--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: Mama had her little cough. Once or twice…" description: "\"Mama had her little cough. Once or twice, some quiet sobbing, out of sight... Or the slamming of kitchen cupboard doors. That was her language.\" — Davi..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/30e/david-small-15837_cough_mama-had-her-little-cough-once-or-twice_1022068.png" --- # Mama had her little cough. Once or twice, some quiet… ![“Mama had her little cough. Once or twice, some quiet sobbing, out of sight... Or the slamming of kitchen cupboard doors. That was her language.” quote by David Small](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/30e/david-small-15837_cough_mama-had-her-little-cough-once-or-twice_1022068.png) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/30e/david-small-15837_cough_mama-had-her-little-cough-once-or-twice_1022068.png) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/30e/david-small-15837_cough_mama-had-her-little-cough-once-or-twice_1022068.png) > “Mama had her little cough. Once or twice, some quiet sobbing, out of sight... Or the slamming of kitchen cupboard doors. That was her language.” [David Small](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-small/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. The mother’s subtle sounds and actions become a private language expressing her distress and emotional state. **In simple terms:** Her cough and noises are her silent cries. Key Takeaway Pay attention to non‑verbal cues of loved ones. Themes family communication silence Mood empathetic somber Type memoir psychological When to use this quote - parent‑child relationships - mental health awareness - caregiver support Key Concepts psychology emotional expression Questions to Reflect On - What does “her language” reveal about her needs? - How can families better respond to silent distress? A Different Perspective Non‑verbal signals can be misinterpreted. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Cough](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/cough/) [Cough Twice](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/cough-twice-566360/) [Cupboard](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/cupboard/) [Doors](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/doors/) [Had](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/had/) [Her](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/her/) [Kitchen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/kitchen/) [Language](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/language/) [Little](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/little/) [Little Cough](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/little-cough-2285600/) [Mama](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/mama/) [Once](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/once/) [Out](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/out/) [Quiet](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/quiet/) [Quiet Sobbing](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/quiet-sobbing-2285601/) [Sight](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/sight/) [Some](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/some/) [Twice](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/twice/) ## Related quotes > [It was one of those parties where you cough twice before you speak and then decide not to say it after all.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/it-was-one-of-those-parties-where-you-cough-twice-before-you-speak/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [I did things like get in a cupboard before the teacher came in at the beginning of a lesson, and then, two minutes before…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/miranda-hart/i-did-things-like-get-in-a-cupboard-before-the-teacher-came-in-at-the/) [Miranda Hart](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/miranda-hart/) > [What we've learned is that if you can make the right decision in the supermarket aisle, it's a heck of a lot easier to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tom-rath/what-we-ve-learned-is-that-if-you-can-make-the-right-decision-in-the/) [Tom Rath](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tom-rath/) > [“So do not fritter away your days. 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Writing stories takes…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-small/writing-stories-adopting-other-characters-making-up-fantastic-stories/) [David Small](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-small/) > [I found great value in teaching students from the outset of their studies how to draw very realistically. Otherwise, you're starting deep into the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-small/i-found-great-value-in-teaching-students-from-the-outset-of-their/) [David Small](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-small/) > [I used to teach on a college level, and I've taught in schools where kids just wanted to be artists, and I used to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-small/i-used-to-teach-on-a-college-level-and-i-ve-taught-in-schools-where/) [David Small](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-small/) > [I'm not a writer. 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Thank you America. \[salutes\] ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bill-hicks/i-ll-smoke-i-ll-cough-i-ll-get-the-tumors-i-ll-die-deal-thank-you/) [Bill Hicks](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bill-hicks/) > [Amazing Home Remedies: If you have a bad cough, take a large dose of laxatives, then you will be afraid to cough.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nikhil-saluja/amazing-home-remedies-if-you-have-a-bad-cough-take-a-large-dose-of/) [Nikhil Saluja](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nikhil-saluja/) > [You can hit my father over the head with a chair and he won't wake up, but my mother, all you have to do…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/you-can-hit-my-father-over-the-head-with-a-chair-and-he-won-t-wake-up/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [“whenever someone asks him why he smokes, he inevitably answers: “Because I like to cough.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/paul-auster/whenever-someone-asks-him-why-he-smokes-he-inevitably-answers-because/) [Paul Auster](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/paul-auster/) > [He asked me if I was doing ok... I don't think he knew he would get this sort of response... // right now I'm…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alla/he-asked-me-if-i-was-doing-ok-i-don-t-think-he-knew-he-would-get-this/) [Alla](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alla/) > [Sometimes I tic or twitch or cough, and it's a very public thing.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tim-howard/sometimes-i-tic-or-twitch-or-cough-and-it-s-a-very-public-thing/) [Tim Howard](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tim-howard/) > [Love, and a cough, are not concealed.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ovid/love-and-a-cough-are-not-concealed/) [Ovid](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ovid/) > [“Do rhinoceroses cough?”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/eug-ne-ionesco/do-rhinoceroses-cough/) [Eugène Ionesco](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/eug-ne-ionesco/) > [My doctor grabbed me by the wallet and said,'Cough'](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/henny-youngman/my-doctor-grabbed-me-by-the-wallet-and-said-cough/) [Henny Youngman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/henny-youngman/) > [I cough once and my parents arelike YOU ARENT MISSING SCHOOL TOMORROW!](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/i-cough-once-and-my-parents-arelike-you-arent-missing-school-tomorrow/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [“I’ve been sick too.” I faked a pathetic-sounding cough. “Must be something I caught last time I was here. Bastard Plague?”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/molly-mcadams/i-ve-been-sick-too-i-faked-a-pathetic-sounding-cough-must-be/) [Molly McAdams](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/molly-mcadams/) > [A small cold and cough can actually stop you from going where you are.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/p-v-sindhu/a-small-cold-and-cough-can-actually-stop-you-from-going-where-you-are/) [P. V. Sindhu](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/p-v-sindhu/) > [“The first intimation I had that things were about to hot up was a pained and disapproving cough from the neighbourhood of the carpet.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/p-g-wodehouse-3/the-first-intimation-i-had-that-things-were-about-to-hot-up-was-a/) [P G Wodehouse](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/p-g-wodehouse-3/) > [“Love is the best thing in the world, except for cough drops.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-goldman/love-is-the-best-thing-in-the-world-except-for-cough-drops/) [William Goldman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-goldman/) > [When I was a child, there were not that many vaccines. I was vaccinated for polio. I actually got measles as a child. I…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/when-i-was-a-child-there-were-not-that-many-vaccines-i-was-vaccinated/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) [Browse all 74 Cough quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/cough/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "Mama had her little cough. Once or twice, some quiet sobbing, out of sight... Or the slamming of kitchen cupboard doors. 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