During a recent conversation among friends, we shared a laugh - actually quite a few - thinking about all of the wisdom our mothers had passed along to us. We decided to call them 'momisms'. You know, all of those little tips that moms universally seem to share, such as "always wear clean underwear because.........". All of us realized that, even at our ages, which ranged between fifty and probably early seventies, we still could hear our mothers' voices ringing clearly in our heads at various times. We realized that we never knew when a 'momism' would pop into our consciousness but that they did, on a regular basis.
One woman said that even though she would never think of leaving her house without every article of clothing changed from the previous day (get my drift?) her mother's voice was with her every morning as she dressed, exhorting her to "Put on clean undergarments!" Other exhortations the women remembered included "Be sure to walk with the sharp end of the scissors pointed down."; "Don't sit too close to the television. You'll go blind."; "Never cross your eyes. They'll stay that way."
I've tried to think of 'momisms' that I have shared with my own children but none come to mind. Of course, if I were to ask them, which I think I will, they would probably have a long list. I wonder if the 'momisms' have changed much through the generations? Obviously, the television's invention added a 'momism' that would have not been in existance prior to the boob-tube's entrance onto the American family's stage and, I'm certain that future generations will have 'momisms' that develop from inventions that we have never heard of. Something like, "Don't point that ray gun at Fluffy. He'll disappear!"
I hope that future Fluffys and Fidos live safe and lengthy lives. Who knows what legacies we moms have passed along to our children or future mothers will pass along to theirs?
Probably the most memorable 'momism' I carry with me to date has saved me from many a problematic moment:
"Don't eat yellow snow!" You shouldn't, either.
Ancora imparo
