Ever had your heart blessed?
New to the South? Well, bless your heart.
I loved the article in today’s Observer about the expression “bless your heart.” As a near-native, I’ve grown up hearing the expression and have used it often.
The article suggests the phrase is often used to cloak an insult, such as “The cookies my sister made were hard as rocks, bless her heart, but we ate them anyway.”
I don’t generally use it that way – for me, it’s more of an expression of sympathy, as in: “You found out the place you just moved into has fleas? Oh, bless your heart.”
If you’ve heard the phrase used in a particularly funny or memorable way, please send me examples at Ldyer@charlotteobserver.com. If I get enough, I’ll publish the best in a follow-up.
I loved the article in today’s Observer about the expression “bless your heart.” As a near-native, I’ve grown up hearing the expression and have used it often.
The article suggests the phrase is often used to cloak an insult, such as “The cookies my sister made were hard as rocks, bless her heart, but we ate them anyway.”
I don’t generally use it that way – for me, it’s more of an expression of sympathy, as in: “You found out the place you just moved into has fleas? Oh, bless your heart.”
If you’ve heard the phrase used in a particularly funny or memorable way, please send me examples at Ldyer@charlotteobserver.com. If I get enough, I’ll publish the best in a follow-up.
posted by Leigh at
12:27 PM
8 Comments:
This comment has been removed by a blog administrator.
i don't know if it's necessarily a southern expression. i grew up in ohio, and my family frequently used the expression.
This comment has been removed by a blog administrator.
one of my favorites..
with her hair bleached out like that, she looks like a floozy...bless her heart.
This comment has been removed by a blog administrator.
This comment has been removed by a blog administrator.
This comment has been removed by a blog administrator.
I live on the West coast but work with many people in CLT via phone. A few years ago, in a Jazzercise class, I broke my wrist. In order to make it heal properly, doctors put pins in the bones of my forearms that came out through the skin and attached to a contraption that kept it stable. When I explained to people from CLT how I broke my wrist (dance class that didn't even use steps), they often said "Bless Your Heart!". I told my husband from TX about it, I thought it was so cute. He responded: when they said Bless Your Heart, they really meant "Wow you are really clumsy!".
Post a Comment
Subscribe to Post Comments [Atom]
<< Home