For several months I’ve been sharing wisdom related sayings from the comments in my weekly live videos. Tony, a subscriber, has dubbed them WOWs.
Because of sharing them more folks are sending old sayings of wisdom my way. I get them in comment form, email form, and even letter form. I greatly enjoy them all!
Many of the sayings are ones I’ve heard my whole life. Others are new to me but common enough that several people share the same ones.
Recently I came across a WOW in the book Mountain Range A Dictionary of Expressions From Appalachia To The Ozarks written by Robert Hendrickson.
diving in shaller water
Taking a big risk. “You’re divin’ in shaller water when you talk to me like that.”
In Appalachia we often changed the “ow” ending of words to either an “er” sound like in the example or to an “a” sound. I would say “You’re divin’ in shalla water.”
Either way, the saying is very descriptive, colorful, and wise. You’ve got to be careful the water is deep enough when taking a dive (a risk) or you will be hurt.
I’ve never been one to dive when it comes to swimming. I was always too big of a chicken so I was left with running and jumping in for my fun.
I have watched Matt dive ever since I’ve known him.
In the early days of our courting he took ridiculous chances diving off the bridge at Sunburst where there was plenty of shalla water and not much deep water. He wouldn’t do that for nothing now.
If you asked Matt what changed his mind about diving off bridges like that he’d sum it up in one word: age.
In other words he gained enough wisdom or knowledge to understand he isn’t invincible and that a slight bobble could render him paralyzed or dead.
Being wary of diving in shalla water is definitely good advice when it comes to water and swimming, but it is also good advice when it comes to our every day lives and the decisions we make.
Last night’s video: The Easiest Frozen Biscuits, Frozen Waffles, & Matt Tries to Cure Me.
Tipper
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A more 21st Century expression for someone who “ain’t too swift” is to the effect of (exact wording may vary): “His brain came from the shallow end of the gene pool.”
Amen ! Lol .Love to you all !!!!
Matt you say “age” but “wisdom” is a synonym in this case. If I ever saw you I could tell you about that time I crawled head first into a dark hole under a rock and me with no light. Or about those two times I got “cliffted” with no way down. I read this last night in bible study. TIT2:06 “Young men likewise exhort to be sober minded.” I’ve heard an expression about “working your angel overtime” keeping fellas out of one scrape after another. Still, neither one of us would not have traded our dangerous growing up for any
city boyhood.
Tipper, my husband and I were watching PBS this afternoon. Imagine our total surprise when they announced the show was being broadcast from the Folk School in Brasstown, NC! The episode is “Crafts,” filmed at the school. It is so vety interesting. Itis from 2013 but still wonderful!
Shaller Wawder!!
Hey Tipper, I watched you make froze biscuits, I am lazy and no count and that is two of the few better things about me. I have been told all of my life if you will give a hard job to a lazy man, he will find the easiest way of doing it. With that being said, I have an easier way to make froze biscuits, I just buy a 20 pack of southern style Philsbury Grands or Mary B’ at the grocery store for about $5. I know they are not as good as yours. I’m teasing/messing with you.
My Daddy would say “he or she is a goodun” when holding a baby. My Grandfather always called me Giner. I enjoyed diving into the creek when I was a girl. I wouldn’t do it now. Actually I couldn’t do it now. But I can still remember how good the cold water felt.
The love you two share is such a treasure. I love the sparkle in your eyes, Tipper, when you look at him and his body language when he is around you. Precious, lasting love. I keep y’all in my prayers. I love y’all.
Enjoyed hearing about Matt’s wild streak, lol. When we are young, we don’t think. In talking about the words, we use “a” more than “er.” Yellow is yella. Fellow is fella. Window is winda and the list goes on. I do hear some “er” endings especially with names. I have a cousin who always called his wife, “Glender” in place of Glenda. I have a neighbor from up north that doesn’t understand why we say” pictures “instead of photos. I haven’t figured that one out yet 🙂
I had to laugh about Matt doing ridiculous things to impress Tipper in their courting days. Things a young/teenage boy in love will do to try to impress the girls. I knew a boy that jumped off the Cooley Bridge over the Saluda River when he was young and stove his neck up by hitting the bottom of the shalla river, all to impress the girls. This is on the Greenville/Anderson, SC county line and was a hangout for teenagers during the summer months years ago. Luckily he didn’t break his neck. When teenage boys and girls are together and a boy says “ Hey y’all watch this” go ahead and dial 911! That is my words of wisdom.
loved everyone’s comments. I have heard. Don’t dive into unknown waters.
