Let’s be Better Fixers

/ Jodi
The Old Farmall Tractor, Mars, PA - September, 2017

The Old Farmall Tractor, Mars, PA – September, 2017

Let’s be Better Fixers.

Grandma was a fixer….
From very early on, when she was only 9 or 10 years old,
she was the cook, laundress, housekeeper, and “mother” to her younger siblings after her young mother died.

She learned to splice electric wires and plumb a bathroom,
she could make a hearty feast from a bone,
she mended and hemmed and soaked and bleached and waxed and scrubbed.

She did this throughout her entire life.
She washed out bread bags and hung them on the line to dry to re-use.
She repaired lawn mowers and glued broken concrete bird baths back together.

When I was young, I thought it silly.
Sometimes I was even embarrassed of her patched clothes
or meager belongings and “fixed” things.

But Grandma is gone.
And the longer she is gone, the more I admire the way she lived.
She didn’t throw things away – she fixed them.

Do we too quickly throw things away these days?
Marriages?  Friendships?  Aging parents and grandparents?
Kids with bad behavior or bad grades?

We need to cherish what and who we have while we have them.
Because some things we love won’t last or be with us forever.
We should love, care for, fix when broken, and heal when sick our “broken” things.

We keep them because they are worth it.
Because we are worth it.
Let’s try to throw less away, and let’s be better “fixers!”

Cheers & Hugs,
Jodi

66 thoughts on “Let’s be Better Fixers”

  1. Great piece of advice. Those that we think are nothing today can become very useful tomorrow. Let’s learn to cope and help them when it looks as if they are useless and head-ache causing. Thanks for sharing.

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  4. Totally agree, Jodi! I really dislike throwing things out, just because they need a bit of fixing, but nothing like Grandma of course! I continually admire our predecessors, the way they lived and managed with what they had! We all need to do more of it! Great post! 🙂

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  5. Jodi,

    I love your post this morning ! I have the same found memories of my Grandma who was also a great “Fixer” and I wholeheartedly agree with everything you are saying in this post. In today’s world we are too quick to throw things out (be it physical or emotional things). We have less “fixer upper’s” out there today and less folks willing to take the time to make good something that might be broken, but easily repairable with just a little bit of patience (be if an old cherished family treasure, past down thru the generations or something like an existing marriage that may just need to be fine-tuned a bit, rather than to necessarily end in a divorce). I really miss our Grandma’s out there, they taught us so much when growing up and helped to make us who we are today. Thanks for posting this. Gary

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  7. This is so beautiful and inspring Jodi! Your grandma was a strong woman ❤️. There’s a quote that says- the problem with this generation is that we are quick throw away things rather than fix them. Your grandma certainly knew the wiser

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  9. There’s are a lot of “things” we don’t need too that I give away. Know my grandma and my Mom were fixers. Seemed things could be fixed back then. Products today are made to last a few years, can’t be fixed, and force you to buy something new. Happy Sunday! 🌷 Christine

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  13. I so enjoyed your post today. This hits home for me in not only the “fixing” of things whether its the lawn mower or a broken vase. My daughter is struggling with a broken marriage and she just told me she’s decided to give her husband one more chance. They are going to marriage counseling, they are trying hard to fix their marriage. It’s encouraging to read your words as I pray for my sweet daughter and her husband and I hope doors of communication open up to them and they can find happiness together. So often we just want to throw it away, whether its a repairable item or a broken relationship. I’m glad I found your blog! – Kindly, Diana

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  15. In my lifetime we have become a disposable society. My generation and the generations since have welcomed all the things that made our lives seemingly easier and more functional. Now, it seems that many of these conveniences have become the opposite, for the continuance of our very lives on this planet we call home. The plastic bags and bottles are filling our lands, oceans and seas to the peril of all that dwell there for the lack of thought to proper disposal. Landfills are packed with every item we decide we no longer need or want, with little thought to a better use. Our sins against earth are endless. Sadly, we have carried this same trend into our interactions with each other. Our Grandparent’s generation, my dear “Gram”, respected the earth and all that resided in it, their lives depended upon it. We are flagrantly destroying our heritage…shame on us!

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  16. Enjoyed your poem today, Jodi! 💕❤️ Makes me wish I could spend some more time with my Grandma. She was always so loving and kind. 😊 The poetry class I told you about starts on Tuesday. 😍 I’m really looking forward to it! 🌈💚

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  18. I whole heartedly agree with everything on your list except the washed out bread bags. My grandma did that too and for some reason, don’t know why it still grosses me out as much as when I was a child. Great concept, wonderful advice. We really do need to cherish our lives and those that share it.

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  24. I absolutely loved this poetic and loving tribute to your dearly loved Grandma.
    This could be written about so many wonderful men and women, Jodi! There was a generation who went through the Great Depression and really were amazing “fixers!” ((Big hugs))

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  30. Your grandmother was a very wise and resourceful woman! And I think you make an excellent point: the more we throw away things, the easier it is to throw away relationships as well. And the sad thing is, most of them can be fixed if we’re just willing to try!

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