When life gives you lemons, make lemonade is a proverbial phrase used to encourage optimism and a positive can-do attitude in the face of adversity or misfortune. Lemons suggest sourness or difficulty in life; making lemonade is turning them into something positive or desirable. [1]
The sentiment has often been expressed in varying words. Its first known print use, as attributed to Christian anarchist writer Elbert Hubbard in 1909 in Literary Digest, [2] reads: "A genius is a man who takes the lemons that Fate hands him and starts a lemonade-stand with them." He also used it in a 1915 obituary he penned and published for dwarf actor Marshall Pinckney Wilder. [3] The obituary, entitled The King of Jesters, praises Wilder's optimistic attitude and achievements in the face of his disabilities:
"He was a walking refutation of that dogmatic statement, Mens sana in corpore sano . His was a sound mind in an unsound body. He proved the eternal paradox of things. He cashed in on his disabilities. He picked up the lemons that Fate had sent him and started a lemonade-stand." [4]
Although the first two known uses in print are by Hubbard, [5] [6] [7] many modern authors [8] [9] attribute the expression to Dale Carnegie who used it in his 1948 book How to Stop Worrying and Start Living . Carnegie's version reads:
"If You Have a Lemon, Make a Lemonade." [10]
Carnegie credited Julius Rosenwald for giving him the phrase. [10]
The September 1916 edition of the Auburn Seminary Record printed another early use of the expression.
"[Hugh K. Walker] described a pessimist as one who fletcherizes his bitter pill, the optimist as the man who made lemonade of the lemon handed him." [11]
Eight years before Carnegie's book brought the phrase back into the mainstream, a poetic rendition of the phrase entitled The Optimist appeared in a 1940 edition of The Rotarian :
"Life handed him a lemon,
As Life sometimes will do.
His friends looked on in pity,
Assuming he was through.
They came upon him later,
Reclining in the shade
In calm contentment, drinking
A glass of lemonade." [12]
In 1944, during Homer E. Capehart's first run for Senate, he became known for saying:
"I have never been afraid of trouble. I have always had this slogan: If somebody hands you a lemon, make lemonade of it." [13] [14] [15]
A commercial for Super Bowl LV advertising Bud Light Seltzer Lemonade mentions 2020 being a "lemon of a years" (a reference to the COVID-19 pandemic) showing lemons literally falling from the sky. Someone was about to say the phrase but someone else cuts him off by saying they already knew it.
In 2008, Atmosphere titled their fifth studio album When Life Gives You Lemons, You Paint That Shit Gold , with reference to the original phrase.
In 2016, some music critics reported that Beyoncé's sixth studio album title, Lemonade, was a reference to the optimistic phrase, referring to the themes drawn in the album, [16] [17] [18] and also with her promotions and marketing strategy for the project. [19] Some journalists wrote that the speech delivered by the singer's grandmother-in-law Hattie White at the end of the song "Freedom" was a clear reference to the motto and inspired the album title. [18] [20] [21] White said in the speech that "I had my ups and downs, but I always find the inner strength to pull myself up. I was served lemons, but I made lemonade". [22]
In The Amazing World of Gumball episode "The Curse", there is a song named "When Life Hands You Lemons".
The initial opening theme for Mystery Science Theater 3000 included the lyric "Joel says when you got lemons, you make lemonade." This was changed when the show was broadcast nationally.[ citation needed ]
In Portal 2 , one of the supporting characters, Cave Johnson, gives a speech through a recorded message where he contests whether one should make lemonade when life gives one lemons. When he finds out that he has a terminal illness, he goes on an angry rant, saying that life shouldn't give out lemons at all, threatening life itself with burning its house down by using combustible lemons. [23]
In the 2024 rendition of the Kung Fu Panda series, the main protagonist, Po, stated "When life gives you lemons, make pear juice and blow everyone's minds!" [24]
Warren Hinckle's 1974 autobiography detailing his time as chief editor of Ramparts is called If You Have a Lemon, Make Lemonade. [25]
The saying has become a popular calque in Hispanic culture. [8]
Beyoncé Giselle Knowles-Carter is an American singer, songwriter and businesswoman. Nicknamed "Queen Bey", she is regarded as one of the most influential cultural figures of the 21st century. Throughout her career, Beyoncé has been recognized for her expert vocal ability, executive media producing, and grandness of live performances. Rolling Stone named her the world's greatest living entertainer, and one of the greatest vocalists of all time.
Carpe diem is a Latin aphorism, usually translated "seize the day", taken from book 1 of the Roman poet Horace's work Odes.
Lemonade is a sweetened lemon-flavored drink.
