You sweet summer child

[thinkprint]

AIBU to feel absolutely fucking murderous when people say this?

@thinkprint fyi

It was used by a number of authors during the 1840s, notably:- Fredrika Bremer (1840), James Staunton Babcock (1849) in The West Wind and Mary Whitaker (1850) in The Creole. It has been used in a number of other novels, poems and speeches (especially by US authors) throughout the 20th century.

Cringing for you op

Well yes, but someone’s ignorance of a fact doesn’t disprove someone else’s knowledge of it.

It's an old American folk saying; I'm not sure how much you're going to find a clear trail of use online using primary sources. The only person I've ever heard say this IRL was an American colleague from the midwest (Indiana, specifically; she grew up on a farm). We worked together from 1992-1994, so this was before even A Game of Thrones the book came out in 1996. She'd be in her 70s now.

She definitely used "oh my sweet summer child" affectionately, not to belittle or demean anyone. I always took it to mean that (just for example) she was kind of wistful that she couldn't feel as hopeful as the brand new just-out-of-uni kids peppering management with suggestion after suggestion - she herself was too ground down to get excited, but she'd be happy for us if things DID work out. "Bless your soul" was another one she used similarly. I get that that could still seem condescending but she was so genuinely nice and down to earth that it never came across that way, at least to me.

Leaving aside the massive derail about its origins, it's become overused on MN and I agree it's irritating. It's up there with "use your words" and "bless you" for patronising shortcuts on here.

I think it’s quite funny. Has never heard of it until read it on here.

My grandmother died before the internet was around for her to post her pearls of wisdom. But she said it all the time while I was growing up.

As if the world just began with the internet.

I looked into this last year, and the words did appear before but not in the context that it is used, now. I.e. a naive person. That comes from the books and was not used in that context before 1995.

There are some good yt videos and reddit threads discussing it's origins.

Can’t say I’ve ever heard it before. I’ve evidently missed the TV progs where it’s been used.
I’ve never seen it in a book, either, and I’m a prolific reader.

It is definitely some sort of Mandela Effect that we’re witnessing. Fascinating really.

Any examples pre GOT?

Not in the same context. The same words have been used together in a sentence in the past. But not with the same meaning.

Usually said by those fresh out of college or university to women in their late 50s.

It is really interesting how the only people who used it couldn’t use the internet, and then it completely stopped being used between the internet becoming commonplace and Game of Thrones being released.

It didn’t end with it, did it?

It’s only been used in one book and one TV show and now people quote it to presumably try and sound clever. And faced with the reality that they’re quoting a popular TV show they’re pretending it’s been a commonplace saying since Victorian times. Which it hasn’t, as your lack of hearing or seeing it demonstrates.

I assume most people got it from the book?

I heard it long before GoT, firstly from an American friend from the Southern US. He said his grandmother used it, as a (usually affectionate) comment on someone being very naive/optimistic about something.

Apparently " Bless your heart" is the really pass/agg Southern phrase.

OP is boss level sweet summer child 😂😂😂

You’re so clever! Being able to quote a TV show 👏👏

Why does it matter if they’re quoting from a book?

“Whoever pursues righteousness and kindness will find life, righteousness, and honor”

How on earth can quoting something from a TV show make anyone sound clever? I am bemused…

I’d say the same about ‘early doors’ - where TF did that morsel of verbal idiocy come from?

I like it. I heard it well before Game of Thrones was written but OP knows I’m a liar or deluded. Amusing (but slightly worrying) thread.

Does OP think George R. R. Martin invented sarcasm!?