Good life to grandchildren.
By Isabel Garner - © Copyright, all rights reserved
On Pets - Especially Dogs:
Listen to your Granny!
Animals are fun.
They love without judging.
They are loyal ones.
Cats are independent.
Cows are not much fun.
Pigs are mostly sloppy.
Horses like to run.
But dogs are without question,
The most delightful ones.
They sit at close attention,
And for grudges - NONE.
They ask for little in return
For perfect loyalty-
Some food, some kindness every day
Should make you really see.
That dog is REALLY man's best friend.
He'll guard you with his life,
Or chase away a predator,
With snakes they can be rife.
Respect your dog for all he is-
A really perfect friend
Who will love you unconditionally
Until the very end.
On Manners
Listen to your Granny!
This may come as a shock,
But courtesy and manners make
Life tick and calmly tock.
Lest they seem mundane to you
Here are a few for thought
When a lady comes into a room-
Standing, greeting is an ought.
When you're seated in a public place
And there are no more chairs
If an elder or a lady stands-
Then your chair is theirs.
Hold the door for other folks.
Smile a pleasantry.
Remove your hat when dining.
It's a necessity!
Don't be loud when you are out-
Or even when you're in.
Consideration is the key
To live without a din.
If you've listend to your Granny
And taken it to heart
Our world will be most civilized
And you will do your part.
On Friends and More
Listen to your Granny!
The world is big and wide.
With many sorts of people
Who won't be on your side.
Human nature doesn't mean
That everyone is good.
You will meet some sinning ones
And some who never would.
Listen to your Granny!
Your friends are yours to choose.
Better to have two or three
Than ten you need to lose.
Some friends are very loyal.
Some are not-at-all.
A few, you'll keep forever.
They'll be there if you call.
Listen to your Granny!
The moth got fooled by flame.
He thought it most enticing
But back-he-never-came.
So it is some people
Attract admiring folks,
Oblivious to their lack of worth
Or morals that are jokes.
So listen to your Granny!
She guided your first ways.
Those toddler steps of learning.
What fun we had those days.
And now you're really on your own
I won't be there to see
If you remember lessons past
And sometimes think of me.
And think "I know what Granny
Would say here at this time.
"I don't like the crowd you picked.
Not one is worth a dime."
Listen to your Granny!
Be alert! Don't go to sleep!
Remember that a man is known.
By the company he keeps.
On Friends
Listen to your Granny!
How do you keep your friends?
Kindness and considerate acts
Used to be the trend.
But somehow things are changing,
Knowing more each year.
Too much! Too soon! Robbed Childhood!
Ever in high gear.
Friends seem more evasive.
Loyalty's of the past.
Honesty is easily dumped.
Good works are wiped out fast.
Listen to your Granny!
Don't be led astray.
Know your heart! Know your mind!
Stick to them each day.
Know that there are limits.
Break them? Woe to you!
Punishments most unusual.
Could be dealt. It's true.
You must keep your nose clean.
Keep it on your own face.
Be a leader! Be a friend!
You'll be ahead in life's race.
On Romance
Listen to your Granny!
We're talking about girls
Pretty, nice and thoughtful ones
Accessorized with pearls.
Girls who come from loving homes
Whose parent's greatest fear
Some sort of harm may fall upon
They're very special dear.
Listen to your Granny!
Give me a shred of hope
That you'll hear my caring words,
I'll tell you how to copy.
Always be a gentleman.
Look-But-Do-Not-Touch.
A little goes a long, long way
And "some" can be too much.
Be sure she keeps her dignity
And you, my love, keep yours.
Do not join the ranks
Of over-active boors.
Go out! Have fun! Make lots of friends!
This is the time of life
When you should have a girlfriend
Not a baby and a wife.
Are you amazed that I should think
That such things do occur?
I've seen it all in eighty years
Don't let the next be hers.
Keep your mind and eyes ahead.
Your future can be great.
So don't ruin it with selfishness
Cause you think you can't wait.
We value you and who you are
There is only one YOU.
So keep your stands and restraint
In everything you do.
Lines of Gray
Listen to your Granny!
The world's not black and white.
Little shades of gray creep in
To muddle up your sight.
What appears as wrong to you
To another may seem right.
So compromise is called upon
To eliminate a fight.
Arguments so oft appear
Much like a viper's bite
When two think close-but distant
And differences they cite.
