Greenham's sense of humour and linguistic play is particularly evident in the slogan-like aphorisms she produced in informal stapled editions and circulated amongst friends. Those shown above and below, have been compiled from editions titled aphorisms for contemplation and before the beginning there was eternity, as well as loose aphorisms catalogued and found inserted into books in the Lily Greenham Archive at Goldsmiths, University of London.

even a vacuum cleaner
can be instructive

sometimes
one has to be cruel
to be kind
take a look
at yourself

confession
is the oldest form
of psychotherapy

the overconfident
and the lazy
take shortcuts

many intellectuals
are long-sighted
most romantics
are short-sighted

watchfulness
instead of
mistrust
serves both parties

all ways lead to rome
when you’re going there

the less one knows
the more likely one is
to condemn

as stiff as
the body
as rigid as
the mind

friction irritates
irritation inflames
inflammation burns
burns can be fatal

remember:
a parasite
feed on its host

being grateful for
bad experiences
is a genuine paradox

motion moves your body
e-motion your soul
you never move

sensitivity
is a goal in itself
not to be
identified with

response
and
responsibility
share
the same
root

genuine sympathy
is heart-felt
convention
tends to
kill it

people on guard
tend to constipation
the over-anxious
to diarrhoea

understanding
digestion
is the key
to wisdom

it is un-wise
to offer people
what they cannot take
and equally un-wise
to ask them for
what they
cannot give

some people
believe
that flattery
will bring
friendship
and trust

in life’s
cross-word puzzle
professions
are written
horizontally
vocations
vertically

that which
doesn’t change current
goes down the drain

fixed ideas
thwart
understanding

saturation is
a danger zone

many people
line their pockets
by making others
less alive

everybody is
everybody else’s
guru

concentration
narrows the focus
attention
widens the view

impatience
paves the way
for becoming
a patient

is there
something
beyond culture?

any point
on the globe
has its ‘down-under’

desire
strives upwards
lust
pushes down

compulsion
is a takeover
by another entity

is it better
to pull oneself together
or apart?

the remedy
for hypertension
is flexibility

the revenue
of a deposit
can either be
quantitative
or
qualitative

is the negative
or the positive
of a photograph
the real thing?

crises
provoke
decisions

a grimace
consciously executed
is the best assurance
for preserving
a young face

a too open mind
invites
parasitic thoughts

a tender heart
is one that
pulsates
on oxygen

if your tolerance level
for stupidity drops
make sure
you’re not the fool
yourself

kindness
for selfish reasons
is of a
different kind

an aphorism a day
keeps the shrink
away