"Why do people keep saying 'Bless Your Heart' ? There is nothing wrong with my heart; I have breast cancer". My wife's friend and colleague, Josephina, from Mexico had great difficulty understanding this multi-purpose Southern idiom.
Of the numerous unique expressions heard in the American South, 'BYH' likely holds the distinction of being the most versatile with multiple usages. And, many writers have expounded upon the varying nuances inherent in those three little words. Those offering their sentiments to Josephina likely were expressing genuine concern for her well being. A change of tone and pacing can turn it into an insult, polite or otherwise.
Two events of today reminded me of this staple of many Southerner's vocabulary. My friend, Jay, was remarking on last blog's distinction between nice and kind and observed that sometimes nice was a veiled insult, "somewhat like Bless Your Heart." Thirty minutes later I passed a storefront with the above plaque (along with several other colloquialism) in the window.
In 1960 while in seminary in Boston, my roommate, Wendell, from Pennsylvania, in time told me that for the initial two or three weeks of our acquaintance he understood little of my speech. Being well mannered, I did not say, "well, bless your heart, I'm speaking phonetically".
Rightly used, these are other 'translations' of the phrase:
Have you 'blessed' anyone's heart recently ?
Satchel
Love it!
ReplyDeleteMy mother's favorite thing to tell her friends and acquaintances about me, her second son, was, "He's such a nice, good boy!" This took me a few years of therapy to recover from.
ReplyDeleteI'm not from around here, so I'm not a "heart blesser". But one of my favorite replies to hear when I ask someone how they're doing is, "Fine, hope you are." I haven't heard that phrase anywhere but the South. It always warms my heart when someone says that to me. It's the "hope you are" part that's so pleasant. It's beautiful and always sounds genuine to me :)
ReplyDelete~RS