Cool Big Brother
k
When I was a small girl, I often wished for a big brother. Some people
have really neat ones, like Walt Disney.
Interesting story below about a believer in "harsh economic discipline"
whose children rejected the lesson and went on to live very different
lives. From delanceyplace.com
We have been talking a lot on this list about how to spend money on
children's wants and needs. Maybe economic discipline leads to poverty
at least some of the time, and not necessarily to good business acumen
or happy well ordered lives. I'm sympathetic to the struggle to keep
finances in order that is evident in Elias Disney, and to the
difficulties this placed on his children to have happy lives growing
up.
Kathe
Here's the story:
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
In today's excerpt, we get an indelible picture of
little seven-year-old Walt Disney. The year is 1908,
the family is chronically poor and Elias's--the father's-
-employment is highly unstable. They are living in
Kansas, and little Walt is the youngest boy in the
family--eight years younger than Roy, the brother
with whom he would create the Walt Disney
Company and from whom he will be essentially
inseparable throughout his life:
"Life on the farm was certainly more pleasant in
retrospect than it had been in actuality. For Elias
Disney was a hard man--a believer in physical
punishment and harsh economic discipline. The
children received no allowances and no playthings
either. For Christmas their presents were practical
items like shoes and underwear. It was Roy Disney,
working at odd jobs, who supplied Walt and his sister
with an occasional toy and who, as soon as Walt
was big enough to try and handle it, put him on to an
occasional good thing. Mrs. Miller (Walt's sister) tells
a story, for example, of Roy's getting a job washing
the town hearse and allowing his little brother to
participate in the profits of the enterprise despite
Walt's having spent most of the time playing dead
inside the vehicle. The proceeds were spent at a
carnival that passed through town a little later."
Richard Schickel, The Disney Version, Elephant
paperback, 1968, pp. 48-9
Delanceyplace.com | daily@... | Philadelphia | PA | 19102
__________________________________________
Yahoo! DSL Something to write home about.
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have really neat ones, like Walt Disney.
Interesting story below about a believer in "harsh economic discipline"
whose children rejected the lesson and went on to live very different
lives. From delanceyplace.com
We have been talking a lot on this list about how to spend money on
children's wants and needs. Maybe economic discipline leads to poverty
at least some of the time, and not necessarily to good business acumen
or happy well ordered lives. I'm sympathetic to the struggle to keep
finances in order that is evident in Elias Disney, and to the
difficulties this placed on his children to have happy lives growing
up.
Kathe
Here's the story:
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
In today's excerpt, we get an indelible picture of
little seven-year-old Walt Disney. The year is 1908,
the family is chronically poor and Elias's--the father's-
-employment is highly unstable. They are living in
Kansas, and little Walt is the youngest boy in the
family--eight years younger than Roy, the brother
with whom he would create the Walt Disney
Company and from whom he will be essentially
inseparable throughout his life:
"Life on the farm was certainly more pleasant in
retrospect than it had been in actuality. For Elias
Disney was a hard man--a believer in physical
punishment and harsh economic discipline. The
children received no allowances and no playthings
either. For Christmas their presents were practical
items like shoes and underwear. It was Roy Disney,
working at odd jobs, who supplied Walt and his sister
with an occasional toy and who, as soon as Walt
was big enough to try and handle it, put him on to an
occasional good thing. Mrs. Miller (Walt's sister) tells
a story, for example, of Roy's getting a job washing
the town hearse and allowing his little brother to
participate in the profits of the enterprise despite
Walt's having spent most of the time playing dead
inside the vehicle. The proceeds were spent at a
carnival that passed through town a little later."
Richard Schickel, The Disney Version, Elephant
paperback, 1968, pp. 48-9
Delanceyplace.com | daily@... | Philadelphia | PA | 19102
__________________________________________
Yahoo! DSL Something to write home about.
Just $16.99/mo. or less.
dsl.yahoo.com
Sandra Dodd
On Dec 7, 2005, at 2:02 PM, k wrote:
Sweet story.
Sometimes I think about the hardships of the late 19th century and
early 20th, through the Depression, and can really understand why so
many people were so short-tempered and harsh with one another.
Some families just keep up the tradition for old-times' sake. <g>
It's nice to be around people (as so many on this list) who are so
involved in choosing to be patient and gentle with children.
Some of us know firsthand how that harshness can trickle down and
prompt or justify bad behavior decades later. I'm hoping maybe
generosity and understanding will trickle down and ooze out the same
way.
I'm up early, being in a phase of not much sleep (it comes and goes)
and was thinking how nice it is to have teens who are likeable and
responsible, but how little it LOOKS like what responsible might look
like in families where they think they can demand it.
Marty was asleep in the dark.
Kirby as asleep with the TV on in his room.
Holly was awake, but had already gotten an extra blanket, heated up a
cornbag, and her computer was shut down. (3:45 a.m.)
We talked and hugged and she went to bed. She went quietly into
Kirby's room and turned the TV off, but she left it on in case he had
it on the timer. I started rye bread and cleaned the kitchen in my
sneaky-early-morning way. It's fun, to see how quietly I can put
dishes away and such. It's good to warm the house up with dishwasher
steam and bread (though oven-time won't be until 7:00 or so... still).
