--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: Growing up in Michigan was fine...until I…" description: "\"Growing up in Michigan was fine...until I realized where I was.\" — Lily Tomlin" image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/166/lily-tomlin-3278_fine_growing-up-in-michigan-was-fine-until-i_2456697.png" --- # Growing up in Michigan was fine...until I realized where I… ![“Growing up in Michigan was fine...until I realized where I was.” quote by Lily Tomlin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/166/lily-tomlin-3278_fine_growing-up-in-michigan-was-fine-until-i_2456697.png) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/166/lily-tomlin-3278_fine_growing-up-in-michigan-was-fine-until-i_2456697.png) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/166/lily-tomlin-3278_fine_growing-up-in-michigan-was-fine-until-i_2456697.png) > “Growing up in Michigan was fine...until I realized where I was.” [Lily Tomlin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lily-tomlin/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Realizing one's place can change perception of a familiar environment. **In simple terms:** Self‑realization alters view of home. Key Takeaway Reflect on personal growth and context. Themes identity place realization Mood introspective humorous Type storytelling philosophical When to use this quote - career change - relocation - personal development - education choices Key Concepts existential self‑awareness Questions to Reflect On - What does "where I was" refer to? - How does this realization affect your goals? A Different Perspective Awareness may bring discomfort about new insights. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Fine](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/fine/) [Fine Realized](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/fine-realized-616535/) [Growing](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/growing/) [Growing Michigan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/growing-michigan-616533/) [Growing up](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/growing-up/) [I realized](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/i-realized/) [Michigan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/michigan/) [Michigan Fine](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/michigan-fine-616534/) [Realized](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/realized/) ## Related quotes > [Growing Michigan's economy and strengthening national security are among my top priorities.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-e-james/growing-michigan-s-economy-and-strengthening-national-security-are/) [John E. James](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-e-james/) > [I realized I’m in love. It's always been right in front of me.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/richelle-mead/i-realized-i-m-in-love-it-s-always-been-right-in-front-of-me/) [Richelle Mead](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/richelle-mead/) > [I've been a story-teller all my life but I realized it only recently.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/isabel-allende/i-ve-been-a-story-teller-all-my-life-but-i-realized-it-only-recently/) [Isabel Allende](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/isabel-allende/) > [I realized eventually that if I was really on top of what I was doing, I should be able to make photographs out of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/grant-mudford/i-realized-eventually-that-if-i-was-really-on-top-of-what-i-was-doing/) [Grant Mudford](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/grant-mudford/) > [The moment where I realized how little I actually was, was when Dave Bautista picked me off the ground and I still wasn't even…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/katee-sackhoff/the-moment-where-i-realized-how-little-i-actually-was-was-when-dave/) [Katee Sackhoff](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/katee-sackhoff/) > [I realized that social media can be powerful force for good in the world and that acts of kindness can be scaled globally.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/amy-jo-martin/i-realized-that-social-media-can-be-powerful-force-for-good-in-the/) [Amy Jo Martin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/amy-jo-martin/) > [For a while I had a blues band in L.A., but I realized I was too optimistic to play the blues. I did not…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-c-reilly/for-a-while-i-had-a-blues-band-in-l-a-but-i-realized-i-was-too/) [John C. Reilly](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-c-reilly/) > [I was in his hands, he called me by the thunder at my ear. I was in his hands: I was being changed; all…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/i-was-in-his-hands-he-called-me-by-the-thunder-at-my-ear-i-was-in-his/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [Today, when I saw you, I realized that what is between us is nothing more than an illusion.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gabriel-garc-a-m-rquez/today-when-i-saw-you-i-realized-that-what-is-between-us-is-nothing/) [Gabriel Garcia Marquez](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gabriel-garc-a-m-rquez/) > [I realized that both the military and religious orders depend on discipline to shape people - which routine does, in a lot of ways.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kit-reed/i-realized-that-both-the-military-and-religious-orders-depend-on/) [Kit Reed](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kit-reed/) > [What I realized is that the desire for making 'Places' came from the fact that I've got this strange situation with having been born…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lou-doillon/what-i-realized-is-that-the-desire-for-making-places-came-from-the/) [Lou Doillon](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lou-doillon/) > [Racial humor was about 35% of my act when I first started. But I realized that it was a crutch. What brought it home…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bill-cosby/racial-humor-was-about-35-of-my-act-when-i-first-started-but-i/) [Bill Cosby](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bill-cosby/) > [I started digging and found that Israel signed a peace treaty with the United Arab Emirates after the country had diversified their economy, instead…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/shai-agassi/i-started-digging-and-found-that-israel-signed-a-peace-treaty-with/) [Shai Agassi](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/shai-agassi/) > [It all started to come together when I realized that boxing was how I was going to succeed in life.