Wesley slouched in his chair and pushed his plate away with a look of disgust. \u201cI\u2019m sick of meatloaf,\u201d he groaned. \u201cCan\u2019t you make anything else?\u201d He glanced at his mother with an annoyed expression.<\/p>\n
His mother raised an eyebrow, clearly unimpressed. \u201cWe had roast chicken yesterday, hamburgers the day before that, and fish on Friday. I try to make different things, Wesley.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cYeah, yeah\u2026 whatever,\u201d he muttered, getting up from the table.<\/p>\n
\u201cWesley,\u201d his mother called after him. \u201cPlease rinse your plate and put it in the dishwasher.\u201d<\/p>\n
Wesley crossed his arms. \u201cWhy should I? I\u2019m not your slave!\u201d<\/p>\n
His mother gasped. \u201cMy slave? Wesley, how can helping out around the house be considered slavery? This is your home too!\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cYou don\u2019t pay me, do you?\u201d Wesley said with a triumphant smirk. \u201cWork without pay is slavery!\u201d<\/p>\n
His father, Rick, frowned. \u201cWe support you, son. We put a roof over your head, feed you, clothe you, and pay for your education.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cThat\u2019s your duty as parents and my right as your kid! The law says you have to take care of me, but I don\u2019t have to do a thing!\u201d Wesley declared smugly.<\/p>\n
His mother\u2019s face turned red with frustration. \u201cI see! So we have duties, and you only have rights? Is that really what you believe? What about your responsibility to help out?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cI\u2019m not your slave,\u201d Wesley repeated. \u201cIf you want me to do chores, you\u2019d better start paying me!\u201d<\/p>\n
His mother opened her mouth to argue, but his father placed a hand on her arm. He looked at Wesley with a calm expression. \u201cAlright, son. How much do you think your chores are worth?\u201d<\/p>\n
Wesley grinned. \u201cI\u2019ve thought about it! Taking out the trash\u2014$1. Washing dishes\u2014$2. Walking the dog\u2014$4. Cleaning my room\u2014$5. Cleaning the yard and mowing the lawn\u2014$10. And you\u2019re lucky I\u2019m not asking for back pay.\u201d<\/p>\n
His mother shook her head in disbelief. \u201cAbsolutely not!\u201d<\/p>\n
But his father remained calm. \u201cI agree, Wesley. From now on, we\u2019ll pay you for your work. You\u2019re a man now, and we\u2019ll treat you as such.\u201d<\/p>\n
Wesley puffed out his chest. \u201cIt\u2019s about time you showed me some respect!\u201d<\/p>\n
His father nodded. \u201cWe\u2019ll start tomorrow. I\u2019ll put up a chart where you can write down what you\u2019ve done. Every Friday, you\u2019ll get paid. Sound fair?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cPerfect!\u201d Wesley beamed, walking away, already dreaming about how much money he\u2019d make. Little did he know, he was about to have one of the worst weeks of his life.<\/p>\n
The next day, after a long football practice, Wesley arrived home, starving. \u201cHey Mom, what\u2019s for dinner?\u201d he asked eagerly.<\/p>\n
His mother smiled sweetly. \u201cTurkey pot pie with sweet potatoes and peas.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cAwesome! I\u2019m starving!\u201d Wesley rubbed his hands together, excited to dig in. But as he stepped toward the dining table, he noticed a chart on the wall. He quickly filled in \u201cWalking the dog\u201d and \u201cCleaning my room.\u201d That\u2019s $9 already! I\u2019m going to be rich, he thought.<\/p>\n
An hour later, he followed the delicious smell back to the kitchen, expecting his plate to be ready. Instead, he found his parents eating without him.<\/p>\n
\u201cMom!\u201d Wesley exclaimed. \u201cWhy didn\u2019t you call me? I told you I was starving!\u201d<\/p>\n
His father put down his fork and looked at him. \u201cWell, son, now that you\u2019re earning your own money, you need to support yourself. If you want your mother to cook for you, you\u2019ll have to pay her.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cPAY HER?!\u201d Wesley shouted. \u201cI\u2019m not paying for dinner!\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cWell, then you\u2019ll have to use your savings and order takeout,\u201d his mother said, still smiling.<\/p>\n
Fuming, Wesley stomped upstairs and ordered a pizza. When he saw the bill\u2014$15 plus a delivery fee and tip\u2014his stomach dropped. I have to work three whole days just to pay for one pizza?!<\/p>\n
The next morning, he woke up to the smell of bacon and eggs. He rushed downstairs, licking his lips. \u201cMom, can I get my eggs over easy?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cOf course, dear,\u201d his mother said sweetly. \u201cThat will be $6.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cYou\u2019re charging me for breakfast?!\u201d he yelled.<\/p>\n
