Another Handful of Aphorisms

Here are another handful of aphorisms - those short, pointed sentences that express a wise or clever observation or truth.

Money will buy a fine dog but only kindness will make it wag its tail.

Seat belts are not as confining as wheelchairs.

I've reached the age when 'happy hour' is a nap.

Do you realize that in 40 years we'll have thousands of old ladies running around with tattoos?  And rap music will be 'the Golden Oldies'!

Life isn't tied with a bow, but it's still a gift.

Sad for loss

Without seeming to come across as a bit morbid, I have been aware of the mention of deaths in the news lately.  Apart from the ever-present awareness of our military who die while working in other lands, there have come to our notice a number of others.  It was sad to hear the other day of the death of indycar driver Dan Wheldon whose tragic end came during a race.

Not many days before that we heard of the loss of Steve Jobs who personified the Apple company and is linked to so many of their technological gadgets that have changed the lives of so many people.  

Yesterday people were remembering the 96 fans who died at the Hillsborough football stadium 20 years ago, seeking answers to appease their grief.

It is not my intention to discount the pain suffered by so many at the death of loved ones but I couldn't help thinking of how many deaths go unnoticed because either they are not of celebrity status or their deaths don't have tremendous consequences in the world at large.  Yet the pain and devastation they bring are just as great to those around them.  It reminded me of a poster I saw shared on Facebook.

As I said at the beginning, I do not wish to minimize the loss of people we learn about in the news but I wonder how God must feel about the great loss and waste of so many lives that are lost due to war, famine, slavery, poverty and corporate greed.  What difference would they have made to the world, how would they have enriched our lives if only they had been given the opportunity?  I thank God for those who have enriched my life in so many ways but am aware of so many who seem to go unnoticed.

Aphorisms

Aphorism: a short, pointed sentence that expresses a wise or clever observation or a general truth.    Here are a few:


A good time to keep your mouth shut is when you're in deep water.

How come it takes so little time for a child who is afraid of the dark to become a teenager who wants to stay out all night?

Why is it that at a class reunion you feel younger than everyone else looks?

Scratch a cat ... ... ... and you will have a permanent job.

No one ever says 'It's only a game' when their team is winning.

Dependence

Learning to depend on others, for me is something I need to learn and become accustomed to.  It seems that it has often been me that is there to help others out but now the shoe is on the other foot, so to speak.  For those who read my blog regularly, you will know that last week, I had a bit of a hiccup in my health (See entry for September - 'Change of Plans')  I am pleased to say that the medication that the specialist has prescribed for me is having the desired effect and I am now feeling much better.  But some things that I always managed to do need to change.  I need to simplify my life!  


One thing I always enjoyed was working in the garden although lately I admit that the length of time I could do this was gradually getting less and less - I just seemed to run out of energy.  So now, my offspring have told me NOT to do it any more but to get someone in to help.  I must confess that I don't always do as they ask but this time I did and so yesterday it was arranged.  Here in the southwest, it is still mild and the garden still needs some attention before the winter sets in.  So we have arranged a couple of visits to tidy it all up before the cold weather and to resume again in March.

Then yesterday, my computer rebelled!  I was checking someone's blog when suddenly it became a screen full of vertical lines and after a few seconds switched off.  I unplugged everything and plugged it all back in again and the same thing happened.  I tried again this morning only to find that the computer hadn't had a change of heart - it just didn't want to do anything!  Fortunately my son who shares the house with me has a new computer and so for the time being I am able to access my account on his.  Phew!  Now I am dependent on him for access to his room when he is out so I can use his computer and keep up to date with everything and everybody.

We (at least I) can become so used to things the way they are that we don't always realise just how much we depend on things continuing in the same way until suddenly life pulls us up with a jerk and makes us reassess the way things are done and seek an alternative even if it is only temporarily ... ... ... and never to take anyone, any thing or any circumstance for granted.     

Style?

You see many magazines and articles about style.  The adverts bombard you everywhere – what clothes to wear and what not to wear.  There are programmes about how to look good and how to make the most of your particular shape.  Others endeavour to give you a makeover so you can look 10 years younger.

But the other day I saw an article that I found amusing and puzzling.  It said ‘How to fake unkempt bedhead hair.’  It was mainly telling you just how you could achieve the ‘sexy unkempt look with minimum effort’.  I found it funny to think that anyone would really want to go out looking as though they had just got out of bed and hadn’t at least tidied their hair.  Then I was puzzled that people might even consider it looking sexy and that they would go to great efforts to achieve the said look. 

The model in the above photo actually paid a lot of money and went to great lengths to have her hair look like that!  They were trying to tell you how to do this with minimum effort.  Surely if you really want to go out looking as though you have just got out of bed without doing your hair, then the least effort of all would be – DON’T DO ANYTHING!  What effort do you need to make at all?  Hmmm.  Am I missing something?