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Brad’s Odds N Ends

August, 2007 - Vol. 1, No. 2

Christians, Parents of Teenagers, and Teachers

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July 20, 2007 Issue

Small Communities

Putnam, Texas

A tongue-in-cheek view of small town life

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Copyright 2007 by Brad Loveland

Tearing down fences and building new ones can be a teenaged-boy’s dream and it is hard work. Operating heavy machinery can also be a part of the dream. He does make good money for a high school student and he is learning an excellent work ethic. It is another way to keep in shape both in physical strength and standing the heat for football in the fall. These values are important to a successful Christian life.

The first chink in our focus for the summer was our teenage son’s new job for the summer. He works and meets friends to relax during large parts of the week. Socializing is important to any teenager. The people he is visiting and building relationships are good kids from good, hard-working families. This time is teaching him values that he sometimes chooses not to listen to when his mom and I talk to him about them. He says we are preaching too much. We have to be creative to get these value lessons taught.

Since he is spending so much time away from home, we are running behind getting the house completely sanded, repaired, and painted since help is limited. We believe that he is learning valuable life-lessons that will never allow him to go hungry as an adult, so it’s worth it. We just have to take advantage of the times we have to talk when they present themselves like teaching him the skills of using his money wisely.

The rest of the family keeps to the plan of cleaning the property, working on painting and sanding the inside of the house, and keeping the dogs and puppies fed. The responsibility for caring for the new family members that our cow dog adopted one night in a rain storm is the 12- and 14-year-old children. At first, they had to be reminded. Now even our working teen checks on the well being of the puppies every time he comes home.

The innocence of youth tends to keep the kids on a positive outlook. Suddenly, the intense desire to have phones, satellite television, and internet take a back seat to the joys of tending to the puppies, cutting and dragging dead limbs from the property, and practicing swinging golf clubs.

The types and amount of food that the kids have been eating have become healthier. The change from an urban, sedentary lifestyle to a more active outdoor lifestyle has caused them to crave protein and vegetables. The day has been filled with activities, so the junk food is not as tempting as it was before.

We will be better ready for school than we have been in the last several years. Our high school son is looking forward to football. Our daughter is looking forward to band and getting to know new friends better. Our junior high son is looking forward to being in a new place where there are fewer people wanting to push his buttons.

What did we do to get ready for school? Check it out in our next newsletter.

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