The Importance of Family During troubled Times

Doesn’t sound survival related but it sure is.
I thought I wrote about this before but apparently I didn’t. Besides, its very relevant for Americans and people around the world as of right NOW.
There are many factor as of why having a family and mostly not being on your own makes a difference during hard times.
There are some disadvantages of course: More mouths to feed, more chances of someone making a mistake regarding security, you are more vulnerable regarding some points, but overall nature is wise, having a family has more benefits overall.
To all of you die hard bachelors, listen up, ok? :-)

Moral Support

If the mind doesn’t keep up, the physical aspects don’t mean much at all.
For many coming back home after a hard day of work, the family makes a huge difference. That’s a picture I’m sure many of you are already familiar with.
Now add to that familiar picture rampant inflation, wages comparatively low that buy less and less each passing month, bad working conditions due to stress, your boss using you to vent his own problems, and a city that doesn’t work half of the time the picture gets even more complex.

Imagine having to spend several hours to get to your job because of protests, strikes, suicidals jumping under the train, or God knows what else.
When I worked in an office on the Capital district, life for me was miserable indeed.
There’s something about arriving to the office already covered in sweat from a dozen different strangers, because you travel like an animal due to the poor subway and train infrastructure that can’t keep up with rush hour. Tolerating a boss with an eating disorder and lots of personal problems, then getting back inside a sweaty can of human meat, many people there already drunk and smelling like puke. The trains and subways in Constitucion station are little bits of hell on earth during rush hour. You are packed so tight, people even travel hanging from the train or on the roof. Small people, children or pregnant women simply can’t get in because they risk getting crushed inside.

I would walk through the door, strip and take a shower, then throw some clothes on me and lay flat on the floor, exhausted. My kid and wife, they would curl around me and laying there would give me the morale boost I needed.
I suppose this is why people in Latin America and third world countries have tighter family bonds. Family is emotional support.
To some extremely poor people, family, their children, is all they have in this world.


Resources

Anyone familiar with forum flame wars is used to reading this: “He’s just a 40 year old living in mom’s basement”.
Sadly that is true and will become more common as time goes by.
Something very common here is young adults moving back to their parents because they can’t afford the costs, several families living under the same roof.
All of a sudden a lot of people in USA are now losing their homes and “living in mom’s basement” takes a new, sad twist.

Truth be told, most houses in USA are pretty big by international standards ant there’s enough space.
Some advantages to several families living together if needed:

*Bills get divided into a larger number of work-capable people.

*There’s always teen or grandpa to do nanny work. Saves you the day care center cost and allows adults to work.

*The house is rarely empty, safer in case of burglars and robberies.

*A greater set of skills, to start family, home based business of some sort.

You rarely find a family that gets along so well that they all enjoy living together, but when there’s no other choice it becomes a more attractive option.

Family, even though if not very close, is still family. When you need them you can usually count on them, a favor, money, or help in some kind of way family is usually the first that comes to mind.

The old Spaniards and Italians that came to Argentina, they still had those old notions about children taking care of them when they grow old. It worked that way back then, and you can still hear some talk about the eldest daughter being the one that is supposed to take care of the parents when they can’t handle things themselves any more.
Surprisingly, that’s the way it works for many families I know of. The eldest daughter caring for them, often never marrying. Not a nice picture but some of those traditions die hard, even in modern times.

So guys, while popping out a 8 brats like the John and Kate +8 family isn’t wise because unless you have your own TV show you’ll go broke in no time, family has several advantages preparedness wise and for life in general.
Those of us that have kids, of course we don’t do it as a rational strategy, its would be pathetic to think that way.
None the less, people with kids have an emotional support people that alive alone don’t have.
Just another thing to thing about and keep in mind.
Take care.

FerFAL