--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: If growing up is the process of creating…" description: "\"If growing up is the process of creating ideas and dreams about what life should be, then maturity is letting go again.\" — Mary Beth Danielson" image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/b20/mary-beth-danielson-260823_aging_if-growing-up-is-the-process-of-creating_1144299.jpg" --- # If growing up is the process of creating ideas and dreams… ![“If growing up is the process of creating ideas and dreams about what life should be, then maturity is letting go again.” quote by Mary Beth Danielson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/b20/mary-beth-danielson-260823_aging_if-growing-up-is-the-process-of-creating_1144299.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/b20/mary-beth-danielson-260823_aging_if-growing-up-is-the-process-of-creating_1144299.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/b20/mary-beth-danielson-260823_aging_if-growing-up-is-the-process-of-creating_1144299.jpg) > “If growing up is the process of creating ideas and dreams about what life should be, then maturity is letting go again.” Mary Beth Danielson ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Maturity means letting go of earlier dreams and ideas to embrace a new, realistic view of life. **In simple terms:** Growing up creates dreams; maturity means releasing them. Key Takeaway Release old expectations and accept change. Themes growth dreams maturity life self‑reflection Mood reflective hopeful Type statement philosophical When to use this quote - career transitions - personal relationships - creative projects - spiritual growth Key Concepts psychology developmental stages identity formation Questions to Reflect On - How do you know when to let go? - What new possibilities arise after release? A Different Perspective Letting go may cause grief or loss of direction. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Aging](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/aging/) [Dreams](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/dreams/) [Growing up](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/growing-up/) [Ideas](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/ideas/) [Life](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/life/) [Maturity](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/maturity/) ## Related quotes > [maturity ... is letting things happen.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/carolyn-heilbrun/maturity-is-letting-things-happen/) [Carolyn Heilbrun](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/carolyn-heilbrun/) > [Real success is gaining the ability to face situations in life with maturity.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mata-amritanandamayi/real-success-is-gaining-the-ability-to-face-situations-in-life-with/) [Mata Amritanandamayi](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mata-amritanandamayi/) > [Growing up is a process that never ends. It isn't a point you attain so you can say, Hooray, I'm grown up. Some people…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/madeleine-l-engle/growing-up-is-a-process-that-never-ends-it-isn-t-a-point-you-attain/) [Madeleine L'Engle](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/madeleine-l-engle/) > [A man's age is something impressive, it sums up his life: maturity reached slowly and against many obstacles, illnesses cured, griefs and despairs overcome,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/antoine-de-saint-exup-ry/a-man-s-age-is-something-impressive-it-sums-up-his-life-maturity/) [Antoine de Saint-Exupery](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/antoine-de-saint-exup-ry/) > [Enjoy the blessing of strength while you have it and do not bewail it when it is gone, unless, forsooth, you believe that youth…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/marcus-tullius-cicero/enjoy-the-blessing-of-strength-while-you-have-it-and-do-not-bewail-it/) [Marcus Tullius Cicero](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/marcus-tullius-cicero/) > [One thing is certain: the arts keep you alive. They stimulate, encourage, challenge, and, most of all, guarantee a future free from boredom. They…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/vincent-price/one-thing-is-certain-the-arts-keep-you-alive-they-stimulate-encourage/) [Vincent Price](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/vincent-price/) > [It is a growing process. You can't just like beer. You have to start somewhere and learn the different flavors.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/isaac-hanson/it-is-a-growing-process-you-can-t-just-like-beer-you-have-to-start/) [Isaac Hanson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/isaac-hanson/) > [most of us, as we undergo the growing up process, do not get what we want or even what we should. We get what…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/most-of-us-as-we-undergo-the-growing-up-process-do-not-get-what-we/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [Slowly but surely I have been soaking Rilke up these last few months: the man, his work and his life. And that is probably…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/etty-hillesum/slowly-but-surely-i-have-been-soaking-rilke-up-these-last-few-months/) [Etty Hillesum](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/etty-hillesum/) > [I just started to understand my craft, what I wanted to do as an artist. It's just a growing process. Figuring out exactly what…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/young-de/i-just-started-to-understand-my-craft-what-i-wanted-to-do-as-an/) [Young De](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/young-de/) > [“Life can be awkward at times. 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Many of our farmers are aging. Today, only…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tom-vilsack/in-the-past-40-years-the-united-states-lost-more-than-a-million/) [Tom Vilsack](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tom-vilsack/) > [We'll never be as young as we are tonight.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/chuck-palahniuk/we-ll-never-be-as-young-as-we-are-tonight/) [Chuck Palahniuk](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/chuck-palahniuk/) > [“Prayer of an Anonymous Abbess: Lord, thou knowest better than myself that I am growing older and will soon be old. Keep me from…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/prayer-of-an-anonymous-abbess-lord-thou-knowest-better-than-myself/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [The more I produce, the less I am certain. On the road along which the artist walks, night falls ever more densely. 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Even maturity.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/howell-raines/anything-is-possible-in-the-life-of-a-man-if-he-lives-long-enough/) [Howell Raines](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/howell-raines/) > [I just want to be Patty McCormack. I want to spend every year aging the way she has.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/janet-varney/i-just-want-to-be-patty-mccormack-i-want-to-spend-every-year-aging/) [Janet Varney](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/janet-varney/) > [Maturity is reached the day we don't need to be lied to about anything.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/frank-yerby/maturity-is-reached-the-day-we-don-t-need-to-be-lied-to-about-anything/) [Frank Yerby](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/frank-yerby/) [Browse all 2,792 Aging quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/aging/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "If growing up is the process of creating ideas and dreams about what life should be, then maturity is letting go again.", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "Mary Beth Danielson" }, "isPartOf": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website" }, "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mary-beth-danielson/if-growing-up-is-the-process-of-creating-ideas-and-dreams-about-what/", "about": { "@type": "Thing", "name": "Aging" }, "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mary-beth-danielson/if-growing-up-is-the-process-of-creating-ideas-and-dreams-about-what/#quotation", "image": { "@type": "ImageObject", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/b20/mary-beth-danielson-260823_aging_if-growing-up-is-the-process-of-creating_1144299.jpg", "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/b20/mary-beth-danielson-260823_aging_if-growing-up-is-the-process-of-creating_1144299.jpg", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/b20/mary-beth-danielson-260823_aging_if-growing-up-is-the-process-of-creating_1144299.jpg", "width": 1080, "height": 1080, "caption": "“If growing up is the process of creating ideas and dreams about what life should be, then maturity is…” — Mary Beth Danielson", "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": "Mary Beth Danielson", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mary-beth-danielson/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 4, "name": "If growing up is the process...", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mary-beth-danielson/if-growing-up-is-the-process-of-creating-ideas-and-dreams-about-what/" } ], "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mary-beth-danielson/if-growing-up-is-the-process-of-creating-ideas-and-dreams-about-what/#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 } } ] } ```