---
title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: Don’t grow up, Urchin, whatever you do…"
description: "\"“Don’t grow up, Urchin, whatever you do. Definitely a bad idea.”\" — Margaret McAllister"
image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/e7b/margaret-mcallister-49140_bad-idea_don-t-grow-up-urchin-whatever-you-do-def_465213.jpg"
---

#  Don’t grow up, Urchin, whatever you do. Definitely a bad…

![“Don’t grow up, Urchin, whatever you do. Definitely a bad idea.” quote by Margaret McAllister](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/e7b/margaret-mcallister-49140_bad-idea_don-t-grow-up-urchin-whatever-you-do-def_465213.jpg)   [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/e7b/margaret-mcallister-49140_bad-idea_don-t-grow-up-urchin-whatever-you-do-def_465213.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/e7b/margaret-mcallister-49140_bad-idea_don-t-grow-up-urchin-whatever-you-do-def_465213.jpg)

> ““Don’t grow up, Urchin, whatever you do. Definitely a bad idea.””

[Margaret McAllister](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/margaret-mcallister/)

## About This Quote

This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation.

The advice warns against pursuing a certain path, labeling it as likely to be a poor choice.

**In simple terms:** Avoid a risky or unwise decision.

Key Takeaway

Consider consequences before committing.

Themes

decision making risk advice

Mood

cautious thoughtful

Type

advisory reflective

When to use this quote

- career choice
- relationships
- financial investments
- life changes

Key Concepts

critical thinking future planning personal growth

Questions to Reflect On

- What are the potential benefits of the discouraged action?
- How can you evaluate risks more objectively?

A Different Perspective

Not all warnings are universally applicable; context matters.

★ ★ ★ ★ ★   No ratings yet

[Bad idea](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/bad-idea/)

## Related quotes

> [“He tried to remember her as a thin little urchin trailing across the fields with Garrick behind her. But that was no use at…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/winston-graham/he-tried-to-remember-her-as-a-thin-little-urchin-trailing-across-the/)

[Winston Graham](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/winston-graham/)

> [“And I’ll gaze across the chasm to the other side of the island, where I can still sometimes catch sight of a curly-haired urchin…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michelle-cooper/and-i-ll-gaze-across-the-chasm-to-the-other-side-of-the-island-where/)

[Michelle Cooper](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michelle-cooper/)

> [Making sea urchin pasta is a lot like a toddler playing with Play-Doh: There are a million right ways to do it, and most…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/j-kenji-lopez-alt/making-sea-urchin-pasta-is-a-lot-like-a-toddler-playing-with-play-doh/)

[J. Kenji Lopez-Alt](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/j-kenji-lopez-alt/)

> [“Medical research has revealed that in about one-tenth of the population, the liver processes alcohol differently, releasing a chemical messenger that creates the craving…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kaylie-jones/medical-research-has-revealed-that-in-about-one-tenth-of-the/)

[Kaylie Jones](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kaylie-jones/)

> [“It is not a bad idea to get into the habbit of writing one's thoughts. It saves one having to bother anyone else with…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/isabel-colegate/it-is-not-a-bad-idea-to-get-into-the-habbit-of-writing-one-s-thoughts/)

Isabel Colegate

> [Idea-Advocacy Matrix highlights a couple of things: that good ideas need to be "sold" if they are ever going to see the light of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-daly/idea-advocacy-matrix-highlights-a-couple-of-things-that-good-ideas/)

[John Daly](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-daly/)

> [“Civilization is an experiment, a very recent way of life in the human career, and it has a habit of walking into what I…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ronald-wright/civilization-is-an-experiment-a-very-recent-way-of-life-in-the-human/)

[Ronald Wright](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ronald-wright/)

> [“Jesus. Chicago, Kansas City, Denver, Phoenix, L.A., and Seattle, plus two small towns she'd never heard of in the Gulf Coast region. The unit…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kay-hooper/jesus-chicago-kansas-city-denver-phoenix-l-a-and-seattle-plus-two/)

[Kay Hooper](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kay-hooper/)

> [“Sorry," he apologized. "I didn't mean to inflict my rantings on you, even though we are destined to spend the rest of our lives…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/connie-willis/sorry-he-apologized-i-didn-t-mean-to-inflict-my-rantings-on-you-even/)

[connie willis](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/connie-willis/)

> [More than any other personality trait, my mother seemed to be ruled by anger and sadness. She seemed to hate being a mother. Watching…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/merrill-markoe/more-than-any-other-personality-trait-my-mother-seemed-to-be-ruled-by/)

[Merrill Markoe](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/merrill-markoe/)

