I’m nearing the end of the book about Aunt Arie in my Friday reading series. Once you learn a bit about Aunt Arie you can clearly see why she was one of the most popular people ever featured by Foxfire. She might even be at the top of the list.

Aunt Arie was so kind, strong, and wise that her personality just leaps off the page as you read. I sure wish I could have known her.

At the end of each reading I share my thoughts about the text and point out connections to Appalachia. I make notes about the readings and every week I end up with sayings from Aunt Arie that I want to highlight.

Here’s a few of them.

• Guess work’s as good as any if it hits.
• Fierce words need mending.
• Love many and trust few and always paddle your own canoe.
• Ain’t no use to grieve after spilt milk.
• Ever bit of money has wings and will fly away.
• God does all things well.
• Right down to the shot.
• I love it better’n a cat loves sweet milk.
• You just have to do what you can.
• It cut no squares in my mind.
• Come in a lash of making me mad.
• To cap the stack.
• You can’t hurt with your thoughts if you don’t think them too loud.
• Life’s uncertain death’s sure.
• Someday I won’t have to walk in the mud.
• Some wouldn’t have no sense if they met it in the road.
• Smart as crickets and just as spry as a basket of chips.
• Always be kind to people.
• Experience is the school we all remember.
• You can’t twist the truth, it’ll be there today, tomorrow, and forever.
• To have a friend be a friend.

There’s much wisdom, hope, humor, and strength in the sayings I’ve shared.

Hard to pick a favorite, but a few that are really powerful to me:

• Guess works as good as any if it hits. Sometimes in this ole world we just have to take a leap of faith on this or that—the small and the big things in life. And sometimes our leap works out just fine.
• You can’t hurt with your thoughts if you don’t think them too loud. So true! All of us have random mean thoughts that go through our minds, but oh if we were just able to keep them inside and not let them out to hurt others.
• Some wouldn’t have no sense if they met it in the road. Yep!
• Experience is the school we always remember. The older I get the more I realize experience is the best teacher.
• Someday I won’t have to walk in the mud. What a testimony of faith and hope! I’ve been blessed with an easy life compared to most, but my heart breaks for those battling through the “mud” of this world. I pray they know beyond a shadow of a doubt they can have that same promise of someday living in a place with no mud.

I hope you enjoyed Aunt Arie’s sayings!

Last night’s video: Matt Had His First Tomato Sandwich of the Summer.

Tipper

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