When I was prepubescent, my grandmother said to me, "Don't be a kissing post." This meant that a lady does not kiss just anyone....Play hard to get.. this advice holds true to today.. Make mystery in your love life...
Hah! The only advice I can remember from my grandmother was, "Jimmy, stop playing with yourself!" I was only 4 or 5 at the time and had no idea what she meant, but the admonition always stuck with me. I was fully clothed at the time, but I imagine my hand must have strayed to a location she did not approve of! ;-)
I was very young when both of my grandmothers died so I have very few memories and do not recall any advise. I can imagine though that my Mother's mother may have said, "You will find it advantageous to stay out of my flower garden." I recall her being fussy about it. This was in Texas hill country. I can recall her getting my Grandfather to shoot some armadillos that had made the mistake of getting in her garden.
My Greandmother always said the best advise was: Were you there? Did You see it and did you hear it with your own ears, if not then be careful of what you say about what you did not see or hear if you were not there. Sage advise from a fantastic Grand Lady. I miss her but I know with her sense of adventure she is playing Glitch in the hear after :)))
my grandmother said "don't crack your knuckles or you'll get knuckles like mine" which scared the living hell out of me (i was probably 5 at the time). i can honestly say i've only cracked my knuckles accidentally since then.
She also showed me a box she saved of string too short to use... She was extremely thrifty. She advised that I should never spray perfume on my neck or behind my ears when I was dressed in good clothes... Do it while you are nekkid....
My grandmother taught me "If you have nothing good to say about someone/something then say nothing".
It's brilliant and I have used it on a few occasions where I was asked my opinion and didn't agree, "My grandmother always said if I had nothing good to say, say nothing" so I choose to say "nothing".
She also taught me that horses sweat, gentlemen perspire and ladies glow :)
My dear grandmother gave me lots of advices. The one that stuck with me is this:
Dont have such a rush to experience everything at once, take your time! I hope the translation from swedish to english is to understand. She was 97 when she left us.
If the dog bites you...For Heaven's sake!! Don't bite her back!!!
(They always told me to bite my brothers back...so why was the dog so privileged?!) :P
In regards to not playing with yourself, my uncle said he was told by his grandfather, "Keep your hands in your pockets and your peter in your pants. "
The best advice my grandmother (or anyone else for that matter) has ever given me: "Don't cook bacon while naked."
Taken literally, its fantastic advice all on its own. If you look a little deeper it means think about what you're doing and the consequences and try to be prepared. At least that's what I get from it when I try to be deep.
Just to share; my paternal Grandmother taught me to pray. She prayed on her knee's three times a day, everyday! With no exaggeration, when she passed on, she had a smile on her face, like it was wonderful!
My maternal Grandmother taught me to cook and wore beautiful aprons! She too was prayerful and helped other's alway's.
They didn't have a saying, they taught me by example! Did I follow their lead? Yup!
I have it on good authority that RM parades around nude in front of Hank all the time.
This is with the bedroom door locked of course and the curtains drawn.. How else can you explain that they have been happily married 15 years..?
My grandmother ,the fine lady she was ,came to me in a realistist dream and said to me"Don`t forget to say the grace" my child was told this also and we say it every day .
These are unbelievably beautiful remembrances of our grams.. I knew from Granny I had uncondtional love. She said, " Beth, even if you (GOD forbid) murdered someone I would still love you."
When she was 95 my grandmother told me, "It's the strangest thing. No matter how old I get, I still feel like I'm 18 on the inside". That gives me hope.
I found a pencil at my grandparents house to draw with, and noticed the eraser was missing. When I asked what I should do I was told " Just don't make a mistake"...
And my boss wonders why I'm a perfectionist..
No gram, but mother said "never do anything that you would be embarrassed by if I walked in the room" of course I did but it was and still is in the back of my mind all these years later.
My great grandmother taught me that food is the great common bond that brings people of disparate opinions, life stages and goals to the table. If you cook with love, and share what you have cooked with those you have invited, you can come to agreements that you might not have otherwise.
My grandmother taught me that loyalty should be fierce, love should be unconditional, forgiveness is a gift you give yourself, we teach people how to treat us and that your yes is only as good as your no.
As a result of these pieces of wisdom, I feed my project teams and business partners, make sure I mean what I say and say what I mean and that I treat others according to how I wish to be treated.
LOVE this thread!
When telling my grandma about my (ex)husband being so worried about the shade being up in the bedroom (upstairs), afraid someone would see in.. she said "If they've never seen it before they won't know what it is; if they've seen it before it's nothing new."... my grandma is NOT a foot loose, fancy-free kinda lady so this was a delight! I think about it often when i'm worried someone might be able to see in the house :)
@ greenkozi - I didn't dare to say in my grandmothers hearing that I was bored, she could always find something for me to do. And expected it to be done!