Questions on Family
Look, with fresh eyes, at all the institutions we participate in.
Look at Businesses, Churches, Schools, Clubs, Associations, Unions, Cities, States and all our Government Agencies. All have the following in common: All have an institutional desire to Grow, to have Unity within, all desire Longevity and all seek social and/or economic Contributions from their members.
Are the above institutional desires the logical elements of a larger desire? Isn't this the larger desire to have power? Power, defined as an ability to take advantage of opportunities & overcome adversity. Surely, we have that same larger desire for our families?
Do we?
Now, ask yourself. Do we have the same institutional desires within our families? As a society do we expect families to grow? Actually, we have come to frown on large families. Also, have we not come to live in silos of nuclear families far removed from our extended family?
Do we place a strong emphasis on family unity? Here do you see outside pressures and cultural attacks often overwhelming or interfering with family unity? Also, among extended family, have we not developed expectations of independence that emphasizes establishing boundaries? Have we largely achieved independence from extended family only to become dependent on largely indifferent institutions?
What about our expectations of contribution from family members?
As people are prepared to ask "what can you do for your country"?
Are we prepared to ask what we can do for our extended family?
Is either effort less noble than another.
As for longevity, have we generally stopped building expectations of long lasting legacies ? Is this not evident from how property, wealth and businesses pass on from one generation to the next? When we seek out our geneologies, is it for any practical reasons? If we do not have long lasting legacies, are there consequences? How can a family's legacy relate to their ability to seek out opportunity or deal with adversity?
Look at Businesses, Churches, Schools, Clubs, Associations, Unions, Cities, States and all our Government Agencies. All have the following in common: All have an institutional desire to Grow, to have Unity within, all desire Longevity and all seek social and/or economic Contributions from their members.
Are the above institutional desires the logical elements of a larger desire? Isn't this the larger desire to have power? Power, defined as an ability to take advantage of opportunities & overcome adversity. Surely, we have that same larger desire for our families?
Do we?
Now, ask yourself. Do we have the same institutional desires within our families? As a society do we expect families to grow? Actually, we have come to frown on large families. Also, have we not come to live in silos of nuclear families far removed from our extended family?
Do we place a strong emphasis on family unity? Here do you see outside pressures and cultural attacks often overwhelming or interfering with family unity? Also, among extended family, have we not developed expectations of independence that emphasizes establishing boundaries? Have we largely achieved independence from extended family only to become dependent on largely indifferent institutions?
What about our expectations of contribution from family members?
As people are prepared to ask "what can you do for your country"?
Are we prepared to ask what we can do for our extended family?
Is either effort less noble than another.
As for longevity, have we generally stopped building expectations of long lasting legacies ? Is this not evident from how property, wealth and businesses pass on from one generation to the next? When we seek out our geneologies, is it for any practical reasons? If we do not have long lasting legacies, are there consequences? How can a family's legacy relate to their ability to seek out opportunity or deal with adversity?
posted by Dominic Siclare at 7:22 AM
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