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Boom Booms Life Lessons #4
When we checked in on Boom Booms Life Lessons #2 we learned of his early departures and late returns six days a week to and from his workplace. We also mentioned the Saturday yard work after that, and house repair after that as needed. Well, it didn’t stop there actually.
On a couple of weeknights each week he finished dinner and headed to our spare bedroom that housed his desk,
his adding machine, my mother’s exercise bike, and most of all an undersized pool table. Yes, it was crowded. He needed to do some “book work” he said. He struck the adding machine keys so quickly that it was not possible to follow.
His one and only son loved playing pool (competition and geometry combined is a tasty combo) and asked for him to”crack em” almost every night that his own homework didn’t get in the way. Boom Boom would finish his book work first. Always. He expressed it as follows. Always.
“Work before play son, work before play!“
Once the heat generated by his fast fingers on his adding machine cooled, and his pencil entered its last numbers in the ledger, it was time for a game or three of 8 ball, or 9 ball, or…
“Let’s play one more game Dad.”
“Sleep before school son. Sleep before school!”
And with that, we would leave the spare room and turn out the lights.
If you tend to put the need last to enjoy the want first, try the reverse. The satisfaction of a job well done first leads to greater joy in the leisurely pursuit of your choice later.
The sound of the crank on the adding machine still echoes. So does “Work before…………”