For Mother's Day: Junior - Mama Used To Say

(Even though I've enjoyed this song by Junior Giscombe for many years, seeing him on this YouTube video was the first time I've had a visual reference.)

My mother die a few years ago, and I often I think about lessons she provided through her sayings. One of her expressions seems like a translation from one of Shakespeare's characters. Mom often said "have your own" meaning don't borrow from other people. These words were as sicinnct as Polonius's "neither a borrower or lender be." As a result her children have a streak of independence. Another of mom's expressions, "treat other people's things better than you treat your own" is unique, I think.

Perhaps, most important was Mom's advice: "Know when to come home." The point was for her children to recognize when trouble was brewing and to come home before trouble started. Countless times as a youngster I had to tell friends that I had to go home when my I thought things were getting out of hand.

So, on this Mother's Day, I smile and remember some of the lessons from my first teacher, my mother.