The Truth in Old Adages
"A stitch in time saves nine", says an old saying. When I was a youngster my mother and her family elevated this short, six-word sentence to the level of a religious proverb. As Grandpa Frank (I had a Grandpa Frank and a Grandpa Abe but their wives were Grandma and Granny, go figure) collected the necessary accouterments to change the oil in his pick-up he would answer our question why by saying, "Well, ya know a stitch in time saves nine." When Grandma would clean up spilled milk from the kitchen table she would murmur under her breath, "A stitch in time saves nine." Queried by us as to the nature of her sewing my mother would say, "A stitch in time saves nine." Eventually, even my father began to use this euphemism and would explain that he was repairing the bathtub because, "A stitch in time saves nine." Though I understood each of these activities I could not see how "stitching" could save them all. At the ripe old age of nine, I finally realized sewing was clearly stitching, but the use of this phrase to describe the activities of the rest of the family continued to confuse me. Eventually, I would come to understand the nature of the phrase and its application to our family's life.
As she would orchestrate the afternoon's activities, she was constantly wiping up the small spills that children are prone to. She would labor most of the afternoon and then would segregate our clothes into "dress" and "play" piles. After a while, I began to notice the seams were opening on his shirts. The "dress" clothes went onto hangers (even the "T" shirts) and were hung in the closet with great care (God forbid they should become "mussed" while in our charge). I wish my Grandma had been there to keep me out of trouble. Oh yeah, I am not allowed to supervise children's parties any more either. "Wha'cha doin' Grandpa Frank?", I would ask. The "Goat" suddenly stopped running on the East Bay Freeway during rush hour. I gave away more clothes to friends and charities than I ever mended though my mother had seen to it that I knew my way around a sewing kit before I graduated from high school. My wife was ill and I was convinced I could handle the show. For reasons that still evade me to this day, I did not clean up these small messes immediately. Working with my wife we soon established a "system". Some how I had managed to stay on top of every-thing and -body. However, I still could not see how what she was doing could save nine of anything (the "nine" still being a somewhat mysterious quantity). By the time I was able to secure the services of a reputable mechanic the motor was toast.
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Acceptance Essays
