Training boys to be men
October 19, 2017 Adrienne Brown 0 Comments
Training boys to be men sometimes require that they chop wood
This is how my husband trained our sons with consistency and persistence, which always work.
These pictures remind me of happy memories when the older boys were still home. They would help their dad to get the wood ready for the cold months to come.
Dad taught them that a man needed to prepare for the future comfort of his family.
As my husband was deep into their training he desperately tried to convey his love for them and his love for me.
When a father is training boys to be men sometimes love is conveyed without words.
I now know that the activity of chopping wood has a relationship-building aspect that can seal the heart. even if the boys don’t see it at the time, they will eventually.
Talks that build character
When we worked outside together I can remember talking and talking about our lives. We would discuss our family goals, our excitements and our fears and woes.
The natural outdoor arena always gave us a good place to have a soul-soothing moment of knitting together.
I can hear our conversation like it is going on right this moment, with the myriads of bird songs as our background music while we talk and tease each other.
Training boys to be men requires patience
Sometimes the boys would fuss and grumble somewhat before starting. Claiming that they didn’t want to chop wood or rake leaves.
These complaints were never uttered in the earshot of their dad, just loud enough for me to hear. I kinda think this was because they thought that I would get them out of the job.
No, it didn’t work, these were cherished bonding times for me. With boots and gloves on and axes in hand, they set out to work.
Most of the time we were all outside together, doing our part. Each person pitching in to complete the job.
This taught our boys the value of perseverance, teamwork and the necessity of chopping the wood for warmth in our home during the winter months.
As we all worked, their father taught them so many things that I am sure didn’t seem apparent to them at the time.
But as I look back, I see today that all of my sons are hard workers.
They know how to chop firewood, rake, bag or burn the fall leaves. Their dad modeled for them how to keep the yard of their home up and functional.
These boys can use a chainsaw to cut down trees, chop that tree up, and stack the wood for seasoning.
I can now see how important it was to not just tell our kids what to do but to take the time to show them. It helped them to grasp the concept so much faster.
This method was really just an extension of our hands-on homeschooling. All of us outside working, talking to one another and enjoying the day.
You know at the end of most of these workdays, at least one of them would tell me how much they liked doing the work.
Over the years our family has grown to include girls
