snake bit you

GW would say: “If it was a snake, it would have bit you.” What did he mean by that?

Usually it was said when I was looking for something, but could not find it. GW would come along and pick it up, sometimes the item was right in front of my eyes. He would then deliver the ‘snake bit you’ speech.

GW’s statement about being bit had nothing to do with snakes. He was suggesting a person pay attention to what he/she is doing–in this example, I was looking for an item he had told me to find. GW’s point was that too often people make a half-hearted effort at an assigned task, and then complain when they failed to accomplish it. The person’s reaction to their failure being projected as if it was the fault of the one who assigned the task. Which was the other part of the snake bit referral: Do not get bit by your lack of effort which will show to others that you are lazy or stupid or both.

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