I am thankful. Thankful for so many things that I could not list them all. I am thankful to be alive. I am thankful that God chose me. I am thankful for truth and living a life where God is number one. So the question I pose to my cyber friends is how do you teach thankfulness? I am at my wits end trying to get it across to one of my teenagers. Let me tell the story. If any of you other teenagers read this he will never know about this unless you tell him. So whatever, it would just be one more thing that he can get aggravated with me for.
First I bought him some tennis shoes for school. I bought them at Wal-mart. Big mistake. He would not wear them. Refused to wear them. I finally gave them to my nephew, who has appreciated them and wears them. My son has worn his old ones rather then wear a non-name brand. Well guess what, they are falling apart. He needs tennis shoes. Well, I went to Wal-mart and got the cheapest ones I could because he might not wear these either. Why waste my money. He told me I could go and get name brand ones at Payless for $20. Now it is the matter of name brands. I refuse to buy name brand. Some things are worth it, and some are not.
While at the store today, he goes into the other son's room and helps himself to his basketball. Why? because he left his outside after being told repeatly not to and it was stolen. So I tell him he owes him an apology for going in his room, that hasn't happened. And where is the basketball that he took from his brother's room? You guessed it, outside. He left it outside. And I am the mean one.
He goes to school and gets in trouble for telling the teacher he doesn't want to do that job, he wants a different one. What? And he wonders why the teacher is upset.
He wants to get a license and wants me to go online and help him get it. He thinks you can go online and get it for $25 and then I can teach him. NOT ME! I know my limitations and teaching a teenager to drive is way past them. Sorry you will have to go through driver's ed. just like the older ones.
So what is an old mother to do? I think the boys learned about being thankful when we went to do Street RAGE on the other side of town. They saw the way others lived. Now these boys came from some bad situations, so why does one expect everything and not want to accept what you want to give. I have tried to tell him it just makes it that much harder for me to want to give.
Ok, Ok, I will try and put this behind me. But really if you have any suggestions that might work I am open to them.
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4 comments:
Wow - how to teach teenagers thankfulness? That's a hard one. My two boys are small - 12 months and 22 months - so I'm not at that stage yet. I wish you the best - maybe I'll ask some moms of teenagers at my church what they do.
BTW, thanks for the comment on my blog. How did you find me? I'm always curious to know how people come across my blog.
I was reading about fostering and adopting. It is so different trying to raise two sons that I got when they were 10 compared to raising the ones I gave birth to. We fostered and then adopted.
Good luck Aunt Barb I will respond in my blog for you.
I think at some point in our lives we all want the name brand stuff. But if I remember correctly thats also when my parents told me that I had to get a job or earn the money for those items. The boys have chores but I am sure that they could do more and let them earn the $ to by things. They are just soooo used to the handouts that people have given them their whole lives. He has a poor me additude. He hasn't figured out that he is truly blessed to be in your home. You do an awsome job and we pray for you daily.
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