--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: When I was very little, we would get…" description: "\"When I was very little, we would get letters from China, in Chinese, and they' be censored. We were a very insular little family.\" — Maya Lin" image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/8c7/maya-lin-8428_censored_when-i-was-very-little-we-would-get-lett_1109149.jpg" --- # When I was very little, we would get letters from China… ![“When I was very little, we would get letters from China, in Chinese, and they' be censored. We were a very insular little family.” quote by Maya Lin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/8c7/maya-lin-8428_censored_when-i-was-very-little-we-would-get-lett_1109149.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/8c7/maya-lin-8428_censored_when-i-was-very-little-we-would-get-lett_1109149.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/8c7/maya-lin-8428_censored_when-i-was-very-little-we-would-get-lett_1109149.jpg) > “When I was very little, we would get letters from China, in Chinese, and they' be censored. We were a very insular little family.” [Maya Lin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/maya-lin/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Childhood letters from China were censored, reflecting an isolated family environment. **In simple terms:** Censored letters showed family isolation. Key Takeaway Seek open communication across cultures. Themes family censorship isolation Mood reflective thoughtful Type philosophical inspirational When to use this quote - family gatherings - international correspondence - education programs Key Concepts cultural barriers information control Questions to Reflect On - How does censorship shape identity? - What can break cultural isolation? A Different Perspective Censorship can also protect. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Censored](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/censored/) [Censored Insular](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/censored-insular-2946406/) [China](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/china/) [Chinese](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/chinese/) [Chinese Censored](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/chinese-censored-2946403/) [Letters](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/letters/) [Letters China](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/letters-china-2946404/) [Little Letters](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/little-letters-2946405/) ## Related quotes > [My songs are just little letters to me.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ani-difranco/my-songs-are-just-little-letters-to-me/) [Ani DiFranco](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ani-difranco/) > [Asia: Four little letters, three billion little people.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stephen-colbert/asia-four-little-letters-three-billion-little-people/) [Stephen Colbert](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stephen-colbert/) > [Her handwriting was curious — small sharp little letters with no capitals (who did she think she was, e. e. cummings?).](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/erich-segal/her-handwriting-was-curious-small-sharp-little-letters-with-no/) [Erich Segal](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/erich-segal/) > [Part of the power of the Internet is that information flows out there and it's generally not censored and it's generally not controlled by…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/barack-obama/part-of-the-power-of-the-internet-is-that-information-flows-out-there/) [Barack Obama](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/barack-obama/) > [Between 1961 and 1982, 'The Catcher in the Rye' was the most censored book in high schools and libraries in the United States. But…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/richard-grenell/between-1961-and-1982-the-catcher-in-the-rye-was-the-most-censored/) [Richard Grenell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/richard-grenell/) > [Usually the audience has no idea that the censored version of whatever movie they're watching isn't the original.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/todd-solondz/usually-the-audience-has-no-idea-that-the-censored-version-of/) [Todd Solondz](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/todd-solondz/) > [Libraries should be open to all - except the censor.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-f-kennedy/libraries-should-be-open-to-all-except-the-censor/) [John F. Kennedy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-f-kennedy/) > [I never really expected "Hurricane" to be censored and banned around the world, but I think the good thing that came from it was…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jared-leto/i-never-really-expected-hurricane-to-be-censored-and-banned-around/) [Jared Leto](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jared-leto/) > [Thanks to television, for the first time the young are seeing history made before it is censored by their elders.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/margaret-mead/thanks-to-television-for-the-first-time-the-young-are-seeing-history/) [Margaret Mead](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/margaret-mead/) > [As it is an ancient truth that freedom cannot be legislated into existence, so it is no less obvious that freedom cannot be censored…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dwight-d-eisenhower/as-it-is-an-ancient-truth-that-freedom-cannot-be-legislated-into/) [Dwight D. Eisenhower](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dwight-d-eisenhower/) > [Consistently, Baidu has censored politically sensitive search results much more thoroughly than Google.cn.