People Are Sharing The Wisdom Their Grandparents Or Older Adults Gave Them That Turned Out To Be Life's Little Cheat Codes

The elders you're surrounded by while growing up have such a vital part in making you who you are today. They teach you life lessons that you may not have understood then, but you definitely get now.

So, I asked the members of the BuzzFeed Community, "What is the best advice you received while you were growing up from your grandparents or an older adult that you still value today?" and their answers did not disappoint:

1."Treat your environment with love and respect. We are part of Earth as much as the Earth is part of us. The Earth is all we really have."

2.“'Broken cookies don’t count.' My Nana was very wise."

—cookiewookiee

3."I was on the verge of making a life-changing decision and felt a lot of pressure over whether it was the 'right' thing to do (looking back, I clearly see the religious guilt and a messed up family trying to keep me under their control at that point). I confided in my grandfather one day, fully expecting him to tell me off like everyone else."

4."My dad always says, 'Don’t let the assholes get you down.' Enough said."

—Anonymous

5."My grandma was a nurse in Iowa and a farm wife. I'll never forget the time she wagged her finger at me, her adult granddaughter, and said, 'Be good, and if you can't be good, be careful.' She winked. She always knew ❤️."

6."No matter how rich, famous, or powerful, everyone shits."

—Anonymous

7."I was a young female engineer working on a remote industrial construction site. My boyfriend (at the time) was treating me horribly for months. When we finally broke up, I showed up for work, heartbroken and upset. Everyone at work heard about it. I felt worthless because he clearly never loved me."

8."My grandma Pearl said, 'Never argue with a fool ‘cause someone watching can’t tell who’s the fool.'"

—silverchef871

9."I had just gotten my learner's permit, and my grandma told me that 5-10 miles above the speed limit was the most you could get away with. She also told me not to tell my parents she said that... Drive safe, kids."

10."My mum always says ‘the best form of revenge is success.' She’s right."

—truthbeautyfreedomlove

11."My grandma Huldah told me, 'You can judge a person’s faith by how comfortable they are with people who believe differently. The louder someone squawks about what they believe, and the harder they try to convince you to believe the same — the less they believe it themselves.'"

12."My grandfather always said, 'If you run with dogs you catch fleas.'"

—lindseyn12

13."As I was about to start college, my 85-year-old grandfather, a retired educator, told me that the most important word in the English language is 'no.' He didn’t say anything else, just that, and I never forgot it."

14."Be true to yourself. Make decisions that you will be able to live with throughout your lifetime."

—Anonymous

And finally, here's one that should stick with everyone:

15."My great-grandmother told me when I was young, 'People are gonna do you wrong just because they can, and they’re gonna dress up that wrongdoing and try to fool you into believing that they did nothing wrong. You’ve got to hold them accountable precisely because nobody else will. Call a thing a thing.'”

Note: Submissions have been edited for length and/or clarity.

Do you have a favorite piece of advice that has stuck with you that you learned from your grandparents or a trusted older adult? Let me know in the comments!