James Baquet

    Bree and Tim meet again — this time in the break room — to talk about pairs of proverbs with opposite meanings.

    Bree: Hi, Tim. Ready for more dueling proverbs?

    Tim: Sure, Bree! Hit me!

    Bree: OK, but this time I want you to think a minute about the opposite one before I give it to you.

    Tim: Great! I love a challenge!

    Bree: Here goes: “The best things in life are free.”

    Tim: Wow, I believe that! The moon, the stars, and all. But let’s see: How about, um, oh! I got it! “There’s no such thing as a free lunch.”

    Bree: Good! That works! Here’s another: “Silence is golden.”

    Tim: OK. So I have to think of a proverb that means “noise is good?” What could that be?

    Bree: Think of people who complain, like at work.

    Tim: I don’t follow.

    Bree: Remember how Josh was complaining that his parking place was too far away? And then the boss gave him one near the front door?

    Tim: Oh, yeah! So how about: “The squeaky wheel gets the grease?”

    Bree: That’s it! The one who complains gets what he wants; the one who just keeps quiet keeps suffering.

    Tim: Yeah, he has to just “grin and bear it.”

    Bree: Right. OK, here’s another: “Two’s company, three’s a crowd.”

    Tim: That’s easy! Remember my party last Friday? As I said then, “The more the merrier.”

    Bree: Still, the first one might be better for a romantic evening!

    Tim: Too true. Got another?

    Bree: Plenty! Try, “Nothing ventured, nothing gained.”

    Tim: Let’s see. That means, “If you don’t take risks, you’ll never get ahead.” So the opposite would be …

    Bree: Come on! It’s easy!

    Tim: Oh, yeah! “Better safe than sorry.”

    Bree: Right. It’s better to play it safe and NOT take risks than to do something and regret it.

    Tim: Yeah. Actually, I kind of agree with the second one.

    Bree: And that’s why you’ll probably always work here! OK, try this: “He who hesitates is lost.”

    Tim: That means, somebody should act immediately. Another one with the same meaning is, “Strike when the iron is hot.”

    Bree: Or, “Make hay while the sun shines.”

    Tim: Got it. So the opposite might be … “Look before you leap?”

    Bree: Yes! Good one! Now this one: “The pen is mightier than the sword.”

    Tim: So, what people write is more important than fighting?

    Bree: Sort of.

    Tim: Then maybe, “Actions speak louder than words.”

    Bree: Ooo, very good!

    Tim: One more, then my break’s over.

    Bree: Mine, too. Umm, let me think … OK, “Out of sight, out of mind.”

    Tim: So, like when my girl’s away, I don’t think of her?

    Bree: Maybe.

    Tim: Then the opposite is easy. I always find that “Absence makes the heart grow fonder.”