A woman is like a tea bag — you can't tell how strong she is until you put her in hot water.
The real wisdom here isn't that hardship reveals strength—anyone can observe that. Rather, Eleanor suggests that strength *exists in potential*, unrecognizable until tested, which means we're all walking around underestimating ourselves and others constantly. She's offering a quiet argument against judging character during calm periods, since the woman who seems unremarkable at the office party may possess reserves she hasn't needed to access yet. Consider how often we're surprised by a friend's resilience during illness or loss, realizing only then that we'd misread their composure as passivity rather than as untested capability.
“There is no greater agony than bearing an untold story inside you.”
Maya Angelou“Whether you think you can or you think you can't, you're right.”
Henry Ford“Vulnerability is not winning or losing; it is having the courage to show up and be seen when we have...”
Brené Brown“To be yourself in a world that is constantly trying to make you something else is the greatest accom...”
Ralph Waldo Emerson