--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: It isn't always the middle-aged who…" description: "\"It isn't always the middle-aged who refuse to listen, who will not even try to understand another point of view. One boy would not get it through his h..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/1e7/madeleine-l-engle-345_adults_it-isn-t-always-the-middle-aged-who-refu_954058.jpg" --- # It isn't always the middle-aged who refuse to listen, who… ![“It isn't always the middle-aged who refuse to listen, who will not even try to understand another point of view. One boy would not get it through his head that for all adults God is not an old man in a white beard sitting on a cloud. As far as this boy was concerned, this old gentleman was the…” quote by Madeleine L'Engle](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/1e7/madeleine-l-engle-345_adults_it-isn-t-always-the-middle-aged-who-refu_954058.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/1e7/madeleine-l-engle-345_adults_it-isn-t-always-the-middle-aged-who-refu_954058.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/1e7/madeleine-l-engle-345_adults_it-isn-t-always-the-middle-aged-who-refu_954058.jpg) > “It isn't always the middle-aged who refuse to listen, who will not even try to understand another point of view. One boy would not get it through his head that for all adults God is not an old man in a white beard sitting on a cloud. As far as this boy was concerned, this old gentleman was the adult's god, and therefore he did not believe in God.” [Madeleine L'Engle](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/madeleine-l-engle/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Understanding often requires moving beyond age‑based assumptions and embracing diverse perspectives. **In simple terms:** Kids can see things adults miss. Key Takeaway Listen to all ages, broaden insight. Themes communication generational gaps open‑mindedness Mood inquisitive hopeful Type educational philosophical When to use this quote - family discussions - education - intergenerational projects Key Concepts Cognitive development empathetic listening Questions to Reflect On - How can we teach openness across ages? - What barriers prevent adults from hearing youth? A Different Perspective Adults may resist new ideas due to entrenched beliefs. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Adults](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/adults/) [Another Point Of View](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/another-point-of-view/) [Believe in god](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/believe-in-god/) [Boys](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/boys/) [Gentleman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/gentleman/) [Men](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/men/) [Middle aged](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/middle-aged/) [Old man](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/old-man/) [Point of view](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/point-of-view/) ## Related quotes > [There are steps to growing up...fiRst we have to be a baby in order for us to become a child and then a teenager…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/frenchqueen/there-are-steps-to-growing-up-first-we-have-to-be-a-baby-in-order-for/) Frenchqueen > [Compassion should be our animating principle when undertaking instruction with children and adults, since they are made in God's image.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/catherine-mcauley/compassion-should-be-our-animating-principle-when-undertaking/) [Catherine McAuley](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/catherine-mcauley/) > [I never want to lose the story-loving child within me, or the adolescent, or the young woman, or the middle-aged one, because all together…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/madeleine-l-engle/i-never-want-to-lose-the-story-loving-child-within-me-or-the/) [Madeleine L'Engle](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/madeleine-l-engle/) > [“It is in your power to review your life, to look at things you saw before, but from another point of view”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/s-ren-kierkegaard/it-is-in-your-power-to-review-your-life-to-look-at-things-you-saw/) [Søren Kierkegaard](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/s-ren-kierkegaard/) > [“Seeing another point of view makes a better you!”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/amber-housey/seeing-another-point-of-view-makes-a-better-you/) Amber Housey > [“You can't love someone without imaginative sympathy, without beginning to see the world from another point of view. 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It…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/fulke-greville-1st-baron-brooke/have-you-never-seen-a-strange-unconnected-deformed-representation-of/) [Fulke Greville, 1st Baron Brooke](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/fulke-greville-1st-baron-brooke/) > [Just another point of view, I'm just a reflection of you.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bootsy-collins/just-another-point-of-view-i-m-just-a-reflection-of-you/) [Bootsy Collins](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bootsy-collins/) ## More by Madeleine L'Engle > [“One of the hardest lessons I have to learn is how not to be judgmental about people who are judgmental. 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