“Put style in lifestyle. Be modest, be cheerful, be positive, be charitable. Good manners are golden; they make you shine like a diamond pendant. Style isn’t always about what you’re wearing; it’s about what you are.” (Cary Grant: A Celebration of Style, by Richard Torregrossa, page 181)
Yesterday on the subway I witnessed something that melted my heart and brightened my day. As the story involves two little girls, no more than 3 years old each, I’ll name one Sarah and the other one Tara, to avoid repetition and confusions. Sarah and her mother, carrying a bunch of hyacinths, got on the train and saw Tara, who was travelling with her grandmother. Sarah’s mother handed her daughter a flower to give to Tara. Tara shyly accepted it, with a smile blossoming in a corner of her mouth. Her grandmother was so touched by the wonderful gesture that she whispered something to Tara and the next thing her granddaughter did was to go and give something in return to Sarah. I think it was a chocolate. Sarah happily accepted the gift and looked at her mother as if wanting to tell her from her eyes that she had learned that a good deed follows another. All this happened quickly, between two close stops, but it induced such a happy feeling into everyone present as if a ray of sunlight had just made it through to there. Sarah and Tara parted like two old friends, each of them looking at the mother and grandmother, respectively, smiling and satisfied, knowing that they had done something that mattered that day. True style comes in so many forms and it can definitely be taught and learned.
Later on I had a totally different kind of experience. An impeccably dressed woman: straight, perfect fit black trousers, elegant black boots, beautifully tailored knee-length navy coat and a gorgeous Chloé Marcie navy bag. What could possibly be wrong with that, you wonder? Too much perfume ruined the entire look in a fraction of a second and transformed it into what, for me, is one of the most obvious signs of bad taste. Maybe not everyone learns good manners at home, but these should at least be taught in school.
photo: 1: lil blue boo / 2-5: Fournier Spring/Summer 2012 campaign, via and so I whisper
I so agree with you! Style is not it what you are wearing… It is how you feel about life!
Love your subway moment and that quote by Grant. I will be thinking about Sarah and Tara for the rest of the day … not about the stylish woman with too much perfume.
Ada, this is such a wonderful post, it made my heart melt, too. It is such a great responsibility to teach a child the manners, but it is also a satisfaction when you see that the good manners are still here, between us. Unfortunately, there is of children education method “under the spotlight” nowadays, to leave your child do anything whenever he or she wants, I so much disagree with it.
Have a lovely day full of great gestures, my dear!
Such a feel good tingling post… Manners are indeed golden and free… there’s just less of it these days. I think the too much perfume would have made me throw up due to my severe werewolf sense of smell at the moment! Not cool at all!
x.o.x.o
Wonderful story about the two girls 🙂
xxx
Good manners are never out of fashion and it’s something that I instil into my little one daily. What a lovely story:) My pet hate is too much perfume no matter how good or bad you’re dressed… eek!
What a beautiful story, Ada!
Too much perfume can ruin everything indeed. Funny, I haven’t witnessed too many women doing it (or maybe I’m used to women’s fragrance so much I stopped noticing it), but men. The amount of aftershave products and perfume they use is sometimes unbearable, especially on the subway. It’s like they have decided to pour the entire bottle on their clothes. The scent is strong anyway, why use so much?
Your lovely story about Sarah and Tara totally made me smile.
Rowena @ rolala loves
I love that kids really never change no matter what decade we’re living in. So sweet and too bad about the lady wearing too much perfume–blek. Hope you’re having a great week Ada!
xo Mary Jo
Ada, thank you for sharing such a beautiful story and absolutely gorgeous photography! Your words turned this moment into a mini-documentary and I so wish I could see it all myself. So heart-warming and precious.
As for the perfume – lets hope she had a cold and her nose was blocked. 😉
Hope you are having a lovely and relaxing weekend, darling.
xxx
Oh Ada, the story of Sarah & Tara was just great – loved it. And yes, style (and class) can’t be bought – but manners can be taught indeed,
Have a lovely day,
Axx
What a beautiful story about the two little girls Ada. I always keep telling my husband that there is so much to learn from kids, the way they forgive without resentment, the way they make friends so quickly and honestly and how they don’t know anything about envy and bad feelings. And for us grown ups it’s so hard to make friends sometimes. Kids are really amazing!
Have a great weekend!
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