit-lecomte/"
                },
                {
                    "@type": "ListItem",
                    "position": 4,
                    "name": "My parents put me in the...",
                    "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/benoit-lecomte/my-parents-put-me-in-the-water-very-early-and-also-had-me-skiing-at-a/"
                }
            ],
            "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/benoit-lecomte/my-parents-put-me-in-the-water-very-early-and-also-had-me-skiing-at-a/#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
            }
        }
    ]
}
```
