My sons continue to amaze and bemuse me. The latest surprise came during a bedtime discussion with my eldest. For some reason, once lights are out and everyone is supposed to be going to sleep, he waxes philosophical. The other night, his contemplations turned to the issue of how to organize the coming year.
You see, he wants a horse -- he wants a horse a lot -- but all the adults in his life have been pointing out to him the issues of money surrounding the acquisition of said horse. "It is not the initial expense of buying the horse that worries me." I explained. "It is all the other expenses -- food, shelter, medical care... and then there is the issue of day to day maintenance. Horses are work, daily work, work that you can't just not do. Having a horse means no going away on vacation. It means time spent cleaning and grooming that cannot be spent doing other things." His riding instructor suggested that "for a beginning rider, owning a horse is not ideal. There is a lot of work involved and when you are just learning, it is better to have help." Both the instructor and I suggested that he work in a stables, learn more about horses, and PLAN for owning a horse by getting trained in what needs to be done, and by saving money towards his goal.
At first, he grieved that he wouldn't be getting what he wanted immediately. He went through a depressed period where he gave up the idea of EVER owning a horse. And then, because he is a truly amazing fellow, he began to think -- and these were his conclusions:
1)He will set up several 'accounts' into which he will divide his money -- money from allowances and gifts etc. These accounts will be a)college fund (he wants to attend the Cordon Bleu cooking school) b)gifting money for buying presents c) 'me' money for buying those items he really wants now -- legos, pokemon cards etc and d) 'horse' money.
2)He will set up an Excel spreadsheet to track his money and his spending to see what happens where.
3)He will keep a small notebook and pen with him at all times. When he sees something he thinks he might want, he will note down a)what the item is b)where he saw it and c) how much it cost. He can then 'shop' the best price on the item both in stores and on line.
4)He will start working through ideas about how to make money -- jobs he can do, businesses he can start.
5)He will volunteer to work at the stables where he rides so that he can learn what there is to learn about caring for horses.
But that was not the end of his planning. He has been thinking also about what having a horse means in terms of self discipline and told me, "I need to start working on developing better self discipline. If I say I am going to do something, I MUST do it. If I make a promise, I MUST keep it. I must start thinking about budgeting my time as well as my money." He told me he wanted his own Day Planner so that he can organize his days visually -- 'So I will know what I am to do when.'
With budgeting time in mind, he asked that I put away all his electronics during the school week. Then, yesterday, we went out and bought 'tickets' -- like the sort you might get for a raffle. These tickets, according to my son's plan, will be 'earned' when he completes items on his 'to do' list. That list will include both school work and chores. The tickets will serve as 'money' which can then be spent for such things as time on the 3DS, the Wii, reading graphic novels, playing YuGiOh etc. One of our vacation projects is to create a 'value' chart for each of these luxury activities. He even got tickets (in a different color) for his little brother to use so that Xander won't feel left out.
What astounds me about all of this is that he, at age 10, has come up with this all on his own. He has thought out his plan of attack and has laid out the steps very clearly. Rather than surrendering his dreams, he has taken steps towards accomplishing them... I am both bemused and somewhat embarrassed -- for I, who am so much older than he, am not so well organized. This, I think, is one of those 'and the little children shall lead them' moments.
And my plans? I shall work to support his plan, providing support and encouragement where he needs it, of course, but more than that, I too shall create a 'plan' , budgeting both time and money towards those goals I have set myself for the coming year. It will not always go smoothly, I suspect, but the doing of the thing is as important as succeeding at doing it. And I will continue to delight in the creativity and determination that two small boys demonstrate daily.
