Dear parent. MAKE YOUR KIDS WORK.

Now i know this seems out of place, but i was doing a few jobs today, and i started thinking.

You see, having no job has made me short on money, and on wednesday and thursday, i am going shopping, and natural history museum with the girlfriend

well the problem is, i cant really afford it, and i asked my parents if there were any odd jobs i could do for some extra money. I felt a bit silly, being 18 and asking for money, but i figured there were plenty of jobs to do

so yesterday, i was on the sawbench cutting all the wood laying around the yard into firewood, and cleared out the shed to make space for the new tractor my dad has coming (we arent farmers, but we have a smallholding that we keep pigs on, and my grandad was quite the enthusiast of vintage tractors)

today, i was shovelling the composted pig manure over the soon to be garden, and emtying out all the trodden down straw from the pig stys. so i was literally shovelling sh*t just to spend time with a woman.

But i was thinking. and i have been made to work from about the age of 7. Before that, i was always made to polish my shoes, tidy my room, the usual. but when i hit seven, i had to work for the family business and work on the fair. So i started helping my dad on the sidestalls, until i was 16, and got promoted to the fun house as i was legal to run it on my own.

Now i hated it, ive always hated doing as im told, always hated mundane tasks and always hated the fun-fair business. i rebelled, i refused to work, i was a nasty little bugger. but i was still made to work.

and today i realised how it has helped build my character. i dont do half the work my dad does, and it knackers me, so i have always respected him. I can now do basic woodworking, i can weld, i can fix engines and im good with people, all thanks to the jobs i was made to do. and even though i didnt get to do the things i wanted with my dad, fishing, hunting, etc. and even though i never did join the scouts like i wanted to, i am grateful for the life that i have had, and it has taught me patience, respect, and that sometimes you have to shovel sh*t to get what you want.

So i know half of you are probably amazing parents anyway, and im sure i dont have to tell you. but let your kids rebel,be proud of them for thinking for themselves, but make them work and appreciate what it takes to be a decent person.