--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: This is Harry. As a boy, Harry was very…" description: "\"“This is Harry. As a boy, Harry was very, very shy. Some people may have even said he was painfully shy. As if his shyness caused them pain and not the..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/7d6/ze-frank-13651_laugh-at-yourself_this-is-harry-as-a-boy-harry-was-very-ve_2219590.jpg" --- # This is Harry. As a boy, Harry was very, very shy. Some… ![“This is Harry. As a boy, Harry was very, very shy. Some people may have even said he was painfully shy. As if his shyness caused them pain and not the other way around. There are many things that can cause a person to recede. To look away from other people’s eyes or to choose empty hallways over…” quote by Ze Frank](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/7d6/ze-frank-13651_laugh-at-yourself_this-is-harry-as-a-boy-harry-was-very-ve_2219590.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/7d6/ze-frank-13651_laugh-at-yourself_this-is-harry-as-a-boy-harry-was-very-ve_2219590.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/7d6/ze-frank-13651_laugh-at-yourself_this-is-harry-as-a-boy-harry-was-very-ve_2219590.jpg) > ““This is Harry. As a boy, Harry was very, very shy. Some people may have even said he was painfully shy. As if his shyness caused them pain and not the other way around. There are many things that can cause a person to recede. To look away from other people’s eyes or to choose empty hallways over crowded ones. Some shy people try to reach out and try, and nothing seems to come back and then there just comes a point where they stop trying. In Harry’s case he was slapped in the face and called names designed to isolate him, designed to deliver maximum damage. This because he came from a different country and didn’t know the right words to use or the right way to say them. And so, Harry learned how to be still, to camouflage, to be the least. Some people describe this as receding into a shell, where the stillness hardens and protects. But the eyes, even when they look down and away, are still watching, still looking for some way out or in; painfully shy. Then in middle school, Harry found theater, where he forced himself to speak through other people’s words. And then dance, where he started to speak through the movements of his body. To be so still for so long when you’re young, means a lot of pent up energy and it was released there through work, endless work. If someone carves into a sapling with a knife, the injury is as wide as the entire trunk. Though that mark will never fully heal, you can grow the tree around it, and as you grow, the scar gets smaller in proportion. If you, right now, are in a shell, you should know that you’re are not alone and there are many, many people like you and that there is nothing wrong with you. It might even be necessary right now. It might keep you safe for a time. But once the danger is gone, or after it’s exhausted it’s use, you’ll find a way out. You may need help, you may need to work really hard, you may need to find some ways to laugh at yourself, or find a passion, or a friend, but you will find it. And, when you do, it will be so good to see you. This is Harry. As a boy, Harry was very, very shy.”” [Ze Frank](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ze-frank/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. A shy person may retreat into a protective shell, but creative outlets like theater and dance can release pent‑up energy and foster growth despite lingering scars. **In simple terms:** Shyness can be a defensive shell; art helps break it. Key Takeaway Use creative expression to transform isolation into growth. Themes shyness resilience creativity growth healing Mood reflective hopeful Type inspirational personal development When to use this quote - school theater - dance class - personal therapy - support groups Key Concepts psychology identity self‑expression Questions to Reflect On - What creative activity could help you step out of your shell? - How does vulnerability change when you perform for others? A Different Perspective The metaphor of a scar may oversimplify complex trauma and recovery. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Laugh at yourself](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/laugh-at-yourself/) [Middle school](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/middle-school/) [Right way](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/right-way/) [Right words](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/right-words/) [Shy people](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/shy-people/) ## Related quotes > [Stage-persona notwithstanding, I'm extremely shy and quiet. Almost painfully shy. People misinterpret that as being above it all or not interested.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/j-michael-straczynski/stage-persona-notwithstanding-i-m-extremely-shy-and-quiet-almost/) [J. Michael Straczynski](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/j-michael-straczynski/) > [My lack of interest with human beings shouldn't be considered a sign of weakness or disability for them to assume that I need saving.