Monday, Monday
It’s Monday morning and I’m headed to work. I’d like to say I’m smiling, but it’s hard to do that and groan at the same time. It’s the end of summer and I have to admit going back to work after a two-month hiatus is damn tough. Jayne Rylon and I were talking the other night and she mentioned being glad she worked year-round. She said she was certain she’d NEVER be able to get back into the groove of work after such a long break. She joked it was hard for her to return to the weekday grind after a lousy two-day weekend!
While I agree that it is hard, I had a bit of a revelation this summer. My grandma always said “the less you do, the less you want to do.” Man-alive, truer words were never spoken. At the beginning of the summer, I was still in my “work” frame of mind and I found myself getting up early, cleaning my house, writing like a fiend, entertaining friends. The longer the summer went on, the more sluggish and lazy I became. I swear, by the last week of summer, I was lucky to wake up by nine and it was a miracle if I managed to eat lunch and pick up the house by the time my hubby got home in the early afternoon.
I’ve decided that without my EDJ, I’d never be able to write another book. The more active I am, the more I can accomplish. So…while I’m depressed about having to get up at 5:30 a.m. again, it’s good for me. And…it’s just another example of a time when I have to admit, my grandma was right.
I’m wondering…what little life lesson’s have your elders passed on to you and have you discovered them to be true as you’ve grown up?
International Heat 
August 23, 2010 at 6:28 am
It won’t get done if you don’t start. I can’t tell you how often I will sit and look at something that needs to get done and remember that. I’m still looking for that magic genie tht will clean my hosue.
August 23, 2010 at 6:32 am
LOL. If you find that magic genie, send him my way.
Very true words though! Need to keep that in mind as I struggle to get through this current WIP. Looking at the file doesn’t seem to be getting any words on the page. Dammit.
August 23, 2010 at 7:23 am
One gem that my mom likes to toss out is: “You decide the kind of day to have.”, usually after me cussing & fussing because I’ve managed to drop, snag, tear, or lose just about EVERYTHING before leaving the house for the EDJ…lol
August 23, 2010 at 8:05 am
My Mom’s favorite, “Everything happens for a reason.” Whenever something happens or doesn’t happen my Mom breaks out that old chestnut from her mother.
She also always tells me to “kill them with kindness” whenever someone was hassling us in shcool.
I want Terri’s magic genie after you.
August 23, 2010 at 9:29 am
Two sayings floated arouond our family for as long as I can remember. (1) God never gives you more than you can handle. (Sometimes I want to stamp my feet and say I’ve handled enough already!). (2)Be c areful who you step on on the way up. They’re the same people whohvae to catch you on the way down. That was my grandmother’s favorite and it’s been stuck in my head all my life.
August 23, 2010 at 10:41 am
The only plans you make are doctor’s appointments. Try to be flexible as much as possible since plans do have a way of changing when you have kids. 🙂
August 23, 2010 at 11:17 am
I can’t think of any but I will use the ones I read here to tell my kids. I hate having to work year round or any time. My kids keep telling me to quit or get fired so I can find a job closer to home so I can be with them more.
August 23, 2010 at 11:23 am
nothing ever comes easy, if you want it work for it. Oh and how I feel that statement lol.
August 23, 2010 at 11:44 am
Life’s a bitch and then you die.
Work hard, and every once in awhile it pays off.
Finding the good in any situation isn’t a mark of eternal optimism; it’s a mark of a desire to not give in to the pessimism.
The Rule of Three happens every day, both good and bad, and how we handle each one speaks of our character.
Okay, so positive and less positive things. But all true, I feel. And no, my elders didn’t exactly prep me for the real world; that’s all life experience right there.
August 23, 2010 at 11:53 am
My mom’s favorite when I was growing up was also “God never gives you more than you can handle” along with “this too shall pass”. Of course her main reason for saying this was usually my dad, lol. I’m gonna have to remember your grandma’s words of wisdom when I get frustrated about getting nothing done. I always thought when my kids left home for college I’d have lots of time to get things done. Needless to say since the youngest left, 3 yrs ago, I haven’t accomplished much – little bits but nothing major. I have 3-4 days off with my 12hr shifts but can’t seem to get my stuff done, everyone else always needs something right now and can’t wait. What gets me is then they are usually the ones asking if I’ve done such and such yet…oh well one day….
I need to get on the list for Terri’s magic genie too
August 23, 2010 at 12:17 pm
When I was a know it all teenager, my Dad would say “the older you get the smarter I’ll be”. Naturally, I thought that was a really stupid thing to say, at least until I got older and understood exactly what he meant.
