Balancing work and other outside activities with home and family life is becoming increasingly difficult. A large percentage of households have two wage earners. Employer expectations are always growing. In addition, there are many social and recreational opportunities that can become obsessive. Before you know it, family time is being shut out. The impact can be devastating. A dramatic change in thinking is needed. Inspirational family poems such as the one below illustrate good reasons to put more emphasis on home and relationships.
It is tempting to work alittle more for a chance for promotion or for getting more salary. But every extra hour spent on the job, is one less hour with your family. It does not take very many to make a negative impact. As you can see, ripping a father or mother away from their children at key times causes damage.
Riches
by Jeanne D. Rhein
They say that times were tough
That money was very tight
But I remember my childhood
And I know that can't be right
Mom would cook our dinner
Dad came home at five
We were all sitting at the table
Waiting for him to arrive
...
We would all sit at the table
Everyone in their place
There were never any surprises
We reconized every face
Brothers to the left of me
Sisters to the right
That's the way we ate dinner
Every single night
We laughed we joked we talked we ate
We were a family don't you see
Though some may have been raised poor
You can see it wasn't me
....
So when you talk of family life
Or how it used to be
Though many had more money
None were as rich as me
Managing complicated family roles and obligations can become a major source of stress and regret. As decisions are made that require more time away, travel, and extended work hours, less time is given to the kids or even to the other spouse. As these relationships suffer, anxiety and guilt can build up. The division of housework, child care, and other responsibilities spin out of balance. Family communication degrades. Relationships become strained and sometimes hostile. Again poetry captures well this state of affairs. Family poems like the one below capture the loss that a child might feel.
Where Are You Daddy?
by Diane Blue
Hey daddy, I'm right here -
Can't you see me?
Hey daddy, I'm talking to you -
Can't you hear me?
Hey daddy, I need a hug -
Can't you touch me?
Let's play catch daddy.
Teach me to fish.
Help me build a birdhouse.
Listen to my wish.
Daddy, daddy, where are you?
I can see you standing there -
What's the matter daddy?
Don't you even care?
The imbalance between home and work usually does not happen overnight. It is a gradual process. It may not be initially evident that the ship is turning in the wrong direction. It is important to address the issues and be willing to again balance work and family life. The following steps will be helpful to realign priorities:
Decide what is important to you
Start by getting a good handle on your own personal needs. This is not for the purpose of enclosing yourself in a world of self-centeredness. Instead, if your life is unsatisfying or chaotic, how can you meet the needs of the rest of your family.
Get on the same page with your spouse
The marriage relationship is the foundation for establishing family priorities. Your spouse should also have priority over children and other family members. Share openly with your spouse what is important to you. What values do you have? What is important for family life. What is important for career and work life. Be honest with yourself and with your spouse. Don't focus on what is wrong or the negative impact that the other spouse is causing. You want to work toward a new positive direction.
Take action and get organized
You can establish lofty goals, but if no concrete steps are taken, the family may continue to drift. Busy lives often block progress. Get organized. Replace or reduce habits that have little value with activities that will support and build the family.
One the the best family poems is shown below giving a glimpse of the day by day decision process that will keep families on the right track:
Focused on My Family
by Raymond A. Foss
A night out, cut short
needing to go back home
to put them to bed, to give her rest
time to mend and heal,
no regrets of the change
the redirection home
where we needed to be
resting when we needed to
no regrets at all
Create a combined list of values in priority order. Try to place values that you both agree on at or near the top. Even if you agree on just one value, you can begin planning changes that will bring family life back into balance.
Your list will probably not be a surprise. The goals that you have been working on have just gotten away from what is important.
What goals are you pursuing right now? Do they agree or conflict with agreed on values? Most likely there will be a need to modify desires and expectations. Having children with good character traits may be more important than achieving a certain job status. Just building relationships with your children and with each other is usually a top priority.
Relationship poems capture how time together is very important.
Poems about family can be a tribute to a wonderful family, being a circle of support, and provide the security of always there for you. Here is a sweet poem that about a special family that may be an encouragement.
That's What Family Is All About
by Anisha R. Patel
When you've got a family like mine,
You surely would not mind
They would cheer you on at any game,
All the way until you walk through the hall of fame.
They make you feel better when you are blue
And whisper in your ear, I love you
They would teach you something new everyday
And help you find success in everyway
They attend to your everyday needs
Whether it is buying pencils or beads
They make sure you are comfortable where you are
Whether you are in a house or a car
They would not let obstacles keep you down
And create a smile from your frown
They teach you wrong from right
And encourage you to keep your dreams in sight
They wipe your tears away when you are sad
And calm you down when you get mad
Thank you family for all that you do
I don't know where I would be if it weren't for you
To make a good family life a reality, concrete steps need to be taken to modify the current work role or actually change jobs. In general, some goals can be put on hold, some let go, and modify others. Be willing to make sacrifices to help your spouse or other family member to realize their goals. Share responsibilities that may have been a struggle for one person before.
Here is one of many funny family poems that illustrate that there needs to be a plan and the plan will take effort. A recipe for the perfect family...
How To Create The Perfect Family
by Katy
You will need:
1 large house
3-6 people, depending on how long you
want to wait for it to be done
3 cups of pets
2 cups of patience
3 ounces of anger/frustration
3 quarts of laughter
4 teaspoons of trust
And last but definitely not least,
Lots and lots of love
First, open the house, and make sure that it will be the right size for your family. Mix the desired amount of people with the pets, carefully so you don’t damage them.
In a separate bowl, stir the love and laughter together. Set aside. Taking each person separately, evenly distribute the patience and trust, making sure that each one gets an equal amount (Failure to distribute evenly may lead to different recipe! See recipe for “My impatient family” for details…).
Carefully open the bottle of anger/frustration. Using a Q-tip, dab small portions of the anger/frustration onto each person. Lastly, take the love and laughter and sprinkle it all over the house, pets, and people. Let sit until all parts of the recipe are thoroughly combined, and voila! Your Perfect Family is complete.
Sometimes people just get caught up in self serving pursuits and neglect family issues. It can be hard to break this pattern. Inspirational family poems can touch your heart and provide the stimulus to put family first again.
Our House
by Edgar Guest
We play at our house and have all sorts of fun,
An’ there’s always a game when supper is done;
An’ at our house there’s marks on the walls an’ the stairs,
An’ some terrible scratches on some of the chairs;
An’ ma says that our house is surely a fright,
But pa and I say that our house is all right.
At our house we laugh an’ we sing an’ we shout,
An’ whirl all the chairs and the tables about,
An’ I rassle my pa an’ I get him down too,
An’ he’s all out of breath when the fightin’ is through;
Am’ ma says our house is surely a sight,
But pa an’ I say that our house is all right.
I’ve been to houses with pa where I had
To sit in a chair like a good little lad,
An’ there wasn’t a mark on the walls an’ the chairs,
An’ the stuff that we have couldn’t come up to theirs;
An’ pa said to ma that for all of their joy
He wouldn’t change places and give up his boy.
They never have races nor rassles nor fights.
Coz they have no children to play with at nights;
An’ their walls are all clean and their curtains hang straight,
An’ everthing’s shiny an’ right up to date;
But pa says with all of its racket an’ fuss,
He’d rather by far live at our house with us.
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