Estimated read time: 2-3 minutes
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PARENTING PLACE — Part of being a parent is passing on the wisdom of life lessons, but the conundrum comes with how to make the lessons stick.
Will Reid was having trouble getting his kids to incorporate the simplest of life lessons, so he decided to make videos that his kids could revisit when they needed a refresher. But one video might be enough.
On the surface the premise seems thoughtful and maybe even a bit touching. Reid begins by explaining he made the first in a planned series of videos for his kids to “help them with life.”
“Obviously me telling them face-to-face is not working, so I’m trying to be creative,” Reid says in the video.
But it becomes quickly apparent that the advice is sarcastic and cheeky, and he’s simply tired of pure laziness, when he begins to outline how to change a roll of toilet paper.
“I know this is a difficult one, so James and Beth, please pay attention,” Reid says.
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Reid then literally outlines each step in changing the toilet paper, including describing the function of all parts and showing what it looks like when there’s an empty roll on the holder. There’s even an “advanced step” that requires throwing the empty roll away, but Reid admits that might be too much for his kids to handle.
You don’t have to be a parent to enjoy the passive-aggressive instructions of the video. If you have ever lived with anyone, from parents to siblings to roommates, you know the frustration of seemingly being the only one to take of the little housekeeping things in your living space. (I will leave it up to your conscience to decide whether those feelings of frustration can be justified or not.)
Since the video hit the 2 million mark in less than a week, maybe Reid’s kids will be embarrassed enough to quickly catch on to other “life lessons” to avoid having dad make another dumbed-down instructional video.