--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: I remember a very important lesson that…" description: "\"I remember a very important lesson that my father gave me when I was twelve or thirteen. He said, \"You know, today I welded a perfect seam and I signed..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/09d/toni-morrison-271_daddy_i-remember-a-very-important-lesson-that_2665312.jpg" --- # I remember a very important lesson that my father gave me… ![“I remember a very important lesson that my father gave me when I was twelve or thirteen. He said, "You know, today I welded a perfect seam and I signed my name to it." And I said, "But, Daddy, no one's going to see it!" And he said, "Yeah, but I know it's there." So when I was working in kitchens…” quote by Toni Morrison](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/09d/toni-morrison-271_daddy_i-remember-a-very-important-lesson-that_2665312.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/09d/toni-morrison-271_daddy_i-remember-a-very-important-lesson-that_2665312.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/09d/toni-morrison-271_daddy_i-remember-a-very-important-lesson-that_2665312.jpg) > “I remember a very important lesson that my father gave me when I was twelve or thirteen. He said, "You know, today I welded a perfect seam and I signed my name to it." And I said, "But, Daddy, no one's going to see it!" And he said, "Yeah, but I know it's there." So when I was working in kitchens, I did good work.” [Toni Morrison](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/toni-morrison/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Visible work may seem unnoticed, but its existence matters; unseen effort builds integrity. **In simple terms:** Invisible work still matters. Key Takeaway Value effort even when unnoticed. Themes work integrity recognition Mood reflective encouraging Type literary motivational When to use this quote - career - artistic creation - family duties - volunteer work Key Concepts ethics psychology Questions to Reflect On - How do you stay motivated without praise? - What systems honor unseen contributions? A Different Perspective Lack of acknowledgment can demotivate. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Father](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/father/) [Important lessons](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/important-lessons/) [Lessons](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/lessons/) [Parenting](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/parenting/) [Thirteen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/thirteen/) [Today](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/today/) ## Related quotes > [I remember a very important lesson that my father gave me when I was twelve or thirteen. He said, You know, today I welded…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/toni-morrison/i-remember-a-very-important-lesson-that-my-father-gave-me-when-i-was/) [Toni Morrison](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/toni-morrison/) > [You want a lesson? I'll give you a lesson. How about a geography lesson? My father's from Puerto Rico. My mother's from El Salvador.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jennifer-esposito/you-want-a-lesson-i-ll-give-you-a-lesson-how-about-a-geography-lesson/) [Jennifer Esposito](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jennifer-esposito/) > [Notwithstanding all the wrongs that slavery heaped upon me, I can bless it for one thing-youth's important lesson of self-reliance.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/elizabeth-keckley/notwithstanding-all-the-wrongs-that-slavery-heaped-upon-me-i-can/) [Elizabeth Keckley](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/elizabeth-keckley/) > [There is another very important lesson: You must learn to be equipped to face your battles this year and be properly positioned on the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bob-hartley/there-is-another-very-important-lesson-you-must-learn-to-be-equipped/) [Bob Hartley](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bob-hartley/) > [This is an important lesson to remember when you're having a bad day, a bad month, or a shitty year. Things will change: you…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kelly-cutrone/this-is-an-important-lesson-to-remember-when-you-re-having-a-bad-day-2/) [Kelly Cutrone](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kelly-cutrone/) > [The most important lesson in managing our careers as we get older: Sometimes staying the game is as simple as not leaving the room.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tina-sloan/the-most-important-lesson-in-managing-our-careers-as-we-get-older/) Tina Sloan > [The most important lesson I received from Conceptual art consisted in the recording of simple and obvious things, and viewing them under a whole…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/luigi-ghirri/the-most-important-lesson-i-received-from-conceptual-art-consisted-in/) [Luigi Ghirri](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/luigi-ghirri/) > [The important lesson of the deficit is - and the national debt - is we have to be careful about how we're spending money.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joseph-stiglitz/the-important-lesson-of-the-deficit-is-and-the-national-debt-is-we/) [Joseph Stiglitz](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joseph-stiglitz/) > [Because God is love, the most important lesson he wants you to learn on earth is how to love.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rick-warren/because-god-is-love-the-most-important-lesson-he-wants-you-to-learn/) [Rick Warren](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rick-warren/) > [The most important lesson we can learn is how to pray. Prayers do not die, prayers live before God, and God's heart is set…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/edward-mckendree-bounds/the-most-important-lesson-we-can-learn-is-how-to-pray-prayers-do-not/) [Edward McKendree Bounds](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/edward-mckendree-bounds/) > [The most important lesson I think I could impart is don't let anyone determine what your horizons are going to be. You get to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/condoleezza-rice/the-most-important-lesson-i-think-i-could-impart-is-don-t-let-anyone/) [Condoleezza Rice](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/condoleezza-rice/) > [The most important lesson in the writing trade is that any manuscript is improved if you cut away the fat.