Better than toys and candy!
Better than handhelds and intoxicants!
When my brother and I were in our teens we knew our family was living on a very tight budget. When we knew we would surly die without the newest IN thing, we’d beg, get the “Sorry no.” Then often then not MADE the “needed” thing. We learned first; We DIDN’T DIE, then we learned how to make, build and bake, lastly we learned by talking with, listening to and asking questions of our parents about ethics and priorities.
We were busy making things to eat, Don designed and sewed his own tents, grew crystals and molds?, we camped and rock hounded, then made jewelry, clothes, purses, I even tried shoes, furniture, boats, decorative knick knacks, toys, we grew flowers for dried arrangements and painted pictures for our walls. While my parents taught these things, or we learned them together, we talked, failed, tried again, laughed, preened over our successes and talked more. We talked about color usage, seeds, dirt, geology, but when Mom talked about what she’d just researched in history, I learned the way to control a people is to tear families apart then encourage kids, or workers to not want marriage and fatherhood. Then a small group could control the workers, I wasn’t a worker I was a valuable part of a family.  nancymauerman.com