THE SLAVE DRIVING FATHER It is true that being raised on a farm constitutes more responsibilities for children. They are expected to do different chores than city kids. There is a story that a boy from Iowa tells that makes a person ask if a line should be drawn where the work is concerned. How should a parent handle their expectations? This boy had a lot of resentment, and rightfully so. His dad woke him up every morning chanting the spelling of the word work. Starting at age six he was expected to jump up out of bed, find something to eat, put dirty stinking clothes on, and get to work in the pig barn. This little boy from Iowa wished that cleaning his room was all he had to complain about. That was not the case. He was expected to go into a filthy pig barn, and scoop up the feces of the animals. He had to wear unwashed clothing from the days before that hung outside in the cold. All he ever ate for breakfast was cold cereal that he had to fix himself. When he finished cleaning the barn he would take long showers to get the smell off of his skin, but it did not work. Not even industrial strength soap would remove the odor left on the skin from being in the pig barn. The father of this little boy never showed any compassion before, during, or after he worked so hard. A parent ought to be kind and loving toward their children, even while teaching them about the importance of responsibility. This little farm boy often felt sad, and even thought about hiding sometimes, because of the way his dad treated him. He may have felt different if his father woke him up lovingly with a meal of sausage and eggs on the table. Instead, the father yelled for him to get up and the little boy poured himself a bowl of Lucky Charms to eat. It does not make much sense that this family raised pigs, yet there was not any pork on the table for breakfast. There was never any mention of