WORDS OF WISDOM

I'm reading a book for Friends of the Library right now, Little Heathens, an autobiography about growing up in rural Iowa during the Great Depression. The author devotes a chapter to popular expressions used in her family, such as: "It's easier to keep up than catch up," "She's got a tongue that's loose at both ends," and "I was glad to see you come and I'll be glad to see you go." This got me to thinking about the little sayings I grew up hearing. Here are a few:

"Four on the floor." We kids had a tendency to rock back on chairs that weren't made for rocking. Mama Bore feared we would end up breaking a leg off one of them, especially as we got bigger and heavier, so she instituted this rule. All four chair legs had to stay put.

"Watch out for quiet guys. You never know where you stand with them." Mom thought the Louds Mouths were much safer to be with. If a guy couldn't make conversation, he'd just want to make whoopee--and that was a huge no-no and would give "Four on the floor" another meaning altogether.

"If you can't say anything nice, then don't say it at all." What kid hasn't heard this one growing up? Since I was the middle of five kids, I was constantly verbally sparring, name-calling, tattling, etc. with the siblings. In this case, being a Loud Mouth was not good. Geesh. Growing up can be so confusing.

"Well, you're not (insert name of some privileged friend of mine.)" This was usually the response I got when I wanted to do something a friend got to do, or go somewhere a friend got to go, or have something a friend of mine had--and there was no way in hell I was going to get my wish to come true. And I knew what Mom's answer would be before I even asked. Some dumb kids never give up. ("If at first you don't succeed, try, try again.")

This gem was plastered on the refrigerator door: "When I am right, no one remembers. When I am wrong, no one forgets." Boy, ain't that the truth. I can't remember anything of much good I did as a kid, but I can sure remember all the trouble I caused. "That's the way the cookie crumbles."