Matthew Quick Quotes

I remember once in junior high school, on a Friday, my mom came home from work and said to my brother and I, 'You know, between us, we have only 27 cents, but we have food in the refrigerator, we have our little garden out back, and we're happy, so we are rich.'

My father was a factory worker, and we were really poor. But everything I earned peddling papers and working in stores, he made me put aside for education.

I thank fate for having made me born poor. Poverty taught me the true value of the gifts useful to life.

Although we didn't have much when I was growing up in Split, Croatia, my parents always tried to ensure that my sister and I had the things we needed, and it was enough for us.

I was from a tough neighborhood, and we didn't have a lot of money, but my dad worked hard, and my mom is good at budgeting things. That made me appreciate things.

I have great respect for my parents. I got such beautiful things from both of them. It doesn't mean that we didn't have our rough times, but they were remarkable people who were open-minded, creative and hard-working, and had great senses of humor.

I'm thankful I grew up the way I did. It made me a hard worker and insightful to other people's lives.

My parents had always preached the virtues of hard work. But hard work is one thing; economic struggle is another.

I was born on the west side of Chicago, and there was quite a bit of poverty. My family and I didn't have exactly the best or the most optimal financial situation in my youth, but we turned out well. My mom always made sure that we got a proper education and that we dedicated ourselves to our work.

I'm very proud of what my parents achieved and what they stood for. They didn't have much, but in many ways they were richer than most.

I came up poor. My mother only had a fourth-grade education. My dad didn't have any education at all. But they were very structured. They worked hard. You know, they didn't complain. They didn't murmur. And they believe in the Christ.

My parents were both born and raised in the Depression. They instilled great values about integrity and the importance of hard work, and I've taken that with me to every job.

My dad was a mechanical engineer and a drummer. We had no money, but I never felt we had no money, and that's what I remember now, having my own child. I think, 'Oh so what?' Kids don't go around the house seeing what's wrong with it.

I am grateful for the lessons I learned from my parents' sacrifices. They often had trouble making ends meet, so we moved for them to find work. I remember my mom would sometimes take on second jobs, like ironing, just so we could buy groceries.

Everyone loved my father. He was so nice that people took advantage of him. We were lower middle class. I slept in the hallway on a cot that rolled away during the day, and my younger brother and sister slept in my parents' room. My goal as a kid was to someday have my own room and to own a car - and I wanted to be able to take care of my parents.

If my parents didn't raise me in the way that they did, I wouldn't be in the position I am now. They raised me very independent and taught me you can do anything you want to. I have an average-sized brother and an average-sized sister, and I had to do everything they had to.

My father grew up with no money. He was raised in one of the poorest neighbourhoods in the U.S. My mother helped him sew labels into his ties. My life has been very comfortable, sure, but they instilled into us the importance of the work ethic.

I was lucky in the sense that I started work very young but had a solid family base provided by my mother. She instilled a strong sense of perspective and humility in me from a very early age.

Growing up, I didn't have a lot and always wanted things. But I was too prideful to ask for anything; I always worked for it.

I was just raised in humble beginnings: three brothers together and a single mother who raised us the best she could.

My parents gave me a practical example of what life was about, and I won't forget that.

Poverty dictated my childhood. But there were benefits as well: I became independent, more mature than my peers, and I realized that money is not the most important thing in life.

My dad was trying to prepare me for what he went through as a kid.

When I was growing up, my parents would apologize when we didn't have enough money for something. I'd always tell them that it was O.K. and that I had learned to work hard because of them.

We see the worth and appreciate the discipline my father inculcated in us.