Bob-isms

It's funny, the things you think about as you head into something you know is just a bit bigger than you are. For me, whenever I sit on the precipice of something I know will leave me changed, I can't help but think back to the other moments in my life that are of a similar vein. These thoughts inevitably take me back to some of my favorite Bob-isms. Bob was my step father, but more than that, he was a profound force in my life. Unfortunately, he died when I was in high school. He was notorious for knowing exactly what to say when the situation called for it (others might argue he said the wrong thing, but I disagree. He said what needed to be said, not necessarily what people wanted to hear). A piece of me will always miss him terribly. As an adult now, I often wonder what he would say to me if he were alive. It's not hard to imagine; most of the time I can still hear his voice as if he were sitting next to me. It's actually become more clear as I've gotten older. So much of what he told me didn't have nearly as much application then as it does now.

One of my favorite Bob-isms was "Ann, (he always called me Ann) you know-- they can kill you, but they can't eat you." Macabre, but really, he meant it in the "life can knock you down, but ultimately, you're the one who decides who gets the last laugh" kind of way. Amongst all of his sayings, that is one of the ones I hear most regularly in my head, and no matter how challenging the situation I'm facing is, when I think of that it always brings a smile to my face. I wish he was going to be there this weekend, but I say that about a lot of things I've done since he died.

Some of my other favorite Bob-isms include:
"They were just pick'n fly shit out of pepper." (usually referencing meetings at work that were a waste of time)

"Ann, you have to bring your own self esteem to the table. No one is going to bring it for you."

"It ain't easy being green." Yes, technically he stole it from Kermit the Frog, but it was still effective.

"Find someone who shares your same values, people grow and change, but values stay the same."

"Team sports are ridiculous." I think it was his way of saying, don't lean on others for things you should do yourself... or maybe he just really hated team sports.

"Don't get married until you know who you are."

"One in four people isn't going to like you. Get over it."

"You can make some of the people happy all of the time, and all of the people happy some of the time, but you're never going to make all of the people happy all of the time."

"Always be intellectually curious."

There are many, many others that I hear as I go through my days, but when Sunday morning rolls around, you know I'll be thinking "they can kill you, but they can't eat you."