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I've been thinking about this quite a bit and I've decided that a number of the little old 'quotes' and 'sayings' which were instilled into me as a child have had a very positive influence on my life. Amongst them are biblical quotes (because of my christian upbringing / early beliefs) but many are old-fashioned sayings that help me remember everyday things and hold me true to my own moral compass.

 

I gave up my christian faith many years ago but I've never lost my trust in the particular (I suppose many would say idealist) christian viewpoint of how to relate to other people, even though I recognise the hypocrisy in many people and don't trust anyone bar my family.

 

Among the sayings / quotes I refer to regularly are:

 

Treat others as you would have them treat you

 

Be strong and very courageous (my bible fell open to this when I asked for a 'sign' for help when I was very depressed at 17)

 

Cut your cloth according to your means

 

A stitch in time saves nine

 

Make hay while the sun shines (I make a lot of 'hay' when I'm not depressed :rolleyes: )

 

Slow and steady wins the race

 

Wants don't get

 

If you don't ask you don't get

 

The grass is always greener on the other side

 

I before E, except after C

 

30 Days hath September, April, June and November. All the rest have 31 except February all alone, which has 28 days clear except 29 in each Leap year

 

If a job's worth doing, it's worth doing well

 

If at first you don't succeed, try try again

 

Lastly...my own saying. Again, this 'came to me' when I was at one of my lowest ebbs as a teenager and really needed to know a way forward because I never thought I would amount to anything. And that was 'Don't limit your horizons' and that has always been something I have referred to when I can't see a way forward :clap:

 

I know there are loads more but I can't think of them at the moment! They just pop into my head when they are required most of the time.

 

It would be interesting to know if anyone else has this method of recognising their own personal boundaries and parameters.

 

Lynda :)

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My current life mantra which is related to my triathlon dream of qualification for the world championships in Kona, Hawaii is;

 

"Some day I will not be able to do this. Today is not that day."

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Can't build Rome in a day

 

Early bird catches the worm

 

(I use similar sayings at certain times in my life - or as advice to other people as long as it doesn't seem too much of cliché - don't always get that right though :lol:)

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I found that metaphors are quite ambiguous tool in both messages’ comprehension and delivery. Nothing is explicit, nothing is open for scrutiny. Linguists call metaphors as devices for packing meaning implicitly. When we do metaphors , can I say that we try to impress ourselves or others , busy with maintaining our social identities? Just a thought.

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Really interesting points Tanya.

 

I agree that for me metaphors work best when they realate to the maintenance of a current position or behaviour, a case of I have done this before so I can do this again approach. Without doubt they play a role in helping me maintain my identity. Without any previous actions to attribute to a saying I feel they have little meaning.

 

My current 'Some day I will not be able to do this. Today is not that day' has been with me for over a year now. At first I was not sure about it as it felt a bit strange. As time has progressed and I have been through some very hard training sessions either long or in bad weather the meaning in its few words have grown to the point I find real strength from it. I think for these little strings of words to work in our lives we might need to invest in just one or two over an extended period of time if we do, then we might find real value in them, if not they kind of do sound like shallow cliches.

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I mainly use metaphors to further describe what I am trying to say - or to illustrate that something may be out of the ordinary... other than that I try to avoid them as if I used them too much people wouldn't know why I'm using them - although to be honest most people probably never consider why a person talks a certain way so my opinion on my own usage of language may be irrelevant as I am assuming everyone automatically knows what I know :lol: and I've frequently found out that this is the case, that people don't know implicitly and exactly what I am talking about and why - I still forget and assume they do though - regularly! :P

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I don't tend to quote metaphors aloud most of the time. In fact, I know how annoying it can be when people drop them into conversation (or at least I don't think I say them aloud too much - maybe I do! :P ) so I make a point of using another way of explaining my point of view.

 

Things like treating other people with respect may be that when I am tempted to retort with a sarcastic comment when someone is rude or sarcastic to me I think 'How would I like to be treated?' and then I may just ignore what has been said to me because the comment's intent is to goad or I may simply ask why the person has said what they have said. That little quote is just there, at the back of my mind, reminding me that I need to try to be a respectful (but not treated like a doormat) person in the situation. Incidentally, it's taken me a long time to get to the point where I am assertive enough to query people's intentions but I believe I have the right to do it now. I'm not saying that I don't at times fire a sarcastic comment back or am not at times rude but I try not to be because my underlying belief is that if people treat each other well then it makes for a better world! :D

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Like Darkshire, I tend to use metaphors but I do have some sayings

 

Many of the truths we cling to depend greatly on our own point of view - Obi Wan Kenobi, Return of the Jedi

The best plotter is one who plots alone - My Nan

Get in there you furry oaf! - Han Solo, Star Wars (used when my dog is misbehaving)

Life is a lemon and I want my money back - Meatloaf (me on a bad day)

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Life is a lemon and I want my money back - Meatloaf (me on a bad day)

I really like the "what about 'x' it's defective" section of that song - especially the last line "what about your future...." :devil:

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The thing is that for years I was seriously hooked on reading a New Testament every night before sleep. Do I need to tell you how many METAPHORS are there? At that time I felt very vulnerable and sensitive to my reading. I ‘knew’ that I found a ‘perfect’ logic, goodness and the most important THE ANSWERS I’ve been looking for. It felt like I had a direct line of communication with HIM or HER. Strangely enough I’m back to my atheistic basics after years of drifting in self-illusion of metaphorical ecstasy. Now I try to scrutinize the language I use because it affects how I think about life. BTW I’m very appreciative for this topic because it made me realise that neither of our uni linguists use metaphors in their speech. I need to ask them why. Don’t get me wrong, I like sayings!

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When in Rome, do as Romans do. This one I like to its banal pragmatism.

 

And 4 super-imperatives from Don Miguel Ruiz

1 Be impeccable with your word

2 Don’t take anything personally

3 Don’t make assumptions

4 Always do your best

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When in Rome, do as Romans do. This one I like to its banal pragmatism.

 

And 4 super-imperatives from Don Miguel Ruiz

1 Be impeccable with your word

2 Don’t take anything personally

3 Don’t make assumptions

4 Always do your best

I like these very much :)

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Nice... :lol:

 

To be honest I've never liked that phrase (about Romans) because people do different things everywhere, when you look hard enough! And then there's still a decision about who to copy, and although there are certain occasions when it applies (like in a museum where everyone is being quiet - its best to follow that) it's not fixed rule - in which case I'd rather make up my own :P

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Hi Darkshine,

It’s the matter of personal choice. As I said, every metaphor is a linguistic container for packaging meaning. Roman metaphor tells me that I should observe and perhaps copy common trends and practices in communication. It’s strategic. It’s survival.

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Hi Lynda,

I quoted these 4 agreements from Don Miguel Ruiz’s book. It’s a very fresh observation about human behaviour and self- conduct originated 2.5 millenniums ago.

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Hi Darkshine,

It’s the matter of personal choice. As I said, every metaphor is a linguistic container for packaging meaning. Roman metaphor tells me that I should observe and perhaps copy common trends and practices in communication. It’s strategic. It’s survival.

I guess lol - and sometimes it comes in handy, I just think it falls apart on further dissection and interrogation... maybe I'm being too literal :P

 

I like the "linguistic container for packaging meaning" idea though :thumbs:

Edited by darkshine

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