--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: When I was a child people simply looked…" description: "\"When I was a child people simply looked about them and were moderately happy; today they peer beyond the seven seas, bury themselves waist deep in tidi..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/b2b/e-b-white-1448_children_when-i-was-a-child-people-simply-looked_2061725.png" --- # When I was a child people simply looked about them and… ![“When I was a child people simply looked about them and were moderately happy; today they peer beyond the seven seas, bury themselves waist deep in tidings, and by and large what they see and hear makes them unutterably sad.” quote by E. B. White](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/b2b/e-b-white-1448_children_when-i-was-a-child-people-simply-looked_2061725.png) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/b2b/e-b-white-1448_children_when-i-was-a-child-people-simply-looked_2061725.png) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/b2b/e-b-white-1448_children_when-i-was-a-child-people-simply-looked_2061725.png) > “When I was a child people simply looked about them and were moderately happy; today they peer beyond the seven seas, bury themselves waist deep in tidings, and by and large what they see and hear makes them unutterably sad.” [E. B. White](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/e-b-white/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Modern media overload creates deep sadness compared to simple childhood contentment. **In simple terms:** Too much news makes people sad. Key Takeaway Limit news consumption. Themes media sadness childhood technology wellbeing Mood melancholy reflective Type observational philosophical When to use this quote - personal reflection - social media use - mental health awareness - family conversations - educational settings Key Concepts information overload psychological impact nostalgia Questions to Reflect On - How does constant news affect your mood? - Can you find balance between awareness and peace? A Different Perspective It ignores the benefits of staying informed. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Child People](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/child-people-256223/) [Children](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/children/) [Happiness](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/happiness/) [Happy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/happy/) [Happy Today](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/happy-today/) [Looked Moderately](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/looked-moderately-3937067/) [Moderately Happy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/moderately-happy-3937066/) [People](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/people/) [People Simply](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/people-simply-440900/) [Seven](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/seven/) [Tidings](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/tidings/) [Today](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/today/) [Unutterably Sad](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/unutterably-sad-3219599/) ## Related quotes > [“There is nothing as sad, nothing as unutterably sad, as an old man crying.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jos-saramago/there-is-nothing-as-sad-nothing-as-unutterably-sad-as-an-old-man/) [José Saramago](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jos-saramago/) > [“In other words, I was a moderately happy penguin who was occasionally attacked by sadness.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/takuji-ichikawa/in-other-words-i-was-a-moderately-happy-penguin-who-was-occasionally/) [Takuji Ichikawa](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/takuji-ichikawa/) > [“A kind Providence has so skilfully adapted sex to sex and the mass of individuals to each other, that, with certain obvious exceptions, any…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nathaniel-hawthorne/a-kind-providence-has-so-skilfully-adapted-sex-to-sex-and-the-mass-of/) [Nathaniel Hawthorne](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nathaniel-hawthorne/) > [I believe the only people that should be around a child and raising a child are people who absolutely, 100 percent love that child](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/angelina-jolie/i-believe-the-only-people-that-should-be-around-a-child-and-raising-a/) [Angelina Jolie](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/angelina-jolie/) > [As a child, people were always trying to photograph and film me because it's a way for a shy person to find themselves.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bruce-weber/as-a-child-people-were-always-trying-to-photograph-and-film-me/) [Bruce Weber](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bruce-weber/) > [I didn't have much as a child. 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