--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: My dad grew up in a mud hut and studied…" description: "\"My dad grew up in a mud hut and studied by candlelight. He was 14 when he got a scholarship to Russia. He was super clever - the cleverest person. He l..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/dac/m-i-a-3418_alone_my-dad-grew-up-in-a-mud-hut-and-studied_3066650.jpg" --- # My dad grew up in a mud hut and studied by candlelight. He… ![“My dad grew up in a mud hut and studied by candlelight. He was 14 when he got a scholarship to Russia. He was super clever - the cleverest person. He landed in 5ft of snow, and was alone at 14, studying science and engineering. He didn't have a bed, and he slept on a table.” quote by M.I.A](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/dac/m-i-a-3418_alone_my-dad-grew-up-in-a-mud-hut-and-studied_3066650.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/dac/m-i-a-3418_alone_my-dad-grew-up-in-a-mud-hut-and-studied_3066650.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/dac/m-i-a-3418_alone_my-dad-grew-up-in-a-mud-hut-and-studied_3066650.jpg) > “My dad grew up in a mud hut and studied by candlelight. He was 14 when he got a scholarship to Russia. He was super clever - the cleverest person. He landed in 5ft of snow, and was alone at 14, studying science and engineering. He didn't have a bed, and he slept on a table.” M.I.A ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. A young scholar overcame extreme poverty and isolation to achieve academic success through determination and intelligence. **In simple terms:** A poor teen succeeded through hard work and talent. Key Takeaway Persevere despite hardships. Themes hardship determination education immigration Mood inspired reflective Type biographical motivational When to use this quote - scholarships - overseas study - science education - young innovators Key Concepts resilience self‑efficacy social mobility Questions to Reflect On - What sacrifices are worth making for education? - How can societies better support gifted youth from poverty? A Different Perspective Limited resources may hinder long‑term health and stability. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Alone](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/alone/) [Candlelight](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/candlelight/) [Clever](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/clever/) [Dad](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/dad/) [Engineering](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/engineering/) [Hut](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/hut/) [Russia](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/russia/) [Scholarship](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/scholarship/) [Science](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/science/) [Snow](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/snow/) ## Related quotes > [I grew up in a mud house, in a small village.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ram-nath-kovind/i-grew-up-in-a-mud-house-in-a-small-village/) [Ram Nath Kovind](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ram-nath-kovind/) > [“Easy as pie! Clever people get tripped up most easily on just such insignificant details. The cleverer a person is, the less he suspects…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/fyodor-dostoyevsky/easy-as-pie-clever-people-get-tripped-up-most-easily-on-just-such/) [Fyodor Dostoyevsky](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/fyodor-dostoyevsky/) > [Puns are little "plays on words" that a certain breed of person loves to spring on you and then look at you in a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dave-barry/puns-are-little-plays-on-words-that-a-certain-breed-of-person-loves/) [Dave Barry](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dave-barry/) > [My dad grew up with straight-up no running water. He slept in a twin bed with his two sisters and his mom, like 'Charlie…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ali-wong/my-dad-grew-up-with-straight-up-no-running-water-he-slept-in-a-twin/) [Ali Wong](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ali-wong/) > [My dad, grew up poor in a copper-mining town in Arizona. The eleventh of 15 children, he learned to be resourceful and entrepreneurial at…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rachel-campos-duffy/my-dad-grew-up-poor-in-a-copper-mining-town-in-arizona-the-eleventh/) [Rachel Campos-Duffy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rachel-campos-duffy/) > [I was very close to my Dad as I grew up with him more than mom as she was traveling with my sister.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/shamita-shetty/i-was-very-close-to-my-dad-as-i-grew-up-with-him-more-than-mom-as-she/) [Shamita Shetty](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/shamita-shetty/) > [My dad grew up in southern California and was a raging liberal.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ian-harding/my-dad-grew-up-in-southern-california-and-was-a-raging-liberal/) [Ian Harding](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ian-harding/) > [My dad grew up as a computer programmer, so he always had random computer software, and I started opening up editing software at age…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/eva-gutowski/my-dad-grew-up-as-a-computer-programmer-so-he-always-had-random/) [Eva Gutowski](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/eva-gutowski/) > [My dad grew up in Nicaragua in his teenage years, then immigrated to the United States.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rashida-tlaib/my-dad-grew-up-in-nicaragua-in-his-teenage-years-then-immigrated-to/) [Rashida Tlaib](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rashida-tlaib/) > [I don't think that I could ever be a strict dad. I never grew up with anybody strict in my life... I'm not saying…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/randy-houser/i-don-t-think-that-i-could-ever-be-a-strict-dad-i-never-grew-up-with/) [Randy Houser](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/randy-houser/) > [My dad's side grew up in Fort Lauderdale; my mom's from the Little Haiti section of Miami.