Gems of Wisdom from our parents

"You're as God made you if you aren't as you ought to be"
Made no sense to me as a child. Makes no sense to my children now.

I had lots of advice from my mum.
Look before you leap.
Think twice then think again.
A fool and his money are soon parted.
I ignored it all.

‘All our troubles are self inflicted’ said with a smile (thanks dad), for minor moans. Sometimes basically true - as in I chose who to marry, to have children, to take that job…

Many others here I recognise. Think I’ve passed most of them on

poshpaws

My Dad used to tell me "before you say anything first ask yourself, Is it true? Is it kind? Is it necessary? And if the answer to any one of those is No, then don't say it."

It's a pity the Johnson didn't run that through his head before he made his nasty comments about Savile.

My parents had several stock phrases; stop moaning or the wind'll change and your face will stay like it,
a starving child in Africa would be grateful for that (my cold, lumpy custard that I had been crying over for hours? Really?)

Shinamae it was" Planted a feather and thought a hen would grow" in my part of the world

poshpaws i like that.

A place for everything and everything in its place.

My Dad used to tell me "before you say anything first ask yourself, Is it true? Is it kind? Is it necessary? And if the answer to any one of those is No, then don't say it."

It was the other bits that got me into trouble ?

Laugh and the world laughs with you, cry and you cry alone. So true.

BBbevan

My mother only ever gave me one piece of advice. It was“Never show a man your shoulders”.

She never said anything about the other bits.

????

BBbevan

My mother only ever gave me one piece of advice. It was“Never show a man your shoulders”.

She never said anything about the other bits.

Oh wow, that's made me laugh out loud and scare the dogs

My mother was a wild child herself and never offered pearls of wisdom.

But my friend's mother always told us to never trust a man in white shoes.

'Be sure your sins will find you out' and 'stop crying or I'll give you something to cry about'. And god, did she meant it with the latter one!

When I said to my mum " I cannnn't" my mum would reply There's no such word as CAN'T

My mums favourite was You've made your bed now lie on it. She also meowed like a cat if I was being nasty about someone.
DH mum answered his many questions with Eliphano[hell if I know]he thought it was an animal.

“If at first you don’t succeed, try, try and try again” was something my Nan said.

BBbevan

My mother only ever gave me one piece of advice. It was“Never show a man your shoulders”.

She never said anything about the other bits.

You must have alluring shoulders!??

“Self last, others first.”
“Don’t care was made to care.”
“The Lord helps those who help themselves.”
Not bad advice really.

My mum used to say “There’s always been rats and mice, and there always will be”.

Her way of saying that some will always have more than others, some will be wealthier, and you just have to accept it and not begrudge others better off than you.

Don’t spend your life being bitter and envious.

My mother only ever gave me one piece of advice. It was“Never show a man your shoulders”.

She never said anything about the other bits.

Pounds*!

My father would quote Mr Micawber from David Copperfield;

“Annual income twenty pounds, annual expenditure nineteen nineteen and six, result happiness. Annual income twenty pounds, annual expenditure twenty ponds ought and six, result misery.”
I’ve always followed this advice.

Sticks and stones expression I never really got that either. As a red head I endured insults no end. I was a pretty tough girl so I could handle it but my son couldn’t he was quite sensitive as a boy. I used to tell him to point out a child’s worst feature big nose etc so he could retaliate. (Without ending up in a fight of course just enough so he could walk away instead of being intimidated) . It did work as he grew into a very confident young man.

GrandmaSeaDr.... sorry cant see the last part of your 'name'....

I too use that phrase put my face on, i never give it the correct explanation of makeup.....

Im sure there are many more but at this precise moment in time, my mind a blank !

Dad used to say, ‘treat every other driver on the road as a fool’. Mum’s favourite refrain was ‘what will the neighbours think?’