Wise Words

My mom used to say (and I think this was from her mom and even her mom's mom) when we were leaving on a trip or staying with another family:

Be pretty if you are,
Be witty if you can,
But be cheerful if it kills you!

Someone once told me that this explains a lot about my personality--I'm not sure how to take that!

The matriarchs

I am blessed with fabulous women in my ancestry. Wise, witty, generous, spunky, smart, sometimes fiery, always authentic--I've got a rich supply of role models on the branches of my family tree, including aunts, grandmas, great-grandmas, mom, sister. They are my mental pantheon of matriarchs. I crave their wisdom and advice, in person or through scouring their journals. To pay tribute, I'd like to share some of their insights. It might even turn into a weekly feature...we'll see.

This is from my great grandma Brockbank, fondly known as Grandma B, mother to nine daughters:

"Relax and enjoy your children. 99% of them turn out all right anyway. Just let your memory go back to all the obnoxious little boys and girls you used to know and think of them now. They're not delinquents. They're married now and going to work each morning, coming home at night to work in the yard, play with their children, go out with friends...they are the salt of the earth and yours will be among them, so love them and stop worrying. Especially ease up on the oldest one. My, we expect a lot of the first one. We set out to show the world what we can do, and it is a wonder they survive at all with our constant, erratic, unreasonable supervision. It is a good thing that children are resilient and so loyal. They forgive us and love us anyway."

See? Wise!