--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: When we came to America, though, we…" description: "\"“When we came to America, though, we didn't know what the right thing was. Here we lived with no map. We became invisible, the people who swam in betwe..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/299/marina-budhos-66249_america_when-we-came-to-america-though-we-didn-t_712777.jpg" --- # When we came to America, though, we didn't know what the… ![“When we came to America, though, we didn't know what the right thing was. Here we lived with no map. We became invisible, the people who swam in between other people's lives, bussing dishes, delivering groceries. What was wrong? We didn't know. The most important thing, Abba said, was not to stick…” quote by Marina Budhos](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/299/marina-budhos-66249_america_when-we-came-to-america-though-we-didn-t_712777.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/299/marina-budhos-66249_america_when-we-came-to-america-though-we-didn-t_712777.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/299/marina-budhos-66249_america_when-we-came-to-america-though-we-didn-t_712777.jpg) > ““When we came to America, though, we didn't know what the right thing was. Here we lived with no map. We became invisible, the people who swam in between other people's lives, bussing dishes, delivering groceries. What was wrong? We didn't know. The most important thing, Abba said, was not to stick out. Don't let them see you. But I think it hurt him, to hide so much.”” Marina Budhos ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Describes immigrant struggle to assimilate without losing identity, feeling forced invisibility. **In simple terms:** Immigrants often hide to survive, causing pain. Key Takeaway Seek visibility while preserving self. Themes identity assimilation invisibility survival Mood somber empathetic Type narrative social When to use this quote - job search - community building - mental health counseling - education programs Key Concepts cultural displacement social marginalization psychological impact Questions to Reflect On - What costs arise from staying invisible? - How can one balance safety and self‑expression? A Different Perspective Conformity may suppress authentic expression and well‑being. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [America](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/america/) [Immigrants](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/immigrants/) [Right thing](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/right-thing/) ## Related quotes > [I always heard that immigrants had a really hard life when they came to America.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sofia-vergara/i-always-heard-that-immigrants-had-a-really-hard-life-when-they-came/) [Sofia Vergara](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sofia-vergara/) > [America didn't invent human rights. Those rights are common to all people: nations, cultures, and religions cannot choose to simply opt out of them.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-mccain/america-didn-t-invent-human-rights-those-rights-are-common-to-all/) [John McCain](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-mccain/) > [My father cared about the world he lived in, and so he admitted his confusion about his place in America because he didn't want…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/walter-mosley/my-father-cared-about-the-world-he-lived-in-and-so-he-admitted-his/) [Walter Mosley](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/walter-mosley/) > [I have found out in later years that we were very poor, but the glory of America is that we didn't know it then.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dwight-d-eisenhower/i-have-found-out-in-later-years-that-we-were-very-poor-but-the-glory/) [Dwight D. Eisenhower](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dwight-d-eisenhower/) > [“Funny, there had been a time when building things was what America did. From massive dams to towering skyscrapers, from mechanized factories to moon…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/marcus-sakey/funny-there-had-been-a-time-when-building-things-was-what-america-did/) [Marcus Sakey](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/marcus-sakey/) > [I had a feeling about what I wanted to say, and I wasn't really qualified to discuss real things out of America because I…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/johnny-marr/i-had-a-feeling-about-what-i-wanted-to-say-and-i-wasn-t-really/) [Johnny Marr](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/johnny-marr/) > [America didn’t bypass or escape civilization. It did something far more profound, far cleverer: it simply changed what civilization could be.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/america-didn-t-bypass-or-escape-civilization-it-did-something-far/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [“America: You didn't have to do that. Maxon: I know. But sometimes it's about what you want to do, not what you have to.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kiera-cass/america-you-didn-t-have-to-do-that-maxon-i-know-but-sometimes-it-s/) [Kiera Cass](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kiera-cass/) > [The mantle of leadership for promoting the principles of peace has fallen to America. We didn't ask for it. But it's an honor that…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mitt-romney/the-mantle-of-leadership-for-promoting-the-principles-of-peace-has/) [Mitt Romney](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mitt-romney/) > [“America didn't want any of us, and you haven't felt unwanted until America doesn't want you.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/j-r-moehringer-2/america-didn-t-want-any-of-us-and-you-haven-t-felt-unwanted-until/) [J.R. Moehringer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/j-r-moehringer-2/) > [America didn’t create religious liberty. Religious liberty created America,](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bobby-jindal/america-didn-t-create-religious-liberty-religious-liberty-created/) [Bobby Jindal](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bobby-jindal/) > [...America didn't have to fight scarcity and we all felt guilty before people who still had to struggle for bread and freedom in the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/saul-bellow/america-didn-t-have-to-fight-scarcity-and-we-all-felt-guilty-before/) [Saul Bellow](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/saul-bellow/) > [Our friends at the Republican convention were more than happy to talk about everything they think is wrong with America, but they didn't have…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/barack-obama/our-friends-at-the-republican-convention-were-more-than-happy-to-talk/) [Barack Obama](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/barack-obama/) > [Everybody in America who didn't come over the Bering Strait ice bridge stole his land from somebody else.