Medford mail tribune., January 01, 1961, Image 27

Quips () and Quotes
New Year's Resolutions They're Easy!
My iron will it something, Dear, I've taped those words for you to hear
On which you haven't reckoned!
Hal Chadwick
On January Second.
Ruth Chadwick
What used to be known as "The Ghost oj
Christmas Past" is now referred to as "Please
Remit." Walt Streightiff
Curriculi-Curricula
(To my Alma Mater on some
course listings in her catalog)
Teach 'em madrigals and jiving,
Etiquette and speedboat-driving;
Teach 'em how to splice a rift
or split a hair.
But when they're socially well-rounded.
Don't pretend to be astounded
That they're also intellectually square.
AX Brooks
Survival in America teas once a matter of
being quick on the draw; now it's a matter
of being quick on the brake pedal.
Two youngsters strayed from their mother
in a crowded department store. They bought
themselves some ice-cream cones and amused
themselves riding up and down the escalator.
Suddenly the boy noticed his ice cream was
dripping on him, and he deftly wiped his hand
on the back of a woman's minkcstole.
"Wait till Mother sees what you've done,
Johnny!" shouted his sister. "Getting fur all
over your ice cream!" ' Ernest Bleuins
The owner of a bowling center saw a woman
bowling right-handed, then switching to her
left hand.
"Pardon me," he said, "but you'll improve
your average a lot if you just concentrate on
one hand."
"What average?" the woman asked. "I'm here
to take off weight I toant to take some off my
left side; and some off my right side."
Frances Benson
"I believe this gentleman is next."
Money, Your Child, and You
(Continued) , s
as part of the allowance for the very reason that
the child has no choice. They give each child his
spending money weekly, then dole out carfare and
lunch money each day. On the whole, however,
parents have found it wise to add these amounts
to the allowance and gradually to increase the
items for which the boy or girl is responsible.
Managing larger sums of money teaches a child
something, even though he is not always making
decisions and choices. He gets some idea of how
fast money disappears, how much it takes to keep
even one child going.
There are times, however, when issues other
than money are involved, and parents must inter
fere in their children's handling of money.
Six-year-old Jonathan, just starting to receive
an allowance and to feel its power, announced:
"I've bought this whole bag of candy and I'm go
ing to cat it right now!" His mother explained
that, while it was indeed "his," Jonathan could not
be permitted to make himself sick or to spoil his
appetite. The allowance is important, yes. But
other things are important Jonathan, for instance!
And Mother is still in charge of his welfare.
Bruce, who is twice Jonathan's age, got himself
in the same spot. He bought a knife which his
father wouldn't permit him to take to school or
the playground. He could use it at home, for whit
tling or playing mumblety-peg with a friend, but
not in a crowded place. While the knife belonged
to Bruce, his father felt that the responsibility for
avoiding accidents was still very much his.
A leading writer, editor,
and Igcturer on child devel
opment and parent educa- 0
tton, Sidonie Gruenberg is
special consultant to the
Child Study Association of
America. Her books include
"The Encyclopedia of Child
Care and Guidance," pub
lished by Doubleday; "Par
ents' Guide to Everyday
Problems of Boys and Girls," Random House; gnd
'The Wonderful Story of You: Your Body, Your
Mind, Your Feelings" (with Benjamin C. Gruen
berg), Garden City J'ress.
What puzzles parents most of all, it seems, is
whether to give a child his allowance when he has
been disobedient, dishonest, discourteous, or oth
erwise distressing. Time and again a parent will
say, "Dave handed me a shockingly bad report
card. The next moment he was holding his hand
out for his allowance.
"What should I do? Pay him?"
Or, "Ellen was late for everything all weak
school, dinner, piano lessons. But Saturday morn
ing, before making her bed? she promptly asked
for her allowance. I felt I was rewarding her for
her thoughtless, irresponsible behavior."
This situation is so common that mothers and
fathers must, from the very beginning, be perfectly
clear about where they stand. They cannot start
diminishing the allowance or taking it away as a
punishment or a sign of disapproval. If they did,
their children could learn nothing about planning,
budgeting, or the value of a dollar because their
allowances would fluctuate with their behavior.
We must not allow ourselves to be so emotional
about1 money that it takes on a value of its own.
Basically, money is to buy other things, and in
the family it should be treatedas such.
It makes no more sense to reward children with
money for good btfhavior than to deprive them of it
for bad behavior. To give Dan a dollar for being po
lite or helpful gives him the privilege of returning
the dollar and continuing his rudeness. Dan must
learn, and home is the place to learn it, that we
valuee other things, too things which have noth
ing to do with money. With their allowances and
oth(?r experiences, children find out what money
can buy. A more important, more difficult lesson
and this they learn indirectly in many subtle ways
a is to discover what money cannot buy!
Many parents ,are saying that the moral climate
of our times makes it impossible to give boys and
girls a sound sense of values. How can we help
our children put money in its proper place in a
world of corruption, rigging, and payola? But in
all times there have been practises and influences
in the world which distressed parents. Formerly,
parents used to hope that their children "wouldn't
know about such things." Now we know it's hope
less trying to shield our children. But we can still
guide them, interpreting what they see and hear.
' In the long run, however, it is not what we tell
our children that matters, not what we say, but
what we do. For the kind of people we really are,
the qualities we truly value will come through to
them. And we can rest assured that the home's
influence is still the strongest, that our ideals and
values will be reflected in our children's as they
grow into men and women.
Family Weekly, January 1, 1961