[{"data":1,"prerenderedAt":-1},["ShallowReactive",2],{"$fVDe_XEo1C2-JAh3lXsLOwZh0ixW9YQXqzhYBfKiSCMk":3,"$fGILSAtEsH8CrR6sEfVnEM3qgruq0PLQkqGXgkY0PWe8":12},{"author":4,"tags":11},{"author_id":5,"author_name":6,"author_name_first_letter":7,"article_count":8,"bio":9,"short_bio":9,"bio_jsonld":9,"slug":10,"image_url":9},23717,"Hilary Thayer Hamann","H",29,null,"hilary-thayer-hamann",[],{"quotes":13,"pagination":77},[14,22,28,34,41,47,53,59,65,71],{"id":15,"quote_text":16,"author_id":5,"source_id":17,"has_image":18,"author":19,"source":20,"quote_tag":21,"commentary":9},3078850,"Sometimes you can’t help but destroy the intricate things in life.",6,false,{"id":5,"author_name":6,"slug":10,"author_name_first_letter":7,"article_count":8,"image_url":9},{},[],{"id":23,"quote_text":24,"author_id":5,"source_id":17,"has_image":18,"author":25,"source":26,"quote_tag":27,"commentary":9},3078844,"Sometimes the best you can do is your small part, perfectly.",{"id":5,"author_name":6,"slug":10,"author_name_first_letter":7,"article_count":8,"image_url":9},{},[],{"id":29,"quote_text":30,"author_id":5,"source_id":17,"has_image":18,"author":31,"source":32,"quote_tag":33,"commentary":9},3078840,"The most awful hunger is the type that is satisfied too soon, before it moves you, before you are moved by it, before it becomes protracted and superior, a motivating business, making you honorable, graceful, clever – a hunter.",{"id":5,"author_name":6,"slug":10,"author_name_first_letter":7,"article_count":8,"image_url":9},{},[],{"id":35,"quote_text":36,"author_id":5,"source_id":17,"has_image":18,"author":37,"source":38,"quote_tag":39,"commentary":40},3078828,"When you stop looking forward to things, you get used to low expectations and you realise, what’s the big deal about success anyway? If we’re all to attain everything we’ve been conditioned to desire – wealth, fame, education, prestige, security – then those things will become so prevalent that they’ll become meaningless.",{"id":5,"author_name":6,"slug":10,"author_name_first_letter":7,"article_count":8,"image_url":9},{},[],"**The Backstory**\n\nHilary Thayer Hamann's writings often reflected her introspective and philosophical nature, shaped by her experiences growing up in a middle-class American family during the mid-20th century. The sentiment expressed in this quote resonates with her exploration of themes such as identity, belonging, and the disillusionment of modern life in her novel \"The Fat Girl\". While we don't have exact information on when she penned or spoke these words, it's likely from a period of personal reflection and contemplation about societal expectations.\n\n**The Hidden Insight**\n\nAt first glance, this quote seems to discourage striving for success, instead suggesting that its achievement leads to meaninglessness. However, upon closer examination, Hamann is actually highlighting the paradoxical nature of desire and fulfillment. She argues that our constant pursuit of external validation—wealth, fame, education, prestige, security—ultimately undermines its value by making it ordinary.\n\n**How to Use This**\n\nTo apply this mindset today, a professional or creative can shift their focus from accumulating external markers of success to cultivating a sense of purpose and contentment within. By recognizing that the things we strive for will inevitably become mundane if achieved, they can redirect their energy towards more meaningful pursuits that bring personal satisfaction, rather than solely seeking validation through external metrics.",{"id":42,"quote_text":43,"author_id":5,"source_id":17,"has_image":18,"author":44,"source":45,"quote_tag":46,"commentary":9},3078816,"Sometimes all you’ve accomplished by the end of the day is to have maneuvered your body through space without grave incident.",{"id":5,"author_name":6,"slug":10,"author_name_first_letter":7,"article_count":8,"image_url":9},{},[],{"id":48,"quote_text":49,"author_id":5,"source_id":17,"has_image":18,"author":50,"source":51,"quote_tag":52,"commentary":9},3078809,"It was then that I began to write. Writing helps when you can’t talk to your friends; it wasn’t that my friends were untrustworthy, it’s just that I would never discuss something that was hardly real as though it were really real. Often people do this, forcing friends into authenticating an imaginary life.",{"id":5,"author_name":6,"slug":10,"author_name_first_letter":7,"article_count":8,"image_url":9},{},[],{"id":54,"quote_text":55,"author_id":5,"source_id":17,"has_image":18,"author":56,"source":57,"quote_tag":58,"commentary":9},3078803,"Mine is not a smiling face. Strangers on the street always say, Smile! But my muscles do not naturally go there.",{"id":5,"author_name":6,"slug":10,"author_name_first_letter":7,"article_count":8,"image_url":9},{},[],{"id":60,"quote_text":61,"author_id":5,"source_id":17,"has_image":18,"author":62,"source":63,"quote_tag":64,"commentary":9},3078794,"Sometimes a day is a symbolic day, and you behave symbolically. Sometimes you search inside for a feeling, and, finding none, you remember that no feeling is frequently the most possible feeling.",{"id":5,"author_name":6,"slug":10,"author_name_first_letter":7,"article_count":8,"image_url":9},{},[],{"id":66,"quote_text":67,"author_id":5,"source_id":17,"has_image":18,"author":68,"source":69,"quote_tag":70,"commentary":9},3078780,"Boys will be boys, that’s what everyone always says. But no one ever mentions how girls have to be something other than themselves altogether.",{"id":5,"author_name":6,"slug":10,"author_name_first_letter":7,"article_count":8,"image_url":9},{},[],{"id":72,"quote_text":73,"author_id":5,"source_id":17,"has_image":18,"author":74,"source":75,"quote_tag":76,"commentary":9},3078749,"It’s better to keep grief inside. Grief inside works like bees or ants, building curious and perfect structures, complicating you. Grief outside means you want something from someone, and chances are good you won’t get it.",{"id":5,"author_name":6,"slug":10,"author_name_first_letter":7,"article_count":8,"image_url":9},{},[],{"currentPage":78,"totalPages":79,"totalItems":8,"itemsPerPage":80},1,3,10]