A cute poem and a simple object lesson that explains the saying “When Life Gives You Lemons, Make Lemonade.” Teaching the importance of a good attitude.
We have all heard the phrase:
When life gives you lemons, make lemonade.
Have you ever wondered where it came from? Who started this saying?
According to Wikipedia, it originated from a phrase used in Marshall Pinckney Wilder’s obituary who was a well-known dwarf actor in the early 1900’s. Written by Elbert Hubbard and praising Wilder’s optimistic attitude and achievements even in the face of his disabilities, the last line of his obituary read:
He picked up the lemons that Fate had sent him and started a lemonade-stand.
Poem
Now fast forward to 1940. In 1940 Clarence Edwin Flynn wrote a poem that was published in The Rotarian entitled “The Optimist.” It is a poem I have come to love.
Life handed him a lemon,
As Life sometimes will do.
His friends looked on in pity,
Assuming he was through.
They came upon him later,
Reclining in the shade
In calm contentment, drinking
A glass of lemonade.
What a wonderful lesson we can all learn about ATTITUDE! No matter what life throws at us, we always have two choices. We can either wallow in despair or turn it around and make something good out of it!
The Lord does not give us challenges without a purpose in mind and a way to make something good out of something bad. He even tells us that “he shall consecrate thine afflictions for thy gain” (2 Nephi 2:2)
Remember there is opposition in all things, “if not so,…righteousness could not be brought to pass…neither good or bad” (2Nephi 2:11) We have to take the good with the bad, it’s part of the plan.
There’s a chime that says:
“You have to take the good with the bad, smile with the sad, love what you got, and remember what you had. Always forgive, but never forget, learn from your mistakes but never regret. People change, things go wrong, but just remember life goes on.”
The Lord does not want us to be miserable. He wants us to be happy. “…men are that they might have joy.” (2 Nephi 2:25)
OBJECT LESSON
Here is an object lesson that can bring the phrase When life gives you lemons, make lemonade to life.
All you need is:
LEMON SLICES
A BOWL OF SUGAR
CUPS AND A PITCHER OF LEMONADE
Give each class member a lemon slice and ask them to take a bite of the lemon. *If you’re doing this at home with little kids, may want to have your camera ready 😉
Talk about the sour taste of the lemon. Compare that to how life can sometimes give us sour days, where things just don’t go right. Sometimes we just have bad days.
Pointing to the sugar, you could say: Sugar we know is very sweet. Having a good attitude is sweet just like sugar. When we have a bad day and things go wrong, if we will have a good attitude it will bring sweetness into our day.
Give everyone a drink of lemonade and say:
Now I want you to taste what a good attitude can do. A good attitude can turn a sour day into something good.
For a cute, simple story that gives a new perspective on LIFE and ATTITUDE read The Secret to a Happy Life by Clicking HERE
Need some lemonade for this object lesson? Grab some on Amazon. This one comes in a 4 pack:
Yours Truly,
Sign up and receive more inspiring gospel resources delivered right to your inbox! 🙂 Helping you be the most effective teacher you can be at home and in your calling.
*DISCLAIMER: Melanie’s Library is a member of Amazon’s Affiliate Program. I support the sale of inspiring and uplifting products and I hope you do too. 🙂 For each product you purchase through my affiliate link, I will receive a small payment at no extra cost to you.
