--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: It had not seemed difficult, on a small…" description: "\"“It had not seemed difficult, on a small income, to know what was right to do…Now, with so much, it was daily a decision: what was necessary, what was ..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/e05/laura-kinsale-19646_black-and-white_it-had-not-seemed-difficult-on-a-small-i_549675.jpg" --- # It had not seemed difficult, on a small income, to know… ![“It had not seemed difficult, on a small income, to know what was right to do…Now, with so much, it was daily a decision: what was necessary, what was frivolous...It was so much gray--so little black and white; for a year she'd spent more of her time questioning herself and how she lived in Truth…” quote by Laura Kinsale](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/e05/laura-kinsale-19646_black-and-white_it-had-not-seemed-difficult-on-a-small-i_549675.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/e05/laura-kinsale-19646_black-and-white_it-had-not-seemed-difficult-on-a-small-i_549675.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/e05/laura-kinsale-19646_black-and-white_it-had-not-seemed-difficult-on-a-small-i_549675.jpg) > ““It had not seemed difficult, on a small income, to know what was right to do…Now, with so much, it was daily a decision: what was necessary, what was frivolous...It was so much gray--so little black and white; for a year she'd spent more of her time questioning herself and how she lived in Truth than she had done altogether in her life.”” [Laura Kinsale](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/laura-kinsale/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Wealth complicates moral clarity, turning decisions into shades of gray and prompting deep self‑examination. **In simple terms:** Money makes right vs. wrong harder to see. Key Takeaway Reflect on values beyond material gain. Themes ethics wealth self‑reflection Mood contemplative serious Type literary philosophical When to use this quote - financial planning - career choices - personal ethics - spiritual practice Key Concepts moral ambiguity materialism Questions to Reflect On - How does wealth change your sense of duty? - What values stay constant despite income? A Different Perspective Abundance can obscure simple truths. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Black and white](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/black-and-white/) [Daily Decision](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/daily-decision-4579182/) [Decision Necessary](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/decision-necessary-4579181/) [Frivolous Gray](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/frivolous-gray-4579180/) [Heart](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/heart/) [Questioning Lived](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/questioning-lived-4579179/) [Time](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/time/) [Year Spent](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/year-spent-1955145/) ## Related quotes > [Each day There's A Decision That Each Of Us Has To Make, For Each Of Us Needs To Decide For Ourselves, Whether To Give…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/pacifiersucker/each-day-there-s-a-decision-that-each-of-us-has-to-make-for-each-of-2/) [Pacifiersucker](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/pacifiersucker/) > [Each day there's a decision that each of us has to make, for each of us needs to decide for ourselves, whether to give…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/aldyna-threesya/each-day-there-s-a-decision-that-each-of-us-has-to-make-for-each-of/) [Aldyna Threesya](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/aldyna-threesya/) > [“We can create a different future - one simple, beautifully mundane, daily decision at a time.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/patti-digh/we-can-create-a-different-future-one-simple-beautifully-mundane-daily/) [Patti Digh](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/patti-digh/) > [So for a year I spent all my time hiding from Jack Charlton in the car park practising my skills.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/craig-johnston/so-for-a-year-i-spent-all-my-time-hiding-from-jack-charlton-in-the/) [Craig Johnston](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/craig-johnston/) > [“I thought about how the past can become so small. An entire day, 24 separate, heavy hours, becomes the size of a tiny brown…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kimberly-novosel/i-thought-about-how-the-past-can-become-so-small-an-entire-day-24/) [Kimberly Novosel](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kimberly-novosel/) > [“One lost an IQ point for every year spent on the West Coast”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/truman-capote/one-lost-an-iq-point-for-every-year-spent-on-the-west-coast/) [Truman Capote](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/truman-capote/) > [It would have been a hard year if I'd spent it berating myself for not working on the book.