Family

The personal dynamic and function of the family has been on my mind the past several months.  This video describes some ways to apply what goes on in business to the family in order to create a better functioning family unit.  Like all advice on how to create a happier, better functioning family, we should always consider the uniqueness of our own family in order to best fit and implement the ideas.  I found the advice in the video to be edifying and uplifting and I am trying to apply some of the principles to my family.  I have found that I am not perfect but then, none of us are.  So the point is to continue to try and improve and if there are times when things aren't being done as they should be, start doing them again, don't just give up.

Take some time to view this video, it's only 18 minutes.  :-)

Outside the daily function of the family unit, I have had events of late that have caused reflection; the untimely death of my step-mother and the passing of my maternal grandmother.

First, the lighter side - the afore mentioned events remind me of a great tune by the Godfathers -

Birth, School, Work, Death

On a more serious note, Why are we here? Life surely must be more than Birth, School, Work and Death.

Thoughts in 28 minutes :-)

A plan for why we are here

Are we to just live from day to day without a purpose? No. Each one of us has great potential and we should be seeking to develop it each day. Our personal potential leads to family and our family potential and this should help give us directive in our life. More than anything, our families are where our greatest accomplishments should be on this earth because of all the "stuff" we can acquire while here, only our knowledge and our families carry on with us beyond this life.

Pause for another 28 minutes :-)

the eternal perspective of life

Blockades to family happiness -
 
I think that sometimes we need to get over ourselves. I know my stubborn streaks can get in the way of a good time, good conversation and sometimes make it harder to work at relationships.  We all have those moments or things about us that sometimes get in the way and I know I want to try a little harder and do a little better at being better in all my roles.

Reflections on Family -

Family should be important at any point in life. If you grew up not liking your siblings or cousins or anyone in your family, get over it and enjoy a relationship that could change your life. If you have always enjoyed your family, enjoy them more. If you were just not around much growing up, make time to foster new relationships. If you are raising a family, take time to reflect and reevaluate family priorities. If you do not yet have a family of your own, focus your personal development to be in line with what you want to be in a father or mother and spouse.

In the end, life is much much more than Birth, School, Work and Death!

It's about family!

(3 Minutes)

It's about what we make of the small and simple moments of our life!

(3 Minutes)

Simple things

Sometimes in life we are frustrated with the results we are achieving.  We begin with good intentions and even push through to a point where things seem to be going in the direction we want and everything is working. We have a plan and our execution is seemingly flawless.  We have done and are doing what needs to be done at the moment and we can see all that needs to happen in the future in order for our plan to be successful.  As we move forward, however, because we are receiving results, we may not notice that we have forgotten something. Kind of like using salt in your cookies instead of sugar, the cookies still look like cookies, however, they do not taste like cookies. The simple ingredient change caused a result the was not desirable.

Sometimes it's the small or simple things that get in the way of big success or the complete results we are aiming for. We have a refrigerator/freezer not unlike any other with an ice and water dispenser which we use quite heavily. As time has gone on, it seemed as though the ice maker was beginning to fail.  At first, it seemed to not make enough ice fast enough but not to the point of being a real issue. Gradually though, the ice maker fell further and further behind in its ability to keep up with demand and the ice began to be thinner and not as solid, this became a source of much frustration. As the ice makers production declined the desire to replace the refrigerator grew exponentially along with the frustration.

In the midst of the frustration and desperation and the sickening feeling that came with looking at the price of new models, we began to investigate. After looking at a few things and determining the mechanics seemed to be in working order we checked the water line to ensure it was flowing properly. Feeling confident the water flow into the refrigerator was good, we bought a new filter. Guess what the result was?  We got perfect ice!  A simple $40 fix instead of an $1800 new refrigerator.

Application:

When our lives seem to be producing insufficient results, we should not be so quick to toss our life and start over. We just need to reevaluate and see what we missed to gain the results we desire.  In most cases it will be something small that we overlooked.  All might be going well enough, still making ice, just not enough or quite the quality we hoped for; however we notice that things could be better.  The family seems to be functioning but not everyone seems as happy as they could be or willing to do their part in proportion to the rest of the family.  You might begin to ask yourself what is different, or what could I be doing that I am not? It may turn out that family prayer might have gone from 7 nights a week to 3. Personal prayer might have gone from daily to weekly. Telling your spouse or kids how much you love them might not be a daily thing any more.  These are all simple things, like changing the filter, that can make a big difference.