Response # 4

Each family has a different situation than another, however, there are some basic family qualities that each family should posses. These characteristics may seem minute, but in realty will help maintain a stable family life. One of the most important characteristics every family should posses, is taking time out of the day to be a “family”, whether this may take place at the dinner table, or at the end of the night with everyone sitting in the living room talking. Another characteristic that can create stable family life would create reasonability not only between the parents, but also the children. One many argue in regards to the video of the single mother and her two children, which it is wrong and not safe for them to be cooking in the house. However, this creates a reasonability and form of trust in the child. When children are treated as adults to a certain point they tend to act mature like adults.

One major affect in having a “good family life” is the parents being able to balance their career and family time. This is ultimately a choice in which the parents have to make, but nonetheless, it is crucial one. Parents need to be able to set time aside from there employers to be able to have interaction with their families. As seen in the videos some women had trouble in this area and therefore, had to leave the workforce. This seems to be extremely unjust. Why, why should a mother not be able to work part-time, and raise a child? Another question that needs to be asked, is why is it okay for the men to work long hours? The balance in a career and family could be one of the most stressful situations a parent can encounter. The couple who work split-shifts have made the ultimate sacrifice. The father works the night shift and the mother works the day; to make sure their children do not have to spend time at a day care or a sitter. This may not be the best resolution for every family. However, each family needs to separate the work and family. At the end of the day the work needs to be set aside for another day and total focus needs to be directed to the family.

The gender roles that have taken place in the current revolution have made the household a much more complex entity. As described in the past, the household was very simple. The father was the breadwinner and the mother was the caregiver. Post WWII, women began to realize that they are also capable of performing the same task that men are completing and started demanding more opportunities for work. The other factor that played into this revolution was the aspect of inflation. The breadwinner’s dollar was not going as far as it used to, which led to the duel income. As women began to take on fulltime careers, men were aspect to start performing some of the household duties that women used to complete. What has been discovered through research is men have taken on some of the opposites gender roles in the household, but not enough. Many women call coming home from work, their “second Shift.”

Employer’s have to understand the stress and reasonability that people are facing in the world today. Mothers and fathers not only have their careers to pertain to, but also a family, sometimes with children who depend on them. Employers need to become more flexible wit schedules and hours worked through the week. I do not have children, but can say that my kid my play more than one baseball game, but he/she won’t play the game more than once a child that day. Employers need to implement family functions into the careers itself. This was something that was very usual about 10, 15 years ago. I can remember as a child once a month during the summer being able to go to a local theme park which was paid for by my mothers work. Here we got to meet other kids and it was a time where families had the chance to reunite and be thanked by their employer.

The support of family members, neighbors, or friends can make the balance of caregiving much less stressful and painful. As it was showed in the video, many family members were responsible for taking care of other family members on their own. When there are people to help you this can allow you to still run a semi-normal life. One of the main programs that the federal government has implemented for all workers is FMLA. This stands for family medical leave act. If a serious illness occurs to you or one of your family members, you are given time off with pay and the security of your job upon return. The may not last the whole time but allows you to step back from your career to take care of the situation with your fullest cooperation.