Family is Future

I'm a girl. Not a shocking statement. I am aware of that. However, it is shocking how abstract and subjective the topic of gender has become. Even the word gender has taken on new meaning. When I was little, which really wasn't all that long ago, "gender" and "sex" meant the same thing. One was just a more abrasive term than the other. Now, "gender" is much more of a feeling, where "sex" is something assigned to you at birth based upon your physical traits. If you don't feel that you are what you were assigned at birth than you don't have to be that. You can choose. In fact, the United Nations currently recognizes 12 different genders. Facebook recognizes 52. Ballots and applications now offer "other" in the gender description sections. Gender reassignment surgeries are on the rise in the U.S. In 2016, over thirty-two hundred of these such operations took place. Over half of these being male to female procedures. The w...

For whatever reason, a large majority of the people in the world are not satisfied with what they have. In some ways this is good. It causes us to reach for something greater, but honestly, I think it often just makes us break one of the Ten Commandments, "Thou shalt not covet". It has the potential of blinding us to the immense blessings that each of us has around us. Every one of us, no matter our SES (Socioeconomic Status) has much to be grateful for. A person from a low SES may look at someone from a high SES and wish they had the free time of someone from a high SES. A person from a high SES may see someone from a low SES and envy the exact same thing, both assuming the other has it better. Both ends of the SES spectrum are faced with resource management challenges and must decide what they will do with what they have. In a family, managing resources can be quite a challenge. Picture a single mother on the low end of the spectrum. She may desperately need an incom...

Theories are a funny thing. They are an imperfect human's imperfect explanation of a phenomenon. Basically, they are an attempt at figuring out and putting to words how on Earth something works. Scientists are known for making them really fancy sounding yet making sense at the same time. Family "scientist" use a handful of theories when researching the family. Four specifically include; The Exchange Theory, The Symbolic Interaction Theory, The Conflict Theory, and The Family Systems Theory. Let me Explain. The Exchange Theory, applied to relationships/family, is the idea that you only remain happy in a relationship so long as you feel you are getting out of it as much as you are putting into it. You can imagine it as an old school scale of justice. If the scale is balanced, then there is an equilibrium of happiness in the relationship. When the scale is out of balance and remains that way for too long, someone is going to want an out.   In a couple’s relationship ...

First, let me just explain where I'm coming from. I am the third oldest of seven children. I was raised in a very tradition home and family setting. My mom raised all of us crazy kids and my Dad brought in the lion share of financial support from his fulltime job. Both of my parents are very conservative and somehow managed to raise a handful of liberal children. I found myself somewhere in the middle. I believe the traditional family to be the best set up for raising a future generation, but I also totally respect that family is what you make it. No matter what we do, we cannot be part of this life without also being part of a family. We are designed to come into this world without ever having to be alone. No man is an island, right? It's mind boggling then how we find so many ways to tune out and turn away from those around us. Back in the day homes use to be one room. One room! Can you imagine? It would be like a road trip where your younger siblings are constantly bre...