--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: Even from those very first hours, Claire…" description: "\"“Even from those very first hours, Claire was an easy and quiet child. It was as though she already knew that she could not afford to be picky or make ..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/38b/edwidge-danticat-2559_children_even-from-those-very-first-hours-claire_1418859.png" --- # Even from those very first hours, Claire was an easy and… ![“Even from those very first hours, Claire was an easy and quiet child. It was as though she already knew that she could not afford to be picky or make demands.” quote by Edwidge Danticat](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/38b/edwidge-danticat-2559_children_even-from-those-very-first-hours-claire_1418859.png) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/38b/edwidge-danticat-2559_children_even-from-those-very-first-hours-claire_1418859.png) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/38b/edwidge-danticat-2559_children_even-from-those-very-first-hours-claire_1418859.png) > ““Even from those very first hours, Claire was an easy and quiet child. It was as though she already knew that she could not afford to be picky or make demands.”” [Edwidge Danticat](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/edwidge-danticat/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. A child's early humility reflects survival instincts and the need to avoid demanding more than one can afford. **In simple terms:** Kids often learn to be modest due to scarcity. Key Takeaway Teach resilience without suppressing healthy needs. Themes childhood humility survival economics psychology Mood thoughtful empathetic Type literary psychological When to use this quote - family dynamics - early education - poverty contexts Key Concepts attachment theory social conditioning economic pressure Questions to Reflect On - How does early modesty affect adult self‑advocacy? - When is humility beneficial versus limiting? A Different Perspective Risk of encouraging self‑deprivation. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Child Knew](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/child-knew-729762/) [Children](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/children/) [Claire Easy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/claire-easy-5019031/) [Heart](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/heart/) [Hours Claire](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/hours-claire-5019032/) [Knew Afford](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/knew-afford-5019033/) [Quiet Child](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/quiet-child-329405/) ## Related quotes > [Few things are hidden from a quiet child with good eyesight.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/terry-pratchett/few-things-are-hidden-from-a-quiet-child-with-good-eyesight/) [Terry Pratchett](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/terry-pratchett/) > [I was a very quiet child growing up. I always knew that I was funny - I just never put it to use.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/spoken-reasons/i-was-a-very-quiet-child-growing-up-i-always-knew-that-i-was-funny-i/) [Spoken Reasons](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/spoken-reasons/) > [I was a very quiet child, quite introverted, really. Independent, yes; I didn't need a lot of supervision. Less so than I did when…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-boyne/i-was-a-very-quiet-child-quite-introverted-really-independent-yes-i/) [John Boyne](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-boyne/) > [“I was a raw, quiet child, and God was already a bore to me.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/colum-mccann/i-was-a-raw-quiet-child-and-god-was-already-a-bore-to-me/) [Colum McCann](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/colum-mccann/) > [I was pretty quiet as a child. I kind of hung out with my family and listened to music and sh\*t. I wasn't too…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/james-hetfield/i-was-pretty-quiet-as-a-child-i-kind-of-hung-out-with-my-family-and/) [James Hetfield](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/james-hetfield/) > [I was pretty quiet as a child.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/james-hetfield/i-was-pretty-quiet-as-a-child/) [James Hetfield](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/james-hetfield/) > [I've always been shy, I was a quiet child. I didn't start speaking until uh, last year.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/craig-nicholls/i-ve-always-been-shy-i-was-a-quiet-child-i-didn-t-start-speaking/) [Craig Nicholls](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/craig-nicholls/) > [Training began with children who were taught to sit still and enjoy it. 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I knew I wanted to be an actress from the age of 5.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/claire-danes/i-was-a-very-confident-child-i-knew-i-wanted-to-be-an-actress-from/) [Claire Danes](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/claire-danes/) > [Since the child knew his parents would give in, he tried the same trick again and again.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jackie-chan/since-the-child-knew-his-parents-would-give-in-he-tried-the-same/) [Jackie Chan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jackie-chan/) > [“Even then, only a child, she knew she had to pretend to be someone else -- for her parents, for their customers, for everyone…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/leslie-parry/even-then-only-a-child-she-knew-she-had-to-pretend-to-be-someone-else/) [Leslie Parry](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/leslie-parry/) > [“imagine that it were given back to me to be the child who knew departure would be sweet, the boy who drew square-rigged ships,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/marilyn-hacker/imagine-that-it-were-given-back-to-me-to-be-the-child-who-knew/) [Marilyn Hacker](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/marilyn-hacker/) > [“There was no fear of sandpaper earth, no sense of danger from a bare-skinned spill, for the boy was a child—a six-foot, one-inch growing…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tony-taylor/there-was-no-fear-of-sandpaper-earth-no-sense-of-danger-from-a-bare/) [Tony Taylor](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tony-taylor/) > [“She smiled, pretending to be unaware like every child, but she knew. Children know things even if they can’t explain them in words.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/cara-ruegg/she-smiled-pretending-to-be-unaware-like-every-child-but-she-knew/) [Cara Ruegg](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/cara-ruegg/) ## More by Edwidge Danticat > [“Medicare rewards doctors far better for doing procedures than for assessing whether they should be done at all.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/edwidge-danticat/medicare-rewards-doctors-far-better-for-doing-procedures-than-for/) [Edwidge Danticat](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/edwidge-danticat/) > [I love the process of cracking the spine for the first time and slowly sinking into a book. That will soon seem old-fashioned, I'm…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/edwidge-danticat/i-love-the-process-of-cracking-the-spine-for-the-first-time-and/) [Edwidge Danticat](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/edwidge-danticat/) > [I remember reading an interview with a writer who said that in nonfiction if you have one lie it sort of messes it up.