My mother, poor fish, wanting to be happy, beaten two or three times aweek, telling me to be happy: "Henry, smile! why don't you ever smile?"and then she would smile, to show me how, and it was thesaddest smile I ever saw

Charles Bukowski
About This Quote

Henry's mother was very kind and loving, but she also had a temper and a short fuse. She was very unhappy with her life and she could be mean to those around her. She wanted Henry to be happy and to smile more often, but he couldn't seem to find the motivation. His mom would smile as an attempt to show him how, but it was such a sad smile that he felt even worse.

This quote is a reminder that we must not take our happiness for granted. Life can be hard and we should never take anything for granted.

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