"A game one of my sisters will play with me in my first year of being alive is called Good Baby, Bad Baby. This consists of being told I am a good baby until I smile and laugh, then being told I am a bad baby until I burst into tears. This training will stand me in good stead all through my life."

Happiness

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Insight & Reflection

Words carry weight, and Ali Smith's insight into happiness is no exception. It serves as a gentle reminder that amidst the chaos of modern life, timeless wisdom still holds the power to guide our decisions and clarify our values.

About Ali Smith

Ali Smith CBE FRSL is a Scottish author, playwright, academic and journalist. Sebastian Barry described her in 2016 as "Scotland's Nobel laureate-in-waiting." Smith released two, homophone novels in successive years, Gliff in 2024 followed by Glyph in 2026, which deal with contemporary social dilemmas and political topics.

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Editorial Note: This quote is curated and fact-checked by the ShortQuote Editorial Team. Verified Literature Specialist.

More by Ali Smith

"You never know if you're a writer. You can't trust it. If you woke up and said, 'I'm a writer,' it would be gone. You wouldn't see anything for miles - even the dust would be running away."

— Ali Smith
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More about Happiness

"Man is fond of counting his troubles, but he does not count his joys. If he counted them up as he ought to, he would see that every lot has enough happiness provided for it."

— Fyodor Dostoevsky
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"To live we must conquer incessantly, we must have the courage to be happy."

— Henri Frederic Amiel
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"Happiness: an agreeable sensation arising from contemplating the misery of another."

— Ambrose Bierce
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"Every age has its happiness and troubles."

— Jeanne Calment
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