> [It's not a bad idea to call this Cthulhuism &amp; Yog-Sothothery of mine "The Mythology of Hastur" - although it was really from Machen…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/h-p-lovecraft/it-s-not-a-bad-idea-to-call-this-cthulhuism-yog-sothothery-of-mine/)

[H. P. Lovecraft](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/h-p-lovecraft/)

> [Government likes committees... a lot. Committees kill all the really good ideas and generally all the really bad ideas. They produce middle-ground mush.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/betsy-devos/government-likes-committees-a-lot-committees-kill-all-the-really-good/)

[Betsy DeVos](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/betsy-devos/)

> [One thing I know is that it is a bad idea to marry someone who had bad parents. If they hated their mother, if…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ellen-gilchrist/one-thing-i-know-is-that-it-is-a-bad-idea-to-marry-someone-who-had/)

[Ellen Gilchrist](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ellen-gilchrist/)

> [By the time I was seventeen, I was on my way to Hollywood and didn't look back. My family is supportive now, but like…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/amber-heard/by-the-time-i-was-seventeen-i-was-on-my-way-to-hollywood-and-didn-t/)

[Amber Heard](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/amber-heard/)

> [“In the parking lot, she drove and parked in a dark area with no other cars around. She reclined her seat, and listened to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tao-lin/in-the-parking-lot-she-drove-and-parked-in-a-dark-area-with-no-other/)

[Tao Lin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tao-lin/)

## More by Margaret McAllister

> [“Nobody is here to do your thinking for you.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/margaret-mcallister/nobody-is-here-to-do-your-thinking-for-you/)

[Margaret McAllister](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/margaret-mcallister/)

> [“A single star twirled, danced, swooped, and spun so close to him that he might have touched it. Where did that brightness in the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/margaret-mcallister/a-single-star-twirled-danced-swooped-and-spun-so-close-to-him-that-he/)

[Margaret McAllister](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/margaret-mcallister/)

> [“Urchin decided to put off his carefully prepared speech until they were on the shore. They sat on the rocks at low tide as…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/margaret-mcallister/urchin-decided-to-put-off-his-carefully-prepared-speech-until-they/)

[Margaret McAllister](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/margaret-mcallister/)

> [“Since Husk’s downfall, Brother Fir had quietly and sensibly taken control of the situation. He had told the islanders of the long ago time…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/margaret-mcallister/since-husk-s-downfall-brother-fir-had-quietly-and-sensibly-taken/)

[Margaret McAllister](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/margaret-mcallister/)

> [“Oh, and Fionn’s down there trying to teach her frog to talk. Away you go, Corr.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/margaret-mcallister/oh-and-fionn-s-down-there-trying-to-teach-her-frog-to-talk-away-you/)

[Margaret McAllister](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/margaret-mcallister/)

> [“Alone all day, Juniper would remember the animals and places he loved, and hold them in his own heart before the great Heart that…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/margaret-mcallister/alone-all-day-juniper-would-remember-the-animals-and-places-he-loved/)

[Margaret McAllister](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/margaret-mcallister/)

> [“Then I’ll help Fionn with her refuge for lost frogs, or whatever she thinks she’s doing. She seems to be adopting them.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/margaret-mcallister/then-i-ll-help-fionn-with-her-refuge-for-lost-frogs-or-whatever-she/)

[Margaret McAllister](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/margaret-mcallister/)

[Explore all 8 Margaret McAllister quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/margaret-mcallister/)

## More Bad idea quotes

> [“In the parking lot, she drove and parked in a dark area with no other cars around. She reclined her seat, and listened to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tao-lin/in-the-parking-lot-she-drove-and-parked-in-a-dark-area-with-no-other/)

[Tao Lin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tao-lin/)

> [By the time I was seventeen, I was on my way to Hollywood and didn't look back. My family is supportive now, but like…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/amber-heard/by-the-time-i-was-seventeen-i-was-on-my-way-to-hollywood-and-didn-t/)

[Amber Heard](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/amber-heard/)

> [One thing I know is that it is a bad idea to marry someone who had bad parents. If they hated their mother, if…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ellen-gilchrist/one-thing-i-know-is-that-it-is-a-bad-idea-to-marry-someone-who-had/)

[Ellen Gilchrist](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ellen-gilchrist/)

> [Government likes committees... a lot. Committees kill all the really good ideas and generally all the really bad ideas. They produce middle-ground mush.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/betsy-devos/government-likes-committees-a-lot-committees-kill-all-the-really-good/)

[Betsy DeVos](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/betsy-devos/)

> [It's not a bad idea to call this Cthulhuism &amp; Yog-Sothothery of mine "The Mythology of Hastur" - although it was really from Machen…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/h-p-lovecraft/it-s-not-a-bad-idea-to-call-this-cthulhuism-yog-sothothery-of-mine/)

