You Can Not Even Imagine How Spoiled American Kids Are.



Not Nica, but the same.

A day's load.

He got up with the sun, had some leftover rice and beans, took his wheelbarrow and his little brother and went into the scrub to gather firewood. Several hours later he returned with a load of wood in his barrow, his brother carrying all he could too. It was nearly 100 degrees and very dry. The boy was 7. His little brother was 4 He had his own tiny barrow. They were both smiling. They returned to a clean house, swept by their 6 year old sister. The floor was clean. The floor was packed dirt. Mother had washed clothes in the river, swept the yard clean, and prepared food for supper. She had no running water, no bathroom, no door on the house, no windows on the openings in the wall, no stove except a clay and rebar fireplace, and no chimney. The smoke went up through the thatch. The kitchen was the living room and the bedroom. She smiled when we walked up. She was pregnant. Her daughter was shy, but smiled too. There were no toys, no electricity, little furniture, few clothes. She and the kids were clean.

This is Nicaragua in the boonies. I am not saying that they couldn’t use more or want more. I am saying that they were happy to have what they had. We took Polaroid pictures of the kids and mom and she was filled with wonder as the picture developed before her eyes. She had no photos of herself or children that we could see.

Not wheelbarrows, but the same idea.

How do I know this? I was there. It was an oft repeated scene. No tears. No complaints. Smiles. It breaks your heart.

Now read the article (1) published today in Yahoo News about American children. Draw your own conclusions.

1. http://shine.yahoo.com/parenting/easy-answer-why-american-kids-34-spoiled-rotten-192300981.html
http://mw2.google.com/mw-panoramio/photos/medium/34855388.jpg
http://plopsymd.files.wordpress.com/2012/02/blogwood.jpg?w=720&h=1082
http://www.nextbillion.net/pubs/images/22ee65ce6102c74c952ef1fcb39650ce.jpg