I’ve been on my own since I was 18-years-old, and have grown accustomed to doing the majority of chores around the house, usually in conjunction with my loving husband. As a child, I did many chores at home from mowing the lawn, washing dishes, cleaning my room and many others as the years went on. 
I realized that my parents where delegating the chores to my siblings and me, because we were old enough to help around the house. After several years of doing the lion’s share of chores myself, I am anxious to start doling out some small stuff to my own kids, but I don’t know if they are ready.
My oldest, who will be 5-years-old in October, has already helped me out with basic household cleaning, but I have never given him a regular or daily chore. Part of me says, “Do it and he’ll learn responsibility” and the other part says, “He’s a kid. Let him enjoy it before he has to endure the weight of the world on his shoulders.”
I know he’s excited about helping me, but I doubt the excitement of folding the laundry or filling the dog’s food and water bowls will last very long. My guess is, it’ll take about a week before I’ll have to get on him about it until either he completes his task or I give up and do it for him. Do I really want to do that to myself?
Yes, yes I do. As much as I know that giving him a chore that he will eventually not want to do will temporarily make my life harder, it’s a long-term lesson he needs to learn. Sometimes there are things we don’t want to do, but have to for the good of the family. If he refuses, he loses some privileges and (eventually) learns the importance of taking care of his duties.
I’m not going to overload him with a million things, that can wait until he’s a teen, but just enough for him to get a glimpse of what it’s like to be a parent for a little while. It’s a little devious, but I know a part of me was shaped by doing those ghastly chores (I grew up on a farm, trust me) and it instilled in me a sense of pride and accomplishment, despite my occasional moan and groan.
Would I have wanted to spend all those years mowing grass? No. Am I glad I did? Yes.
Image Source: flickr.com/photos/wwworks/4614048392
About jessi
