Frasi di Robert Fulghum

„Tutto ciò che avevo bisogno di sapere su come vivere e cosa fare e come essere l'ho imparato all'asilo.“

—  Robert Fulghum

„La massima parte di ciò che veramente mi serve sapere su come vivere, cosa fare e in che modo comportarmi l'ho imparata all'asilo. La saggezza non si trova al vertice della montagna degli studi superiori, bensì nei castelli di sabbia del giardino dell'infanzia. Queste sono le cose che ho appreso:“

—  Robert Fulghum

„Dividere tutto con gli altri.
Giocare correttamente.
Non fare male alla gente.
Rimettere le cose al posto.
Sistemare il disordine.
Non prendere ciò che non è mio.
Dire che mi dispiace quando faccio del male a qualcuno.
Lavarmi le mani prima di mangiare.
I biscotti caldi e il latte freddo fanno bene.
Condurre una vita equilibrata: imparare qualcosa, pensare un po' e disegnare, dipingere, cantare, ballare, suonare e lavorare un tanto al giorno.
Fare un riposino ogni pomeriggio.
Nel mondo, badare al traffico, tenere per mano e stare vicino agli altri.
Essere consapevole del meraviglioso.“

—  Robert Fulghum

„Rimane sempre vero, a qualsiasi età, che quando si esce nel mondo è meglio tenersi per mano e rimanere uniti.“

—  Robert Fulghum

„Pensate a come il mondo sarebbe migliore se noi tutti, l'intera umanità prendessimo latte e biscotti ogni pomeriggio alle tre e ci mettessimo poi sotto le coperte per un pisolino, o se tutti i governi si attenessero al principio basilare di rimettere ogni cosa dove l'hanno trovata e di ripulire il proprio disordine.“

—  Robert Fulghum

„Non dimenticare, infine, la prima parola che ho imparato, la più importante di tutte: GUARDARE.
Tutto quello che mi serve sapere sta lì, da qualche parte: le regole Auree, l'amore, l'igiene alimentare, l'ecologia, la politica e il vivere assennatamente.“

—  Robert Fulghum

„Ricordare il seme nel vaso: le radici scendono, la pianta sale e nessuno sa veramente come e perché, ma tutti noi siamo così. I pesci rossi, i criceti, i topolini bianchi e persino il seme nel suo recipiente: tutti muoiono e noi pure.“

—  Robert Fulghum

„La pace non è qualcosa che desideri; è qualcosa che crei, qualcosa che fai, qualcosa che sei, e qualcosa che dai agli altri.“

—  Robert Fulghum

„Basta scegliere uno qualsiasi tra questi precetti, elaborarlo in termini adulti e sofisticati e applicarlo alla famiglia, al lavoro, al governo, o al mondo in generale, e si dimostrerà vero, chiaro e incrollabile.“

—  Robert Fulghum

„Tutto ciò che mi serve sapere… l'imparai alla scuola dell'infanzia.“

—  Robert Fulghum

„What we learn in kindergarten comes up again and again in our lives as long as we live. In far more complex, polysyllabic forms, to be sure. In lectures, encyclopedias, bibles, company rules, courts of law, sermons, and handbooks. Life will examine us continually to see if we have understood and have practiced what we were taught that first year of school.“

—  Robert Fulghum, libro All I Really Need to Know I Learned in Kindergarten

All I Really Need to Know I Learned in Kindergarten (1986)

„We’re all a little weird. And life is a little weird. And when we find someone whose weirdness is compatible with ours, we join up with them and fall into mutually satisfying weirdness—and call it love—true love.“

—  Robert Fulghum

Variante: You want my opinion? We're all a little weird. And life is a little weird. And when we find someone whose weirdness is compatible with ours, we join up with them and fall into mutually satisfying weirdness — and call it love — true love.
Origine: True Love (1998)

„The examined life is no picnic.“

—  Robert Fulghum, libro All I Really Need to Know I Learned in Kindergarten

All I Really Need to Know I Learned in Kindergarten (1986)
Contesto: Too much high-content information, and I get the existential willies. I keep sputtering out at intersections where life choices must be made and I either know too much or not enough. The examined life is no picnic.

