--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: Olive's private view is that life depends…" description: "\"Olive's private view is that life depends on what she thinks of as \"big bursts\" and \"little bursts.\" Big bursts are things like marriage or children, i..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/188/elizabeth-strout-1799_bigs_olive-s-private-view-is-that-life-depend_2010177.png" --- # Olive's private view is that life depends on what she… ![“Olive's private view is that life depends on what she thinks of as "big bursts" and "little bursts." Big bursts are things like marriage or children, intimacies that keep you afloat, but these big bursts hold dangerous, unseen currents. Which is why you need the little bursts as well: a friendly…” quote by Elizabeth Strout](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/188/elizabeth-strout-1799_bigs_olive-s-private-view-is-that-life-depend_2010177.png) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/188/elizabeth-strout-1799_bigs_olive-s-private-view-is-that-life-depend_2010177.png) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/188/elizabeth-strout-1799_bigs_olive-s-private-view-is-that-life-depend_2010177.png) > “Olive's private view is that life depends on what she thinks of as "big bursts" and "little bursts." Big bursts are things like marriage or children, intimacies that keep you afloat, but these big bursts hold dangerous, unseen currents. Which is why you need the little bursts as well: a friendly clerk at Bradlee's, let's say, or the waitress at Dunkin' Donuts who knows how you like your coffee. Tricky business, really.” [Elizabeth Strout](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/elizabeth-strout/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Life is shaped by major events and everyday moments; both are essential, but small interactions protect us from the hidden risks of big milestones. **In simple terms:** Big events and small moments both matter, but small moments guard against big risks. Key Takeaway Balance big milestones with everyday kindness. Themes relationships risk balance everyday life milestones Mood reflective thoughtful balanced Type advice philosophical observational When to use this quote - marriage - parenthood - customer service encounters - friendship building Key Concepts psychology social support risk management Questions to Reflect On - How do you recognize the value of everyday kindness? - What risks do you associate with major life events? A Different Perspective Small moments may be overlooked, yet they are crucial for emotional stability. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Big Bursts](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/big-bursts-2214703/) [Bigs](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/bigs/) [Bursts](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/bursts/) [Bursts Big](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/bursts-big-2214705/) [Bursts Friendly](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/bursts-friendly-2214704/) [Children](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/children/) [Clerks](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/clerks/) [Coffee](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/coffee/) [Currents](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/currents/) [Dangerous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/dangerous/) [Donuts](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/donuts/) [Dunkin donuts](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/dunkin-donuts/) [Friendly](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/friendly/) [Intimacy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/intimacy/) [Life](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/life/) [Little Bursts](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/little-bursts-2214702/) [Littles](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/littles/) [Needs](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/needs/) [Olives](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/olives/) [Thinking](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/thinking/) [Tricky](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/tricky/) [Unseen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/unseen/) [Views](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/views/) [Waitress](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/waitress/) [Wells](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/wells/) ## Related quotes > [“life depends on what she thinks of as ‘big bursts’ and ‘little bursts.’ Big bursts are things like marriage or children, intimacies that keep…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/will-schwalbe/life-depends-on-what-she-thinks-of-as-big-bursts-and-little-bursts/) [Will Schwalbe](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/will-schwalbe/) > [“loneliness can kill people—in different ways can actually make you die. Olive’s private view is that life depends on what she thinks of as…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/elizabeth-strout/loneliness-can-kill-people-in-different-ways-can-actually-make-you/) [Elizabeth Strout](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/elizabeth-strout/) > [I couldn't not be who I am. That bubble eventually bursts down the road. So you just have to be real, and when you…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/teresa-heinz/i-couldn-t-not-be-who-i-am-that-bubble-eventually-bursts-down-the/) [Teresa Heinz](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/teresa-heinz/) > [I would be pleased if someone would invent a pill to remove my impatience, moodiness, and occasional bursts of anger. But if they did,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/orhan-pamuk/i-would-be-pleased-if-someone-would-invent-a-pill-to-remove-my/) [Orhan Pamuk](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/orhan-pamuk/) > [If the Chinese bubble bursts one day, which inevitably will happen - maybe not tomorrow, maybe in three months, maybe in three years -…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/marc-faber/if-the-chinese-bubble-bursts-one-day-which-inevitably-will-happen/) [Marc