Teach your children well......

My first job.
Yes, that is me in the Easter Bunny suit.

I have been amazed in the last couple of weeks at all of the things the GOVERNMENT has to say about raising our children.  First, Newt says we should allow our 13 year old children to be janitors in our schools and pay them for their work.  I can say Newt is not my favorite person but I totally agree that it never hurts to teach your child the value of work at an early age.  Before anyone writes me to say it is breaking child labor laws, let me say perhaps you should be looking at the “seasoned” people in your family and ask them about their first job and how it benefited them.  I began working on a special work permit when I was 14 as the Easter Bunny in a department store in my town.  I was the bunny for 2 years - 1964 and 1965.  Since my father died when I was 11 years old, I considered this job a means to purchase some items I would like to have, which helped our family budget.  My Mom had 4 daughters at home and Social Security benefits from my father’s passing was the same amount for 2 children as for 4 children.  Can you imagine the government feeling you could raise 4 for the price of 2?  We didn’t get Medicaid or Aid to Dependent Children.  We didn’t even receive Food Stamps.  She only got Social Security.  It’s the truth.  So having that information, I knew I could help myself and my Mother.  Having that special work permit also allowed me to work during the summer and holidays plus weekends.  Had I earned money before?  You bet.   At that time there wasn’t a kid who hadn’t been taken to the blueberry patch in the summer to pick blueberries for money.  Fast forward to 2012 and how many Americans would take their children to the blueberry patch to pick blueberries for money to buy their own school clothes? 

My husband was from a family of 8 kids and he not only pick blueberries for money but also deliver newspapers door to door – every day – 7 days a week – 365 days a year!  We both lived in Muskegon, Michigan – the snow capital of Michigan.  Then to make things worse, he had to go back to every home he delivered a paper to and collect money for their subscription.  Imagine that! 

Neither Mike nor I feel we were abused.  We feel fortunate that we had a way to earn our own money as young people. It gave us the feeling of accomplishment when we received our money.  It taught us how to tithe, how to manage our money.  We had to learn to decide if one item we wanted to purchase was more important than another. We learned we couldn’t spend more than we had in our pocket.  My Mom always said you can’t spend money more than one time!  Stop and think about that statement.  WE DIDN’T USE CREDIT CARDS!!  We saved for our first cars because – shock of shocks as I say this – parents did not give their children cars, we had to buy them ourselves.  Cars were not an automatic present when you turned 16.  We drove our parent’s cars, which made us very aware we needed to drive conscientiously because none of us wanted to have the dreaded talk to tell the parents we wrecked their car.  At that time families had only one car so if you had an accident, you took the FAMILY car out of commission.  It was not a constitutional right to own a car, or a cell phone either, for that matter.  My daughter, Holly, and I were talking as I was preparing to write this article.  She reminded me that she wanted KEDS sneakers.  The white ones, the actual KEDS with the blue tag on the back, not the knock offs for $5.00 a pair.  We told her that if she wanted KEDS she would need to earn the money and purchase them herself.  She bought several pair over the next few years.  She took such good care of them, kept them white as long as she could and then washed them and made them white again.  When you invest your own money in something, you take care of it better than if you are given something just because you want it.

Grandma and Greg

When I was going through my Mothers things after she passed away, I found a newspaper article in her Bible.  It was written about her grandson, Greg.  The article was written when Greg was about 16 years old.  He had started his small business at a much earlier age with one lawnmower.  He cut grass in the warm weather and shoveled snow in the winter.  He had grown his business by the time he was 16 to having employees, scheduling appointments and was paying taxes.  He is amazing today in everything he does,   He has drive – he has focus – he likes having a paycheck.  It was instilled in him as a young man.  His Grandmother was so proud of him.  When he was about 12 years old Grandma had a small accident with her car.  Greg was certain he could bump out the dent and repair the damage.  At 12 years old he had confidence because someone was willing to let him try.  He did a great job, by the way.  It wasn’t perfect but it was done well.  As parents and grandparents we need to start listening to God instead of a psychologist who thinks we should not have expectations of our children.  Expectation develops drive and focus.  Yes, I know you can go overboard but I believe that we can, with God’s help, bring out the best in our kids.

When you think about what I have written, you have to ask yourself, where did we go wrong?  Can we make a change back to a simpler time when we only spent what we made?  Sure we can.  Currently 40% of Americans live above what they earn. There are programs like Financial Peace University that teach you how to live within your means.  It isn’t easy if you are already upside down but it can be fixed honorably.  You can also begin to teach your child the value of money.  Mom was right.  You can only spend money – whether a penny, a dollar or a hundred dollar bill – one time!  Money doesn't grow on trees, either, much to my dismay.  In 1 Kings chapter 1 it talks about Adonija, son of King David, and says in verse 6 that his father never asked why he behaved the way he did.  He was an arrogant young man who thought he should be King.  Today our kids think everything should be handed them on a silver platter.  David didn’t teach him the value of anything.  When we understand what it takes to work for something, we appreciate it far more.  Give some consideration to teaching your child or grandchild, niece, or nephew the value of working at an early age.