Elbert Green Hubbard was an American writer, publisher, artist, and philosopher. Raised in Hudson, Illinois, he had early success as a traveling salesman for the Larkin Soap Company. Hubbard is known best as the founder of the Roycroft artisan community in East Aurora, New York, an influential exponent of the Arts and Crafts movement.
The lemon is a species of small evergreen tree in the Citrus genus of the flowering plant family Rutaceae, native to Asia, including Northeast India where it was first grown. It is a hybrid of the citron and the bitter orange.
Warren James Hinckle III was an American political journalist based in San Francisco. Hinckle is remembered for his tenure as editor of Ramparts magazine, turning a sleepy publication aimed at a liberal Roman Catholic audience into a major galvanizing force of American radicalism during the Vietnam War era. He also helped create Gonzo journalism by first pairing Hunter S. Thompson with illustrator Ralph Steadman.
Marshall Pinckney Wilder was an American actor, monologist, humorist and sketch artist.
An anapodoton, plural anapodota, is a rhetorical device related to the anacoluthon; both involve a thought being interrupted or discontinued before it is fully expressed. It is a figure of speech or discourse that is an incomplete sentence, consisting of a subject or complement without the requisite object. The stand-alone subordinate clause suggests or implies a subject, but this is not actually provided.
"Lemonade" is a song recorded by Romanian singer and songwriter Alexandra Stan for her Japan-only reissue, Cliché (2013). It was released for radio airplay in Italy on 12 June 2012, followed by its digital release on 14 June 2012 through MediaPro Music in Romania and on 1 August 2012 in Japan. Written and produced by Marcel Prodan and Andrei Nemirschi, the single incorporates EDM, reggae-pop and dubstep into its composition; it makes use of harmonica and accordions. Upon its release, "Lemonade" was met with positive reviews from music critics, with them naming it "catchy", "fresh" and a highlight, while one of them foresaw it as having a strong radio performance. It also drew comparations to the works of Britney Spears, Kelis and Lady Gaga. At the Radio România Actualități Awards gala in 2013, the recording received a nomination for Radio România Junior.
Lemonade is the sixth studio album by American singer-songwriter Beyoncé. It was released on April 23, 2016, by Parkwood Entertainment and Columbia Records, accompanied by a 65-minute film of the same name. It follows her self-titled fifth studio album (2013), and is a concept album with a song cycle that relates Beyoncé's emotional journey after her husband's infidelity in a generational and racial context. Primarily an R&B and art pop album, Lemonade encompasses a variety of genres, including reggae, blues, rock, hip hop, soul, funk, Americana, country, gospel, electronic, and trap. It features guest vocals from Jack White, the Weeknd, James Blake and Kendrick Lamar, and contains samples and interpolations of a number of hip hop and rock songs.
"Sandcastles" is a song by American singer Beyoncé. It is the eighth track on her sixth studio album, Lemonade (2016), released through Parkwood Entertainment and Columbia Records. The song's music video is part of Beyoncé's 2016 film Lemonade, aired on HBO alongside the album's release.
"Sorry" is a song by American singer and songwriter Beyoncé. It is the fourth track on her sixth studio album, Lemonade (2016), released through Parkwood Entertainment and Columbia Records. The song's music video is part of Beyoncé's 2016 film Lemonade, aired on HBO alongside the album's release.
"Hold Up" is a song by American singer and songwriter Beyoncé for her sixth studio album, Lemonade (2016). The song was serviced to Italian radio on May 27, 2016 as the third single from the album. It was written by Diplo, Ezra Koenig, Beyoncé, Emile Haynie, Josh Tillman, MNEK, and MeLo-X.
Lemonade is a 2016 musical film and visual album by American singer Beyoncé, and serves as a visual companion to her 2016 album of the same name. Beyoncé also contributes as a director and executive producer for the film. The film was released on April 23, 2016, premiering on HBO, and bundled with the album on CD/DVD, Tidal and iTunes Store, which released on the same day.
"Freedom" is a song by the American singer-songwriter Beyoncé featuring the American rapper Kendrick Lamar. It is the tenth track on her sixth studio album, Lemonade (2016), released through Parkwood Entertainment and Columbia Records. The song's music video is part of Beyoncé's 2016 film Lemonade, aired on HBO alongside the album's release. In the years since, the song has become an anthem for various social and political movements.
Sean Rhoden, known professionally MeLo-X, is an American disc jockey and record producer. MeLo-X co-wrote two songs for Beyoncé's Lemonade album in 2016: "Hold-Up" and "Sorry".
Mint lemonade is lemonade flavored with mint. It may be made with whole mint leaves, mint-flavored syrup, or pureed mint leaves, and may be served over ice cubes or blended with ice into a slush or smoothie. It is sometimes called a virgin mojito.
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