Faber](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/marc-faber/) > [There are few colonial nations anymore. Instead, we are colonized by financial institutions beyond our political control. We are colonized with pens and papers…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/charlie-pierce/there-are-few-colonial-nations-anymore-instead-we-are-colonized-by/) [Charlie Pierce](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/charlie-pierce/) > [When I was bringing up a child, I taught myself to write in very short, concentrated bursts. If I had a weekend, or a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/doris-lessing/when-i-was-bringing-up-a-child-i-taught-myself-to-write-in-very-short/) [Doris Lessing](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/doris-lessing/) > [Nothing good bursts forth all at once. The lightning may dart out of a black cloud; but the day sends his bright heralds before…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/augustus-hare/nothing-good-bursts-forth-all-at-once-the-lightning-may-dart-out-of-a/) [Augustus Hare](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/augustus-hare/) > [Joys Are bubble-like--what makes them bursts them too.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/philip-james-bailey/joys-are-bubble-like-what-makes-them-bursts-them-too/) [Philip James Bailey](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/philip-james-bailey/) > [“Bursts of hope make despair harder to live with.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bethany-griffin/bursts-of-hope-make-despair-harder-to-live-with/) [Bethany Griffin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bethany-griffin/) > [I love oatmeal. To me, it's not boring. I agree that ordinary oatmeal is very boring, but not the steel-cut Irish kind - the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alan-alda/i-love-oatmeal-to-me-it-s-not-boring-i-agree-that-ordinary-oatmeal-is/) [Alan Alda](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alan-alda/) > [Three and a half years in L.A. was enough for me. I would love to go back for short bursts if a film opportunity…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/darren-boyd/three-and-a-half-years-in-l-a-was-enough-for-me-i-would-love-to-go/) [Darren Boyd](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/darren-boyd/) > [For computer communications, computers talk in little bursts. They're not continuous like speech.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bob-kahn/for-computer-communications-computers-talk-in-little-bursts-they-re/) [Bob Kahn](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bob-kahn/) > [I have bursts of being a lady, but it doesn't last long.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/shelley-winters/i-have-bursts-of-being-a-lady-but-it-doesn-t-last-long/) [Shelley Winters](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/shelley-winters/) > [As an actor, I'm familiar with having bursts of energy, where you're giving things a try, and then you have down time.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/iain-glen/as-an-actor-i-m-familiar-with-having-bursts-of-energy-where-you-re/) [Iain Glen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/iain-glen/) ## More by Elizabeth Strout > [By the time they were pulling into the parking lot of the A&P, the mood was fading, the moment gone. Amy could feel it…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/elizabeth-strout/by-the-time-they-were-pulling-into-the-parking-lot-of-the-a-p-the/) [Elizabeth Strout](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/elizabeth-strout/) > [“what young people did not know. They did not know that lumpy, aged, and wrinkled bodies were as needy as their own young, firm…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/elizabeth-strout/what-young-people-did-not-know-they-did-not-know-that-lumpy-aged-and/) [Elizabeth Strout](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/elizabeth-strout/) > [“I said on the phone to my mother, “I think I’m going to write the story of the Burgess kids.” “It’s a good one,”…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/elizabeth-strout/i-said-on-the-phone-to-my-mother-i-think-i-m-going-to-write-the-story/) [Elizabeth Strout](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/elizabeth-strout/) > [“And she learned - freshly, scorchingly - of the privacy of sorrow. 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When someone else might think, 'I might do the dishes,'…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/elizabeth-strout/i-don-t-think-of-myself-as-a-fast-reader-i-just-read-a-lot-when/) [Elizabeth Strout](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/elizabeth-strout/) [Explore all 205 Elizabeth Strout quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/elizabeth-strout/) ## More Bigs 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/) > [It is said that history turns on small hinges. 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The idea that evangelism is coercive is nonsense.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mark-dever/people-forget-that-there-is-a-big-difference-between-coercion-and/) [Mark Dever](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mark-dever/) > [I turn a lot of stuff down - big, big movies, the kind I wouldn't want to go to the cinema to see.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/matthew-fox/i-turn-a-lot-of-stuff-down-big-big-movies-the-kind-i-wouldn-t-want-to/) [Matthew Fox](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/matthew-fox/) > [I got in trouble my whole life for having a big mouth.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/steven-tyler/i-got-in-trouble-my-whole-life-for-having-a-big-mouth/) [Steven Tyler](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/steven-tyler/) [Browse all 15,539 Bigs quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/bigs/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "Olive's private view is that life depends on what she thinks of as \"big bursts\" and \"little bursts.\" Big bursts are things like marriage or children, intimacies that keep you afloat, but these big bursts hold dangerous, unseen currents. 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