Samuel has been reading about and studying the mid-19th century in school, and it's messing with his head. Seriously, it's torture to tantalize young boys with stories of kids their age skipping out on school to fight wars and farm crops. This is the conversation we had this morning.
SAMUEL: I don't want to go to school anymore. I'm done with school. I just want to move out to the wilderness and farm my own land. Hunt deer. Live off the land.
ME: That might have worked out okay 200 years ago, but people don't live that way anymore.
SAMUEL: Why not? You could just farm your own food and hunt and chop down trees and build your own log cabin. We could do that. All I'd need is a hunting rifle.
ME: And a gun license and a hunting permit. I'm not sure they issue those to 9-year-olds.
What about a car? How would you pay for that?
SAMUEL: We wouldn't need a car. We'd have a horse.
ME: How would you pay for the horse?
SAMUEL: Savings. One-time expense.
ME: Insurance? What would we do if someone got sick?
SAMUEL: We'd grow herbs. And faith - are you saying you don't think God would take care of us?
ME: OK, what about church? How would you be growing in God's word and living in community?
SAMUEL: I would invite a couple of my friends to come along too. We'd have our Bibles. We'd do our own church. And when we meet homeless people in the woods, we'd invite them to come over.
ME: Farming is really hard work, Samuel. You've never done it before.
SAMUEL: Dad would teach me.
ME: Dad knows nothing about farming.
SAMUEL: Well, he would learn. And then he'd teach me.
ME: How would you pay for stuff? It would be hard enough to grow and hunt enough food to feed one family, let alone enough to produce enough extra to generate an income. There's lots of other stuff in life that requires money, even if you chose to live a really simple life. How would you pay for electricity and water, and what about when you needed new clothes?
SAMUEL: You don't NEED electricity, Mom. We'd just bring lots of candles and light them at night. We'd live near a creek so we'd have water. And when we needed new clothes, you'd just have to make them. See, there's a solution to everything, Mom, you're just not thinking it through. You're not being resourceful.
SAMUEL: You don't NEED electricity, Mom. We'd just bring lots of candles and light them at night. We'd live near a creek so we'd have water. And when we needed new clothes, you'd just have to make them. See, there's a solution to everything, Mom, you're just not thinking it through. You're not being resourceful.
Ahhh, there's my problem....I just wasn't thinking resourcefully!
2 comments:
That is awesome. Especially the part about Adam learning to farm...and do you sew? Without electricity, that means sewing by hand...with handmade fabric. Good luck? :)
What a smart boy! Even if it isn't so realistic, he has everything figured out. It sounds like you are doing a great job raising him. :)
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