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/emily-barton/it-would-have-been-a-hard-year-if-i-d-spent-it-berating-myself-for/) [Emily Barton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/emily-barton/) > [Teenage girls are extremists who see the world in black-and- white terms, missing shades of gray. Life is either marvelous or notworth living. School…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mary-pipher/teenage-girls-are-extremists-who-see-the-world-in-black-and-white/) [Mary Pipher](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mary-pipher/) > [“I think you want very much to make this black and white--to make us all out to be sinners or saints. But it's just…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/marie-sexton/i-think-you-want-very-much-to-make-this-black-and-white-to-make-us/) [Marie Sexton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/marie-sexton/) > [I shoot in black and white, sometimes color, sometimes if it looks good I shoot out the window of the airplanes or whatever, anything…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robert-barry/i-shoot-in-black-and-white-sometimes-color-sometimes-if-it-looks-good/) [Robert Barry](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robert-barry/) > [“The Runaway Five's obvious influence is The Blues Brothers. During localization, their black and white suits were made more colorful to avoid legal action…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ken-baumann/the-runaway-five-s-obvious-influence-is-the-blues-brothers-during/) [Ken Baumann](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ken-baumann/) > [“The world isn't always black and white. sometimes, it's gray, and sometimes that gray explodes into colors you never knew existed before.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/j-m-darhower/the-world-isn-t-always-black-and-white-sometimes-it-s-gray-and/) [J.M. Darhower](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/j-m-darhower/) > [We shall be free only together, black and white. We shall survive only together, black and white. We can be human only together, black…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/desmond-tutu/we-shall-be-free-only-together-black-and-white-we-shall-survive-only/) [Desmond Tutu](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/desmond-tutu/) > [The world doesn't see a lot of gray. The world sees black and white, and then it understands.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-c-wolfe/the-world-doesn-t-see-a-lot-of-gray-the-world-sees-black-and-white/) [George C. Wolfe](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-c-wolfe/) > [“In the picture, Ava Gardner's tousled black hair obscured her right eye, and her full, closed lips were pulled slightly to the right, resulting…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/barry-gifford/in-the-picture-ava-gardner-s-tousled-black-hair-obscured-her-right/) [Barry Gifford](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/barry-gifford/) ## More by Laura Kinsale > [“The floorboards creaked. She felt him come close behind her, a warmth, a presence that made her stiffen with awareness. "You have remarkable character,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/laura-kinsale/the-floorboards-creaked-she-felt-him-come-close-behind-her-a-warmth-a/) [Laura Kinsale](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/laura-kinsale/) > [“He wasn't at all what she had imagined. Tall, yes- but not plain, not dependable, not kind. Not by any stretch of fancy. The…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/laura-kinsale/he-wasn-t-at-all-what-she-had-imagined-tall-yes-but-not-plain-not/) [Laura Kinsale](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/laura-kinsale/) > [“The silvery aura from the window fell across his face, lighting a translucent, pale fire in his gray eyes. She could identify no telltale…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/laura-kinsale/the-silvery-aura-from-the-window-fell-across-his-face-lighting-a/) [Laura Kinsale](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/laura-kinsale/) > [“He stood looking down at her for a moment, holding both her shoulders. Then he bent and planted a kiss full on her mouth.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/laura-kinsale/he-stood-looking-down-at-her-for-a-moment-holding-both-her-shoulders/) [Laura Kinsale](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/laura-kinsale/) > [“But I don’t arrange a very good abduction, I’m afraid. In my haste to seize you and carry you off to the ends of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/laura-kinsale/but-i-don-t-arrange-a-very-good-abduction-i-m-afraid-in-my-haste-to/) [Laura Kinsale](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/laura-kinsale/) > [“For God’s sake. Don’t build a wall to keep me outside.” “I won’t build one,” she whispered. “I am the wall.