When life gives you lemons, make lemonade

When life gives you lemons, make lemonade is a proverbial phrase used to encourage optimism and a positive can-do attitude in the face of adversity or misfortune.

Its first known print use, as attributed to Christian anarchist writer Elbert Hubbard in 1909 in Literary Digest,[2] reads: "A genius is a man who takes the lemons that Fate hands him and starts a lemonade-stand with them."

[3] The obituary, entitled The King of Jesters, praises Wilder's optimistic attitude and achievements in the face of his disabilities: "He was a walking refutation of that dogmatic statement, Mens sana in corpore sano.

[19] Some journalists wrote that the speech delivered by the singer's grandmother-in-law Hattie White at the end of the song "Freedom" was a clear reference to the motto and inspired the album title.

[23] In Kung Fu Panda 4 (2024), the main protagonist, Po, stated "When life gives you lemons, make pear juice and blow everyone's minds!"

[24] In the Parks and Recreation episode "The Bubble" (S3 EP 15), in a tough office relocation, Andy Dwyer, a supporting character, uses the motto to encourage coworker Tom Haverford by claiming "I read that once on a can of lemonade.

In a talking head, Tom says that he doesn't want to turn lemons into lemonade, but would instead prefer to "slice them up into wedges and throw them into vodka tonics."