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/muhammad-ali/it-all-started-to-come-together-when-i-realized-that-boxing-was-how-i/) [Muhammad Ali](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/muhammad-ali/) > [I think I realized it was an art form at the beginning, but it took me a really long time before I was able…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/patton-oswalt/i-think-i-realized-it-was-an-art-form-at-the-beginning-but-it-took-me/) [Patton Oswalt](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/patton-oswalt/) ## More by Lily Tomlin > [If truth is beauty, how come no one has their hair done in a library.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lily-tomlin/if-truth-is-beauty-how-come-no-one-has-their-hair-done-in-a-library/) [Lily Tomlin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lily-tomlin/) > [“So if you've had a good time tonight, or if you've had a good time any night, for gosh sake's why not drop a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lily-tomlin/so-if-you-ve-had-a-good-time-tonight-or-if-you-ve-had-a-good-time-any/) [Lily Tomlin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lily-tomlin/) > [“Forgiveness means giving up all hope for a better past.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lily-tomlin/forgiveness-means-giving-up-all-hope-for-a-better-past/) [Lily Tomlin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lily-tomlin/) > [I bought a box of animal crackers, but there was nothing inside. They'd eaten each other.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lily-tomlin/i-bought-a-box-of-animal-crackers-but-there-was-nothing-inside-they-d/) [Lily Tomlin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lily-tomlin/) > [Wouldn't it be great if we all grew up to be what we wanted to be? The world would be full of nurses, firemen,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lily-tomlin/wouldn-t-it-be-great-if-we-all-grew-up-to-be-what-we-wanted-to-be-the/) [Lily Tomlin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lily-tomlin/) > [You know being relevant or coming up with something interesting, funny to say about what's current is just as hard as it might ever…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lily-tomlin/you-know-being-relevant-or-coming-up-with-something-interesting-funny/) [Lily Tomlin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lily-tomlin/) > [I wanted to be a stage actress. I wanted to be a New York actress and have a community with other actors. I didn't…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lily-tomlin/i-wanted-to-be-a-stage-actress-i-wanted-to-be-a-new-york-actress-and/) [Lily Tomlin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lily-tomlin/) > [We have reason to believe that man first walked upright to free his hands for masturbation.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lily-tomlin/we-have-reason-to-believe-that-man-first-walked-upright-to-free-his/) [Lily Tomlin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lily-tomlin/) > [We don't care. We don't have to. We're the phone company.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lily-tomlin/we-don-t-care-we-don-t-have-to-we-re-the-phone-company/) [Lily Tomlin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lily-tomlin/) > [No matter how cynical I get, I can't keep up.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lily-tomlin/no-matter-how-cynical-i-get-i-can-t-keep-up/) [Lily Tomlin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lily-tomlin/) > [In the depths of the night, fear grips my heart. It paralyzes my mind. But most of all, I feel very, very alone](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lily-tomlin/in-the-depths-of-the-night-fear-grips-my-heart-it-paralyzes-my-mind/) [Lily Tomlin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lily-tomlin/) > [“I always wondered why somebody didn't do something about that. And then I realized I was somebody.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lily-tomlin/i-always-wondered-why-somebody-didn-t-do-something-about-that-and/) [Lily Tomlin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lily-tomlin/) > [Sometimes I worry about being a success in a mediocre world.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lily-tomlin/sometimes-i-worry-about-being-a-success-in-a-mediocre-world/) [Lily Tomlin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lily-tomlin/) > [And yet humanity is so not evolved that how can you expect anything absolutely major to happen? Look how long, we move ahead in…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lily-tomlin/and-yet-humanity-is-so-not-evolved-that-how-can-you-expect-anything/) [Lily Tomlin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lily-tomlin/) > [The whole idea of being in captivity in such limited space, especially in a zoo, causes elephants to suffer. They develop all kinds of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lily-tomlin/the-whole-idea-of-being-in-captivity-in-such-limited-space-especially/) [Lily Tomlin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lily-tomlin/) [Explore all 135 Lily Tomlin quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lily-tomlin/) ## More Fine quotes > [ I\] k\[n\]ow youre b\[e\]tt\[e\]r off without me. \[D\]ont worr\[y\] ab\[o\]\[u\]t me. Im fine. ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tinku-razoria/i-k-n-ow-youre-b-e-tt-e-r-off-without-me-d-ont-worr-y-ab-o-u-t-me-im/) [Tinku Razoria](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tinku-razoria/) > [To hurry through the rise and fall of a fine, full sentence is like defying the role of time in human life.