His mother simply shrugged. \u201cFood costs money.\u201d<\/p>\n
Later that day, Wesley approached his father. \u201cDad, I need $70 for my new football jersey. Coach said we have to get one.\u201d<\/p>\n
His father raised an eyebrow. \u201cWhy are you telling me this?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cSo you can give me the money!\u201d<\/p>\n
His dad shook his head. \u201cNow that you\u2019re earning money, you pay for your own expenses, including clothes. That\u2019s how adulthood works.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cI don\u2019t have $70!\u201d Wesley protested.<\/p>\n
\u201cThen you\u2019ll have to save up from your wages,\u201d his father said.<\/p>\n
Wesley felt like the walls were closing in. Not only did he have to pay for food, but now he had to buy his own clothes too?! This wasn\u2019t what he imagined when he demanded payment for chores.<\/p>\n
\u201cFine,\u201d Wesley sighed. \u201cAt least give me a ride to school\u2014I\u2019m running late.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cOf course! That will be $5.50,\u201d his father said cheerfully.<\/p>\n
Wesley\u2019s jaw dropped. \u201cYou\u2019re CHARGING me for a ride to school?!\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cWell, you\u2019d pay a taxi, wouldn\u2019t you?\u201d<\/p>\n
Wesley turned to his mother, hoping for sympathy, but she was flipping through a notebook. \u201cOh! That reminds me. You owe me $12.50 for washing and ironing your clothes this week.\u201d<\/p>\n
Wesley groaned and stomped out the door. He ended up walking to school and arrived late. That afternoon, he ate school cafeteria food, which had never tasted so good. He missed his mom\u2019s home-cooked meals\u2014meatloaf, mac and cheese, her delicious Irish stew\u2026<\/p>\n
That evening, Wesley came downstairs at dinnertime, looking miserable. His parents were enjoying a warm, home-cooked meal. His stomach growled loudly.<\/p>\n
\u201cMom\u2026 Dad?\u201d he said hesitantly. \u201cCan we talk?\u201d<\/p>\n
His father gestured for him to sit. \u201cOf course, son. What\u2019s on your mind?\u201d<\/p>\n
Wesley took a deep breath. \u201cI just wanted to say I\u2019m sorry about that whole payment thing. I never really thought about everything you both do for me every single day. And you never ask for anything in return.\u201d<\/p>\n
His mother\u2019s face softened. \u201cWe were hoping you\u2019d realize that, sweetheart. We do these things out of love, not obligation. That\u2019s what being a family is about.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cI get it now, Mom,\u201d Wesley said, his voice thick with emotion. \u201cI\u2019m really sorry.\u201d<\/p>\n
His father patted his back. \u201cSon, in this family, we work together to make life better for all of us. That\u2019s what a real home is.\u201d<\/p>\n
His mother wiped a tear from her eye and smiled. \u201cHow about some dinner? I made your favorite\u2014cottage pie with green beans.\u201d<\/p>\n
That night, Wesley had the best dinner he\u2019d had in a long time, but more importantly, he had learned a lesson he would never forget: appreciate everything your family does for you, and always do your part.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
Wesley slouched in his chair and pushed his plate away with a look of disgust. \u201cI\u2019m sick of meatloaf,\u201d he groaned. \u201cCan\u2019t you make anything else?\u201d He glanced at his mother with an annoyed expression. His mother raised an eyebrow, clearly unimpressed. \u201cWe had roast chicken yesterday, hamburgers the day before that, and fish on […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[1],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-27394","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-uncategorized"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/newzdiscover.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/27394","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/newzdiscover.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/newzdiscover.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/newzdiscover.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/newzdiscover.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=27394"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/newzdiscover.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/27394\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":27395,"href":"https:\/\/newzdiscover.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/27394\/revisions\/27395"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/newzdiscover.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=27394"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/newzdiscover.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=27394"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/newzdiscover.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=27394"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}