August 23, 2010 at 12:31 pm
I was a teenager when I first met my grandmother. And this was only the one time, but I always remember the words of wisdom she imparted to me: “Experience is the best teacher.” She said this after an accident happened at the family table during dinner, and I thought how cool she was when all the other adults were angry over the incident.
I apply this whenever I feel “chicken” about asserting myself.
August 23, 2010 at 2:28 pm
OK I’m not remembering any words of wisdom that were imparted. My grandmother tried to tell me once that eating carrots would give me curly hair. She lied, but I like carrots now, lol. I’m sure I was told something about procrastination (one of my biggest faults), but I don’t remember. Maybe I said I’d write it down later, lol.
August 23, 2010 at 4:00 pm
LOL! Great words of experience, everyone! My mom’s another who has said and shown by example how to live generously. We didn’t have a whole lot growing up, but we still had more than enough to share; this was even more true for my parents, and it’s something I’m trying to show my kids, too.
August 23, 2010 at 5:13 pm
My grandmother’s old adage was, “those who hesitate are lost”. She was a gem and whenever I hesitate about trying something new, I remember her words.
August 23, 2010 at 6:24 pm
Maribear… you realize I only said that to make myself feel better right? Otherwise I’d like drown myself in the bathtub or something equally dramatic 🙂 You’re going to do fine back at work as soon as you forget what freedom tastes like!
August 23, 2010 at 10:39 pm
Listen more than you talk. There is a whole wealth of information out there, about all the people in your life, if you just listen for it.
August 23, 2010 at 10:52 pm
OMG, I hated hearing it as a kid but when my dad gave me a chore and I didn’t do it right he would always say, ” If you did it right the first time, you’d only have to do it once.” His other saying was ” Anything worth doing is worth doing right.” I learned that lesson the hard way and soon discovered if I did it right I didn’t spend all day doing something. Now I tell my kids my own version, if only they’d learn it, ” Anything worth doing is worth doing right and anything worth doing is worth doing right the first time.”
Zina
August 23, 2010 at 11:19 pm
My dad always tells me never to make plans that are set in stone because you never know what will happen from one day to the next. He also tells me to be ready for anything…bad and good…and don’t let it surprise. It seems to work. Sometimes you have to just roll with the tumbleweeds….or maybe that’s in them. 😀
August 24, 2010 at 9:10 am
I too grew up hearing “God never gives you more then you can handle” Oh Really, lol
Then it was my Mom’s favorite to say to all her kids “Just get through today”
and “always tackle the hardest job first and get it over with”. Well they have gotten me through much in my life but sometimes it’s darn hard.
Carol L.
Lucky4750@aol.com
August 24, 2010 at 2:30 pm
There are many words of wisdom floating around in my family, but the one I found to be really true and will always remember my favorite grandma told me: “Willst Du einmal werden alt, halt Füße warm und Kopf kalt – If you want to become old, keep your feet warm and your head cold.” Well, keep a cool head makes more sense but doesn’t rhyme 😉
August 24, 2010 at 3:57 pm
My mum always says that if you feel no shame then do whatever you feel like doing. She always says that to me when I complain about bosses and other interesting people that I meet everyday 🙂 She would always say; They are shameless and if you feel no shame… well you get my drift.
She is also super organized and active and I feel like such a slob next to her, so I totally understand about putting things off.
August 24, 2010 at 5:40 pm
Like Carol L, I often heard “God never gives you more then you can handle”. Many times I questioned that and when I think I can no longer take “it”, the sun emerges through the clouds and I’m able to move on.
August 25, 2010 at 10:59 pm
My parents moved across the country from their families after they married so I was never around my grandparents very much. Short visits every couple years, but none since I hit junior high. And you know kids never listen to the parents.
So no pearls of wisdom from my elders.
Do have one that I find to be true. Read it in a book once(can’t remember which one now)and it stuck with me.
“Life is what happens while you’re making other plans.”
August 26, 2010 at 12:39 am
My mom’s favorite is “Life is what you make it.” I’ll admit that it sounds good on paper but I had never grasped the true meaning of it until I let myself get back to what I love doing the most, which is writing. I had stopped doing it for the longest time and somehow in my mind thought that my dreams would somehow work themselves out on their own. I never realized that I actually had to get moving in order to make them come true. 🙂
August 27, 2010 at 6:00 am
I do not remember who told me but “don’t sweat the small stuff, and it is all small stuff” gives perspective on many days.