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robert-a-heinlein/the-most-important-lesson-in-the-writing-trade-is-that-any-manuscript/) [Robert A. Heinlein](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robert-a-heinlein/) > [The most important lesson that man can learn from life, is not that there is pain in this world, but that it is possible…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rabindranath-tagore/the-most-important-lesson-that-man-can-learn-from-life-is-not-that/) [Rabindranath Tagore](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rabindranath-tagore/) > [My mom was never afraid to say, 'I'm sorry. I screwed up.' I feel like that's an important lesson.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/miranda-lambert/my-mom-was-never-afraid-to-say-i-m-sorry-i-screwed-up-i-feel-like/) [Miranda Lambert](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/miranda-lambert/) > [To let go of the illusion that I'm in control is an important lesson, because I tend to be a person who likes to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lenny-kravitz/to-let-go-of-the-illusion-that-i-m-in-control-is-an-important-lesson/) [Lenny Kravitz](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lenny-kravitz/) ## More by Toni Morrison > [Perhaps that's what all human relationships boiled down to: Would you save my life? or would you take it?](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/toni-morrison/perhaps-that-s-what-all-human-relationships-boiled-down-to-would-you/) [Toni Morrison](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/toni-morrison/) > [There, in the center of that silence was not eternity but the death of time and a loneliness so profound the word itself had…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/toni-morrison/there-in-the-center-of-that-silence-was-not-eternity-but-the-death-of/) [Toni Morrison](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/toni-morrison/) > [In times of dread, artists must never choose to remain silent.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/toni-morrison/in-times-of-dread-artists-must-never-choose-to-remain-silent/) [Toni Morrison](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/toni-morrison/) > [“Not know it was hard;knowing it was harder”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/toni-morrison/not-know-it-was-hard-knowing-it-was-harder/) [Toni Morrison](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/toni-morrison/) > [“Didn’t everything on God’s earth have or acquire defense?”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/toni-morrison/didn-t-everything-on-god-s-earth-have-or-acquire-defense/) [Toni Morrison](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/toni-morrison/) > [If you can't count, they can cheat you. If you can't read, they can beat you.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/toni-morrison/if-you-can-t-count-they-can-cheat-you-if-you-can-t-read-they-can-beat/) [Toni Morrison](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/toni-morrison/) > [“You looked at them and wondered why the were so ugly; you looked closely and could not find the source. Then you realized that…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/toni-morrison/you-looked-at-them-and-wondered-why-the-were-so-ugly-you-looked/) [Toni Morrison](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/toni-morrison/) > [All she saw, down in the cellar well beneath the stoop, was a light yellow feather with a tip of green. And she had…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/toni-morrison/all-she-saw-down-in-the-cellar-well-beneath-the-stoop-was-a-light/) [Toni Morrison](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/toni-morrison/) > [For me, Art is the restoration of order. It may discuss all sort of terrible things, but there must be satisfaction at the end.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/toni-morrison/for-me-art-is-the-restoration-of-order-it-may-discuss-all-sort-of/) [Toni Morrison](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/toni-morrison/) > [“To Sethe, the future was a matter of keeping the past at bay”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/toni-morrison/to-sethe-the-future-was-a-matter-of-keeping-the-past-at-bay/) [Toni Morrison](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/toni-morrison/) > [“Hate does that. Burns off everything but itself, so whatever your grievance is, your face looks just like your enemy's.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/toni-morrison/hate-does-that-burns-off-everything-but-itself-so-whatever-your/) [Toni Morrison](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/toni-morrison/) > [“You know how a star is supposed to twinkle? We say twinkle because that is how it looks, but when a star feels itself,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/toni-morrison/you-know-how-a-star-is-supposed-to-twinkle-we-say-twinkle-because/) [Toni Morrison](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/toni-morrison/) > [“There is no bad luck in the world but whitefolks”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/toni-morrison/there-is-no-bad-luck-in-the-world-but-whitefolks/) [Toni Morrison](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/toni-morrison/) > [My father saw two black men lynched on his street in Cartersville, as a child. And I think seeing two black businessmen - not…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/toni-morrison/my-father-saw-two-black-men-lynched-on-his-street-in-cartersville-as/) [Toni Morrison](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/toni-morrison/) > [“She was fierce in the presence of death, heroic even, as she was at no other time. Its threat gave her direction, clarity, audacity.