Thursday, April 5, 2012
"Life is Too Short to Clean Your Own House"
.... says the flyer that we got in the mail a couple days ago, which also had a picture of a family hanging out and enjoying each other's company. Did you guys get that one? Adam's always said he would like to hire out house cleaning and yard maintenance duties someday when he strikes it rich. I'm always vacillating. In theory I'd like someone to clean my house, but I also get satisfaction out of it when I actually buckle down and do it. We were also talking tonight over dinner about some of the priesthood session conference talks that emphasized teaching your kids how to work. How would we teach our kids to work if we hired people to do what we would otherwise do as a family? What message would we be sending to our kids if they never saw us mow the lawn or weed the garden or mop the floor? We haven't really formed the answers to these questions yet. We always have this same discussion and it always ends with a shrug and a, "I guess we'll figure it out when/if we strike it rich." But I'd love to start a discussion. What do you guys think? Is life too short to clean your own house?
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I'm too hooked on the idea of teaching fulfillment and satisfaction in the work we do, including house work. There is a certain satisfaction to it, and I really feel it's a necessary skill for self sustainability. If we do things right, we're spending time with our family as we clean...right? Not that that's what happens in our house, ever. I'd say that happens about five percent of the time. But it's our goal, as parents, to involve them and teach them.
ReplyDeleteWe have gotten that flyer in the mail though, several times...and it always gives me pause.
ReplyDeleteI've seen that flyer before and, like Emily, it always gives me pause. Granted, it's supposed to give pause and make you weigh the alternatives of spending money to have someone clean your house for you regularly or save money and do it yourself. So, I tend to think it's a very good marketing ploy. But, think about it in terms of two parents working full-time (which, any more, is likely to be more than 40 hours a week) with a kiddo or few. They're working 40+ hours a week, don't see the children except before work, when they're prepping them for school/daycare/etc., and then after work, when everyone's tired from the day and hungry. To add to that the need to clean the house, sure...if you have the resources, I'd be far more tempted then to get a cleaning service so hubby and I could spend more time together with family! Though getting kids involved in the cleaning would be good to teach them that keeping a house tidy is still ultimately our own responsibility.
ReplyDeleteNow, if I'm home, kids are in school, and I still am thinking of hiring out a cleaning service...I don't know. That situation might make me pause and reconsider what I'm doing that I don't care to make time to keep my house tidy myself.
I didn't mean to get preachy or long-winded. The whole thing just made me stop and think a bit. I just decided to type out what I was thinking. :)
I hadn't heard much from Rich about the priesthood session, so I'll be interested in reading it when it comes out in the Ensign (or on my phone app). I learned to work from my parents. I helped my dad build our wood playground set in the backyard. I hated when my mom called for us to help with the gardening, but I learned SO much from the time spent planting, picking fruit and veggies, and storing the bounty in the freezer or by canning. I think it's VERY important to teach children the value of working. Too often, we're surrounded by entitlement, rather than earning a thing. At least, it can seem that way. I could definitely go on and on about that! But, for now, I'll spare you all. :)
I'm still thinking about this, so I might as well type it out. Thoughts: Teaching ourselves and kids to work is critical. Working alongside our family is vital. And often leads to fun. I remember lots of bubble fights while doing dishes, mud wars while weeding, and leaf jumping while raking. I remember how my dad kept his temper when the lawn mower broke (every week) and how he would ask us how we should fix it. That said...
ReplyDeleteI once saw an interview with the Mormon violinist Jenny Oaks Baker. She said she hires a local high school girl to come to her house each afternoon for something like 30 minutes to wash dishes. Jenny has young kids (too young to really wash the hard stuff) and practicing her violin is a priority. It was an eye-opening idea for me.
Also, my mom has had lots of health problems in the last few years, so every once and a while (maybe semi-annually) my dad surprises her by getting hired help for a day or two to do the yucky stuff.
And I actually clean someone's house once a week while I was in high school. Great job, even if I did have to dust the trophy with Jake "Snake" Greene's ashes in it.
This is a great topic. Definitely one of those that each person at each stage of life has a different answer for. And that requires us all to withhold our judgement.
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