Welcome back! Last week, we talked about the difference between an allergy and a sensitivity. Most of us just have sensitivities. If you missed this blog and would like to catch up, click HERE.
This week, I’m going to post a fun blog that a reader actually suggested. I had posted a “helpful hint from dad” on social media, and she had asked me if there were any more helpful hints from mom or dad, and that led to a private discussion with a reader who said, “Oh, that would be fun…” So here I am, giving you the best of the best of all the hints my parents ever gave me.
I would love it if you posted your favorite tip from your mentor or parents in the comments below! Let’s have fun… because having fun leads to laughter and laughter leads to good health.
Forest Gump
Remember dear Forest? He coined the term, “My mama said…” He was right to listen to his mama! Moms have such great advice, don’t they? Too bad we don’t follow it until we are older and realize she was right!
Tips From Mama Guttormsen
My mama had some great tips. Here are just a few:
Never Pass Up A Chance To Use The Bathroom
This has saved me so many times! It never fails, you think it’s just a short drive home, but then there’s that accident that keeps you on the freeway for an hour or five. Always, always, take the opportunity to relieve yourself.
Only Put Water On Your Face
My entire life I’ve received generous compliments regarding my skin. I owe this not to good genes, but to my mama’s advice. She had the opinion that anything you purchase to put on your skin is created to bring you back for more, not solve the problem. She would say, “You weren’t born with a moisturizing kit – you have everything you need right there in your body”. She wasn’t wrong.
Stay Out Of The Sun
I spent my entire life keeping with the 15-minute rule. My mama felt that 15 minutes gave our bodies more than enough time to absorb Vitamin D, and the rest was just “wrinkles in your old age – do you want your skin to look tough and leathered? Then go ahead…sunbathe”.
I’m happy to report my latest dermatologist exam created gasps of joy as she surveyed my “milky white skin at 58 years of age – unbelievable!”. Thanks, mom.
My Favorite
When I was a little girl, she would plop me in the bathtub before bed, and as the tub filled with the dirt from my body, she would say, “hop out, we need fresh water”, and we would do it again. Her advice? “There’s never an excuse for being dirty. Keep your body clean, keep your mouth clean, and I don’t just mean your teeth…watch your words, and keep your mind clean by never doing anything to give you a guilty conscience. If cleanliness is next to Godliness, then that’s as close as you’ll come in this lifetime”.
Dad Was Just As Wise
My dad was always giving me good tips that over my lifetime have been so useful. I’ll share just a few of them.
Driving For The First Time
I was so excited to get the keys to my first car, and my face showed it. As I reached for those keys, he snatched them back, and in a very serious tone said, “Now wait a minute, here. This isn’t a TOY. This is a WEAPON. You could kill yourself or someone else with this car. Never forget that. You are driving a bomb. Okay?” It impacted me very deeply.
Another Driving Tip
My dad told me this about driving down the road, “Always be aware of skid marks in front of you. Where there are many skid marks, there have been many unexpected things happening. Maybe a wild animal crosses there on the regular, or maybe it’s an unseen private driveway…but something is creating those skid marks.”
Recently, I was driving down a country road and I saw skid marks up ahead. My mind immediately went back to his warning, and I slowed down. The next thing I knew, there was a large dog running at my front tires, snapping and barking. Had I not slowed down, I may have either hit the dog, or swerved into the ditch, neither an acceptable outcome in my opinion. Thanks, Dad.
“If You Don’t Have Your Word, You Have Nothing”
This one has been true over and over again. People who can’t keep their word lose so much respect. My dad used to say, “If you can’t keep your word, let the person know immediately, and you never should have said you could do something if you weren’t sure you could actually follow through”. It taught me over time to be very cautious about promising anything. Trust is easy to lose and hard to get back.
Advice On How A Man Should Treat A Woman…Or An Animal
My dad used to say, “Any man that has to hit a woman or an animal, isn’t a man, he’s a boy”. My dad was one of the strongest men I’ve ever known. WWII combat veteran, businessman, faithful husband, father, grandfather, and pet owner, and I never once saw him lay a hand on my mother, myself, my children, or any of the many pets we owned over the years. The message? Strong men keep their hands to themselves.
The Most Important One
This last one came from both of them. They lived it and passed it to their children. “You are no better than anyone else, but you are no less than anyone else either. Stay humble”. This piece of advice helped me to feel comfortable in my own skin and feel at home no matter who I was talking to. It gave me empathy and insight and I thank them for that head start in life.
Last Thoughts
Those who mentor us, raise us and teach us, leave lasting impressions, be they good or bad. The lessons we teach become the lives that are led. When passing on wisdom to the next generation, may you always remember that your words will live on in their minds forever, eventually being passed on to children, grandchildren, school kids, Scouts, sports teams, Sunday schools, Colleges, and Universities. Sometimes, they even get memorialized in a blog.
Choose those words carefully. Words matter.
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As always, this blog is not a replacement for sound medical advice. I am not a doctor. Please make an appointment to see your healthcare provider and put a good plan in place that works for you and the needs of your body.
That’s all I have for you this week, dear reader. I’ll see you back here next Wednesday to share another cup of coffee. Until then, be good to yourself and each other.
Mind, Body, Spirit…Osteopathic Doctors treat the whole person, not just the ailment. Is your PCP a DO? Would you like to learn more about Osteopathic Physicians? Click HERE!