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/toni-morrison/she-was-fierce-in-the-presence-of-death-heroic-even-as-she-was-at-no/) [Toni Morrison](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/toni-morrison/) [Explore all 774 Toni Morrison quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/toni-morrison/) ## More Daddy quotes > [I use all my skills that I can muster up, but the fun thing is that I find some untapped skills every once in…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/reba-mcentire/i-use-all-my-skills-that-i-can-muster-up-but-the-fun-thing-is-that-i/) [Reba McEntire](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/reba-mcentire/) > [To the newcomer to the south, hearing that a coworker plans a weekend visit to 'mama and them's' (the correct plural possessive, don'tchaknow), might…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/celia-rivenbark/to-the-newcomer-to-the-south-hearing-that-a-coworker-plans-a-weekend/) [Celia Rivenbark](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/celia-rivenbark/) > [Daddy always said the only thing worth begging for was your life, but maybe he was wrong. Maybe sometimes your love is a little…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gabrielle-zevin/daddy-always-said-the-only-thing-worth-begging-for-was-your-life-but/) [Gabrielle Zevin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gabrielle-zevin/) > [I love you mommy. 'I don't have any money, try your dad.' I love you daddy.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/i-love-you-mommy-i-don-t-have-any-money-try-your-dad-i-love-you-daddy/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [On Father's Day, we pay tribute to all in our society who have taken on the responsibilitie s and joys of fatherhood. Whether our…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ronald-reagan/on-father-s-day-we-pay-tribute-to-all-in-our-society-who-have-taken/) [Ronald Reagan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ronald-reagan/) > [You two faced threw your teeth u ain't nun but babe daddy go wash your feet go with the girl u so call sweet…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/cherrykee/you-two-faced-threw-your-teeth-u-ain-t-nun-but-babe-daddy-go-wash/) Cherrykee > [I will never be your father. But when ever you need a Dad/Daddy that is what I am here for.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mike-deeves/i-will-never-be-your-father-but-when-ever-you-need-a-dad-daddy-that/) Mike Deeves > [“One thing I always admired about Daddy was the way he could bounce back from adversity. From the very beginning of his life, he’d…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/l-k-campbell/one-thing-i-always-admired-about-daddy-was-the-way-he-could-bounce/) L.K. Campbell > [Your daddy is a wine, and your mommy's quite insane. From altar boy to sewer rat, you don't give a damn.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/megadeth/your-daddy-is-a-wine-and-your-mommy-s-quite-insane-from-altar-boy-to/) [Megadeth](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/megadeth/) > [Terrorism is obviously on everybody's mind. The other day my son says to me, 'Daddy, how come the bad men hate us?' How sad…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/greg-giraldo/terrorism-is-obviously-on-everybody-s-mind-the-other-day-my-son-says/) [Greg Giraldo](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/greg-giraldo/) > [Summer time an' the livin' is easy, Fish are jumpin' an' the cotton is high. Oh, yo' daddy's rich, and yo' ma' is good-lookin',…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ira-gershwin/summer-time-an-the-livin-is-easy-fish-are-jumpin-an-the-cotton-is/) [Ira Gershwin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ira-gershwin/) > [Nobody ever says, 'Hey daddy, thanks for knockin' out this rent.' 'Hey daddy, I sure love this hot water.' 'Hey daddy, it's easy to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/chris-rock/nobody-ever-says-hey-daddy-thanks-for-knockin-out-this-rent-hey-daddy/) [Chris Rock](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/chris-rock/) > [I love my dad; I'm a daddy's girl, all the way.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/molly-quinn/i-love-my-dad-i-m-a-daddy-s-girl-all-the-way/) [Molly Quinn](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/molly-quinn/) > [Good morning, daddy! Ain't you heard The boogie-woogie rumble Of a dream deferred? • • • • You think It's a happy beat?](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/langston-hughes/good-morning-daddy-ain-t-you-heard-the-boogie-woogie-rumble-of-a/) [Langston Hughes](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/langston-hughes/) > [I was listening to Chuck D, KRS, Rakim, Big Daddy Kane, all the greats, studying them.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mc-ren/i-was-listening-to-chuck-d-krs-rakim-big-daddy-kane-all-the-greats/) [MC Ren](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mc-ren/) Browse all 1,116 Daddy quotes ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "I remember a very important lesson that my father gave me when I was twelve or thirteen. He said, \"You know, today I welded a perfect seam and I signed my name to it.\" And I said, \"But, Daddy, no one's going to see it!\" And he said, \"Yeah, but I know it's there.\" So when I was working in kitchens, I did good work.", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "Toni Morrison" }, "isPartOf": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website" }, "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/toni-morrison/i-remember-a-very-important-lesson-that-my-father-gave-me-when-i-was-2/", "about": { "@type": "Thing", "name": "Daddy" }, "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/toni-morrison/i-remember-a-very-important-lesson-that-my-father-gave-me-when-i-was-2/#quotation", "image": { "@type": "ImageObject", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/09d/toni-morrison-271_daddy_i-remember-a-very-important-lesson-that_2665312.jpg", "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/09d/toni-morrison-271_daddy_i-remember-a-very-important-lesson-that_2665312.jpg", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/09d/toni-morrison-271_daddy_i-remember-a-very-important-lesson-that_2665312.jpg", "width": 1080, "height": 1080, "caption": "“I remember a very important lesson that my father gave me when I was twelve or thirteen. He said, \"You know…” — Toni Morrison", "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": "Toni Morrison", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/toni-morrison/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 4, "name": "I remember a very important lesson...", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/toni-morrison/i-remember-a-very-important-lesson-that-my-father-gave-me-when-i-was-2/" } ], "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/toni-morrison/i-remember-a-very-important-lesson-that-my-father-gave-me-when-i-was-2/#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 } } ] } ```