Now Mothers (and fathers), tell your Children

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In Those Days, parents tried to pass on everything they knew to their children. You know, basic things that we seem to take for granted. Mothers taught the kids how to cook, especially foods that don't come with instructions such as toast and eggs. And fathers taught things like checking the oil level and tire pressures in the family car.

Kids were taught the value of saving for the future, to respect cops and teachers, how and when to fight, to mow the lawn and to do the laundry, and to tie their shoes. They learned how to change a diaper and feed the baby (if only on their doll), to walk the dog, to tell time on a clock with hands, and to mend their clothes. Parents taught them how to play with one another, to accept criticism, and that life was not easy nor always fair.

So, was all that necessary? Did parents waste their time? Today, most of our kids go out for breakfast or just skip it all together. And they pay a mechanic to replace their tires and fix their engines after they run them flat or out of oil.

Our kids don't save for the future but pay in the future with credit. They run from the cops and threaten their teachers. They pay illegal immigrants to do the landscaping and their laundry, and they don't even bother to tie the laces on their high-top sneakers. They hire nannies to sit their children, but never walk the dog, and they throw away their clothes if they tear. Clocks talk now and kids can only fight with guns if someone makes fun of them.

And I wonder how they even survive.
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