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rebecca-mackinnon/consistently-baidu-has-censored-politically-sensitive-search-results/) [Rebecca MacKinnon](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rebecca-mackinnon/) > [While the Internet is censored in China, the censorship is allowing a level of speech to take place that's unprecedented.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ethan-zuckerman/while-the-internet-is-censored-in-china-the-censorship-is-allowing-a/) [Ethan Zuckerman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ethan-zuckerman/) > [For me, books were my source of affirmation. Alice Walker, Audrey Lord - it was these authors who wrote about their experiences. It was…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dee-rees/for-me-books-were-my-source-of-affirmation-alice-walker-audrey-lord/) [Dee Rees](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dee-rees/) > [I don't think that anything anyone has to say should ever be censored or unheard](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/eminem/i-don-t-think-that-anything-anyone-has-to-say-should-ever-be-censored/) [Eminem](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/eminem/) > [Satire that the censor understands is rightly censored.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/karl-kraus/satire-that-the-censor-understands-is-rightly-censored/) [Karl Kraus](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/karl-kraus/) ## More by Maya Lin > [Our lives are given meaning by our actions-accomplishments made while we are "here" that extend beyond our own time.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/maya-lin/our-lives-are-given-meaning-by-our-actions-accomplishments-made-while/) [Maya Lin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/maya-lin/) > [If you don't remember history accurately, how can you learn?](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/maya-lin/if-you-don-t-remember-history-accurately-how-can-you-learn/) [Maya Lin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/maya-lin/) > [My parents are both college professors, and it made me want to question authority, standards and traditions.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/maya-lin/my-parents-are-both-college-professors-and-it-made-me-want-to/) [Maya Lin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/maya-lin/) > [I had very few friends. We always ate dinner with our parents. We didn't want to go out. American adolescence was a lot wilder…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/maya-lin/i-had-very-few-friends-we-always-ate-dinner-with-our-parents-we-didn/) [Maya Lin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/maya-lin/) > [Math, it's a puzzle to me. I love figuring out puzzles.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/maya-lin/math-it-s-a-puzzle-to-me-i-love-figuring-out-puzzles/) [Maya Lin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/maya-lin/) > [I cannot force a design; I do not see this process as being under my conscious control.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/maya-lin/i-cannot-force-a-design-i-do-not-see-this-process-as-being-under-my/) [Maya Lin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/maya-lin/) > [OK, it was black, it was below grade, I was female, Asian American, young, too young to have served. Yet I think none of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/maya-lin/ok-it-was-black-it-was-below-grade-i-was-female-asian-american-young/) [Maya Lin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/maya-lin/) > [If we can't face death, we'll never overcome it. You have to look it straight in the eye. Then you can turn around and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/maya-lin/if-we-can-t-face-death-we-ll-never-overcome-it-you-have-to-look-it/) [Maya Lin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/maya-lin/) > [I can't shout out, "Do this." I don't want to be prescriptive. I want to give you facts, and that's the way I've always…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/maya-lin/i-can-t-shout-out-do-this-i-don-t-want-to-be-prescriptive-i-want-to/) [Maya Lin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/maya-lin/) > [Competitions are what you do as a good exercise.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/maya-lin/competitions-are-what-you-do-as-a-good-exercise/) [Maya Lin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/maya-lin/) > [You really can't function as a celebrity. Entertainers are celebrities. I'm an architect. I'm an artist. I make things.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/maya-lin/you-really-can-t-function-as-a-celebrity-entertainers-are-celebrities/) [Maya Lin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/maya-lin/) > [Some of your teachers are actually closer in age to you than you think.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/maya-lin/some-of-your-teachers-are-actually-closer-in-age-to-you-than-you-think/) [Maya Lin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/maya-lin/) > [I think I needed to really move past my first public work as memorialist, and be equally balanced. It's a bit unusual, to be…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/maya-lin/i-think-i-needed-to-really-move-past-my-first-public-work-as/) [Maya Lin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/maya-lin/) > [I didn't have anyone to play with so I made up my own world.