A mom shared a story about how she taught her kid a lesson when he started making disparaging comments about the zoo workers when they visited the zoo. His rudeness earned him one week volunteering at the zoo, scooping poop!
Scooping Poop for a Job
The OP is divorced but has custody of her three children. She decided to take them to the zoo, and the younger kids loved the trip. The older boy? Not so much.
He went to the extent of telling the younger kids to work hard in school lest they end up scooping poop for a living. The zookeeper and other people nearby heard the comment. The OP was embarrassed and took her children away.
Not a Hard Job
She told her son that some of these zookeepers had Master’s degrees, but the son maintained that anyone could do their job perfectly as it was not ‘hard.’
To teach him a lesson, the OP enrolled him into a one-week ‘voluntary zookeeper’ program not far from home. When he learned about it, the son was furious and thought his mother was not fair. She told him she wanted him to learn how to respect people’s work.
Too Harsh?
The father thinks that the mother was too harsh, but the mother decided not to go back on her decision. She turned to the internet to ask their opinion on whether they thought she had been too harsh on her son.
Most people sided with the OP, with many saying the son needed to learn how to respect all professions.
The Son Made a Harsh Comment
One user pointed out, “Making him do the work will make him realise how hard a lot of these jobs are actually are, and the amount of effort people put into what they do. The jobs we might see as undesirable are the ones that keep a lot of systems running. To make that comment loudly in front of the zookeeper is just harsh.”
Needs to Nip Such an Attitude Early
bilanol.i.ua via DepositPhotos.com.
Several users said she did well to nip the attitude early. One said, “gotta nip that attitude in the bud early… Plus it’s good to get kids into the habit of volunteering early. It helps build character and gives back to the community.”
“…any attempt at stopping the formation of a pretentious snob is a benefit to society. Kid needs to learn some respect,” added another user.
He Will Just Create More Work for the Employees
Some people argued that the OP was in the wrong in forcing his child to go for the program. One said, “volunteers who don’t want to be there often just create more work for the employees. Those kind of opportunities are for people who genuinely want to volunteer, not to discipline your children.”
He was backed up by another user who said, “As someone who works with exotic animals and we have a volunteer program, I have been very frustrated and angered in the past by volunteers who don’t want to be there…”
Classic Case of Punishment Fitting the Crime
Someone pointed out that the OP meted out the perfect punishment, “This is a classic case of the punishment fitting the crime. And “picking up giraffe poop” is a well sort after job. At least he will have a better idea of what is involved a greater understanding of what it takes to look after animals.
I would laugh if he came home after that week and decide to work in the zoo “when he grows up.”
Should Have Corrected Him Immediately
“OP didn’t even correct him immediately when he insulted the zoo keeper the first time, and it’s clear that she’s not interested in doing the work to hold her child accountable, which is why she’s foisting him off onto the zoo in the hopes they will do the job for her,” said another user.
Which side would you lean on here based on these arguments? Do you think the OP was wrong to punish her son this way? Do you think her son will learn any valuable lessons during that week?
This article was produced and syndicated by A Dime Saved.
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