The importance of our weekly allowance cannot be overstated. Each Saturday evening, Dad paid us each a wage of fifty cents, seventy-five cents, or one dollar, depending on our age. Because of the work we did and the rewards we received, we kids maintained an extraordinary work ethic, esteemed a job done well, appreciated the intrinsic reward of praise, and accepted our salary in the same spirit that Dad received his creamery check, since we had justifiably earned it. Our allowance was not dependent upon the chores we did, because we didn’t have a choice whether or not to work— everyone in our family was required to contribute. Likewise, a punishment was never the withholding of allowance. Immersed in adult-like work from an early age, we were integral to the farm’s upkeep and success. As such, we felt valued and not disadvantaged.
We prized the dollar we received each week, and it allowed us to be self-reliant. We learned how to budget a small amount of money and to save for the future. Our allowance gave us funds to spend on candy or gifts, or to save. A portion went in our church envelope, we spent a portion on ourselves, and the remainder we set aside to purchase Christmas and birthday presents. With a nickel, we could buy a bag of penny candy or an ice cream cone. If we needed extra cash, we worked out a business deal with a sibling, but we never asked our parents for money.
Impeccable Integrity
Dad was a man of impeccable integrity and honesty. He believed in telling the truth and doing the right thing and that was his greatest expectation of us kids. One night while babysitting for a neighbor, I received a five-dollar bill, when the going rate was only twenty-five cents an hour. Not happy that I had accepted charity, Dad drove me to the neighbor’s house to return the bill. I explained that I must receive a fair sum.
Norwegian values taught us that to ask for money, to accept more than an honest price, or to accept welfare exemplified charity. We were expected to act independently and not rely on others to provide for us.
Mail Orders
The back of cereal boxes offered enticing prizes that could be ordered with a few box tops and a little cash. We could purchase a miniature telescope, a magnifying glass, a sundial watch, a camera, a first aid kit, a baseball bat–shaped pencil, or a Lone Ranger deputy badge.
Warren sent for a plastic submarine that would dive underwater and resurface on its own. On its bottom was a tiny container for baking powder. Another time he sent in for an official Tony the Tiger autographed baseball.
I used my money to order a set of fifty colorful bird pictures advertised on the back of a cereal box. I hung them in my bedroom, planning to date each picture when I observed the bird on our farm. One day, one of the little kids scribbled on my prized pictures. As I complained to Mom, Warren said, “It doesn’t matter, Mom. It is impossible to spot all those birds in Minnesota. Do you think she will see a penguin or a roadrunner on our farm?”
To end the matter, Mom said Warren should mind his own business, and I should keep pictures out of a toddler’s reach.
Club Meetings
We siblings held official club meetings for the sole purpose of combining our money to buy Christmas gifts for Mom and Dad. One of us called the meeting to order, one read the secretary’s report, one read the treasurer’s report, and someone else brought the treats. We held these meetings on Wednesday evenings when Mom and Dad were bowling and I was babysitting the little ones.
Savings Passbook
At the First State Bank in Dalton, each of us kids had a savings account on which we earned interest. The blue savings passbook recorded each deposit and the interest earned. The main deposit was when we sold our 4-H pigs at the county fair. That money was to go toward our college educations.
Do not store up for yourselves treasures on earth,
where moths and vermin destroy,
and where thieves break in and steal.
But store up for yourselves treasures in heaven,
where moths and vermin do not destroy,
and where thieves do not break in and steal.
For where your treasure is,
there your heart will be also.
–Matthew 6:19–21 (NIV)