The shades of gray are routed from
Any ray of light So
Truth and honor often end
Covered with a blight.
Gray can ease a conscience,
Or like a band so tight
Eliminate any feelings
Of individual might.
Gray will never disappear
No matter plea or right.
So always try to see both sides
And eliminate a plight.
On Living
Listen to your Granny!
Keep your backbone straight
Look for good the best in all
And never stoop to hate.
If you let slurs and stupidity
Run into your heart
Occasionally reviewing them
Taking each apart ..
You'll only keep on hurting YOU!
Allow it all to heal.
The best revenge is living well.
You're doing that for real.
On School and Work
Listen to your Granny!
If and when you seek to work
When school work will allow it
And studies you'll not shirk
Get a job that's different from
Any one you've had.
See the other world of work.
Learn the good and bad.
You'll see that education
Is the key to doing well.
Don't fall for old temptation
As many others fell.
Listen to your Granny!
It's great to have some play.
"All work makes John a dull boy"
The old renegers say.
Well, let them play and say it.
They'll do it then they'll ask
To copy your study papers
They didn't do the task.
YOU could have played the whole night through,
YOU could have drunk the well.
Your dancing fee could do the steps
But temptation you did quell.
On Doing
Listen to your Granny!
Always pay your share.
If you can't then this is true
You should not be there.
Listen to your Granny!
Always do your share
If you shirk and lazy out
It really is unfair.
Life is full of compromise
But you can't always do it.
Honor first! Duty next!
If you forget you blew it.
People will depend on you.
You're capable and smart.
Do your all with pleasantness
You'll have a happy heart.
On Driving
Listen to your Granny!
Be careful when you drive.
Speeding carelessly might never
Get you home alive.
Fasten up your seatbelt first.
Mirrors all in line?
Accelerate without a rush.
Everything just fine?
NEVER have a heavy foot!
Turn down Any race.
Behind the wheel you have to keep
Responsibility in place.
Never ride with anyone
Who wants to drive and drink.
Such a driver is a fool
And really doesn't think.
Listen to your Granny!
When you are out and about
Keep your eyes right on the road
Follow your own route.
A car is not a silly game.
It's not a child's toy.
So if you follow all the rules
You'll be a driving joy.
Shock 'Em
Listen to your Granny!
Help your mom and dad
They will always love you
In days both good and bad.
Do your jobs with a happy smile
Not a big ado.
Half a job is not enough.
Do it 'til it's through.
Listen to your Granny!
What you do do right.
Keep your good reputation
As dependable and bright.
Volunteer to do a chore.
Keep at it til it's done.
They'll shake their heads in disbelief,
And you'll be NUMBER ONE!
On Appearance
Listen to your Granny!
The one who's always right
Well maybe sometimes offside.
But never in a plight.
The thought I have is cleanliness.
Have you washed your neck?
Ring-around-the-collar
Will make your shirt a wreck.
The shower is for you to use.
The soap is on a rope.
Shampoo, too, is waiting there.
Granny knows that you can cope.
Always take care of your teeth
Keep your handsome smile.
You'll have the ladies after you
Because you have such style.
Be sure to wear clean underwear!
That means every day!
If you were taken to the hospital
You'd be best dressed that way.
Listen to your Granny!
She wants you to do right.
Cleanliness is paramount
So never look a fright.
On Time Passing
Listen to your Granny!
Who's feeling a bit low
From missing you and all our fun
With things I used to know.
Remember how we chased that pot
Of gold at rainbow's end?
And ran when that big flock of gulls
Decided we were friends?
Remember when we tracked the deer,
The little rabbits, too?
And peeked to see if fairies danced
When the moon was new?
The splashing fun in tidal pools,
The digs to find sand crabs,
The tides that washed our castles out,
And lizards there to grab.
You'll have many great experiences
In life just day-by-day.
Enjoy as many as you can
'Cause they all flit away.
Time passes very quickly
So live to your best.
Make the most of every day
Honorably! With ZEST!
On Borrowing and Lending
Listen to your Granny!
The way to keep a friend
Is never, ever borrow!
And never, ever lend.
It's been true through the ages.
Will Shakespeare said it, too,
"Neither a borrower nor a lender be."
Sometimes, it's hard to do.
It's easy to ask, to borrow
Other people's things.
But give them back in disrepair
Tense friendship it does bring.