I was watching comedian LeAnn Morgan on YouTube when she described how one of her dogs wollered in her bed. I honestly believe that was a slip of the tongue, as she looked a bit embarrassed when she follered up by saying, “Do we need an interpreter?” My grandkids used to dive from a cliff into the lake that was not shaller. I would say a silent prayer as their parents laughed. My prayers were answered the day a water patrol officer pulled up and threatened to take all the parents to jail if they allowed that to continue. Shaller water up to my waist is scary for this non-swimmer.
Only by Gods grace is Matt beside you today! My hubby would also dive off cliffs etc. he wouldn’t even think of that today! Praise the Lord He spared them!
Reading this made me think “when we jump into our daily lives without being rooted DEEP in God’s word we diving in shaller water.”
That is a good one! I am starting to think that for me anyway age is the best teacher. So many reckless things I did years ago that I wouldn’t want my children to do! They will find their own reckless risks no doubt and I pray they are mercifully protected as I was from ill consequences. Prayers for you all ❤️
I ain’t never dived mainly cause a handsome boy I knew got paralyzed diving and it killed any yearning of such I may have had. I have heard “you’re in shallow water” when you’re trying something high risk or not recommended. I may be a hillbilly but Murrman from NY calls a creek a CRICK and those YANKS have sayings we dont use. Holler, shaller, tater-we traded in our our “O” for “er” as quick as we left Europe for better hopes… And I’m delighted Matt gave up diving. I like diving in my covers at night or a good book… God bless you all and especially Granny and them babies!!
I have made up a list of words ending in “ow” that people outside Appalachia can’t seem to understand. If you would like to publish it here I can attach it to an email.
Ed, please do! Thank you 🙂
This one seems to be more relevant to my family than “You’re on thin ice” as we never get any ice on our lakes or ponds in my part of NC. I’ll use it with my boys and hopefully it will drive home both the literal and figurative meanings.
Tipper, we went up to Grandfather Mountain earlier this week and while driving home through Blowing Rock, saw one of the helicopters you mentioned trimming trees around the power lines. What an interesting sight to see all those blades up there!! That was a first for me. If I hadn’t read about it on here, I wouldn’t have known exactly what they were doing. Thanks for the heads up!
I love the saying that country music singer Kathy Mattea uses in one of her songs: “standing knee deep in a river, dying of thirst.” When I find myself complaining or having a pity party, that’s what I coach myself to avoid!
I’ve heard that expression before and always took it at face value.
My friends used to jump off the sunburst bridge quite a bit when we were teenagers….and my husband when we first got together. Not me though, I can’t swim a lick as it is plus I always told em somebody has to be alive to go get help when one of you idiots break your neck! Thankfully they never did. Now the risk taking meaning of that saying I took part in more than I’d like to admit but I’m pretty sure that phase of life is behind me now…I sure hope so anyway! Hope y’all all have a good day, prayers to everybody over that way
Some of us use ‘a’ and some of us use ‘er’ and it also depends on the word. Pillow, window, shallow, etc is mostly with ‘a’ but sometimes pillow and window is with er. No rhyme or reason I reckon. My aunt’s name is Emma and we call her Emmer. Love all the uses and sayings. My husband sends me a hillbilly word of the day and always says here’s another one of your words. They’re not my words, but my heritage! I love my heritage!
That is a “goodun”. When it came to “going out on a limb” or “divin’ in to shaller water”, my daddy was one to try if there was an inkling he might succeed at whatever. One of his favorite sayings when I would run some enterprising idea past him and if his reply was favorable would be, “I’d do it. Son, be like Columbus and take a chance”.