„I grew up a Southern Baptist in Texas where dancing was a mortal sin in the eyes of Almighty God, but coffee was OK. Dave grew up a Latter Day Saint where dancing was considered righteous – but not coffee.
But . . . we're dancers. And laughers. That's a strong bond right there. And we're committed to being useful in our world.“

—  Robert Fulghum

"The Lightness Of Being" (25 April 2007) Pack Creek Ranch, San Juan County, Utah http://robertfulghum.com/index.php/fulghumweb/entry/377_the_lightness_of_being/
Web Journal
Contesto: The four of us are talking dancing, and laughing, and recalling the joys of being out on the floor and having that timeless feeling that comes from being caught up in the music. "Nobody should miss that," says Dave.
On the face of it, Dave's family and I don't have a lot in common. They're Mormons and Republicans. I'm a Unitarian and a Democrat. When Dave was on the County Council, we were on different sides of some important issues. I grew up a Southern Baptist in Texas where dancing was a mortal sin in the eyes of Almighty God, but coffee was OK. Dave grew up a Latter Day Saint where dancing was considered righteous – but not coffee.
But... we're dancers. And laughers. That's a strong bond right there. And we're committed to being useful in our world. And if you love something, like dancing, and you pass it on, like Dave and his wife do, you've been very useful by my standards. Dancing is a lifetime, equal opportunity sport.
And I will never drive by Dave's garage again without having the finest feelings for the man and his wife and mother who are inside taking good care of their corner of this world. They've added an important dimension to the lives of the young people of their town — that lightness of being that belongs to dancers.

„I don't do art to address other people but to address myself. I've never done art with a thought of being a professional artist who makes a living by selling his art.“

—  Robert Fulghum

Introduction to the Art gallery at his website (2006) http://robertfulghum.com/index.php/fulghumweb/artshowentry/introduction2/
Contesto: I don't do art to address other people but to address myself. I've never done art with a thought of being a professional artist who makes a living by selling his art. I've never had a commercial show in a gallery. I suppose I'm like those who write poetry or songs without seeking publication. I make art in and for the experience itself — to satisfy a need to express myself in a creative, colorful, non-verbal way.

„Maybe we should develop a Crayola bomb as our next secret weapon. A happiness weapon.“

—  Robert Fulghum, libro All I Really Need to Know I Learned in Kindergarten

All I Really Need to Know I Learned in Kindergarten (1986)
Contesto: Maybe we should develop a Crayola bomb as our next secret weapon. A happiness weapon. A Beauty Bomb. And every time a crisis developed, we would launch one. It would explode high in the air — explode softly — and send thousands, millions, of little parachutes into the air. Floating down to earth — boxes of Crayolas. And we wouldn't go cheap either — not little boxes of eight. Boxes of sixty-four, with the sharpener built right in. With silver and gold and copper, magenta and peach and lime, amber and umber and all the rest. And people would smile and get a little funny look on their faces and cover the world with imagination instead of death. A child who touched one wouldn't have his hand blown off.

„People won’t share or play fair if you hit them.“

—  Robert Fulghum, libro All I Really Need to Know I Learned in Kindergarten

All I Really Need to Know I Learned in Kindergarten (1986)
Contesto: A six-year-old will not understand that “By and large it has been demonstrated that violence is counterproductive to the constructive interaction of persons and societies.” True. But a child can better understand that the rule out in the world and in the school is the same: Don’t hit people. Bad things happen. The child must understand this rule is connected to the first rule: People won’t share or play fair if you hit them.

„One of life's best coping mechanisms is to know the difference between an inconvenience and a problem.“

—  Robert Fulghum

Uh-Oh: Some Observations from Both Sides of the Refrigerator Door (2001), p. 146
Contesto: One of life's best coping mechanisms is to know the difference between an inconvenience and a problem. If you break your neck, if you have nothing to eat, if your house is on fire, then you've got a problem. Everything else is an inconvenience. Life is inconvenient. Life is lumpy. A lump in the oatmeal, a lump in the throat and a lump in the breast are not the same kind of lump. One needs to learn the difference.

„It’s almost impossible to go through life all alone.“

—  Robert Fulghum, libro All I Really Need to Know I Learned in Kindergarten

All I Really Need to Know I Learned in Kindergarten (1986)
Contesto: There’s another thing not everyone figures out right away: It’s almost impossible to go through life all alone. We need to find our support group — family, friends, companion, therapy gatherings, team, church or whatever. The kindergarten admonition applies as long as we live: “When you go out into the world, hold hands and stick together.” It’s dangerous out there — lonely, too. Everyone needs someone. Some assembly is always required.