Teach Him To Fish...

Dad had a problem.

Dilemma: Too many children's books just lying around.

Answer: Bookshelf.

The plan seemed simple enough. We would drive down to nearest IKEA, pull out the plastic, swipe, and drive home. Some assembly required and – KABOOM!!! My child would have a leveled bookshelf that would do what bookshelves do.

Operation bookshelf was FLAWLESS, completely planned out, budgeted for, and the space was allocated in the child’s room. Then something happened on the way to furniture store –

I explained my plan of attack to an older Dad and he gave me a look of disappointment. He went on to explain that young children have lost their sense of imagination and ingenuity because of Dads like me. We are quick to buy the remedy for the smallest issues, not willing to take the time to show a child the art of designing and building his own bookshelf.

My intentions were good but there was a flaw in my execution… He was right.

Any monkey can hammer a peg in a hole, but it takes more to measure the exact length needed for each side of the bookshelf and even a little more to decided on what cool colors to paint the bookshelf.

The older Dad had my attention for at least 45 minutes (if you know me that is an accomplishment in itself) and in the end his final reason for taking on the project was simple – “Teach him to fish and he will eat forever.”

Full disclosure – I do not want my child making bookshelves for a living but the lesson I learned from this older Dad is important. Take the time to teach children. Unlock their imaginations and help build skills they may use in the future. 

Instead of IKEA we made a trip to the nearest Home Depot. We picked out the lumber, purchased the right tools, and even found some cool looking paint. It took less than one hour to build and another hour to sand and paint. The leveled bookshelf looks sharp. The total cost turned out to be about the same but the quality time spent with my child was priceless.

So if my child’s major league baseball career does not pan out, he may want to turn to a trade as a master carpenter. Don't knock it. Before he changed the world, Jesus was a carpenter by trade. J