“If/When life gives you lemons, make lemonade” is an old saying. “If/When life gives you melons, you may/might be dyslexic” is a jocular variant that has been printed on many gift items, such as T-shirts, buttons ad posters.
 
“When life gives you melons, make melonade” was cited in print in 2003. ” If life gives you melons, you may be dyslexic” was cited in print in 2007.
 
“When life gives you melons, buy a bra” and “When life gives you melons, wear a low cut top”—“melons” are slang for “breasts”—are twists on this saying.
 
 
Google Groups: alt.music.gwar
Q for computer literate people
Phil the Scumdog
5/6/03
(...)
When life gives you melons, make melonade.
   
Doug Johnson
Doug’s t-shirt says…
POSTED ON SATURDAY, OCTOBER 20, 2007 AT 11:39AM BY DOUG JOHNSON
(...)
333. If life gives you melons, you may be dyslexic.
 
Sickopedia
When life gives you melons… you know you’re dyslexic.
Joke added 5 years, 8 months ago by sparkyjcs in Illness and Mortality > Dyslexia
(January 2009.—ed.)
   
Twitter
Diane Carden
‏@dianecarden
When life gives you, “melons,” you know you are dyslexic.
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12:58 PM - 27 Mar 2009
 
Google Books
Garden Rules:
The Snappy Synopsis for the Modern Gardener
By Jayme Jenkins and Billie Brownell
Brentwood, TN: Cool Springs Press
2011
Pg. ?:
Of course, if Life gives you melons, you know it’s dyslexic. (Get it? Lemons, melons ...).
 
Google Books
The Mammoth Book of One-Liners
By Geoff Tibballs
London: Constable & Robinson Ltd.
2012
Pg. ?:
When life gives you melons, you know you’re dyslexic.
 
Google Books
If I Lie
By Corrine Jackson
New York, NY: Simon Pulse
2012
Pg. 151:
Blake stands over me in olive green board shorts and a T-shirt that says IF LIFE GIVES YOU MELONS, YOU MAY BE DYSLEXIC.