Lectures from Dad

I am back in time, a teenager again with the power to tune Dad out.

He was “old world” old fashioned you know.  Out of date.

He was a European immigrant who became a naturalized American citizen and he created a life and a family in the country of his dreams

And when I was a teenager I could fool him into thinking I was always listening to his words of wisdom.

I must have been listening

because all these years later

I am remembering his lectures.

“Don’t overstay your welcome Darling,” he would say when I was to spend part of a summer with my Aunt and Uncle and young cousins.

“After 3 days, company smells like dead fish,” he said.   (What he was really saying was he would miss me terribly.)

But now I know my Dad’s lectures originated from love.

• “Sit up tall at the dinner table and eat as if you are royalty.” (If you act like a Queen you will be treated like one.)
• “A suitor should wear a white shirt and tie and kiss your mother’s hand.” (You will be happiest with a man who respects women.)
• “Do not neglect your education.  Learn a skill like typing – something you can fall back on  to earn a living.” (Don’t count on anyone but yourself to take care of you.)
• “Take time with your grooming.  Your hair is your crowning glory and every strand should be in place.” (If you care, everyone else will care too.)
• “Always be early for every appointment.”  (If you are prompt, people will respect you.)
• “Do not borrow.  Pay everything with cash.”  (Remain self sufficient so you will never be without.)
• Always look for the best and buy quality. (Well made things last longer and are better investments.)
• “Keep a clean house.  You should be able to eat an egg from the floor.” (Cleanliness is vital for good health.)

There are more words of wisdom of course, and I hope to remember and record them all.

For as old fashioned and out of date as Dad was,  the great part is his lectures always began and ended with love.

Daily Prompt: Lecture

Advertisement

Read Full Post »

In the Absence of Remarkable Beauty

Daily Prompt: The Mirror Crack’d

You wake up one morning to a world without mirrors.

How does your life — from your everyday routines to your perception of yourself — change?

I always feel more glamorous than I actually look in a mirror.

I wake up feeling beautiful!  I think I have long full, soft flowing hair, clear skin, and the lithe grace of a well rested body.

But mornings are full of surprises since the gorgeous woman I expect to see in the mirror has shocking locks of hair sticking straight up and out in wild spikes.  The wrinkles and spots are all still there too.  And any lithe grace somehow disappears leaving a body and face that needs work; a lot of work!

The face in the mirror is definitely shocking.

Without mirrors, blind combing could tame the savage beast except that smoothing one spike results in another popping up somewhere else.   True taming requires eagle eye observations in a mirror.  I even have a magnifying mirror next to a regular mirror to accomplish such tasks.

A little lipstick might create the illusion of youthful health too.   But without a mirror the application would  be via touch and feel and would undoubtedly go out of bounds for a Halloween House of Horrors image.

Sans mirrors I would probably not be married!

Would anyone see past all those flaws to my scintillating personality?

The upside is I would go through each day thinking I had long sparkling, under control locks, a peaches and cream complexion, a tiny waist and the vitality, vigor and strength to accomplish all my goals.

I would bound along feeling taller, stronger, younger, and of movie star beauty!

The rest of the world would whisper and snicker and I would wonder why.

And maybe my husband would marry me after all – for my goodness of character and talent for self delusion.

There is a valuable message in this Daily Prompt because it reminds me that I am who I am, and I would surely like myself a whole lot more without mirrors.

Read Full Post »