--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: We were working class, but my mother…" description: "\"We were working class, but my mother stopped working at the mill when she married my father and he went on to become an electrical engineer and later a..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/cd8/lisa-stansfield-5109_enough_we-were-working-class-but-my-mother-stop_778003.jpg" --- # We were working class, but my mother stopped working at… ![“We were working class, but my mother stopped working at the mill when she married my father and he went on to become an electrical engineer and later a draughtsman. So although we were never rich he was bringing in enough money to be able to splash out occasionally.” quote by Lisa Stansfield](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/cd8/lisa-stansfield-5109_enough_we-were-working-class-but-my-mother-stop_778003.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/cd8/lisa-stansfield-5109_enough_we-were-working-class-but-my-mother-stop_778003.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/cd8/lisa-stansfield-5109_enough_we-were-working-class-but-my-mother-stop_778003.jpg) > “We were working class, but my mother stopped working at the mill when she married my father and he went on to become an electrical engineer and later a draughtsman. So although we were never rich he was bringing in enough money to be able to splash out occasionally.” [Lisa Stansfield](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lisa-stansfield/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. A working‑class family improved financially after the mother left labor and the father advanced his career, allowing occasional comforts despite not being wealthy. **In simple terms:** Family income rose after a career shift, enabling occasional splurges. Key Takeaway Recognize how career changes can affect family finances. Themes social mobility class family finances career advancement Mood reflective neutral Type narrative personal When to use this quote - budgeting - family planning - career counseling - financial aspiration Key Concepts socioeconomic dynamics intergenerational mobility Questions to Reflect On - How did the father's career shift change family lifestyle? - What sacrifices were made to afford occasional luxuries? A Different Perspective Limited details on exact timeline and broader economic context. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Class Mother](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/class-mother-3350880/) [Draughtsman Rich](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/draughtsman-rich-6000191/) [Enough](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/enough/) [Father](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/father/) [Married Father](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/married-father-1281878/) [Middle class](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/middle-class/) [Money](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/money/) [Mother](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/mother/) [Parenting](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/parenting/) [Rich](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/rich/) [Working class](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/working-class/) [Working Married](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/working-married-3538020/) ## Related quotes > [If it's not working before you get married, marriage isn't going to fix it.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/if-it-s-not-working-before-you-get-married-marriage-isn-t-going-to/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [“At the same time that middle- and upper-middle-class mothers were urged to pipe Mozart into their wombs when they're pregnant so their kids would…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/susan-j-douglas/at-the-same-time-that-middle-and-upper-middle-class-mothers-were/) [Susan J. Douglas](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/susan-j-douglas/) > [If you asked anybody in my family, they would have very stridently proclaimed themselves middle class. My mother and father were separated, so he…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dave-van-ronk/if-you-asked-anybody-in-my-family-they-would-have-very-stridently/) [Dave Van Ronk](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dave-van-ronk/) > [“Willard married his father in female form.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/flora-rheta-schreiber/willard-married-his-father-in-female-form/) [Flora Rheta Schreiber](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/flora-rheta-schreiber/) > [“The night before I married you your father made me promise to always take care of you.” I laughed a little, easily able to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/derendrea/the-night-before-i-married-you-your-father-made-me-promise-to-always/) [Derendrea](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/derendrea/) > [My mother married again after my father's death - another Royal Air Force officer, and a very different kind of man. We went to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/philip-pullman/my-mother-married-again-after-my-father-s-death-another-royal-air/) [Philip Pullman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/philip-pullman/) > [He was not like Greek fathers. He didn't tell us to get married. My father thought it was very important that we travel, learn…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gianna-angelopoulos-daskalaki/he-was-not-like-greek-fathers-he-didn-t-tell-us-to-get-married-my/) [Gianna Angelopoulos-Daskalaki](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gianna-angelopoulos-daskalaki/) > [I maybe regret for getting married at the young age...but never to the man I married and the father of my son…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/unknowm/i-maybe-regret-for-getting-married-at-the-young-age-but-never-to-the/) [Unknowm](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/unknowm/) > [The public examination of homosexuality in our contemporary life is still so coated with distasteful moral connotations that even a reviewer is bound to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sydney-j-harris/the-public-examination-of-homosexuality-in-our-contemporary-life-is/) [Sydney J. Harris](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sydney-j-harris/) > [“Was this all there was to life, after all? You finished school, found an occupation, got married, became a father, watched your wife die,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robert-cormier/was-this-all-there-was-to-life-after-all-you-finished-school-found-an/) [Robert Cormier](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robert-cormier/) > [Stephanie,' Valerie said. 