Old Wives’ Tales: Some Have Value!
We were at grandma’s house. My three children were playing outside. I was in the kitchen helping to prepare dinner. Then I heard grandma scolding my children. “You can’t sit on the steps. They’re concrete,” she told them. I rushed to the door and told my husband’s petite mom that it was okay for the kids to sit on the steps. “If they do,” she said, “they might get hemorrhoids!” She added that everyone knows you get hemorrhoids from sitting on concrete. She’s kidding, I thought. But I was wrong. She was serious.
“What’s a hemtoid?” asked my then four-year-old son. I didn’t explain; I just told the kids to come inside. And I didn’t offer opposition to grandma’s assessment of the danger of concrete. She was a collector and true believer of old wives’ tales. No amount of scientific proof would change her mind.
If you sneeze more than three times, you will die. This was another of her steadfast beliefs and the one that scared my kids the most. After three sneezes they would hold their breath, their nose…they would do anything to avoid death. It didn’t matter that their daddy often sneezed as many as five times in a row and was still alive. They didn’t want to chance that fourth sneeze.
I tried to explain that grandma just had some funny beliefs and not to worry about anything she said. This was a woman who filled her house with plastic flowers because real flowers might bring in all sorts of insects. This was grandma and, aside from her strange beliefs, she was a loving woman, always sporting a big smile.
New wives' tales
Now I’m not saying that all old wives’ tales have no value. I have learned that many are true. And I have even learned, sometimes the hard way, that most elders are full of wisdom. Drinking cranberry juice to lessen yeast infections is a remedy first discovered by some old wife. And wrapping a splinter in some gauze with a small piece of bar soap does help in the removal of this painful intruder.
And we are still benefiting from old wives’ tales, some of them not so old. Two “new wives’ tales” work, really work. My sisters swear that sleeping with a bar of unwrapped soap in their bed prevents charley horses. I tried this and neither my husband nor I have been stricken with this pain while sleeping. And my husband is prone to charley horses!
Another new tip, which is destined to become an old wives’ tale in future generations, is a remedy for coughs, colds and blocked sinuses. A jalapeno a day not only keeps the doctor away, but a number of respiratory/nasal conditions. Take small bites of one small hot pepper. Sure your mouth will be on fire for awhile, but it will go away if, after the last bite, you drink some vegetable juice. Sounds drastic, but it works. Really!
Heard a good one?
Now it’s your turn to add to the list of new old wives’ tales. Tell us about your remedies. We all need a little help!
Comments
I have found that a great cure for hiccups is to hold your breath while taking tiny sips of water for as long as you can.
Thought I'd add in one that actually works!
Posted by: Jessica Garofalo | October 26, 2006 11:22 PM
CNMidwives tales
Cranberry juice is for UTI's not yeast. It works by acidifing the urine...1000mg of Vit C will also work.
For yeast use yogurt pills or yogurt with active cultures.
You do not need to have a period every month if you are on the pill.
Posted by: Kat Meyer | October 30, 2006 10:11 PM
This is hilarious! My mom gave me that same line about sitting on the cement FOREVER! I never heard it from anyone but her, so I assumd she made it up so I wouldn't get dirty!
OK, here are a few of her other pearls of wisdom: It's better to put just a few items in the washer at a time so "the washer won't have to work so hard." But mom, then you have to do so many more loads... "Doesn't matter, the fewer items, the less work the washer has to do."
It's not safe to have the car's gas tank full while it's parked in the garage because it could blow up. It's not good for the car to have it parked in the garage with very little gas in it because moisture can get in the tank and ruin the car. Seriously, can you imagine the time it would take to constantly keep your tank half full?!?!?
I can't wait to wow my son with these tidbits when he's older! Just to give him something to share with his friends and likely his therapist!
Posted by: Bonita | October 31, 2006 05:19 PM