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/needa-muy/my-lack-of-interest-with-human-beings-shouldn-t-be-considered-a-sign/) [Needa Muy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/needa-muy/) > [“It’ll be down to you, Harry, to show them that a Seeker has to have something more than a rich father. Get to that…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/j-k-rowling/it-ll-be-down-to-you-harry-to-show-them-that-a-seeker-has-to-have/) [J.K. Rowling](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/j-k-rowling/) > [I can't really go without being noticed. I'll keep my head a bit lower than usual. I've got to keep my head out of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jamie-waylett/i-can-t-really-go-without-being-noticed-i-ll-keep-my-head-a-bit-lower/) [Jamie Waylett](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jamie-waylett/) > [I've got to keep my head out of trouble, because if it goes on, it would be 'Harry Potter boy this, Harry Potter boy…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jamie-waylett/i-ve-got-to-keep-my-head-out-of-trouble-because-if-it-goes-on-it/) [Jamie Waylett](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jamie-waylett/) > [Do you—do you think I want to—do you think I give a—I DON'T CARE WHAT YOU HAVE TO SAY!" Harry roared. "You will," said…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/do-you-do-you-think-i-want-to-do-you-think-i-give-a-i-don-t-care-what/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [“What would you say, Harry, if I told you that I had murdered Basil?" said the younger man. He watched him intently after he…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/oscar-wilde/what-would-you-say-harry-if-i-told-you-that-i-had-murdered-basil-said/) [Oscar Wilde](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/oscar-wilde/) > [“quite the right way to begin a book. And, besides, am I a gentleman? What is a gentleman? I don't quite know, and yet…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/h-rider-haggard/quite-the-right-way-to-begin-a-book-and-besides-am-i-a-gentleman-what/) [H. Rider Haggard](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/h-rider-haggard/) > [I'm painfully shy.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lindy-booth/i-m-painfully-shy/) [Lindy Booth](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lindy-booth/) > [I was obsessed with movies, and it ended up being the tool with which I could make friends. Because I was too painfully shy…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/matt-reeves/i-was-obsessed-with-movies-and-it-ended-up-being-the-tool-with-which/) [Matt Reeves](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/matt-reeves/) > [Even painfully shy and awkward people are not painfully shy or awkward when they are alone. The way to access this natural, comfortable alone-self…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/augusten-burroughs/even-painfully-shy-and-awkward-people-are-not-painfully-shy-or/) [Augusten Burroughs](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/augusten-burroughs/) > [I was just painfully shy. I couldn't talk to anyone. Going up in front of class, I would have to mentally prepare myself to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mikey-madison/i-was-just-painfully-shy-i-couldn-t-talk-to-anyone-going-up-in-front/) [Mikey Madison](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mikey-madison/) > [Photography came as a substitute. I was painfully shy and found talking to people difficult; a camera in hand gave me a function, a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/martine-franck/photography-came-as-a-substitute-i-was-painfully-shy-and-found/) [Martine Franck](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/martine-franck/) > [I was painfully shy as a child; I was dyslexic. I had a single mother who's an immigrant. I just didn't believe acting was…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kaya-scodelario/i-was-painfully-shy-as-a-child-i-was-dyslexic-i-had-a-single-mother/) [Kaya Scodelario](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kaya-scodelario/) > [I was painfully shy, so my aunt suggested to my mum that me and my brother go to Stage 84, a performing arts school…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/christian-cooke/i-was-painfully-shy-so-my-aunt-suggested-to-my-mum-that-me-and-my/) [Christian Cooke](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/christian-cooke/) ## More by Ze Frank > [When I was young, I had this feeling that there was this handbook that I had never gotten that explained how to be, how…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ze-frank/when-i-was-young-i-had-this-feeling-that-there-was-this-handbook-that/) [Ze Frank](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ze-frank/) > [Just a reminder, what other people think of you is none of your business.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ze-frank/just-a-reminder-what-other-people-think-of-you-is-none-of-your/) [Ze Frank](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ze-frank/) > [The story of technology seems to go up and then retract into simplicity again.