Huston Smith Quotes

I think if you look at most successful people, if you ask most of them, their biggest influence was their dad.

My family have shaped my politics more than anything else.

I definitely had very strong male figures in my life, who, when I look back, clearly laid the foundations to who I am.

My mom is American, so I was raised in her household in my formative years.

A father is always going to be a hero to his son.

I grew up as a Muslim: it was quite a conservative upbringing; I didn't wear mini-skirts. But my mum and dad had a good sense of humour and were creative. I guess all of that shaped me.

For better or ill, I was very heavily influenced by men I knew who always dressed formally.

My dad and I are best friends. He's pretty much responsible for the way I turned out. He would provide a little artistic inspiration here and there in the form of a guitar, stuff like that.

That's so important for children when they're growing up, to have a strong male role model.

Father's Day each year makes me grateful for what my father did for me. This has little to do with our relationship, and much to do with what he taught me.

My parents are very lovely people - the sort of people that one should aspire to be like, really.

My parents shared not only an improbable love, they shared an abiding faith in the possibilities of this nation. They would give me an African name, Barack, or blessed, believing that in a tolerant America your name is no barrier to success.

I have very smart parents. I feel I learned a lot from both of my parents and life experience.

I am a traditional man. I'm a product of a traditional man. He sacrificed everything for his family.

Mother is the first word that occurs to politicians and columnists and popes when they raise the question, 'Why isn't life turning out the way we want it?'

It's important to have masculine energy around your child.

Boys want to grow up to be like their male role models. And boys who grow up in homes with absent fathers search the hardest to figure out what it means to be male.

I've always loved where my dad came from and the ideals that he instilled in me.

My dad is Irish. I spent my childhood going back and forth between Ireland and America.

Mormonism is the only large-scale social experiment in American history that has lasted a hundred years

My parents come from that immigrant culture that places a lot of emphasis on doing well scholastically. Being a comedian or an actor is such an American thing. The Iranian culture is not about dreaming. It's about taking over your father's business, falling into line.

I found my father through other people, through my older brothers, my high school coaches, so I had men influences along the way who helped me.

We have so many young men, especially, who are growing up without their dads. We have to fill that void. We have to do a better job helping young people see what it means to be a man, what it means to be a woman. And then, somehow, we have to put that family structure back together.

My mother is my biggest role model, and she showed me how to do it right. She was very present in our lives and has a great career of her own. Same with my father. So I knew it was possible going in to stay closely connected to my children while also chasing big dreams. And it's given me great perspective.

What it depends on is someone's upbringing and the traditions and that is how you decide if you are Jewish or not.