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ovince-saint-preux/my-dad-s-side-grew-up-in-fort-lauderdale-my-mom-s-from-the-little/) [Ovince Saint Preux](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ovince-saint-preux/) > [My dad grew up basically in a hut in Taiwan without enough food to eat. And within one generation his son in America gets…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/aziz-ansari/my-dad-grew-up-basically-in-a-hut-in-taiwan-without-enough-food-to/) [Aziz Ansari](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/aziz-ansari/) > [In Scotland, Dad grew courgettes which were the size of my leg. I'd step into the garden and it was like 'The Day of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kt-tunstall/in-scotland-dad-grew-courgettes-which-were-the-size-of-my-leg-i-d/) [KT Tunstall](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kt-tunstall/) > [My dad grew up in a little place near Charleston called Moncks Corner.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stephen-thompson/my-dad-grew-up-in-a-little-place-near-charleston-called-moncks-corner/) [Stephen Thompson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stephen-thompson/) > [I have a brother and a dad as well, but I grew up in a house of women, you know?](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jacob-elordi/i-have-a-brother-and-a-dad-as-well-but-i-grew-up-in-a-house-of-women/) [Jacob Elordi](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jacob-elordi/) ## More by M.I.A > [I'd be very controversial if I said why, and I don't do controversial anymore. That's too passé. So last year. Being controversial is boring…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/m-i-a/i-d-be-very-controversial-if-i-said-why-and-i-don-t-do-controversial/) M.I.A > [You have to constantly redefine who you are.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/m-i-a/you-have-to-constantly-redefine-who-you-are/) M.I.A > [That's what I miss, being a real human.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/m-i-a/that-s-what-i-miss-being-a-real-human/) M.I.A > [Retirement: a brand new beginning! How wonderful!](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/m-i-a/retirement-a-brand-new-beginning-how-wonderful/) M.I.A > [I don't like the idea of spirituality done the way it's done. The only way I could understand it was through creativity, not by…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/m-i-a/i-don-t-like-the-idea-of-spirituality-done-the-way-it-s-done-the-only/) M.I.A > [I felt pissed off because I realized that you have to teach people in a clichéd way how to be happy-and happiness has become…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/m-i-a/i-felt-pissed-off-because-i-realized-that-you-have-to-teach-people-in/) M.I.A > [The first 10 years of my life, I lived as 'Matangi.' When I came to England in '86, my first week of school was…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/m-i-a/the-first-10-years-of-my-life-i-lived-as-matangi-when-i-came-to/) M.I.A > [My uncle was the first brown person to have a market stall on Petticoat Lane in the 1960s. He worked his way up from…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/m-i-a/my-uncle-was-the-first-brown-person-to-have-a-market-stall-on/) M.I.A > [That divide between the rich and poor is so crazy, because even white kids are suffering now.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/m-i-a/that-divide-between-the-rich-and-poor-is-so-crazy-because-even-white/) M.I.A > [Businessmen in society are not going to be the ones that promote anything outside of money.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/m-i-a/businessmen-in-society-are-not-going-to-be-the-ones-that-promote/) M.I.A > [That's what New York is like - you can't have real art happen in an institution because rich people can make the world stop.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/m-i-a/that-s-what-new-york-is-like-you-can-t-have-real-art-happen-in-an/) M.I.A > [I feel like a mirror reflecting back everyones perception of me.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/m-i-a/i-feel-like-a-mirror-reflecting-back-everyones-perception-of-me/) M.I.A > [In England right now you're not good enough until you get validated.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/m-i-a/in-england-right-now-you-re-not-good-enough-until-you-get-validated/) M.I.A > [I'm still working out my opinions - it's always a question mark. I leave loads of space open, and people don't like that.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/m-i-a/i-m-still-working-out-my-opinions-it-s-always-a-question-mark-i-leave/) M.I.A > [Basically, when I went to school in Sri Lanka from age five onward, the classes there were sometimes sorted into a hierarchy of your…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/m-i-a/basically-when-i-went-to-school-in-sri-lanka-from-age-five-onward-the/) M.I.A Explore all 131 M.I.A quotes ## More Alone quotes > [I can be taken away from myself quite easily, I kind of start betraying myself and compromising my integrity, to keep someone else happy.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/aimee-lou-wood/i-can-be-taken-away-from-myself-quite-easily-i-kind-of-start/) [Aimee Lou Wood](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/aimee-lou-wood/) > [Perhaps our own opposition to even the level of European integration we have now, let alone any more, is well known.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nigel-farage/perhaps-our-own-opposition-to-even-the-level-of-european-integration/) [Nigel Farage](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nigel-farage/) > [If your goal is to look different, you'll see results faster with strength training than with cardio alone.