Boy
Don’t sleep past 7am from Monday to Friday. Don’t miss school unless you are very sick. You can have a part job after school but don’t let it interfere with your school studies. Don’t watch too much TV, read many books. You don’t really need a car, there are so many ways to travel. Keep yourself well groomed, wash yourself daily and wear clean clothes. Brush your teeth at least twice a day. Clean your room, some of the time. You should always be respectful to others, all other people, men, women, and children. Respect the world you live in. Give your seat on a bus to an older person or anyone who looks like they need it. Don’t let your pants hang below your underwear. There is a time to listen and a time to talk. You can learn so much more from listening. There is a time to stand up for something and a time to walk away. Make sure you find something to stand up for. Be friends with girls. Grow your own food, cook your own food. This is how you bake bread, and preserve food. Share with others. Be open to everything. You never know what you might miss. Remember you are not indestructible, and you don’t have forever, so live each day to the fullest. Appreciate what you have. Laugh a lot, find something to laugh about in every situation.
I appreciate the mix of practical advice and philosophical advice. I find myself wanting to know what the advisee would say. In Kincaid's version, we have a couple responses from the girl. What would the boy say to some of this advice?
ReplyDeleteOh my! Doesn't that age us... pull your pants up above your waistline. My grandfather was always yelling at my little brothers to do that. Too funny, i can still hear his voice, and then a muffled Goddammit. Look at those punks over there with their saggy pants, it looks like they took a dump in their drawers.I even thought that, even though most of my friends were "saggin" it was the trend, now its cool for boys to wear tight pants. How funny and ironic. The times are a changing for us oldies!
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