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ze-frank/the-story-of-technology-seems-to-go-up-and-then-retract-into/) [Ze Frank](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ze-frank/) > [Video has become much more social, and as a result, there are many opportunities to use video as a way to connect people, to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ze-frank/video-has-become-much-more-social-and-as-a-result-there-are-many/) [Ze Frank](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ze-frank/) > [I'm obsessed with media and the way audiences can become creative participants.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ze-frank/i-m-obsessed-with-media-and-the-way-audiences-can-become-creative/) [Ze Frank](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ze-frank/) > [The naked mole is, like, the ugliest freakin' creature in the world. It is so radically, unbelievably disgusting. And the star-nosed mole is also.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ze-frank/the-naked-mole-is-like-the-ugliest-freakin-creature-in-the-world-it/) [Ze Frank](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ze-frank/) > [For some reason, we stopped getting gold stars at some age. It's time to bring them back.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ze-frank/for-some-reason-we-stopped-getting-gold-stars-at-some-age-it-s-time/) [Ze Frank](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ze-frank/) > [Most of us yearn for really intimate, healthy, in-person relationships. People have a deep desire to be understood, to be told that it's OK,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ze-frank/most-of-us-yearn-for-really-intimate-healthy-in-person-relationships/) [Ze Frank](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ze-frank/) > [On street corners everywhere, people are looking at their cell phones, and it's easy to dismiss this as some sort of bad trend in…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ze-frank/on-street-corners-everywhere-people-are-looking-at-their-cell-phones/) [Ze Frank](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ze-frank/) > [Words are the instruments you play to the song of your ideas, you're just playing covers.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ze-frank/words-are-the-instruments-you-play-to-the-song-of-your-ideas-you-re/) [Ze Frank](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ze-frank/) > [What better way to connect with people than by staring and talking straight at them? Don't blink - that's one less connection you could…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ze-frank/what-better-way-to-connect-with-people-than-by-staring-and-talking/) [Ze Frank](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ze-frank/) > [Anything that makes you feel the most alone also has the greatest power to connect you.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ze-frank/anything-that-makes-you-feel-the-most-alone-also-has-the-greatest/) [Ze Frank](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ze-frank/) > [Let me think about the people I care about...](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ze-frank/let-me-think-about-the-people-i-care-about/) [Ze Frank](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ze-frank/) > [Let me realize that my past failures at follow-through are no indication of my future performance. They're just healthy little fires that are gonna…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ze-frank/let-me-realize-that-my-past-failures-at-follow-through-are-no/) [Ze Frank](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ze-frank/) > [I don't want to get too philosophical, but in a sense, you're given this gift, this sort of creative force in you, and I…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ze-frank/i-don-t-want-to-get-too-philosophical-but-in-a-sense-you-re-given/) [Ze Frank](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ze-frank/) [Explore all 49 Ze Frank quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ze-frank/) ## More Laugh at yourself quotes > [Look in the mirror, and laugh at yourself.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bernie-glassman/look-in-the-mirror-and-laugh-at-yourself/) [Bernie Glassman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bernie-glassman/) > [Laugh at yourself for man is most comical when he takes himself too seriously.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/og-mandino/laugh-at-yourself-for-man-is-most-comical-when-he-takes-himself-too/) [Og Mandino](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/og-mandino/) > [If you can laugh at yourself, you are going to be fine. If you allow others to laugh with you, you will be great.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/martin-niemoller/if-you-can-laugh-at-yourself-you-are-going-to-be-fine-if-you-allow/) [Martin Niemoller](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/martin-niemoller/) > [I used to take myself very seriously, now it's all just funny. You gotta laugh at yourself. You know, most of the time when…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gillian-anderson/i-used-to-take-myself-very-seriously-now-it-s-all-just-funny-you/) [Gillian Anderson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gillian-anderson/) > [“In future, you'll laugh at yourself on some things you do now.