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/laura-kinsale/for-god-s-sake-don-t-build-a-wall-to-keep-me-outside-i-won-t-build/) [Laura Kinsale](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/laura-kinsale/) > [“You must take this. I hadn't wanted to seem forward and press it upon you without knowing you truly wished to help me. Can…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/laura-kinsale/you-must-take-this-i-hadn-t-wanted-to-seem-forward-and-press-it-upon/) [Laura Kinsale](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/laura-kinsale/) > [“My God." He pushed away from the bedpost. "Friends! And do you fall into bed with any man who's 'dear' to you? How am…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/laura-kinsale/my-god-he-pushed-away-from-the-bedpost-friends-and-do-you-fall-into/) [Laura Kinsale](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/laura-kinsale/) > [“Love!” She threw the pillow aside and sat up, pulling the be clothes around her. “You hypocrite. ’Tis nothing to you to say that,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/laura-kinsale/love-she-threw-the-pillow-aside-and-sat-up-pulling-the-be-clothes/) [Laura Kinsale](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/laura-kinsale/) > [“Then you came and I started to feel again. I started to think there was a reason I survived, that you were my reason.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/laura-kinsale/then-you-came-and-i-started-to-feel-again-i-started-to-think-there/) [Laura Kinsale](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/laura-kinsale/) > [“The baby closed its mouth, staring at him with hope and small hiccups. “Jesus,” he said. He lay down on the bed, pulling the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/laura-kinsale/the-baby-closed-its-mouth-staring-at-him-with-hope-and-small-hiccups/) [Laura Kinsale](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/laura-kinsale/) > [What a joy Mary Jo Putney is to read; she can't write fast enough for me.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/laura-kinsale/what-a-joy-mary-jo-putney-is-to-read-she-can-t-write-fast-enough-for/) [Laura Kinsale](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/laura-kinsale/) > [“Just—let me hold you. That’s all. Hold you and go to sleep.” He smoothed his thumbs over the back of her hands. “You can…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/laura-kinsale/just-let-me-hold-you-that-s-all-hold-you-and-go-to-sleep-he-smoothed/) [Laura Kinsale](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/laura-kinsale/) > [“I think,' Olympia said slowly, 'that I know you quite well.' She looked down at the deck and added in a carefully mild voice,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/laura-kinsale/i-think-olympia-said-slowly-that-i-know-you-quite-well-she-looked/) [Laura Kinsale](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/laura-kinsale/) > [“She hadn't ascribed to this modern notion of equality between the sexes. Woman were patently superior.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/laura-kinsale/she-hadn-t-ascribed-to-this-modern-notion-of-equality-between-the/) [Laura Kinsale](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/laura-kinsale/) [Explore all 32 Laura Kinsale quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/laura-kinsale/) ## More Black and white quotes > [“In the picture, Ava Gardner's tousled black hair obscured her right eye, and her full, closed lips were pulled slightly to the right, resulting…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/barry-gifford/in-the-picture-ava-gardner-s-tousled-black-hair-obscured-her-right/) [Barry Gifford](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/barry-gifford/) > [The world doesn't see a lot of gray. The world sees black and white, and then it understands.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-c-wolfe/the-world-doesn-t-see-a-lot-of-gray-the-world-sees-black-and-white/) [George C. Wolfe](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-c-wolfe/) > [We shall be free only together, black and white. We shall survive only together, black and white. We can be human only together, black…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/desmond-tutu/we-shall-be-free-only-together-black-and-white-we-shall-survive-only/) [Desmond Tutu](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/desmond-tutu/) > [“The world isn't always black and white. sometimes, it's gray, and sometimes that gray explodes into colors you never knew existed before.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/j-m-darhower/the-world-isn-t-always-black-and-white-sometimes-it-s-gray-and/) [J.M. Darhower](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/j-m-darhower/) > [“The Runaway Five's obvious influence is The Blues Brothers. During localization, their black and white suits were made more colorful to avoid legal action…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ken-baumann/the-runaway-five-s-obvious-influence-is-the-blues-brothers-during/) [Ken Baumann](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ken-baumann/) > [I shoot in black and white, sometimes color, sometimes if it looks good I shoot out the window of the airplanes or whatever, anything…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robert-barry/i-shoot-in-black-and-white-sometimes-color-sometimes-if-it-looks-good/) [Robert Barry](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robert-barry/) > [“I think you want very much to make this black and white--to make us all out to be sinners or saints. But