 This work should be worth a dollar, as well. Telling a child that
you'll pay him for staying out of your hair for an hour is called
bribery and does not teach the value of money, only the value of
driving a parent nuts. It also demonstrates how desperate you are
for a vacation. Your spouse should be made aware of this departure
from sanity so that he or she can prepare for an impending showdown.
My kids have regular chores that they have to do without payment,
because that is life in the real world. When they do something other
than their regularly scheduled chores, they get paid for it.
I needed some yardwork done the other day and I offered the
assignment up for pay. All three of them jumped at the chance to
earn money, although my 9-year-old, who has not yet learned the
value of money, accepted the task simply because he did not want his
siblings to receive anything he didn't get.
Later that day, after the work was done and I had paid them, the
phone rang. I needed some scrap paper to write down an address.
My 9-year-old ran to get some. He came back with one of his
dollar bills and slapped it on the table. I think he was a little
disappointed that I wasn't thrilled that he had found some scrap
paper.
After the call was completed, I sat down and had a talk with him.
"Do you remember that nice bike you got for Christmas last year?"
I began.
"The one I sold to the neighbors for $10?" he asked.
"You sold it to the neighbors? ... for $10?" I sputtered.
"Yeah... about that..."
"You said you lost it!"
"I sort of lied."
I tried to compose myself and think about what the important
lesson here should be. This child had a way of sidetracking me. Was
it wrong that he sold his brand-new bike? Was it that he sold it for
only $10? Or was it that he lied? Is it bad form to punish a kid for
a transgression that happened last year?
Pulling my hair out was becoming a habit for me. By the time this
boy turned 18, I would most likely be bald.
"OK. OK. The point I was trying to make is that if you don't
value money or the things that it can buy, you will never have
anything nice."
He looked at me with that blank stare that says, I wonder if
there are any Double Stuf Oreos left in the cookie jar.
[to top of second column] |
 "Look," I said, "if you didn't sell your bike, you would still be
able to ride it."
"But I wouldn't have the $10," he said logically.
"True, but you can't buy a new bike with only $10."
"I didn't want the bike as much as I wanted the $10."
"What did you buy with the $10?"
He thought about it. "I... don't remember."
"That's exactly what I mean," I said, thinking he finally
understood.
"You're right! I should have sold it for $20."
Nope, he didn't understand.
"No! I'm saying you should have kept the bike and worked to earn
the $10 for whatever it was you wanted to buy. Maybe even save some
of it for a rainy day rather than using it for scrap paper."
"So, I can use money to make an umbrella?"
It was like talking to a brick. I tried another tack.
"How many dollar bills would it take to make an umbrella?"
This is a question that doesn't come up very often under normal
circumstances, but it was all I had.
"A hundred, maybe?"
"And how much does an umbrella cost to buy?"
"I don't know... $20?"
"So why would you take a hundred dollars to make an umbrella when
you could buy one for $20?"
I saw something click. Then a calculating look came into his
eyes.
"So, you're saying if I sold a bike for $100, I could buy a
scooter for $80 and an umbrella with the other $20."
I looked at him hard. I knew that look. "Don't even think about
selling my bike!"
[By LAURA SNYDER]
Laura Snyder is a nationally syndicated columnist,
author and speaker. You can reach her at
lsnyder@lauraonlife.com
or visit www.lauraonlife.com
for more info.
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