Meals on Wheels, the next generation

It is strictly against the rules for me to have other family members with me in the car while I'm delivering Meals on Wheels. I know there are reasons for the rules but I think it's a situation where only one side is considered when the rules are made. I'm sure the side that won was worried about liability and risk prevention (the more people involved with the delivering, the more chance for someone to break an arm or a leg. They worried about patient confidentiality (the family members weren't sworn to patient records confidential like the rest of us did.)

But there are so many positive reasons for having family members tag along. Because they are out on Spring Break this week grandsons Tim ( 9) and Jake went with me on the Meals on Wheels route. Tim remembers the prior experience favorably and was able to talk Jake into actively participating. In filling out our route report, Tim was able to see how important math is in everyday life. Several of the clients, when they saw the two boys bringing in the the packaged meal, brightened perceptibly and started to ask them questions and remark about how handsome they were. But probably the biggest reason for having the kids come along is to teach by doing.

There is simply no substitute for hands on emulation. I was able to take my oldest son to work in the church's orange orchards until the rule was made to prohibit anyone younger than 16 (or was it 18?) from working in the orchards. I think many of them went but as adults rather than as "my kids".

Conversing with your kids is better after such shared experiences as they know what you're talking about. I remember as a child neighbors and even my parents going to the temple to do "ceilings" and wondering why they never did walls or floors.

So I'm preaching the gospel of shared experiences with your children if you can, otherwise with your grandchildren.