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/maya-lin/i-didn-t-have-anyone-to-play-with-so-i-made-up-my-own-world/) [Maya Lin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/maya-lin/) > [To me, the American Dream is being able to follow your own personal calling. To be able to do what you want to do…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/maya-lin/to-me-the-american-dream-is-being-able-to-follow-your-own-personal/) [Maya Lin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/maya-lin/) [Explore all 81 Maya Lin quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/maya-lin/) ## More Censored quotes > [Satire that the censor understands is rightly censored.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/karl-kraus/satire-that-the-censor-understands-is-rightly-censored/) [Karl Kraus](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/karl-kraus/) > [I don't think that anything anyone has to say should ever be censored or unheard](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/eminem/i-don-t-think-that-anything-anyone-has-to-say-should-ever-be-censored/) [Eminem](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/eminem/) > [For me, books were my source of affirmation. Alice Walker, Audrey Lord - it was these authors who wrote about their experiences. It was…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dee-rees/for-me-books-were-my-source-of-affirmation-alice-walker-audrey-lord/) [Dee Rees](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dee-rees/) > [While the Internet is censored in China, the censorship is allowing a level of speech to take place that's unprecedented.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ethan-zuckerman/while-the-internet-is-censored-in-china-the-censorship-is-allowing-a/) [Ethan Zuckerman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ethan-zuckerman/) > [Consistently, Baidu has censored politically sensitive search results much more thoroughly than Google.cn.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rebecca-mackinnon/consistently-baidu-has-censored-politically-sensitive-search-results/) [Rebecca MacKinnon](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rebecca-mackinnon/) > [As it is an ancient truth that freedom cannot be legislated into existence, so it is no less obvious that freedom cannot be censored…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dwight-d-eisenhower/as-it-is-an-ancient-truth-that-freedom-cannot-be-legislated-into/) [Dwight D. Eisenhower](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dwight-d-eisenhower/) > [Thanks to television, for the first time the young are seeing history made before it is censored by their elders.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/margaret-mead/thanks-to-television-for-the-first-time-the-young-are-seeing-history/) [Margaret Mead](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/margaret-mead/) > [I never really expected "Hurricane" to be censored and banned around the world, but I think the good thing that came from it was…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jared-leto/i-never-really-expected-hurricane-to-be-censored-and-banned-around/) [Jared Leto](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jared-leto/) > [Libraries should be open to all - except the censor.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-f-kennedy/libraries-should-be-open-to-all-except-the-censor/) [John F. Kennedy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-f-kennedy/) > [Usually the audience has no idea that the censored version of whatever movie they're watching isn't the original.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/todd-solondz/usually-the-audience-has-no-idea-that-the-censored-version-of/) [Todd Solondz](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/todd-solondz/) > [Between 1961 and 1982, 'The Catcher in the Rye' was the most censored book in high schools and libraries in the United States. But…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/richard-grenell/between-1961-and-1982-the-catcher-in-the-rye-was-the-most-censored/) [Richard Grenell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/richard-grenell/) > [Part of the power of the Internet is that information flows out there and it's generally not censored and it's generally not controlled by…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/barack-obama/part-of-the-power-of-the-internet-is-that-information-flows-out-there/) [Barack Obama](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/barack-obama/) > [Making music on TV used to be as common as commercials. In the '60s and '70s, prime time was stuffed with variety shows headlined…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tom-shales/making-music-on-tv-used-to-be-as-common-as-commercials-in-the-60s-and/) [Tom Shales](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tom-shales/) > [At the U.N., any nation that fights back is censored as an "aggressor."](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sam-levenson/at-the-u-n-any-nation-that-fights-back-is-censored-as-an-aggressor/) [Sam Levenson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sam-levenson/) > [We've never had a situation where mass media has been so censored, at least in my lifetime. When I was younger, networks like NBC,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jello-biafra/we-ve-never-had-a-situation-where-mass-media-has-been-so-censored-at/) [Jello Biafra](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jello-biafra/) [Browse all 113 Censored quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/censored/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "When I was very little, we would get letters from China, in Chinese, and they' be censored. 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