Dad-isms #1

When my older daughter was in the 6th or 7th grade, she and her friends spent a lot of their weekend nights at a nearby roller skating rink. Stories soon came home about meeting boys and making out in dark corners. That's when I gave my now-famous 'If you give a mouse a cookie' speech to my daughter and her lip-locking friend about boys' not-so-secret desires (you know the story, 'If you give a mouse a cookie, he's going to ask for a glass of milk. When you give him the milk, he'll probably ask for a straw, etc.).

As my kids got older, I thought about what I'd like to leave with them (and what I'd already tried to dump on them) and developed my list of 'Dad-isms.' Dad-isms are quotes, lines from songs, advice I've received, advice I've given and just about any other bit of paternal preaching I could think of. From time to time, I'll share some with you (share with you? who's reading this besides me?).

Here's the first batch:

You gotta roll with the punches . . . George Bowden, Sr. (former boxer)

We've gotta roll with the punches. Learn to play all of our hunches; makin' the best of whatever comes your way. Forget that blind ambition and learn to trust your intuition; plowin' straight ahead come what may . . . Jimmy Buffett (Cowboy in the Jungle)

Be there; Play; Make Their Day; and Choose Your Attitude . . . FISH Philosophy (read the book)

If you sit by the river long enough, you will see the bodies of your enemies float by . . . Japanese proverb (that may be my favorite looking-back-at-life favorite)

Never give in, never give in, never, never, never, never -- in nothing, great or small, large or petty -- never give in . . . Winston Churchill

And a couple of mine (sort of anyway) . . .

Just remember: they can't eat you.

You don't have to run faster than the bear, just faster than me? What happens if the bear's still hungry? If you start something, give it your best shot.

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