[H. P. Lovecraft](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/h-p-lovecraft/)

> [More than any other personality trait, my mother seemed to be ruled by anger and sadness. She seemed to hate being a mother. Watching…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/merrill-markoe/more-than-any-other-personality-trait-my-mother-seemed-to-be-ruled-by/)

[Merrill Markoe](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/merrill-markoe/)

> [“Sorry," he apologized. "I didn't mean to inflict my rantings on you, even though we are destined to spend the rest of our lives…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/connie-willis/sorry-he-apologized-i-didn-t-mean-to-inflict-my-rantings-on-you-even/)

[connie willis](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/connie-willis/)

> [“Jesus. Chicago, Kansas City, Denver, Phoenix, L.A., and Seattle, plus two small towns she'd never heard of in the Gulf Coast region. The unit…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kay-hooper/jesus-chicago-kansas-city-denver-phoenix-l-a-and-seattle-plus-two/)

[Kay Hooper](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kay-hooper/)

> [“Civilization is an experiment, a very recent way of life in the human career, and it has a habit of walking into what I…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ronald-wright/civilization-is-an-experiment-a-very-recent-way-of-life-in-the-human/)

[Ronald Wright](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ronald-wright/)

> [Idea-Advocacy Matrix highlights a couple of things: that good ideas need to be "sold" if they are ever going to see the light of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-daly/idea-advocacy-matrix-highlights-a-couple-of-things-that-good-ideas/)

[John Daly](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-daly/)

> [“It is not a bad idea to get into the habbit of writing one's thoughts. It saves one having to bother anyone else with…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/isabel-colegate/it-is-not-a-bad-idea-to-get-into-the-habbit-of-writing-one-s-thoughts/)

Isabel Colegate

> [“Medical research has revealed that in about one-tenth of the population, the liver processes alcohol differently, releasing a chemical messenger that creates the craving…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kaylie-jones/medical-research-has-revealed-that-in-about-one-tenth-of-the/)

[Kaylie Jones](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kaylie-jones/)

> [“Sometimes I have good ideas, sometimes I have bad ideas and sometimes I have colossally bad ideas.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/melanie-cellier/sometimes-i-have-good-ideas-sometimes-i-have-bad-ideas-and-sometimes/)

Melanie Cellier

> [I have done conferences explaining that cloud is a bad idea. It's putting all your eggs in one basket.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-demon-calce/i-have-done-conferences-explaining-that-cloud-is-a-bad-idea-it-s/)

[Michael Demon Calce](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michael-demon-calce/)

> [Minimum sales prices for alcohol are a startlingly bad idea. As with excise duties, the effects are regressive.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nigel-farage/minimum-sales-prices-for-alcohol-are-a-startlingly-bad-idea-as-with/)

[Nigel Farage](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nigel-farage/)

[Browse all 550 Bad idea quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/bad-idea/)

```json
{
    "@context": "https://schema.org",
    "@graph": [
        {
            "@type": "Quotation",
            "text": "“Don’t grow up, Urchin, whatever you do. Definitely a bad idea.”",
            "creator": {
                "@type": "Person",
                "name": "Margaret McAllister"
            },
            "isPartOf": {
                "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website"
            },
            "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/margaret-mcallister/don-t-grow-up-urchin-whatever-you-do-definitely-a-bad-idea/",
            "about": {
                "@type": "Thing",
                "name": "Bad idea"
            },
            "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/margaret-mcallister/don-t-grow-up-urchin-whatever-you-do-definitely-a-bad-idea/#quotation",
            "image": {
                "@type": "ImageObject",
                "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/e7b/margaret-mcallister-49140_bad-idea_don-t-grow-up-urchin-whatever-you-do-def_465213.jpg",
                "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/e7b/margaret-mcallister-49140_bad-idea_don-t-grow-up-urchin-whatever-you-do-def_465213.jpg",
                "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/e7b/margaret-mcallister-49140_bad-idea_don-t-grow-up-urchin-whatever-you-do-def_465213.jpg",
                "width": 1080,
                "height": 1080,
                "caption": "“Don’t grow up, Urchin, whatever you do. Definitely a bad idea.” — Margaret McAllister",
                "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": "Margaret McAllister",
                    "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/margaret-mcallister/"
                },
                {
                    "@type": "ListItem",
                    "position": 4,
                    "name": "“Don’t grow up, Urchin, whatever you...",
                    "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/margaret-mcallister/don-t-grow-up-urchin-whatever-you-do-definitely-a-bad-idea/"
                }
            ],
            "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/margaret-mcallister/don-t-grow-up-urchin-whatever-you-do-definitely-a-bad-idea/#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
            }
        }
    ]
}
```