'She's going to have a baby, and she's getting married.' My father was confused. He looked around the room. No Joe.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/janet-evanovich/stephanie-valerie-said-she-s-going-to-have-a-baby-and-she-s-getting/) [Janet Evanovich](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/janet-evanovich/) > [I have never imagined that I would get married and that I would become a father.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dustin-lance-black/i-have-never-imagined-that-i-would-get-married-and-that-i-would/) [Dustin Lance Black](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dustin-lance-black/) > [Most people marry their mother. I married my father.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/wayne-gretzky/most-people-marry-their-mother-i-married-my-father/) [Wayne Gretzky](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/wayne-gretzky/) > [The fame aspect of winning the Masters... besides being married and becoming a father, that's a strong third there.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mike-weir/the-fame-aspect-of-winning-the-masters-besides-being-married-and/) [Mike Weir](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mike-weir/) > [My mother married my father in 1956. She was twenty-eight, and he was thirty-one. She loved him with a fierce steadiness borne of loyalty,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jill-lepore/my-mother-married-my-father-in-1956-she-was-twenty-eight-and-he-was/) [Jill Lepore](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jill-lepore/) ## More by Lisa Stansfield > [Love's been here from the beginning of time, and life would be very boring without it.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lisa-stansfield/love-s-been-here-from-the-beginning-of-time-and-life-would-be-very/) [Lisa Stansfield](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lisa-stansfield/) > [I go through phases with money. I'll spend it liberally and then I'll panic and won't spend anything.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lisa-stansfield/i-go-through-phases-with-money-i-ll-spend-it-liberally-and-then-i-ll/) [Lisa Stansfield](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lisa-stansfield/) > [I'm proud to be one. I feel a lot stronger, a lot sexier and I think that all of that is reflected in my…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lisa-stansfield/i-m-proud-to-be-one-i-feel-a-lot-stronger-a-lot-sexier-and-i-think/) [Lisa Stansfield](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lisa-stansfield/) > [I've always been very emotional when I sing.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lisa-stansfield/i-ve-always-been-very-emotional-when-i-sing/) [Lisa Stansfield](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lisa-stansfield/) > [The Manchester music scene was very male dominated.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lisa-stansfield/the-manchester-music-scene-was-very-male-dominated/) [Lisa Stansfield](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lisa-stansfield/) > [You don't hear that much about me being a white and singing soul music in England, but I get the feeling that in America…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lisa-stansfield/you-don-t-hear-that-much-about-me-being-a-white-and-singing-soul/) [Lisa Stansfield](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lisa-stansfield/) > [I was happy to carry on without children because I was completely immersed in my work and my career. I only heard the clock…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lisa-stansfield/i-was-happy-to-carry-on-without-children-because-i-was-completely/) [Lisa Stansfield](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lisa-stansfield/) > [I know I idolise someone like Billie Holiday, but I don't look at her and think I have to imitate her lifestyle, to try…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lisa-stansfield/i-know-i-idolise-someone-like-billie-holiday-but-i-don-t-look-at-her/) [Lisa Stansfield](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lisa-stansfield/) > [Working class people vote Tory because they think it makes them look a bit posh.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lisa-stansfield/working-class-people-vote-tory-because-they-think-it-makes-them-look/) [Lisa Stansfield](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lisa-stansfield/) > [In terms of the production, the style I use is what I see as the 'Lisa Stansfield sound' and I would hope that when…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lisa-stansfield/in-terms-of-the-production-the-style-i-use-is-what-i-see-as-the-lisa/) [Lisa Stansfield](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lisa-stansfield/) > [I've always been political but I don't like to bring it into my work any more because I think it limits me.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lisa-stansfield/i-ve-always-been-political-but-i-don-t-like-to-bring-it-into-my-work/) [Lisa Stansfield](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lisa-stansfield/) > [My life isn't very racy or exciting so I make things up, tell stories. I like telling stories.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lisa-stansfield/my-life-isn-t-very-racy-or-exciting-so-i-make-things-up-tell-stories/) [Lisa Stansfield](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lisa-stansfield/) > [I've never been a twerking kind of girl. I've always relied on my talent.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lisa-stansfield/i-ve-never-been-a-twerking-kind-of-girl-i-ve-always-relied-on-my/) [Lisa Stansfield](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lisa-stansfield/) > [I was the first white British woman to reach No 1 on the R&B chart - the American black music chart.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lisa-stansfield/i-was-the-first-white-british-woman-to-reach-no-1-on-the-r-b-chart/) [Lisa Stansfield](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lisa-stansfield/) > [It's always been the same from a long time ago, it's people with promises and people dangling carrots and when you're young and impressionable,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lisa-stansfield/it-s-always-been-the-same-from-a-long-time-ago-it-s-people-with/) [Lisa Stansfield](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lisa-stansfield/) [Explore all 103 Lisa Stansfield quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lisa-stansfield/) ## More Enough quotes > [I guess at it's very core love is connection that just makes so much sense you wonder how you used to live before you…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/benjamin-stone/i-guess-at-it-s-very-core-love-is-connection-that-just-makes-so-much/) [Benjamin Stone](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/benjamin-stone/) > [Failures happen. You can't cry over them. You just take it in your stride because you know that you have done your best... Sometimes,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/divya-dutta/failures-happen-you-can-t-cry-over-them-you-just-take-it-in-your/) [Divya Dutta](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/divya-dutta/) > [I feel very grateful to be alive and well enough to make music.