You know how somebody says or does something that almost demands a sharply worded response or a cautionary speech you know will be useless, but you manage to restrain yourself?
When my mother would come home and tell me one of these incidents in which she “kept her tongue behind her teeth,” as Gandalf advised, she would say:
And the blood ran down from the corner of my mouth from biting my tongue.
Not a very appealing picture, but very useful when we faced such a situation together. We’d look at each other, and one of us would put a finger to the side of our mouth and trace the line the blood would take, and we’d keep our tongues behind our teeth.
This post is part of Linda G. Hills weekly blog hop, One-Liner Wednesday. If you have a one-liner or just like them, follow the link.
A WRITING PROMPT FROM ME TO YOU: Such a situation.
MA
Alicia Butcher Ehrhardt
March 22, 2023 at 2:14pmMy tongue hurts!
Dan Antion
March 22, 2023 at 7:06amI love those family “Secret codes.” I’ve also been in some of those bite-your-tongue situations. I never seem to know if holding back is best,
Marian Allen
March 23, 2023 at 8:57amIf the only appropriate remark is, “How can you be so stupid and still remember to breathe?” it’s probably best to hold back.
Dan Antion
March 23, 2023 at 9:10amMaybe…