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It's a Po Rat That Aint Got But One Hole to Run Into
A proverb for the generations
As I think of my sheroes, and when I am asked about my favorite quote, my grandmother Naomi Johnson always comes to mind. “It’s a po rat that ain’t got but one hole to run into,” she’d say. Affectionally known as Nanny, she was born in 1915 and came of age during The Great Depression. Her elegance in later years belied her humble beginnings in rural Arkansas. She shared many “nannyisms,” that were both funny and enduring. The rat proverb shaped my way of living and working, and ultimately led to my strengths as a strategist and planner. I thought maybe the rat proverb might be helpful to others as well.
As a kid, I heard it and imagined a frightened rat, cornered by a house cat or a broom, looking for escape options and realizing in the moment that its predator had blocked its one path to safety. Poor little rat! As I think about it, that may have been the beginnings of my empathy for all living things — even those we are conditioned to think of as disgusting and expendable (I’ll save that for another post). Nanny didn’t like rats, as she was adamant about cleanliness and order. She wanted her progeny to use that proverb as a navigational tool for life. And we have.
During one of my summer visits, she showed me some of her “stashes”- wads of cash she had saved, hidden in odd places around her home. She also took me along to “take care of some business” at the bank. My mother told me stories of Nanny’s and my grandfather Big Daddy’s multiple streams of income during their working years. Nanny was an independent seamstress/dress maker while a stay at home mom, and later held other jobs, including as a postal worker, as the need arose. Big Daddy kept a garden for the family, and fished, hunted, trapped and foraged, in addition to being an entrepreneur and a crew boss on the California shipyards during WWII. They still managed to have time for big family gatherings. They had more hours in the day and more energy than we do with all of this technology.
As I grew into adulthood, my mother reminded me of the phrase, and we discussed its meaning. Mom had referenced it to diversify her finances — mostly safe investments outside the house, but multiple stashes nonetheless. She advised me as soon as I graduated college and started my first job to budget, save and invest $25 dollars of each pay check. I did budget and found in those early years that after all expenses were paid, I would usually have less than $50 left. Unsurprisingly, shoes, party and work clothes, socializing, and networking opportunities took priority in my 20s. True to her advice, that meant I would have to sacrifice much more of my paychecks and more of my investment returns later. But in my strategic mind, those were social investments that would later yield promotions, a husband and a family of my own. And they did.
When my kids became old enough to understand, I told them, “Nanny used to say, ‘It’s a po rat that ain’t got but one hole to run into.’ Do you know what that means?” I advised them to remember this as they move through this world. Here are a few suggested applications:
1. Spend below your means, budget, save and invest. Always have a way to get out from “between a rock and hard place.” Keep multiple stashes inside and outside “the house.” Small stashes are better than no stashes.
2. Cultivate your inherent strengths and talents that will enable you to have multiple options and streams of income. You can be more than one thing at the same time, though it helps if they are complimentary.
3. If God gives you a vision for the most incredible cheese, it’s mean for you to go get it. Plan for the best-case scenario, and for the metaphorical cats that may block your path or try to kill your dream. There must be more than one way to get to that cheese. Strategize and plan contingencies, so that when the crisis hits you can shift as needed.
4. Choose your friends wisely. Cultivate genuine, mutually supportive relationships with people of similar values, but different experiences and skillsets. You should have five friends you would never allow to be homeless, stranded or hungry, and the relationship must be reciprocal.
5. Always maintain situational awareness, especially in America. Drive, park, walk and sit with more than one way to move out of harm’s way.
Nanny passed away at 91 years old in 2006. She spent her final days lounging in yellow silk pajamas and continued to hold court with her adoring children and grandchildren. She left us with many stories and many other nannyisms that guide us today. She always said I would grow up to be a “Boss” lady. She meant boss more as a superlative than as someone’s superior. And because of her, I am.
I was inspired to write this for Women’s History Month. If you have read this far and have received or earned wisdom you’d like to share, please do so in the comments.