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/adam-ant/i-feel-very-grateful-to-be-alive-and-well-enough-to-make-music/) [Adam Ant](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/adam-ant/) > [I've been lucky enough to, for the most part, surround myself with a lot of people who are more talented than me and who…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dave-franco/i-ve-been-lucky-enough-to-for-the-most-part-surround-myself-with-a/) [Dave Franco](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dave-franco/) > [I love because there is not enough room in my heart to hate.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rena-kornreich-gelissen/i-love-because-there-is-not-enough-room-in-my-heart-to-hate/) [Rena Kornreich Gelissen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rena-kornreich-gelissen/) > [We find few historians who have been diligent enough in their search for truth; it is their common method to take on trust what…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-dryden/we-find-few-historians-who-have-been-diligent-enough-in-their-search/) [John Dryden](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-dryden/) > [Sometimes it's just enough for me to have the idea. I don't need to see it through to the end. When it actually happens,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/amy-sedaris/sometimes-it-s-just-enough-for-me-to-have-the-idea-i-don-t-need-to/) [Amy Sedaris](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/amy-sedaris/) > [The vast majority of organizations today have more than enough intelligence, experience and knowledge to be successful. What they lack is organizational health.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/patrick-lencioni/the-vast-majority-of-organizations-today-have-more-than-enough/) [Patrick Lencioni](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/patrick-lencioni/) > [I'm an actor, so I'm never going to feel like I've done enough.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/italia-ricci/i-m-an-actor-so-i-m-never-going-to-feel-like-i-ve-done-enough/) [Italia Ricci](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/italia-ricci/) > [I've been to Manchester enough to know it's a real place. It's not Factory Records and the Smiths bicycling around. I get it. It's…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/james-murphy/i-ve-been-to-manchester-enough-to-know-it-s-a-real-place-it-s-not/) [James Murphy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/james-murphy/) > [Lutherans, whose arguments and mistakes will not be difficult to contest or discover, do not want to attribute any value to works, and they…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-servetus/lutherans-whose-arguments-and-mistakes-will-not-be-difficult-to/) [Michael Servetus](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michael-servetus/) > [Sam dropped me off. When she was too far away to see me, I started to cry again. Because she was my friend again.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stephen-chbosky/sam-dropped-me-off-when-she-was-too-far-away-to-see-me-i-started-to/) [Stephen Chbosky](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stephen-chbosky/) > [I just worried about my weight. Worried about my appearance and thought I wan't pretty enough to be a pop star. It was very…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/judith-durham/i-just-worried-about-my-weight-worried-about-my-appearance-and/) [Judith Durham](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/judith-durham/) > [I don't want this to be a distraction. This has been distracting enough. I'm not going to rehash this going forward. I'm sure other…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jayson-werth/i-don-t-want-this-to-be-a-distraction-this-has-been-distracting/) [Jayson Werth](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jayson-werth/) > [New York is large, glamorous, easy-going, kindly and incurious, but above all it is a crucible - because it is large enough to be…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ford-madox-ford/new-york-is-large-glamorous-easy-going-kindly-and-incurious-but-above/) [Ford Madox Ford](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ford-madox-ford/) [Browse all 23,898 Enough quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/enough/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "We were working class, but my mother stopped working at the mill when she married my father and he went on to become an electrical engineer and later a draughtsman. So although we were never rich he was bringing in enough money to be able to splash out occasionally.", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "Lisa Stansfield" }, "isPartOf": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website" }, "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lisa-stansfield/we-were-working-class-but-my-mother-stopped-working-at-the-mill-when/", "about": { "@type": "Thing", "name": "Enough" }, "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lisa-stansfield/we-were-working-class-but-my-mother-stopped-working-at-the-mill-when/#quotation", "image": { "@type": "ImageObject", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/cd8/lisa-stansfield-5109_enough_we-were-working-class-but-my-mother-stop_778003.jpg", "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/cd8/lisa-stansfield-5109_enough_we-were-working-class-but-my-mother-stop_778003.jpg", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/cd8/lisa-stansfield-5109_enough_we-were-working-class-but-my-mother-stop_778003.jpg", "width": 1080, "height": 1080, "caption": "“We were working class, but my mother stopped working at the mill when she married my father and he went on…” — Lisa Stansfield", "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": "Lisa Stansfield", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lisa-stansfield/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 4, "name": "We were working class, but my...", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lisa-stansfield/we-were-working-class-but-my-mother-stopped-working-at-the-mill-when/" } ], "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lisa-stansfield/we-were-working-class-but-my-mother-stopped-working-at-the-mill-when/#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 } } ] } ```