Just think if you're the owner
And you don't want to lend,
It's difficult to say "no-no"
If you've borrowed from your friend.
So keep it fun but friendly.
If you don't have it-do without.
Just substitute. Use something else.
Granny's right! No doubt!
The Golden Rule
Listen to your Granny!
Do you know the Golden Rule?
Can you think it and recite it?
It's a to-live-by tool.
"Do unto others as you would
Have others do unto you."
Just eleven challenging words
That can bring heart-peace, too.
If you are being criticized,
Taunted, hurt and such
Don't retaliate in kind.
In anger do not touch.
Think of all the hundred ways,
The things that you could do
To treat and turn it all around
Get them to follow you.
Quiet Help
If you see a fellow man
So poor and cold, alone
If he doesn't have a coat
GIVE him yours. No loan!
If you have an extra dime
Or a fleeting dollar bill
Give it to him.
No strings attached.
Spend it as he will.
Think as your great-grandpa did
When he saw a down-trodden guy.
"There but for the Grace of God.-
Go I."
On Helping
Listen to your Granny!
Just because a man is "down"
Doesn't mean he should be treated
With derision and a frown.
Perhaps he needs a helping hand,
A kind "hello" and smile.
Don't look down on him unless
His shoes walked you a mile.
He could be a veteran
Returned from war-brain hurt.
Drinks alcool when he can,
But don't treat him like he's dirt.
Somewhere he had a mother,
Perhaps a family, too.
Maybe a job he couldn't do
War really changes you.
So give him help and kindness
A few dollars and a nod.
If he spends it all on liquor
That's between him and God.
On Joy in Nature
Listen to your Granny!
She wants you to live
Life in all abundance
Find joy in all it gives.
Look at all the flowers,
The bushes, trees, and rocks.
Look up and study how the clouds
Can look like sheep in flocks.
Taste the salty ocean
Smell the ocean air.
See the dolphin jumping,
He doesn't have a care.
Look at all the sea shells
Just lying there to claim.
Much like sparkling snow flakes
No two are just the same.
Think about the raindrops
They gently fall or storm
Coming with the wind so fast
Makes a hurricane the norm.
And yet the sun will shine again,
Send down its heavenly rays,
And we go on enjoying
The best of earthly rays.
On Partying
Listen to your Granny!
When you think you're of age
To join the crowd in partying
To do the current rage
Stop and think a moment,
Although you want to play.
Is this the way for you to go
Or will you go astray?
What you think is fun and games
Can often be too much.
Drinking leads to tempers lost,
Ill-words, deeds, fights and such!
Don't let other partiers
Talk you into bad acts.
You're responsible for what you do
And that is just plain fact.
On Nature
Listen to your Granny!
And when you hear the rain
Put your coat on. Take a walk,
It helps to clear your brain.
Doing things in nature
That is the out-of-doors
Helps to clear your psyche
If you've tolerated bores.
Diggin' in the garden spot,
Planting lots of seeds
Of flowers and some vegetables.
Pulling many weeds.
The pay-off is the blooms they share
And never charge a fee.
Just some work and caring
They'll bloom for all to see.
On Appearance
Listen to your Granny!
The world is waiting there.
And rule number one is
Wear clean underwear.
You never know what might occur
When you would least expect it.
And with clean underwear
At lest you'd be accepted.
Listen to your Granny!
There's a rule number two.
Be sure to shine the very backs
When you shine your shoes.
The front and tops will always be
Shined and polished through
But the measure of a classy man is
Are the backs shined, too?
Listen to your Granny!
Heed rule number three
Pants all pressed with creases sharp,
You'll be a treat to see.
If you've listened very seriously,
And though of her advice
Be assured that every day
You'll go out looking nice.
On Being Your Own Man
Listen to your Granny!
Be your own good man.
Don't mimic other people or
Fall in with stupid plans.
Behave so you can always
Hold your head up high
Knowing you have done what's right
Straight-forward, without lies.
Grades and friends and living
Take responsibility,
And work and thought and giving
With true fidelity.
But always be most faithful to
The one you know the best.
That's YOU my special grandson
Be an example to the rest.
A Few Thoughts About Friends
Listen to Your Granny!
Some things never change.
Some people will have more than you.
Some a lower range.
It doesn't matter what they have.
And you must always know
A friend's a friend no matter what
Or where or when they go.
