We all have stories to tell about the "rules" we were raised to believe. For me these came not just from my parents, but also from my older brother. He was enough older than I to be an authority in about anything. I find it amusing to notice the expressions, rules, adages-- whatever you want to call them-- that permeate our speech. I work at keeping them out of my writing, but they are insidious, sneaking in when I look the other way.
Let's make a list. Add to this. These are not all mine. I've been creating a list culled from many. So, Mom, if you are reading this, it's not just our family but from many.
- "Clean Plate Club"- you didn't get dessert if you didn't eat everything you were served (I still can't eat dessert).
- "Try it, you might like it." You had to take at least one bite of everything even if it happened to be an odious color.
- "Clean underwear." You never know when you'll be in the emergency room. Be sure to have on clean underwear (like I got up in the morning thinking that by nightfall I'd be stretched out on a gurney?).
- "If you can't say anything nice, don't say anything at all" (where is the fun in that?).
- "That's a lazy man's load." This happens when you pile too many things in your arms, trying to carry the entire contents of the car all at once. You then drop half of it on the way to the house and then need to make three trips back and forth to clean up.
- "In for a penny, in for a pound." It took me until age 12 before I figured out what the relationship between a penny and a pound was.
"You made your bed, now you have to lay in it." My grandmother said this with a waggle of her finger. I guess I was not the best of kids.
- "Live and let live." Liz!! This is your chance here to make a plug.
The list goes on. Well, it does if YOU add to it. What are the ones you had? Now that my brain is going in this direction, more and more come to mind. The real question is not what are the expressions that are the common ones out in the world. Rather, what are the ones that touch you and those you know.
15 comments:
"Tell me who you run around with and I'll tell you who you are." TRUE, TRUE, TRUE! And I beat this in my four boy's heads!
"Careful...your face might stay that way!" which eventually inspired me telling my kids "Careful. You keep playing with all those gadgets, you just might turn into one." which then inspired The Samantha Granger Experiment: Fused!
So....thanks Mom and Dad :-)
Tonya: Isn't it funny how we grow up with worrying about all these things? I bet your boys have had some good advice.
Kari: Samantha learned the hard way! But, she tells a great story!! Folks, if you haven't read it-- order it now!
LIVER LET DIE is coming to a book store near you in October 2011. How's that for a shameful plug?
I grew up in the middle of steeltown and the coal mines as the eighth child of 9 children. Here are some of mine:
"There's nothing worse than cold eggs." My mother obviously never ate creamed spinach!
"See you - wouldn't wanna be you."
"Don't forget the starving children in India." We've ALL heard that one.
"What? I can't hear you. I gotta banana in my ear." It was my mother's favorite joke and we always said it when we couldn't hear something.
A guy walks into a bar with a banana in his ear, and the bartender says, "Hey, Mister, did you know there's a banana in your ear?" And the guy says.....
Fun topic, Cassy.
"There are starving children in the world who would love to eat that!" One time I even had the audacity to lift my plate to my Dad and say "Here send it to them."
As you can imagine that did not go over well. As an adult I wish I could send a lot of food to the starving children.
Great post Cassy!
"No running in the house". Where else can we run when it's snowing or raining outside.
"Eat your vegetables". Later I found out my mom just pushed her around the plate and neer ate any.
When we would ask what was for dessert Mom would say "W-A-S". Wait And See.
That's about it for me since Cassy took all the good ones.
Lindsay: Come on! There are many more. You're good at thinking up stuff like this!
Liz: The kids in our house were starving in Armenia. I always wondered how I'd send my left-overs to them.
Give me a break but I'll do the best I can. Just don't ask me to look before I leap
Okay folks, try these on for size-
Cheaters never prosper
Behind every good man is a better woman (and my plug) with a collie beside her
Tonights supper, tomorrows lunch
I'm not lost, I'm right here
What you're looking for is always in the last place you look
You'd lose your head if it wasn't attached
And my favorite- dog is mans best friend
OMG! How could we forget:
The grass is always greener.
What goes around comes around.
I'll take your word for the grass being greener. All I see is the white of snow, snow, snow and yes more snow
"There's no rest for the wicked and the good don't need it."
Yeah, right. That makes sense.
"Waste not, want not."
Shall I tell you about hoarding in my family? ;->
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