It has been a bit of a running joke within our family to refer to ourselves as a tribe! It originally started with the birth of our youngest, and has continued since. Although it started as a joke I must admit that I have begun to see the merits of our renaming of our family.
By thinking of our family as a Tribe we have changed the dynamics of our family, while we still work like a regular “family” we also have the extra dimension of the “tribal identity”. Each of us has our place in the family and all the emotions and responsibilities that come with that place, BUT we also have a place in the tribe and the extra dimension that this brings. Respect for each other has become doubly important and it has increased the awareness of our responsibility for the happiness and wellbeing of each other’s lives.
I think that sometimes within a family we can all on occasion lose sight of the effect that our actions and words have on each other. Things that we would NEVER say to a friend or someone else from the community, often get said in the heat of the moment without thought to how it will affect a family member. There are occasions that we take things out on our family members because we know they love us and won’t judge us, often losing sight of the fact that while they may love us and understand it is still NOT ok to vent on our family. Thinking of ourselves has reduced the occurrences of these little oversights, and has also helped me to remain calm in the face of my children’s emerging personalities.
As you can see below sometimes a child’s emerging possibility can be a scary thing (notice the hair)! On the other hand so long as they keep and display the values we cherish I think I will be able to cope!
By thinking of our family as a Tribe we have changed the dynamics of our family, while we still work like a regular “family” we also have the extra dimension of the “tribal identity”. Each of us has our place in the family and all the emotions and responsibilities that come with that place, BUT we also have a place in the tribe and the extra dimension that this brings. Respect for each other has become doubly important and it has increased the awareness of our responsibility for the happiness and wellbeing of each other’s lives.
I think that sometimes within a family we can all on occasion lose sight of the effect that our actions and words have on each other. Things that we would NEVER say to a friend or someone else from the community, often get said in the heat of the moment without thought to how it will affect a family member. There are occasions that we take things out on our family members because we know they love us and won’t judge us, often losing sight of the fact that while they may love us and understand it is still NOT ok to vent on our family. Thinking of ourselves has reduced the occurrences of these little oversights, and has also helped me to remain calm in the face of my children’s emerging personalities.
As you can see below sometimes a child’s emerging possibility can be a scary thing (notice the hair)! On the other hand so long as they keep and display the values we cherish I think I will be able to cope!
A PHOTO OF T, L AND F FROM EARLY 2009 WHEN THE MONSTER TRUCKS WERE IN TOWN.