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/edwidge-danticat/i-remember-reading-an-interview-with-a-writer-who-said-that-in/) [Edwidge Danticat](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/edwidge-danticat/) > [“Instead I dreamt of walking out of the world, of spending all my time inside with no one to talk to, and no one…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/edwidge-danticat/instead-i-dreamt-of-walking-out-of-the-world-of-spending-all-my-time/) [Edwidge Danticat](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/edwidge-danticat/) > [“Then what do you want with me?'... 'The pursuit of happiness.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/edwidge-danticat/then-what-do-you-want-with-me-the-pursuit-of-happiness/) [Edwidge Danticat](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/edwidge-danticat/) > [I wanted to raise the voice of a lot of the people that I knew growing up, and this was, for the most part,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/edwidge-danticat/i-wanted-to-raise-the-voice-of-a-lot-of-the-people-that-i-knew/) [Edwidge Danticat](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/edwidge-danticat/) > [Creating these messes that go from administration to administration and then you swoop in and clean them up - with that heroic Delta force…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/edwidge-danticat/creating-these-messes-that-go-from-administration-to-administration/) [Edwidge Danticat](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/edwidge-danticat/) > [“Nineteen Thirty-Seven”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/edwidge-danticat/nineteen-thirty-seven/) [Edwidge Danticat](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/edwidge-danticat/) > [“From her experience working with the weak and the sick, she'd learned that the disease you ignore is the one that kills you, so…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/edwidge-danticat/from-her-experience-working-with-the-weak-and-the-sick-she-d-learned/) [Edwidge Danticat](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/edwidge-danticat/) > [I'm not saying Cubans don't deserve asylum, but if it is a national security issue, there are people who are coming from Cuba on…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/edwidge-danticat/i-m-not-saying-cubans-don-t-deserve-asylum-but-if-it-is-a-national/) [Edwidge Danticat](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/edwidge-danticat/) > [“I owe Oprah and that show a tremendous debt.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/edwidge-danticat/i-owe-oprah-and-that-show-a-tremendous-debt/) [Edwidge Danticat](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/edwidge-danticat/) > [The greatest gift anyone can give to a writer is time.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/edwidge-danticat/the-greatest-gift-anyone-can-give-to-a-writer-is-time/) [Edwidge Danticat](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/edwidge-danticat/) > [I think it is important to reach people through arts and literature, because then you establish a connection that's not an instant crisis.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/edwidge-danticat/i-think-it-is-important-to-reach-people-through-arts-and-literature/) [Edwidge Danticat](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/edwidge-danticat/) > [All anyone can hope for is just a tiny bit of love, like a drop in a cup if you can get it, or…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/edwidge-danticat/all-anyone-can-hope-for-is-just-a-tiny-bit-of-love-like-a-drop-in-a/) [Edwidge Danticat](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/edwidge-danticat/) > [I very much love a physical book myself. I think people who have had this experience of also seeing a book come together, from…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/edwidge-danticat/i-very-much-love-a-physical-book-myself-i-think-people-who-have-had/) [Edwidge Danticat](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/edwidge-danticat/) [Explore all 161 Edwidge Danticat quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/edwidge-danticat/) ## More Children quotes > [I am certain that children always know more than they are able to tell, and that makes the big difference between them and adults,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jacques-lusseyran/i-am-certain-that-children-always-know-more-than-they-are-able-to/) [Jacques Lusseyran](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jacques-lusseyran/) > [Behind every successful child is an adult who believed in him.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rick-warren/behind-every-successful-child-is-an-adult-who-believed-in-him/) [Rick Warren](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rick-warren/) > [I believe in freedom to do what you want if you aren't hurting others, but pictures of obese protesters giving their children big gulps.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/philip-defranco/i-believe-in-freedom-to-do-what-you-want-if-you-aren-t-hurting-others/) [Philip DeFranco](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/philip-defranco/) > [If the audience likes your work, if they like you, they don't think whether you are married or have children or not. I made…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dimple-kapadia/if-the-audience-likes-your-work-if-they-like-you-they-don-t-think/) [Dimple Kapadia](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dimple-kapadia/) > [It doesnt seem to me strange that children should like the macabre, the sensational, and the forbidden.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anthony-hecht/it-doesnt-seem-to-me-strange-that-children-should-like-the-macabre/) [Anthony Hecht](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anthony-hecht/) > [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/) > [Gratitude isn't just a feeling, it's an action. Expressing gratitude by writing in a journal, taking a photo, or shooting a video creates a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/janice-kaplan/gratitude-isn-t-just-a-feeling-it-s-an-action-expressing-gratitude-by/) [Janice Kaplan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/janice-kaplan/) > [My embarrassing confession is that my father is a 'Camelot: The Musical' obsessive. So as a child, when we were going to visit relatives…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/chris-chibnall/my-embarrassing-confession-is-that-my-father-is-a-camelot-the-musical/) [Chris Chibnall](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/chris-chibnall/) > [I have many who keep me going, I am very fortunate in this sense. There is nothing like a child who knows more about…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/floyd-cooper/i-have-many-who-keep-me-going-i-am-very-fortunate-in-this-sense-there/) [Floyd Cooper](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/floyd-cooper/) > [My school was one of the most beautiful places a child can grow up in. 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