Words of Wisdom to my Sons

When I read the headline ‘A gentleman is always on time and makes love on his elbows... but doesn't tweet or own a cat’ I knew someone was on to something and they immediately got my attention.  Reading the article in the Daily Mail of 23rd April 2014 further, I got even more fascinated by the DOs and DON’Ts.  Apparently a gentleman should be at ease in any situations and put others at their ease, always on time and dress to suit the occasion, fair enough!  However, to suggest that getting occasionally drunk though never disorderly is also part of the etiquette associated with being a gentleman is rather stretching it.  Still, I wasn’t so perturbed until I came to the DON’Ts. The list of what is not expected of a gentleman is rather unfathomable.  The part where it says that a gentleman does not wear coloured trousers or pre-tied bow tie, drink Malibu or put products in his hair all seemed in line with my way of thinking until it came to communication.   Now, it is not like I am a hoodlum or a cad but seriously people at Country Life magazine, to which the author attributes her article need a life.   I think it’s fair to state that the simple folk at Country Life haven't quite come to terms with the concept of living in the 21st century other than that why would they suggest that being a gentleman precludes tweeting.  It is completely insane to suggest that because I write with a biro, I am not a gentleman.

Like most times when I read something, this rather thoughtless article in the Mail made me think about my two sons and what I would want them to be.  Though I am now officially not a gentleman, much to my disappointment and their embarrassment, there are principles of life that I have lived by and would love to see my sons adopt though life:
1.             If you are to marry a woman, marry brains rather than beauty.
2.             Never have sex with any one that does not want it as much as you do.
3.             Never hit anyone unless they are an immediate threat to your life
4.             Always look a person in the eye when you talk to them.
5.             Buy a plunger before you need a plunger
6.             Exercise makes you happy.  Run, lift and play sports
7.             A small amount of your salary should directly go to your savings account every month.
8.             Give a firm handshake
9.             Compliment her shoes
10.          Never tell her ‘You are beautiful’ or ‘I love you’ unless you mean it.
11.          Always stand to shake someone’s hand.
12.          Always buy high quality tools so that you only buy them once.
13.          Manliness is not only being able to take care of yourself but others as well.
14.          When you walk, look straight ahead not at your feet.
15.          No matter their job or status in life, everyone deserves your respect.
16.          Always take responsibility for your decisions or actions.
17.          Never stop learning.
18.          Always go out in public dressed like you are about to meet the love of your life.
19.          Groom yourself regularly. Being a man does not mean that you have to smell like a he-goat.
20.          If you are the smartest person among your friends, you are keeping the wrong company.
21.          Don’t change yourself to make someone happy unless that someone is you.
22.          Never lend anything you can’t afford to lose.
23.          Unless you have no intentions of seeing her again, never let her go home alone on the first date. Drop her.
24.          Give without expecting a reward or appreciation in return.

25.          No one is on their deathbed wishing they had spent more time at work.  Enjoy your life, spend time with your family

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