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/toba-beta/in-future-you-ll-laugh-at-yourself-on-some-things-you-do-now/) [Toba Beta](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/toba-beta/) > [My mother used to say, "When you can learn to laugh at yourself, a lot of healing comes from that."](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kelly-carlin-mccall/my-mother-used-to-say-when-you-can-learn-to-laugh-at-yourself-a-lot/) [Kelly Carlin-McCall](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kelly-carlin-mccall/) > [You gotta just laugh at yourself and let it go and not take things too seriously because life is too short.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ally-hilfiger/you-gotta-just-laugh-at-yourself-and-let-it-go-and-not-take-things/) [Ally Hilfiger](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ally-hilfiger/) > [I think it's important to have a sense of humor. You have to be able to laugh at yourself.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/engelbert-humperdinck/i-think-it-s-important-to-have-a-sense-of-humor-you-have-to-be-able/) [Engelbert Humperdinck](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/engelbert-humperdinck/) > [“Once you master the art of self-love, you become so content with yourself that what other’s say or do, it stops bothering you. At…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/aishwarya-sharma/once-you-master-the-art-of-self-love-you-become-so-content-with/) Aishwarya Sharma > [You grow up the day you have the first real laugh at yourself.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ethel-barrymore/you-grow-up-the-day-you-have-the-first-real-laugh-at-yourself/) [Ethel Barrymore](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ethel-barrymore/) > [You have to be able to laugh at yourself. That's what I tell Asian people all the time.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sarah-silverman/you-have-to-be-able-to-laugh-at-yourself-that-s-what-i-tell-asian/) [Sarah Silverman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sarah-silverman/) > [Transformation doesn't have to be deep, dark and mysterious. If you screw up, fine - laugh at yourself, learn and move on.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/iyanla-vanzant/transformation-doesn-t-have-to-be-deep-dark-and-mysterious-if-you/) [Iyanla Vanzant](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/iyanla-vanzant/) > [When you can laugh at yourself, you are free.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ted-loder/when-you-can-laugh-at-yourself-you-are-free/) Ted Loder > [Okay, sense of humor: plus one. Being able to laugh at yourself: plus one. Being able to laugh at other people without being mean:…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/katie-aselton/okay-sense-of-humor-plus-one-being-able-to-laugh-at-yourself-plus-one/) [Katie Aselton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/katie-aselton/) > [My work is still very much light-hearted, positive outlook, laugh at yourself. But it isn't going to be the laugh-a-minute kind of thing that…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tom-bodett/my-work-is-still-very-much-light-hearted-positive-outlook-laugh-at/) [Tom Bodett](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tom-bodett/) [Browse all 133 Laugh at yourself quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/laugh-at-yourself/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "“This is Harry. As a boy, Harry was very, very shy. Some people may have even said he was painfully shy. As if his shyness caused them pain and not the other way around. There are many things that can cause a person to recede. To look away from other people’s eyes or to choose empty hallways over crowded ones. Some shy people try to reach out and try, and nothing seems to come back and then there just comes a point where they stop trying. In Harry’s case he was slapped in the face and called names designed to isolate him, designed to deliver maximum damage. This because he came from a different country and didn’t know the right words to use or the right way to say them. And so, Harry learned how to be still, to camouflage, to be the least. Some people describe this as receding into a shell, where the stillness hardens and protects. But the eyes, even when they look down and away, are still watching, still looking for some way out or in; painfully shy. Then in middle school, Harry found theater, where he forced himself to speak through other people’s words. And then dance, where he started to speak through the movements of his body. To be so still for so long when you’re young, means a lot of pent up energy and it was released there through work, endless work. If someone carves into a sapling with a knife, the injury is as wide as the entire trunk. Though that mark will never fully heal, you can grow the tree around it, and as you grow, the scar gets smaller in proportion. If you, right now, are in a shell, you should know that you’re are not alone and there are many, many people like you and that there is nothing wrong with you. It might even be necessary right now. It might keep you safe for a time. But once the danger is gone, or after it’s exhausted it’s use, you’ll find a way out. You may need help, you may need to work really hard, you may need to find some ways to laugh at yourself, or find a passion, or a friend, but you will find it. And, when you do, it will be so good to see you. This is Harry. 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