What did your parents teach you?

Today was our new interim pastors first Sunday and he asked us what was the one thing we learned from our parents and that we made sure we taught our children. No one answered him out loud but I kept thinking, "my parents told me to always say please and thank you".


I have tried to teach my daughter the same thing and I can only assume that she does it about half the time, since I tend to get differing stories when she goes out to other people's houses. Don't get me wrong, its not like I have ever had anyone tell me that they won't have her over again, but about half the time when I go to pick her up the mother tells me that MAC has great manners. It is these times that I can only assume she has used her "Please and thank yous".

Hubby and I watched a little of the Saturday Night Live rerun last night. It was the Betty White one. In one of the sketches Betty White plays Magrubber's grandmother. While Magrubber is trying to defuse a bomb he asks his companion to give him a nail and takes it. His grandmother makes him say thank you which takes the last few seconds and the bomb goes off.

Sometimes it feels as if I am doing the same thing, trying to enforce rules that aren't going to matter in the grand scheme of things but then at other times I am glad that I keep at it. Manners never go out of style. Yes there is something that my parents always reminded me on my way out of the house, I always try to remember my please and thank yous. I hope that one day if MAC is asked what one thing we taught her that she wants to make sure her children do I hope she remembers her manners.