It’s never too late for a happy childhood.

Steinem’s line reframes “childhood” less as a fixed period in the past than as a set of emotional needs—safety, play, affirmation, and freedom to grow—that can be met later in life. It suggests that adults are not condemned to repeat the injuries or deprivations of their early years; through supportive relationships, therapy, self-education, and chosen communities, people can cultivate the nurturing experiences they missed. The aphorism also carries a feminist and social-justice resonance: it implies that healing is possible even when one’s formative environment was shaped by inequality or constraint, and it validates the work of recovery as neither childish nor futile but restorative and dignifying.