On the ranch in Wyoming our work ethic included that we do the work without pay cheerfully before we sever received compensation for our efforts. That meant that if we wanted a job we should volunteer to work for a week or two until we were well enough trained to be an asset and not a liability to whomever we might be offering our services. This may seem old fashioned and I have rarely seen it in "city kids." The city kids that would come to work on the ranch and only make it for two weeks before they washed out but still had the audacity to demanded compensation got paid but it was with a sad distain. It is like the scene in the movie the Jungle Book in the city of monkeys when the greedy soldiers are grabbing gold and silver, diamonds and pearls to make their fortune when they got home and the monkeys are cheering and chattering. Suddenly the monkeys quiet. A erie silence canvases the room. As a faint awareness dawnes that the soldier has met his end a huge python rears out of the river flowing through the treasure room. Shocked, he falls into the water where he struggles in vain to free himself from the treasure he had strapped to his packs. The gold draggs him to the bottom where his grave is shared by skeletons of men gone before.
Greed and a lack of awareness of where the money comes from will destroy a man and a nation. On the ranch if a man works for two weeks and does no more, the crop dies and there is no profit. If a hundred hired hands started and quit, then demanded pay the small cash reserves that are only replenished after harvest would be depleted leaving not only the hired hands but the land owner and his family destitute.
It is wise to limit expectation that work always brings monetary compensation. It is more important for children to feel the internal satisfaction of a job well done. Then when we have worked hard, we play hard and have treats when we can but the fun is just a natural consequence not a reward. We are happy when we work.
On the meal front Breakfast : Oatmeal with cinamon and sugar as a topping. Cinnamon is a good source of calcium and a great source of dietary fiber. This makes it a good choice for weight control and also is a good spice to help management of blood sugars because it is a "sweet" spice meaning that the total amount of sugar can be decreased if cinnamon is added.
Lunch: Tuna, macaroni and lettuce salad. I did not have fresh frozen green peas that I usually put in this salad but everyon e ate it anyway.
Late afternoon: Macaroni and cheese - I was tied up cleaning carpets and going to graduation parties. The children mixed a large pot and along with fresh fruit and milk fed themselves.
Late at night several of the children were still hungry. To everyone's delight, gracious friend brought 3 pizzas leftover from a birthday party. While we enjoyed the pizza, I fried hamburger patties and heated steamed potatoes in the drippings. Even after eating 3-4 slices of pizza, the big boys were glad to have the meat and potatoes before retiring. The evening lingered on with pleasant conversation around the dinner table for 2 hours. This is the best of times.
I couldn't agree more - the only way that you can get true satisfaction for your soul is by working hard and doing a good job that you can be proud of. That is the way that my husband and I were raised and that is how we raised our children.
ReplyDeleteI have always felt, and taught my children, that being able to work was a gift from God. A few years back my husband became disabled and unable to do anything and that gift was taken away from him. My children now truly understand what I was trying to teach them and how precious good health and the ability to work and to take care of yourself and family is. "By the sweat of your brow..."