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How many of us feel that we're
getting this parenting thing just right? Some people have
more, others less confidence in their child-rearing abilities,
but I don't know a soul who feels s/he is the perfect parent.
Unfortunately, we no longer live
in extended families or even down the block from Grandma and
Aunt Helen. How many of us even live in the same town as our
siblings and their kids?
Our mothers also had the lady
next door to talk to over coffee in the morning after the
kids had gone to school or over the backyard fence as they
hung laundry.
If one kid wasn't doing his homework
or another was hitting his sister or there was too much yelling
in the house or your teenagers were entering that impossible
phase, there was always someone around to unload on, consult
with; someone who had been through it or had an idea - or
most important, who would just listen so you could find your
own solutions -- which I believe are all inside us anyway.
Most of us can't (or won't) go back
to the way things were but we can reach out to one another here
at WholeFamily. We can share our concerns, get advice (from professionals
and peers,) help others if we are so inclined, and learn from
each other and from the talent and expertise we bring to this
site. (Go to the staff
page and experts page
for details about who we are.)
We've added a lot of new material
-- information, resources and new ideas that we hope will help
you be a more effective, more fulfilled parent. And we still feature
our WholeFamily classics - real-life dramas about real-life problems;
a wealth of comments from psychologists about issues we all face;
and lots of inter-generational fare. After all, what is a family
if not members of different generations living together? (For
highlights, go to my first column: Bad
at Discipline, Good at Books. Each week I'll be discussing
issues and highlighting new material for you in my column, Reflections
from Ruth.)
CONSULTATIONS,
COMMUNITY, CREATIVITY...AND MORE
When friends who are not acquainted
with the Web ask me what our Parent Center is, I tell them
to imagine a big, old, comfortable building in the middle
of town that is dedicated to parents. In the building are:
a theater
where you can watch interactive plays about family conflicts and
give your opinion about what's going on;
a family
room where the generations come together;
offices that you can enter and consult
with a child psychologist, family therapist, child psychiatrist
or other professional about something that concerns you (and where
you can eavesdrop on and learn from other parents' concerns;)
- a television studio where you
can watch a soap
opera and tell us what you think of the characters' latest
trials and tribulations;
- lecture halls where you can
hear highly respected experts speak about child-rearing
issues;
- meeting
rooms where you can get together with other parents with
concerns similar to yours;
- an Early
Childhood Development Center packed with information about
your child's development, as well as insights and activities
for parents of the under-five set;
- a studio where you can preview
films;
- a library
where you can find relevant books and articles;
- a crisis
center for burning problems;
- a wisdom
room where you can get child-rearing wisdom from Teachers
from throughout the ages;
- a bulletin board where you can
share your parenting
epiphanies and read other parents' epiphanies - and much
more.
Our mission at WholeFamily is
to help you create healthier, more fulfilling, more FUN relationships.
And we believe that when families
function better, the world will be a better place.
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