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By Annette Hillis, Resident "You'll understand when you're older!" Whether it's whispered in a Parisian café, shouted across a crowded market in Seoul, or proclaimed in a small kitchen in Hemet, that five-word manifesto is the global anthem of parenthood. You didn't want to hear it then; it didn't make any sense. What good was saying that when you needed answers in that moment? Turns out those pithy little sayings your parents decreed were really pearls of wisdom – you just couldn't see it yet. Remember these little gems? "Life isn't fair," "Treat others how you want to be treated," "Money doesn't grow on trees," "You'll thank me later," "Eat your vegetables," and "If you can't say something nice, don't say anything at all." But the one that really got us mad? "If all your friends jumped off a cliff, …" The interesting thing about parental advice is that the guidance it so lovingly imparts actually spans the globe, despite language barriers and thousands of miles of separation. Every mom and dad, in every country, somehow received the exact same memo on how to raise a human. The "how" of parenting may be culturally specific, but the outcomes seem strikingly similar across the board. For example, in East Asia and Sub-Saharan Africa, social harmony, interdependence, and respect for elders are highly valued. Traits emphasized in the West and Scandinavian nations are self-reliance, critical thinking, and individual expression. Countries such as South Korea and China see education as the primary vehicle for both individual and family honor. Rather than organizing family life entirely around the child, French parenting often encourages children to both participate in and adapt to the rhythms of family life. Around the world, parenting styles may differ in their execution, but it is in their objective that we see the resemblance. The bottom line is no matter the language the lesson was delivered in, mothers and fathers everywhere try to prepare their children for life, while also teaching them how to be decent human beings. Now, years later, we find ourselves eating our vegetables, treating others with kindness, watching our budgets, and occasionally biting our tongues when we can't say anything nice. Some of us have even caught ourselves repeating those same parental sayings to our own children and grandchildren. Yikes! As the popular insurance commercial portrays, we have turned into our parents. We spent our youth rolling our eyes, ignoring much of the advice given to us, and insisting our parents didn't understand us. The greatest irony of all is that we have finally arrived at the moment they promised would come. We're older and, like they predicted, now understand what they meant. We have turned into their clones. One day we are rebellious; the next, we are reminding someone to bring a sweater. Resistance, it turns out, was futile. 8 SOLERA DIAMOND VALLEY | AUGUST 2026 Th Thing W Swor Weren' Tru By Clare Mendez, Resident Have you ever needed some work done around the house and wished you'd known which supplier or service provider to call? Well, you're in the right place. First, check out the vendors who are advertising in e View. They are the ones supporting this publication. If you don't see what you are looking for, the good news is this: We have more on the SDV website. Brenda Visser and her husband, Ray, moved to Solera Diamond Valley in 2009. The following year, due to health issues, Brenda had to quit her job at a local civil engineering firm. Her husband, Ray, had been a general contractor for years and had established personal relationships with subcontractors and business owners throughout the years. Brenda told me she had a stereotypical vision of sweet old grandmas dressed in their Montgomery Ward house dresses with their hair piled high in sweet buns, being the vulnerable victims of disreputable individuals. As she met new residents, she noticed many needed help finding a vendor that was reliable and fair, so she typed up a few business names she thought might be helpful and shared them with the new residents, many of whom were from out of the area. That was the beginning of the Vendor's List. To see the list of preferred vendors that she has accumulated for the past 11 or so years, go to the Solera Diamond Valley website and scroll down to the Vendor List (just below the Committees, Clubs and Groups tab). She has now accumulated more than a hundred vendors categorized as Auto/RV Repair; Exterior or Interior; Medical; Personal Services; Pets; and Travel. All the vendors on the list have been recommended to her by SDV residents. This is important: If you are very satisfied with the work a vendor has done for you, show them our magazine and ask them to advertise in e View. Please don't just hand over your copy because there are personal emails and phone numbers in e View. Instead, tell them to call Courtney Taylor at (909) 797-3647 to place an advertisement that reaches over 530 homes in our community. Let's keep our magazine profitable so we can enjoy reading it each month and support the vendors who advertise. Local Vendors

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