The boy whined. He was upset. He refused to do his phonics pages, and wouldn’t be quiet enough so that Kenneth could concentrate on his client’s project on his laptop screen. At seven years old, Larry should be able to do what he is told, Kenneth muttered to himself. It was time to take him in the backyard.
“Let’s get a rake and shovel,” he said said to him sternly before leading him out the door.
“Do I have to do this?” his son complained.
Moved to another spot
Larry chose the hoe and Kenneth told him where to pull out the tall grass in the garden. Larry moved over to another spot, but Kenneth, sensing that any cooperation was a good thing, let him do what he wanted.
At times, homeschooling seemed to have its shortcomings, in that familiarity breeds contempt. Would his son be better behaved in school with a strict teacher? Maybe. And yet, deep down, Kenneth knew that he and his wife had made the best choice in educating him themselves. Simply put, parents knew their children better than any teacher, and could teach him exactly what they wanted, and keep better track of his friends. Homeschoolers are well regarded by good colleges, besides.
The fall weather was still good, with brown and yellow leaves swirling around them in the wind. Together they began to overturn the brown garden earth along the yard’s side fence. This is what it must have been for farmers over the centuries, Kenneth thought. Children working alongside their parents, learning how to work hard, gaining the skills needed for life. Laboring with their hands, close to the earth.
Taken aback
A few minutes passed as their implements churned the dirt. “I love you,” his soon said spontaneously as he chopped at a patch of weeds.
“I love you, too,” Kenneth replied warmly, a bit taken aback by the show of affection.
It seemed to be working. Others had it worse. Kenneth knew of two families whose dads were very successful businessmen, and yet their children grew up rather aimlessly, without ambition. It sounded corny, but they didn’t appreciate the value of working hard, of having to sweat and worry to earn one’s living. And also to enjoy the satisfaction of a job well done.
The suburban school system, with its endless supply of tax money, grew kids who were listless with energy gone awry. And all the while their parents, many times both mom and dad, worked long hours to support their families. And their kids hung out at shopping malls, bored, with not much to do. Not a good start in life.
A better way
His son dropped his hoe down in the dirt now and then, and didn’t work as hard as his dad thought he should, but at least Kenneth got him to work off a little steam. They spent less than an hour outside, and then Kenneth had to get back to his basement office and to his client’s advertising program that he had left idle on his laptop.
It took longer to raise kids this way, and it took some time away from the business. But in the end run, Kenneth knew it was the better way for all of them.