What's a quote that has stuck with you for your whole life?

zinklog@lemmy.fmhy.ml to Asklemmy@lemmy.ml – 609 points –

I always loved browsing such posts on reddit, so thought I should make one on lemmy too

Edit: Usually these kind of posts only used to have excerpts from books or ancient proverbs, but now I am seeing a lot more quotes from shows/movies/games are also resonating with people. It's pretty cool to see.

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"Many hands make light work"

As a young child I interpreted this as acknowledging all of the people involved in:

  • Mining and transporting coal
  • Running the powerplant
  • Installing and maintaining the powerlines
  • Wiring the house
  • Manufacturing the lightswitch, light socket, light bulb, etc

All so I can flick a switch and turn on a light in my house. It really shows that all the small things we take for granted rely on a well functioning society.

Then when I was around 10 or so someone used it in a context where it's usual interpretation was the only one that made sense.

there's a similar one in german that I really like because it also rhymes (and as we all know, things that rhyme are automatically true)

"viele hände, schnelles ende" / many hands, quick completion

Hm, I first interpreted that as 'light work', as in light vs. heavy work. More people contributing eases the burden for all.