Proverbs

Traditional wisdom in the Marches is often contained in pithy, short phrases full of meaning that contain practical advice. There are many more of these than any one person could hope to collect.

Widespread sayings include:

• Pride in small things, loyalty to great ones. This is usually an admonition that people should take pride in what they do, but be loyal to their nation, rather than taking a pride in their nation's achievements but being loyal to themselves.
• When a dog barks, you don't bark back. Often used to mean that loud, angry word or taunts shouldn't be answered in kind.
• Sword and shears both cut alike. Often Used to remind people that soldiers and farmers both do important jobs.
• Know a body by their March; judge'em by their company. A variant of 'Don't judge a book by it's cover'
• Every wife has two husbands and Every husband two wives. Which is often used to mean that there is a difference between the reality of a person and the way they are spoken about
• The best soil is thirsty soil. Meaning that the best soil is watered with tears, sweat and blood - that it demands and rewards hard work.
• Bread without spice is better than spice without bread. A reminder that fancy elements and adornments are no match for substance.
• Sow, tend and reap; fight, toil and weep. Which is sometimes used to mean that the harvest of fighting is sadness
• One boy’s a boy, two boys is half a boy and three boys is no boy at all. Referring to the way that the more people you have on a job, the slower it goes.
• Losttime is never found. Which simply means that wasted time is gone forever.
• The answer lies in the soil.
• Liars and gossips sleep in the same bed.
• Nothing dries faster than a tear.
• Having a beard doesn't make you wise.

Making Your Own

The easiest way to make your own sayings is simply to adopt one that isn't especially well known in modern times. Many websites exist with lists of folk sayings to help you out. A more ambitious option is to take a more common saying such as "A rolling stone gathers no moss" and give it a Marcher twist.

Some useful websites include American Folksayings, proverbs and maxims;