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anna-kaiser/if-your-goal-is-to-look-different-you-ll-see-results-faster-with/) [Anna Kaiser](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anna-kaiser/) > [With my songs, the question is always, 'Can you pull it off live, alone on just an acoustic guitar?' That's the litmus test. If…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/shawn-colvin/with-my-songs-the-question-is-always-can-you-pull-it-off-live-alone/) [Shawn Colvin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/shawn-colvin/) > [I should have liked to get married, but over many decades I have lived essentially alone. I go to sleep when I'm tired, get…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/felix-dennis/i-should-have-liked-to-get-married-but-over-many-decades-i-have-lived/) [Felix Dennis](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/felix-dennis/) > [I am not alone in that I've had times of unemployment - unemployment is huge amongst disabled people.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rosie-jones/i-am-not-alone-in-that-i-ve-had-times-of-unemployment-unemployment-is/) [Rosie Jones](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rosie-jones/) > [I never knew a heart could feel so cold so empty so broken until now , I don't know what to say I don't…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/i-never-knew-a-heart-could-feel-so-cold-so-empty-so-broken-until-now/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [If you're disabled or different from what general society deems normal, it's fine. There will always be people who won't accept you, but there…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/millicent-simmonds/if-you-re-disabled-or-different-from-what-general-society-deems/) [Millicent Simmonds](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/millicent-simmonds/) > [Real love is a permanently self-enlarging experience…A Journey With My Girl](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/luckybannu/real-love-is-a-permanently-self-enlarging-experience-a-journey-with/) Luckybannu > [“What I'm trying to say is that I spent the last four months learning to be alone, avoiding the world, hating pretty much anyone…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/andrea-cremer/what-i-m-trying-to-say-is-that-i-spent-the-last-four-months-learning/) [Andrea Cremer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/andrea-cremer/) > [I'm used to being alone in a quiet, isolated environment - I'm kind of a low-energy, low-vibration, low-stamina person to begin with - so…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ethel-cain/i-m-used-to-being-alone-in-a-quiet-isolated-environment-i-m-kind-of-a/) [Ethel Cain](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ethel-cain/) > [“When I look back at myself at age twenty, what I remember most is being alone and lonely. I had no girlfriend to warm…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/haruki-murakami/when-i-look-back-at-myself-at-age-twenty-what-i-remember-most-is/) [Haruki Murakami](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/haruki-murakami/) > [I have developed a nasty habit of losing to the guy who wins the tournament, and that alone makes you think what you could…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/neil-robertson/i-have-developed-a-nasty-habit-of-losing-to-the-guy-who-wins-the/) [Neil Robertson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/neil-robertson/) > [As a child, I was this record collector/listener that would sit in a room and listen to the entire Beatles catalog alone, over and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/chris-cornell/as-a-child-i-was-this-record-collector-listener-that-would-sit-in-a/) [Chris Cornell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/chris-cornell/) > [How one hates to think of oneself as alone. How one avoids it. It seems to imply rejection or unpopularity.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anne-morrow-lindbergh/how-one-hates-to-think-of-oneself-as-alone-how-one-avoids-it-it-seems/) [Anne Morrow Lindbergh](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anne-morrow-lindbergh/) [Browse all 3,082 Alone quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/alone/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "My dad grew up in a mud hut and studied by candlelight. He was 14 when he got a scholarship to Russia. He was super clever - the cleverest person. He landed in 5ft of snow, and was alone at 14, studying science and engineering. He didn't have a bed, and he slept on a table.", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "M.I.A" }, "isPartOf": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website" }, "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/m-i-a/my-dad-grew-up-in-a-mud-hut-and-studied-by-candlelight-he-was-14-when/", "about": { "@type": "Thing", "name": "Alone" }, "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/m-i-a/my-dad-grew-up-in-a-mud-hut-and-studied-by-candlelight-he-was-14-when/#quotation", "image": { "@type": "ImageObject", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/dac/m-i-a-3418_alone_my-dad-grew-up-in-a-mud-hut-and-studied_3066650.jpg", "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/dac/m-i-a-3418_alone_my-dad-grew-up-in-a-mud-hut-and-studied_3066650.jpg", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/dac/m-i-a-3418_alone_my-dad-grew-up-in-a-mud-hut-and-studied_3066650.jpg", "width": 1080, "height": 1080, "caption": "“My dad grew up in a mud hut and studied by candlelight. He was 14 when he got a scholarship to Russia. He…” — M.I.A", "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": "M.I.A", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/m-i-a/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 4, "name": "My dad grew up in a...", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/m-i-a/my-dad-grew-up-in-a-mud-hut-and-studied-by-candlelight-he-was-14-when/" } ], "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/m-i-a/my-dad-grew-up-in-a-mud-hut-and-studied-by-candlelight-he-was-14-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 } } ] } ```