One of the greatest life lessons I learned from both my parents growing up was the art of home repairs. I believe there was only one time in my childhood that I can remember there ever being a repair man in our home. It wasn't just my Dad who did the home repairs but my Mom did many of them too. They both use to tell us, "If you can take it apart you can certainly put it back together!" I have never been afraid of home repairs or installing ceiling fans to dimmer switches in my home. I admit I do have a mechanical mind and am able to put most anything together. I taught my older children these important life lessons as well, and also taught them the art of persistence. While sometimes we begin a home repair and possibly do not quite understand the task at hand, if we are slow and steady most can be figured out. Like my parents though I do know my limits and there are certain situations I will not dig into.
Right after Thanksgiving while getting ready to bake a pizza, my over element broke in several pieces. Amazing huh! My husband's first response was to call a repair man, which would have set us back $100.00. I refused to pay that much for something I knew I could do myself. It took me a bit to find the replacement part, you know now days I think finding the parts are harder then fixing the problem itself.
It finally arrived after paying 22.00, and my work began. Selena was at my side asking her 100 questions all the way. Questions like, "How do you know how to use a screw gun?" Once the element was out Selena wasn't sure of the oven door open where she could see the wires in the back of the stove, but quickly jumped in to help me finish the job. Watching ever so carefully as I attached the new element to the wires and then screwed it back into the stove.
Selena gets plenty of experience watching different repairs around the place, from the plumbers fixing broken pipes to our simple fence repair. I guess in her mind though she just never really thought of her Mama starting and completing a task on her own. Though really knowing that my husband is not mechanically inclined makes me more inclined to do it by myself.
I want Selena to know she doesn't have to depend upon repair men for ever single thing, nor does everything have to be as disposable as some think. As she grows I want her to learn how to diagnose a problem, find the parts, and my goodness now days with YouTube, you can find many easy repair videos to walk you through the job at hand. I want her to feel that sense of pride in knowing that she is capable of at least doing the simple things.
No comments:
Post a Comment