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kenneth-clark/to-hurry-through-the-rise-and-fall-of-a-fine-full-sentence-is-like/) [Kenneth Clark](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kenneth-clark/) > [I'm Fine!, the most common LIE in the world...](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/punkinhead-abhishek/i-m-fine-the-most-common-lie-in-the-world/) [Punkinhead Abhishek](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/punkinhead-abhishek/) > [Some shows just go away - and that's fine. They serve their purpose and their entertainment value, but there are shows that touch people…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-cudlitz/some-shows-just-go-away-and-that-s-fine-they-serve-their-purpose-and/) [Michael Cudlitz](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michael-cudlitz/) > [The Germans will make a few scattered attacks, then go away. The Romans will enjoy a fine September.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/pietro-badoglio/the-germans-will-make-a-few-scattered-attacks-then-go-away-the-romans/) [Pietro Badoglio](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/pietro-badoglio/) > [Just be what it is that you are, and that is just fine. You don't have to be what you're not in any way.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alice-walker/just-be-what-it-is-that-you-are-and-that-is-just-fine-you-don-t-have/) [Alice Walker](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alice-walker/) > [But I saw the pain and sadness in everything, and swirled it round my mouth like a fine wine.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/emma-forrest/but-i-saw-the-pain-and-sadness-in-everything-and-swirled-it-round-my/) [Emma Forrest](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/emma-forrest/) > [- You look fine. - Right. I look fine. Except I don't, said Zora, tugging sadly at her man's nightshirt. This was why Kiki…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/zadie-smith/you-look-fine-right-i-look-fine-except-i-don-t-said-zora-tugging/) [Zadie Smith](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/zadie-smith/) > [“I'm fine," said Pilar, "for the moment. And the moment is the only time we can be fine in.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/margaret-atwood/i-m-fine-said-pilar-for-the-moment-and-the-moment-is-the-only-time-we/) [Margaret Atwood](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/margaret-atwood/) > [Here comes old Rosie she's looking mighty fine, here comes hot Nancy she's steppin' right on time. There go the street lights bringing on…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bob-seger/here-comes-old-rosie-she-s-looking-mighty-fine-here-comes-hot-nancy/) [Bob Seger](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bob-seger/) > [It's still possible to savor the remarkable foods that millennia of human ingenuity have teased from milk. A sip of milk itself or a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/harold-mcgee/it-s-still-possible-to-savor-the-remarkable-foods-that-millennia-of/) [Harold McGee](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/harold-mcgee/) > [Another success is the post-office, with its educating energy augmented by cheapness and guarded by a certain religious sentimentin mankind; so that the power…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ralph-waldo-emerson/another-success-is-the-post-office-with-its-educating-energy/) [Ralph Waldo Emerson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ralph-waldo-emerson/) > [It's fine to talk about politics with people you agree with. But it is rude to argue about politics with people you disagree with.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lawrence-lessig/it-s-fine-to-talk-about-politics-with-people-you-agree-with-but-it-is/) [Lawrence Lessig](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lawrence-lessig/) > [Comedy, although it is not one of the fine arts - it's a vulgar art, it's one of the people's arts, it's the spoken…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-carlin/comedy-although-it-is-not-one-of-the-fine-arts-it-s-a-vulgar-art-it-s/) [George Carlin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-carlin/) > [School plays are fine. Theater in school is fine.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ben-affleck/school-plays-are-fine-theater-in-school-is-fine/) [Ben Affleck](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ben-affleck/) [Browse all 5,340 Fine quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/fine/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "Growing up in Michigan was fine...until I realized where I was.", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "Lily Tomlin" }, "isPartOf": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website" }, "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lily-tomlin/growing-up-in-michigan-was-fine-until-i-realized-where-i-was/", "about": { "@type": "Thing", "name": "Fine" }, "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lily-tomlin/growing-up-in-michigan-was-fine-until-i-realized-where-i-was/#quotation", "image": { "@type": "ImageObject", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/166/lily-tomlin-3278_fine_growing-up-in-michigan-was-fine-until-i_2456697.png", "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/166/lily-tomlin-3278_fine_growing-up-in-michigan-was-fine-until-i_2456697.png", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/166/lily-tomlin-3278_fine_growing-up-in-michigan-was-fine-until-i_2456697.png", "width": 1080, "height": 1080, "caption": "“Growing up in Michigan was fine...until I realized where I was.” — Lily Tomlin", "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": "Lily Tomlin", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lily-tomlin/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 4, "name": "Growing up in Michigan was fine...until...", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lily-tomlin/growing-up-in-michigan-was-fine-until-i-realized-where-i-was/" } ], "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lily-tomlin/growing-up-in-michigan-was-fine-until-i-realized-where-i-was/#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 } } ] } ```