I have a lot of fortune-cookie fortunes. Like, hundreds... I always save mine (and I make my husband and son give me theirs, too). I keep most of them in a pink giftbag in my office, but there are others scattered around my workspace in visible locations to remind me that wisdom can often be found on very small slips of paper. Some of my personal favorites include:"Do not let great ambitions overshadow small success."
"Always over-deliver & under-promise."
"Your love of music will be an important part of your life."
"Love is like war; easy to begin but hard to stop."
"Your ability to find the silly in the serious will take you far."
"Be careful! Straight trees often have crooked roots."
And then there's the one I loved so much I actually laminated it: "Nature forms us for ourselves, not for others; to be, not to seem."
Do any of you keep your fortunes long after the cookies are gone? Any with wise words or hoped-for predictions on them? I'd love to hear!
11 comments:
I LOVE those fortunes, especially the first and the last ones. I might have to borrow them.
Wise words of wisdom are indeed, often found on small slips of paper. Thanks for the reminder.
On my fridge: "To effect the quality of the day is no small achievement." And now, thanks to you, I am salivating for some Veggie Fried Rice! :)
I put the good ones on the frig, too. I also take my husband's and keep them. But only if they're good.
I haven't gotten good ones lately. They've been kind of admonishing, which is weird.
I keep mine for a while and then get a lovely surprise when I find fortuens forgetten in a pocket or in a bag, so I get the fortuen twice over! Your favourite one is very good!
Judy Croome, South Africa
I like "Straight trees often have crooked roots" but for reasons different than what I think the fortune cookie elves mean.
And I think your next book should have a massive fortune cookie element--I'm just saying... :-)
Pamala, you are more than welcome to borrow!! So glad you liked them, too ;). BTW, I recite that first one to myself every time my Bookscan numbers go up, even by one...
Ruth, oooh, yes! That's such a great saying...and I'd love some Veggie Fried Rice right now, too -- YUM!!
Edie, I've gotten those "be careful in financial dealings" or "don't be overly trusting" or other ones like that, too. I still keep them all, but I don't stick them up around my office. I only reserve desk space for the ones that predict "great future success", LOL.
Judy, I love the idea of getting to read the fortunes twice! I should probably do more of that on purpose -- hide them in my purse or in a jacket pocket, so I can rediscover them later ;).
Pamela, LOL!! Ahh, thanks for the laugh tonight -- it was a long day! And, yes, I'm plotting out such a story, I just need to work out what comes after "She ate one cookie...read the fortune...was confused...ate another cookie..."
Hi, Marilyn! I keep fortunes too. Love yours! One of my favorites is "You will obtain your goal if you maintain your course." That one is right in my desk drawer. Hope you have a great day ~ filled with good fortune. ;)
Two fortunes I've kept are: "A pound of pluck is worth a ton of luck."
And the other: HAVE PATIENCE - IT WILL BENEFIT YOU.
Needless to say, patience is not my strong suit!
Laurie P.
The fortunes are the best part of eating Chinese food, in my opinion. I love the idea of saving them. It sounds like a great seed for a novel.
I have saved fortunes when I needed the inspiration.
Speaking of inspiring... I just read about your new book, "A Summer in Europe", now I can't wait for November to get here! lol It sounds fabulous and right up my alley. :)
Robin, thank you for the good fortune wishes -- back at'cha, my friend! And I know the fortune you shared will be true for you...
Laurie, oh, I really like both of these! I'm with you on the patience thing, though -- that is SO, SO hard for me, too. Sometimes I think we're drawn to professions that will teach us a skill we don't have and, for me, writing is so often about accepting the necessity of being patient. Sigh. I accept it, but I don't have to like it ;).
Caryn, thanks! I've long wanted to write a story featuring fortune cookies -- the only thing holding me back is the certainty that I'd eat boxes and boxes of them while working on it...
Kate, you are so sweet to say that!! Thank you ;). I am really excited about the Europe book -- it was such a fun one to write, and I got to imagine my characters in these wonderful places with all of this tasty food, LOL. Imagining it is *almost* like being there, right?! (I for sure gained at least 5 lbs. imagining eating all that gelato. ;)
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