Functional Families
Why I do what I do
Reconnecting with what I am doing and why. When I step back from the day to day to look I realise that my motivation is to create a space where good parenting is recognised as foundational to creating a functional society which is capable of existing with the limits of the earth’s available resources. Perhaps if we can each stand a little taller and feel something closer to whole it will feel easier to enjoy the simple pleasures of being with our children. As I find less of me shut off and shut down, peace and contentment flow in to fill the gaps the way the tide rushes in to fill crevices on a sandy beach. Closer to the state of joy and aliveness that our children haven’t yet lost and therefore able to meet them there.
It is the part of us which feels lost, at odds with the world that instead of facing these gaps fills them with anything else, to medicate discomfort and taking us further away from what we truly need. Simply being present with another with myself, with nature without the low rattle of numb is something new enough that I still marvel at it.
Parenting as a joyful adventure
Parenting as a joyful experience then becomes possible. If we are showing up for them in this way then our relationship can be a creative co-created journey that we take with our child. Acting as a force for good: producing self responsible adults who have the inner resilience to contribute to their communities. Encouraging them to think critically, to question and to discern.
In a functional family the needs of each member are valued equally, we work together to advocate for everyone else need for love, meaning and sustenance. In a dysfunctional family some dominate while others sacrifice, there is manipulation, outward appearances matter more than the individuals within the system. Ultimately everyone loses as in truth it is human connection which sustains us. Perhaps it is no coincidence that dysfunctional families mirror broader culture. If we start small and take care of our own household perhaps we can bring through something new and better.
