Brevity is the soul of wit

"Brevity is the soul of wit." Well, I don't think I have ever been "witty" or very funny for that matter and this probably also rounds out why most close relations wouldn't classify me as ever having been "brief"... but in the interest of your valuable time, I will scoot on to the point. I like quotes just like this one. Always have liked them. This is probably due to the fact that most of them have been passed to me by my grandfather who I ADORE. This man had me read Dale Carnegie during my tween years. Those were some very handy dandy quotes for a person just getting started in the business of life. My "papa" passes on to me his funny quotes too. "Life is so uncertain that it's often best to eat dessert first." I love that, don't you? One of my former employers passed on a gem to me right after my PC crashed and I lost my entire Instructional Design Project. I capitalize it to defy grammar and illustrate to you how HUGE the project was. His "witty" quip was that "things are always faster the second time you do them." Now, as a stay at home mother of four darlin's, this little quote has come in quite handy as I try to get through my personal rendition of the Groundhog Day movie. He also used to say that "common sense wasn't common" and this he credited to Rousseau.  Now, only one trip to Wal-mart will confirm that one for you folks, but I often find it true in places you wouldn't expect as well. I have to be reminded of this one often; "no good deed goes unpunished." Have I told you yet that I love to help? It's a little disease I have and it usually lands me in a pile of you know what. I am usually following this one in my pursuit of helping; "bloom where you are planted". Here's one from my father-in-law that I love; "do it like you meant it." This man is a father of seven children all grown now. There is a genius in this man's quotes. He also interspersed his quotes with this creative "cave man" language that I suppose helped him to retain their attention long enough to absorb the quotes when they were young. They all still remember this lingo today. I would tell you all about it but I can't pronounce any of these "words" and I don't have the "code" for what each one means. Secondly, and I can't explain this, somehow they are sacred and seem not to be appropriately revealed to us non-cave dwellers.  I can't wait for Mr. Darcy to start the cave man language with our darlin's. Here's one that I learned in doing our homeschool research for the darlin's; "There is a fountain not made by the hands of men." This is from David Albert who writes about how children grow, learn, and flourish from the curiosity and drive welled up in each of them. I love this and I think of it often when my darlin's come to me with each new discovery. I think quotes are sort of like poems. They are knowledge pools that swirl around a fountain of realization. When your eyes are opened and you see something clearly, you want to share it-perhaps you cannot help yourself-and so the quote is born. It becomes trite over time as it is spoken repeatedly, but I try to remember the first time it was said and how true it was-the way you hear something that resonates with you for the first time. My grandfather told me a long time ago that "the accomplishment and success of one was the reflection of many." I think quotes are part of that knowledge heritage. As we set out to uncover the best person that we can be, how many small things touch us in crafting the single accomplishment we become? This leads me to Old Abe; "Whatever you are, be a good one."
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