“Sugar and Spice and everything nice.  That’s what little girls are made of.”  Do you remember that rhyme from your childhood?  Do children even learn these rhymes anymore?  My reading indicated that sugar and spice is characterizing girls as being sweet and friendly.  I would like to provide an alternate line of thinking on the spice reference.  That spice description might be a nod to us sassy girls.  Maybe spicey girls grow up to be sassy women.  Sassy women bring a bit more oomph to the table.  You never know what they might say or how they might react, but I can assure you there’s a brain behind that mouth, and if you’re really lucky, a great sense of humor.  They have a tendency to verbalize what others are thinking, but won’t say out loud. Let’s talk about the making and substance of a sassy woman.

I can attribute my earliest memory of hearing the word sassy to my Grandmama.  She came from the generation where you did not question or talk back to adults.  I believe she was the first person to ever tell me I had a sassy mouth.  My response at the time was “I am not sassy.  I just know what I am talking about.” I did not consider myself being disrespectful, but the need to ask questions and express my thoughts were like breathing to me.  I definitely do not have a passive personality.  I heard someone describe themself as a skeptic the other day.  Looking back, I think I was a skeptic with a side of sass way back.  I didn’t just take what people told me at face value.  I had questions, and I had my own thoughts on the world around me.  So….characteristic number one…..a sassy woman is a thinking woman.  

Sass is not the same for every woman or little girl.  It can manifest in different ways.  Sassy women tend to dress with a little more flair at times.  They might go along with the trends or they might go their own way, and create their own style.  For me, it’s cowgirl boots.  As I’ve written before, I love westerns.  My red cowgirl boots are one of my prized possessions, and when paired with the right outfit, you know my sassy persona is on the scene.  And…you better watch out for those girls wearing animal print.  Of course, on the weekend, I love to wear my jeans, a short sleeve wrangler shirt, and my hat.  It might be a straw hat for when I go out to the farm or an oilskin hat that I ordered from Outback Trading Post.   That hat is currently my favorite.  For other sassy women, it might be high heels and an on point hair do.  It varies from woman to woman, but sass is the common denominator.  For those of you from Generation X on back, you might remember Flo from the tv show Mel’s Dinner.  Now she was the epitome of sass.  You mostly only saw her in her diner uniform on the show, but that head of big styled red hair gave you a warning.  She would tell you “kiss my grits” in a heartbeat.  So…characteristic number two…..sass presents in different ways.  

Do men want a woman that goes along with everything they say, and a woman that doesn’t voice her opinion?   My husband might say yes.  I am sure he has thought his life would be calmer had he chosen a more docile woman.  Good fortune shone down on him though.  He got a woman that can be fiery and passionate.  I am not talking about the lust kind of passionate, but a woman that is passionate about life and her family.  She will have your back, but will also let you know when you are not towing the line.  A man with a sassy woman, if he’s truly tuned in, will always know where he stands with her.  Brad Paisley best summed up this kind of woman in his song “She’s Everything.”  “She’s a fighter when she’s mad And she’s a lover when she’s loving.”   The character, Blanche Devereaux, on the 80’s tv sitcom The Golden Girls was just that.  A lover and a fighter when the situation called for it. So….characteristic number three….a sassy woman can be a great wife for the right man. 

I started out as a sweet little girl with budding signs of sass.  Life has thrown curve balls at me over the years, and the sass faltered at times.  Experience, life events, and the passing of time will hone that sass like nothing else.  Know that with a sassy woman you will at some point know what she’s thinking.  If she’s quiet, give her time.  She might be getting ready to unleash the beast on you, and more than likely, give you an earful.  Conversations with these types of people are the best.  The cadence and banter of sassy and fun loving people will brighten your day.  Just so you know…men can be sassy and cheeky as well.  I believe we all start out as sweet.  At least, most of us do.  Some people though, at times, I question if they even have a pulse.  Sass might be considered an undesirable attribute in a little girl, but don’t completely subdue it.  Don’t kill that spark.  That sass will serve that girl well as she grows into a woman.  She will think for herself.  Stand up for herself and others.  That sass will see her through the good and bad times.  This post is dedicated to all the sassy women out there.  May we continue to take life head on and push forward with, as the French say, a joie de vivre.

One more thing….for added emphasis when speaking, make sure you put that hand on your hip.

All the best,

Stella Elaine