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/p-j-o-rourke/everybody-in-america-who-didn-t-come-over-the-bering-strait-ice/) [P. J. O'Rourke](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/p-j-o-rourke/) > [America didn't need repeal, she needed repentance!](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/billy-sunday/america-didn-t-need-repeal-she-needed-repentance/) [Billy Sunday](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/billy-sunday/) ## More by Marina Budhos > [“Maybe that's what living in America does to you: it spreads you into far distances until you're just little bits rolling apart.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/marina-budhos/maybe-that-s-what-living-in-america-does-to-you-it-spreads-you-into/) Marina Budhos > [“If I say a word that is angry, he explained, then I should never be surprised by the harm. And if I say something…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/marina-budhos/if-i-say-a-word-that-is-angry-he-explained-then-i-should-never-be/) Marina Budhos > [“Because we looked away in the past, does that mean we can look away now? Page 76”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/marina-budhos/because-we-looked-away-in-the-past-does-that-mean-we-can-look-away/) Marina Budhos Explore all 4 Marina Budhos quotes ## More America quotes > [The costs of the Bush-Obama wars in Iraq and Afghanistan are now estimated to run as high as $4.4 trillion - a major victory…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/noam-chomsky/the-costs-of-the-bush-obama-wars-in-iraq-and-afghanistan-are-now/) [Noam Chomsky](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/noam-chomsky/) > [Young men, especially in America, write to me and ask me to recommend “a course of reading.” Distrust a course of reading! People who…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/andrew-lang/young-men-especially-in-america-write-to-me-and-ask-me-to-recommend-a/) [Andrew Lang](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/andrew-lang/) > [Well, The Day the Earth Caught Fire was a story... I don't if anybody knows what it is but it was about... in the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/val-guest/well-the-day-the-earth-caught-fire-was-a-story-i-don-t-if-anybody/) [Val Guest](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/val-guest/) > [So here's what I want you to know, and here's what I want all our men and women in uniform to know: Because of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/barack-obama/so-here-s-what-i-want-you-to-know-and-here-s-what-i-want-all-our-men/) [Barack Obama](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/barack-obama/) > [Today, the world looks to America for leadership. And America looks to its Corps of Marines.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ronald-reagan/today-the-world-looks-to-america-for-leadership-and-america-looks-to/) [Ronald Reagan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ronald-reagan/) > [The image of blacks usually is one of people who are suffering from hunger, unemployment, and poverty. The idea of them as agents and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/grace-lee-boggs/the-image-of-blacks-usually-is-one-of-people-who-are-suffering-from/) [Grace Lee Boggs](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/grace-lee-boggs/) > [ I'll smoke, I'll cough, I'll get the tumors, I'll die, deal? Thank you America. \[salutes\] ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bill-hicks/i-ll-smoke-i-ll-cough-i-ll-get-the-tumors-i-ll-die-deal-thank-you/) [Bill Hicks](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bill-hicks/) > [America is a democracy and has no Hitler, but I am afraid for her future; there are hard times ahead for the American people,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/albert-einstein/america-is-a-democracy-and-has-no-hitler-but-i-am-afraid-for-her/) [Albert Einstein](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/albert-einstein/) > [I'm gonna bring America together.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/donald-trump/i-m-gonna-bring-america-together/) [Donald Trump](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/donald-trump/) > [In the nineteenth century some parts of the world were unexplored, but there was almost no restriction on travel.:; Up to 1914 you did…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-orwell/in-the-nineteenth-century-some-parts-of-the-world-were-unexplored-but/) [George Orwell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-orwell/) > [We need a system that serves our needs, not the needs of others. Remember, under a Trump administration it's called America first. Remember that.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/donald-trump/we-need-a-system-that-serves-our-needs-not-the-needs-of-others/) [Donald Trump](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/donald-trump/) > [America, you're sending girls a mixed message. On one hand, you're saying to have positive body image and love who we are; on the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/adora-svitak/america-you-re-sending-girls-a-mixed-message-on-one-hand-you-re/) [Adora Svitak](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/adora-svitak/) > [You live overseas, you see these exotic places and you want to know about them. But, weirdly, it also made me homesick for all…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ken-jennings/you-live-overseas-you-see-these-exotic-places-and-you-want-to-know/) [Ken Jennings](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ken-jennings/) > [Freedom in every sense but primarily political sense, a rise in repression that stems from a repression of sexuality. It's AIDS, it's herpes, it's…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jack-nicholson/freedom-in-every-sense-but-primarily-political-sense-a-rise-in/) [Jack Nicholson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jack-nicholson/) > [“In American terms, the accomplishment of Genghis Khan might be understood if the United States, instead of being created by a group of educated…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jack-weatherford/in-american-terms-the-accomplishment-of-genghis-khan-might-be/) [Jack Weatherford](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jack-weatherford/) [Browse all 20,382 America quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/america/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "“When we came to America, though, we didn't know what the right thing was. Here we lived with no map. We became invisible, the people who swam in between other people's lives, bussing dishes, delivering groceries. What was wrong? We didn't know. 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