Dad Said It Best
Age-Old Truths for Modern Times
“Never say never and always avoid always.” ~William Hazlitt
My father used to quip this ironic phrase whenever someone’s absolute stance on an issue seemed absurd to him. He would also quote it whenever one of his children seemed too cock-sure of themselves.
“Aaah, I wouldn’t say that if I were you,” he’d reply after one of us made a rash pronouncement. “You’ll be eating crow over that one. You never can be too sure about that.”
It didn’t take too long for me to discover the awful truth in that. I had studied outdoor education and environmental science in college, planning for a career spent in the great outdoors. “I’ll never sit behind a desk, day after day, for my life’s work. I’ve done enough of that in school!,” I’d proclaim. Yet here I am, spending most of my workdays behind a desk, on a computer. Is there egg on my face?
Minds are also prone to change. Hardliners find themselves backed into a corner when their ultimatums and declarations come back to bite them. Remember “Read my lips: No new taxes!” Former President George H.W. Bush never lived that campaign (un)promise down, because he came out looking like a flip-flopper, or even worse, a hypocrite, after he won the election on that pledge, then later raised taxes once in office. (Don’t get me started on today’s politics.)
This brings to mind another of my father’s favorite sayings from Scottish poet Robert Burns: “The best-laid plans of mice and men oft go astray.” This proverbial expression points to the futility of making detailed plans when our ability to execute them is uncertain at best. We simply don’t know the future, and unforeseen circumstances make our plans likely to change.
Beyond that, there are very few absolutes in life, and my father warned us that even standard measures and fixed rules are subject to change over time. Whether you’re talking about political systems, religious standards or school policy, you can see how right he was to caution against an assumption of absolutes.
The Englishman who coined the “never say never” phrase was a critic, essayist, painter and philosopher (1778-1830). He was also a social commentator with more than 500 quotable quotes attributed to him. Among them are “Prejudice is the child of ignorance” and “Great thoughts reduced to practice become great acts” and “Those who are at war with others are not at peace with themselves,” to mention just a few.
Hazlitt’s perceptions have proven timeless because he observed the traits of basic humanity rather than the passing fancies of changeable society. So take his advice, and never say never, always avoid always, and remember that there are absolutely no absolutes!
