Culture and Family-Make a Change

This week we talked about culture and how that affects or plays a role in how families function. Then I think of culture I think of big parties that different ethnic groups might have, but come to found out that in families, the culture isn't always so easy to recognize and point out, especially if it's your own family that you are examining. One example that Brother Williams mentioned in class is how some families have a tendency to be sarcastic. In the eyes of that family, sarcasm is acceptable because "That's just how we are". But in reality it may not be as "ok" as they think. There are consequences that come as a result for negative family cultures. Parent/child relationships and sibling/sibling relationships can be greatly affected as well as the development of the children when there are negative cultures in the family. But one must be realistic, we’re not perfect, no one family is! But we CAN break the cycle! WE can make a CHANGE! We can learn from those who have gone before us and follow their example in the good things they do and adjust the things that need some improvements. One thing that we talked about and that I thought was very important was how when a couple are getting ready to get married and start a family, it is wise to discuss WHAT you want your family to be like. HOW you want to raise your children. WHAT PRACTICES will you incorporate into your daily routine? HOW will you discipline your children? It is wise to discuss these things before children come because if you and your spouse haven’t agreed on what is best for YOUR family, most likely you will both parent the way you were parented whether that is the best way to do it or not. We watched a few videos about a family who lived some pretty rough conditions. The oldest son didn’t like it and he wanted to make a change, but he ended up more or less following in the same path that his mother had gone down. So it’s one thing to recognize a problem, and another to actually fix it because it won’t fix itself. So what I personally want to do, is decide NOW what is important to me and what I think I need to change. If I figure that out now, then when I get married, I can discuss it with my husband and we can work together and decide what our priorities are for our future family. I am confident that that will help us be stronger as a family!