“Family is the answer”

I’ve had an epiphany.
It came to me writing an earlier post entitled ‘Family Man’.

https://bigun.locals.com/upost/7681006/family-man

Our issue with western birth rates cannot be solved with incentives of tax breaks or direct monetary enumeration.
It’s propaganda.
We’ve done our children a disservice. We’ve led them to believe that there are things more important in life than ‘family’.
I will state it plainly;

There is not now, nor ever has been anything in human history more important than family. No job, no possession is more fulfilling, more satisfying than family. You may not always agree or like them, but you will always have them. Family is our sole purpose on this planet. When we do not fulfill this obligation, we feel empty. Whether it was a choice, or the inability to accomplish, we have a hole in our souls.
When I see people showering love and attention on pets, I know it is the innate need to ‘parent’. Regardless if we have children or not, we need to care for another living being. We need the love or the imagined love given to us by another living being. We want to believe that our pets ‘love’ us back, regardless of their ability to feel love.
Some have the belief “I’m from a dysfunctional family, I’m breaking the cycle by not procreating.”
This is a lie we wish to tell ourselves in order to excuse the emptiness in our lives. The real way to ‘break the cycle’ is to be a better parent, to be a better spouse, to be a better person than the examples we’ve been given. Even if you believe that your parents or grand parents were ‘perfect’, you can still strive to be better.
As the great Vince Lombardi once told his team;

“We will chase perfection relentlessly, knowing we will never catch it.
But in the meantime, we will catch excellence.”

You may not ever be the perfect father, mother, husband or wife. You will inspire those around you to attempt to be as good, or better by your example.

We’ve convinced our children that the way to happiness and fulfillment are the outward expressions success in careers and conspicuous consumption.
It’s a lie.
True fulfillment is to be surrounded by the love and warmth of a home filled with your children, grandchildren and if you are so blessed, great grandchildren.

I’ve found that the happiest most fulfilling moments in my life are not ‘unboxing’ or purchasing the latest gadget.
They are found, surrounded by my children, grandchildren and even my siblings.

Love, from family, the belonging to someone, is the answer, to the hole, in your soul.