Wales seems to be the place of origin for this well-known phrase. The February 1866
edition of Notes and Queries magazine includes this:
"A Pembrokeshire proverb. Eat an apple on going to bed, And you'll keep the doctor from earning his bread."
Variations of the phrase were very popular by the turn of the 20th century. In 1913, Elizabeth
Wright recorded a Devonian dialect version and also first known record
of the version we use now, in Rustic Speech and Folk-lore:
"Ait a happle avore gwain to
bed, An' you'll make the doctor beg his bread; or as the more popular
version runs: An apple a day Keeps the doctor away."
Apples have a good claim to promote health.
They contain Vitamin C, which aid the immune system and phenols, which
reduce cholesterol. They also reduce tooth decay by cleaning one's
teeth and killing off bacteria. It has also been suggested by researchers that the quercetin found in apples protects
brain cells against neuro-degenerative disorders like Alzheimer's
Disease.
And, what you ask, has this phrase on my mind? While making myself a cup of coffee, I noticed how pretty our apples look in the basket in our kitchen. I take one with me each day to work. I've mentioned before that my favorite apples are Pink Lady, but they aren't in season now. These are Gala, and they are an okay substitute for my delightful Pink Lady.
**************************
And, to answer my Wednesday question, I didn't have crushes on stars when I was a kid. But, like Marg at Home Again, I had a major crush on my fifth grade teacher. Ah, I thought the sun rose and set in him. He was a major motivating factor for excellent grades.
Now, I did get a crush on a star my senior year in high school, but I would have never considered myself an adolescent at that point. I thought I knew everything. That was the year Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid was released, and I went to see if with a group of my friends. That was the first time I had ever laid eyes on Robert Redford. And, I can tell you he left me speechless. (And, those of you who know me know well that is a rare event.) I thought he was gorgeous. Funny thing was that I had always thought men (boys) with dark hair and dark eyes (like my daddy) were the most attractive. Well, Robert Redford's blonde good looks had a life-changing impact on me. Guess what! My husband is a blue-eyed blonde. And, so is my son.
And, Robert Redford still stops me in my tracks.
