Teaching My Children

He who gathers crops in summer is a wise son,
but he who sleeps during harvest is a disgraceful son. (NIV)

A wise youth harvests in the summer,
but one who sleeps during harvest is a disgrace. (NLT)

Make hay while the sun shines—that's smart;
go fishing during harvest—that's stupid. (The Message)

Proverbs 10:5

All those verse above are the same verse from different translations. Every once in a while- especially with Proverbs, I like comparing translations to see how they differ. You can see that Proverbs 10:5 has several different versions, and each one digs a little differently into the meaning of it.

One of the lessons that Andy and I have been learning and working on lately is the concept of "stuff"- basically needs versus wants. It's amazing how much better life can be when you truly analyze something and ask whether you need an item-or you just want it. Case in point, my couch that I've mentioned before. I have a couch. It's definitely had better days, but it functions perfectly well. I don't need a new couch. I want a new couch. So in order to satisfy my wants without affecting my needs, I'm looking for new ways to re-invent my couch. I have a handmade quilt winging it's way from Indiana that I purchased online for a bargain that will cover my couch for me-and give it a completely new look- which is really what I want.

It's really hard to teach this lesson to my children. During the limited amount of time that they watch TV, they are constantly being bombarded with the latest craze in toys, video games, or movies, and it's so hard to explain to them that they really don't need any of that. So we're trying to show them. Abigail is old enough that she's been paying attention. We've discussed many times with her over the last several months the issue of money. And how if she really wants something, she needs to save her money for it. She gets her money from doing chores around the house for us. The number one rule to her chores, is that they must be done cheerfully. The minute she complains about cleaning her bedroom, she loses the dollar that she earns for that job. And I do think the lesson is working. She has been asking for more jobs that she can do around the house- and not to earn money, but because she wants to be helpful. She's learned mopping and vacuuming recently, both with a big smile on her face. The next one she wants to learn is how to clean the bathroom.

Along with this lesson of being joyful with her work, is the lesson of making your work count- which is where the above verse come in. This year the kids will each have their own patch of garden to plant whatever they want in it. Then it will be their jobs to take care of their garden. They will do the weeding and tending, and hopefully the eventual harvesting. From there I want them to do the actual preparing of the vegetables for eating, and possibly preserving, depending on what they grow. Last year Abigail helped me make strawberry jam when we picked strawberries. Recently, we've run out of that jam, and both kids are missing it. There are also still containers of strawberries in the freezer, and carrots that Zander helped preserve. Every time we pull out strawberries, they mention going picking again. And Zander is so proud to see us all eat his carrots.

One of the things that I see so often today is a poor work ethic. Teens get their first jobs and complain about how hard they have to work to earn a paycheck. I used to get that all the time when I was working. The high school kids were constantly complaining about the work they were assigned. It wasn't until I recommended my younger sisters as employees that everyone got to see a cheerful heart in action. I am certain that the managers they worked with still remember how hard they worked, and how cheerfully they did it. I want my children to appreciate what they can do if they put their minds to it. This will bring them great joy in their lives to come. And will also bring us joy as parents.

"A wise child brings joy to a father;" Proverbs 10:1