it's just…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/marie-sexton/i-think-you-want-very-much-to-make-this-black-and-white-to-make-us/) [Marie Sexton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/marie-sexton/) > [Teenage girls are extremists who see the world in black-and- white terms, missing shades of gray. Life is either marvelous or notworth living. School…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mary-pipher/teenage-girls-are-extremists-who-see-the-world-in-black-and-white/) [Mary Pipher](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mary-pipher/) > [I remember thinking all TV was black and white, but that was because we had a really old, broken TV. And then I went…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ruby-rose/i-remember-thinking-all-tv-was-black-and-white-but-that-was-because/) [Ruby Rose](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ruby-rose/) > [Everything is not black-and-white . I'm really interested in the gray area - not justifying it, not glorifying it, not condoning it, but at…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/isaiah-washington/everything-is-not-black-and-white-i-m-really-interested-in-the-gray/) [Isaiah Washington](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/isaiah-washington/) > [Anyone who will look at my life from the outside won't see the struggles inside. Sometimes, things are not always as we see or…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/chanda-kaushik/anyone-who-will-look-at-my-life-from-the-outside-won-t-see-the/) [Chanda Kaushik](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/chanda-kaushik/) > [Light and subject is inseparable. But when it is well integrated, it becomes the work of a fine masterpiece.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/paul-chong-hasang/light-and-subject-is-inseparable-but-when-it-is-well-integrated-it/) [Paul Chong Hasang](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/paul-chong-hasang/) > [“Annabelle, if there is one thing I’ve learned over my years watching and protecting humans, it’s that we can talk about black and white…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/a-p-bartels/annabelle-if-there-is-one-thing-i-ve-learned-over-my-years-watching/) [A.P. Bartels](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/a-p-bartels/) > [Which is probably the reason why I work exclusively in black and white... to highlight that contrast.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/leonard-nimoy/which-is-probably-the-reason-why-i-work-exclusively-in-black-and/) [Leonard Nimoy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/leonard-nimoy/) > [There is nothing gray about whether a follower of Christ should see 50 Shades of Grey. This is a black and white issue. Don’t…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kevin-deyoung/there-is-nothing-gray-about-whether-a-follower-of-christ-should-see/) [Kevin DeYoung](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kevin-deyoung/) [Browse all 1,368 Black and white quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/black-and-white/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "“It had not seemed difficult, on a small income, to know what was right to do…Now, with so much, it was daily a decision: what was necessary, what was frivolous...It was so much gray--so little black and white; for a year she'd spent more of her time questioning herself and how she lived in Truth than she had done altogether in her life.”", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "Laura Kinsale" }, "isPartOf": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website" }, "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/laura-kinsale/it-had-not-seemed-difficult-on-a-small-income-to-know-what-was-right/", "about": { "@type": "Thing", "name": "Black and white" }, "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/laura-kinsale/it-had-not-seemed-difficult-on-a-small-income-to-know-what-was-right/#quotation", "image": { "@type": "ImageObject", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/e05/laura-kinsale-19646_black-and-white_it-had-not-seemed-difficult-on-a-small-i_549675.jpg", "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/e05/laura-kinsale-19646_black-and-white_it-had-not-seemed-difficult-on-a-small-i_549675.jpg", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/e05/laura-kinsale-19646_black-and-white_it-had-not-seemed-difficult-on-a-small-i_549675.jpg", "width": 1080, "height": 1080, "caption": "“It had not seemed difficult, on a small income, to know what was right to do…Now, with so much, it was daily…” — Laura Kinsale", "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": "Laura Kinsale", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/laura-kinsale/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 4, "name": "“It had not seemed difficult, on...", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/laura-kinsale/it-had-not-seemed-difficult-on-a-small-income-to-know-what-was-right/" } ], "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/laura-kinsale/it-had-not-seemed-difficult-on-a-small-income-to-know-what-was-right/#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 } } ] } ```