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| Do what you say you're going to do. If you're going to do something, do it right. |
My granddaughter's drawing of these nuggets of wisdom from my father is above. Loved passing these on to our next generation but very aware I still work to practice them daily myself.
It is my Dad's voice I hear whenever I find myself slipping into a 'that'll do' attitude, instead of doing a job right.
I remember one memorable garden spring planting. Dad sat in his wheelchair guiding my novice efforts at planting vegetables. As I whined about how difficult it is to isolate tiny carrot seeds into each spot, rather than dropping many (only to have to cull as they grow), Dad spoke up: "You only do the job once a year. Do it right." His voice remained in my head each year after he was gone as I planted my seeds.
I've had an overwhelming urge to write a book about my grandmother's life, capturing the many things she dealt with in daily life. Born in 1899, she cooked on a wood stove her entire life. Every house (even into the 1970s) had an outhouse. She witnessed the world change from horse and buggy to cars, then planes and, finally, rockets. Communication went from neighbours dropping in to radio and then tv.
I believe our generation is the last to bear witness to life pre-technology and I want to explain all of it to my grandchildren, even knowing how awe-struck they will be by much of it. Part of that story will be the inherent wisdom each generation possessed even without the benefit of Google.
The book may never get written but the conversations I have with my grandchildren allow me to share the stories and wisdom of generations before.