Some parents would love to get angry about a TV on and a kid up.
There are so many other, better ways to see it all, though.
Holly said when Marty starts working next week she plans to change
her schedule so that she's not up so late, since he'll have to be
going to sleep at 9:00, by her estimation. I told her I doubted he'd
go to bed that early. He might, though, honestly. He's going to be
working at 6:30 a.m. on weekdays at the grocery store near us. It's
just out the back gate and through the parking lot.
I don't think many fourteen year old girls would be planning a
schedule change because of a sixteen year old brother's new job.
Sandra
> It was Roy Disney,----------------------------------------
> working at odd jobs, who supplied Walt and his sister
> with an occasional toy and who, as soon as Walt
> was big enough to try and handle it, put him on to an
> occasional good thing.
Sweet story.
Sometimes I think about the hardships of the late 19th century and
early 20th, through the Depression, and can really understand why so
many people were so short-tempered and harsh with one another.
Some families just keep up the tradition for old-times' sake. <g>
It's nice to be around people (as so many on this list) who are so
involved in choosing to be patient and gentle with children.
Some of us know firsthand how that harshness can trickle down and
prompt or justify bad behavior decades later. I'm hoping maybe
generosity and understanding will trickle down and ooze out the same
way.
I'm up early, being in a phase of not much sleep (it comes and goes)
and was thinking how nice it is to have teens who are likeable and
responsible, but how little it LOOKS like what responsible might look
like in families where they think they can demand it.
Marty was asleep in the dark.
Kirby as asleep with the TV on in his room.
Holly was awake, but had already gotten an extra blanket, heated up a
cornbag, and her computer was shut down. (3:45 a.m.)
We talked and hugged and she went to bed. She went quietly into
Kirby's room and turned the TV off, but she left it on in case he had
it on the timer. I started rye bread and cleaned the kitchen in my
sneaky-early-morning way. It's fun, to see how quietly I can put
dishes away and such. It's good to warm the house up with dishwasher
steam and bread (though oven-time won't be until 7:00 or so... still).
Some parents would love to get angry about a TV on and a kid up.
There are so many other, better ways to see it all, though.
Holly said when Marty starts working next week she plans to change
her schedule so that she's not up so late, since he'll have to be
going to sleep at 9:00, by her estimation. I told her I doubted he'd
go to bed that early. He might, though, honestly. He's going to be
working at 6:30 a.m. on weekdays at the grocery store near us. It's
just out the back gate and through the parking lot.
I don't think many fourteen year old girls would be planning a
schedule change because of a sixteen year old brother's new job.
Sandra
Ann
Sandra Dodd <Sandra@...> wrote: I don't think many fourteen year old girls would be planning a
schedule change because of a sixteen year old brother's new job.
---------------------------------
This is sooo cool! She learned that kind of consideration by having it shown to her.
The other day I was trying to articulate the differences in our house since we moved to an unschooling lifestyle. It took us a long while to get to this place because as soon as I thought we 'had it', my understanding would evolve even further. Anyway, I share this because a friend of mine, who also home schools was asking me what I saw as the biggest advantage to this lifestyle, if I had to pick one, and my answer was relationship. My kids aren't just siblings, they are good friend to each other. Our home school group isn't just a source of activities like the school at home group was, those in our unschooling group are friends. My teen girls call me on their cell phones when their out and about to just chat for a bit. My son pumped gas for his sister the other day because she was in hoes and heels for a special event and he was worried about it being slick. She surprised him with his favorite candy bar the next day, which he ate for lunch.
I could worry about our cell phone minutes, or that he ate his candy for lunch...whatever. There was a time when I might have done exactly that. Now I just enjoy watching my kids have fun.
Ann
---------------------------------
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[Non-text portions of this message have been removed]
schedule change because of a sixteen year old brother's new job.
---------------------------------
This is sooo cool! She learned that kind of consideration by having it shown to her.
The other day I was trying to articulate the differences in our house since we moved to an unschooling lifestyle. It took us a long while to get to this place because as soon as I thought we 'had it', my understanding would evolve even further. Anyway, I share this because a friend of mine, who also home schools was asking me what I saw as the biggest advantage to this lifestyle, if I had to pick one, and my answer was relationship. My kids aren't just siblings, they are good friend to each other. Our home school group isn't just a source of activities like the school at home group was, those in our unschooling group are friends. My teen girls call me on their cell phones when their out and about to just chat for a bit. My son pumped gas for his sister the other day because she was in hoes and heels for a special event and he was worried about it being slick. She surprised him with his favorite candy bar the next day, which he ate for lunch.
I could worry about our cell phone minutes, or that he ate his candy for lunch...whatever. There was a time when I might have done exactly that. Now I just enjoy watching my kids have fun.
Ann
---------------------------------
Yahoo! Shopping
Find Great Deals on Holiday Gifts at Yahoo! Shopping
[Non-text portions of this message have been removed]