Simple Suggestion #51 of 100... Memorize "wisdom sayings"

If you had any kind of religious upbringing, I'll bet you can spout a half-dozen verses from the holy writings to which you ascribe. But there are lots of other great verses out there, too, in poetry and song and the writings of wise ones, and if you know a few, sometimes it's nice to be able to pull a verbal rabbit out of a hat in a social situation.

Wisdom sayings also make for an interesting way to share who you are. I made myself a cement stepping stone that says, "The world's happiest folks aren't those who have most, but who need least." I had to shorten some words of Abraham Lincoln because I didn't have a lot of space. I've always liked short pithy things... like Lao-Tse's little zinger, "To be content with what one has is to be rich." Or Confucius': "Life is really simple, but we insist on making it complicated." Or one that I've seen attributed to numerous people, including Ghandi and St. Elizabeth Anne Seton, that's on my favourite poster in my dining room:

Of course, I'm just focusing on sayings to do with living simply, but there are great quotes on just about any topic you care to name. Most of us don't have enough wall space to post them all (and that just uses up resources, right?) so memorizing them may well be the closest we can come to owning them, making them part of us, and allowing them to shape who we are. And it's always good to know some wisdom beyond our own!

P.S. Looking for more Simple Suggestions? Try here.