Never covet what they have.
Never get green eyes!
Just be a friend! Enjoy it!
And perhaps to your surprise
You'll understand that riches are
Wonderful to own.
But if you're not a loyal friend
You'll find yourself alone.
So choose your friends with this in mind
Are they your kind of person?
Will they bode well over time?
Lor will the friendship worsen?
Character, humor, and loyalty
Are what make you a friend.
So YOU be sure those traits are yours
And never let them bend.
On Eating Right
Listen to your Granny!
Are you eating right?
Are you devouring junky things?
Enjoying every bite?
You may think it's freedom
No mother pushing greens
Or carrots in a casserole
Or broccoli and beans.
But what you eat at twenty
Or twelve or seventeen
Will show up later in your bones
Your heart, your legs, your spleen.
Your granny says to drink that milk
Forget the 7-UP,
The fries, the sugar, salt and fat
Nutrition you must sleep.
So listen when your Granny says
This food will make you strong
Remember she's been here 80 years
And never once been wrong.
On Going Away From Home
Listen to your Granny!
To all her wise old words
Listen to your Granny!
Reflect on what you've heard.
A pointed stick wreaks havoc.
It will put out your eye.
Listen to your Granny!
Don't roll your eyes and sigh.
Listen when she tells you
Of good folks gone awry.
Beware are the cast of demons
Waiting in the bye.
They're all right there to grab you.
Reputation, God-be damned.
They'll drag you to their level
And see your soul get rammed.
Listen to your Granny!
Your friends can lead you wrong.
You're known by your cronies.
Resolve must keep you strong.
Listen to your Granny!
Your good name do not ruin
It's got to last a lifetime
Be alert to what you're doin'.
Your Granny taught you wrong from right
And you were a faster learner.
Don't stumble when you're out of sight.
Keep straight on the front burner.
On Keeping In Touch
Listen to your Granny!
You're now away from home.
New friends, new tasks, new choices
But wherever you do roam
Remember we're all family.
And we all hold you dear!
We'll all be troubled and anxious
If you forget to let us hear
That everything is peachy.
Or maybe not-so-great.
But we're all rooting for you.
We did not separate.
You just grew up and left the nest
Like you're supposed to do.
We pray our years of guidance
Will help to see you through.
As you take strides of progress.
Evaluating as you do
Going down the right road,
Remember we love you.
On Doing
Listen to your Granny!
The world can seem so tough.
The crowds, the attitudes can seem
To get so very rough.
But you can look around and see
A gentle soul or two,
Who do their best the live-long day
To live as they should do.
Listen to your Granny!
Excuses to not fly
No matter what the tempest,
No matter what the cry.
She's been on Earth for eighty years
She's seen and done so much
She wants the very best for you
Health, prosperity and such.
We each must take care of our self
It's all within our reach,
Understanding we are not
The only pebble-on-the-beach.
On Your Path
Listen to your Granny!
Her words come from the heart.
As you live on-experience
Will help you in some part.
Sometimes you'll be the statue.
Other times the bird.
It's just the way life happens
As you may have heard.
Look around at other folks
Whose life's in disarray.
Haughty, "knowing," prideful ones
Who lost their path one day.
Do not let them change YOUR path.
Avoid them if you must.
YOU be the kind of man
Who is known for his trust.
On Joy
Listen to your Granny!
There's one thing you must know,
Every soul is born to joy
But some do let it go.
Every broken promise,
Every cruel phrase,
Takes away a bit of joy
And lingers on the days.
To keep it is a challenge.
You have to overlook
Painful actions, silly slurs
From people that mistook
What you meant or planned to do,
What you said or why.
They gossip and demean your name
And seem so very sly.
Don't let them chip away your joy
Your gift from God above.
It's yours to have for all your life
Peace and joy and love.
On Keeping On
There is a Scottish tune that's sung
It puts your heart on beat.
Sung by great Harry Lauder, it
Will help you thwart defeat.
"Keep right on to the end of the road,
Keep right on to the end."
It means don't stop or falter,
No matter what the bend.
There are always two choices
The right road or the left.
It can be long and twisted
Leave you happy or bereft.
There are many knots and holes in life
Along the plodding way
But if you're confident and right
No matter night or day
You'll keep on trudging to the end!
You'll see your task as won.
Hopefully within your soul
You'll know it was well done.
Granny Knows!
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