Final blog: the summary

This is my last blog of the semester. I had a lot of fun writing these and actually learned a ton from this class. There were aspects of my relationships that I was able to change because of the things that I learmed. I was also able to set standards of what I want in a relationship and what I should avoid. The things of greatest value were the things that I wouldn’t have thought of. We learned about power struggles within a relationship and the importance of maintaining a relationship where both members strive to communicate without seeking power over each other. Unsuccessful communication often involves grudges or offenses that are blown out of proportion in order to create the feeling that debt is owed from one partner to another. This is a form of power struggle that Is unhealthy and should be avoided. I have been able to better recognize this characteristic in my relationships and avoid relationships that have this unhealthy foundation.

Learning about marriage preparation and the best ways to wedding plan taught me the importance of decision making within a marriage and how to ensure that relationships with outside family members will be successful instead of strained. I learned that traditional dating patterns allow us to build high trust and commitment before jumping into any form of physical intimacy. I learned that within a marriage, everyone experiences of difference. Everyone experiences life differently and has different attitudes and family cultures based on how they grow up. By open communication and developing a new family culture by blending the two parenting styles, we can ensure a happy family life. This leads me into the next thing I learned. About family sytems and roles. The most meaningful lesson of the semester to me was the similation we did of a family immigrating from Mexico to the US. We studied how the original family system consisted of a father, mother, and two children. As the father made the treacherous trip to the US, he ended up taking low paying jobs in the US and sending money home to Mexico. The original 1 year plan took three years before his family was able to join. This dramatically changed the culture of his family. The son was forced to leave his dreams behind and make sacrifices for the family. Other family members stepped in as parents and became the source of advice for the children of this father. This ultimately led to a ton of heartbreak and resentment of the entire family towards the father that left. Those left in Mexico were bitter and upset at the father. I was assigned the role of the father and realized how painful it would be for men in that position. Who sacrificed for their families but were resented by them. It is so important that we create healthy family systems where our children can feel the protected and supported.

All of the things that I learned in this class strengthened my testimony of the family a proclamation to the world. Marriage between a man and woman should be focused on communication, understanding, forgiving. Forgiving is something that I felt very impressed about during this class. There are so many little ways that couples can misunderstand and misinterpret the actions of their spouses. By approaching things openly and with understanding and forgiving about the weaknesses of each other, problems can be worked through. I also deepened my testimony that children have the right to be born within the bonds of marriage. We looked at stats of other forms of parenting. Other forms were dramatically less effective for raising successful, happy families. I loved this class and learned so much