I'm going to have to find that book now. I read an article that also referenced it a while back that really stuck in my head as to this relates to marriage and the household. It feels very unproductive to be a stay at home mom and most modern options for trying to satisfy that desire - to be productive while raising children - are often actually quite expensive and add more stress than it is worth. But it has been helpful to me to realize what the missing element is and try to find creative ways to satisfy the desire to be productive at home without getting so distracted by the pursuit that I lose more than I gain by it.
Congratulations on your upcoming adoption also. I hope you have safe travels!
Thank you! Yes, at the risk of offending you, my sister actually complains about mothers who get involved in these multi-level-marketing schemes (or should we say scams) and they try to rope other mothers into them "because apparently raising children isn't exciting enough for them", she says. There is good productivity and, uh, other things that should probably be avoided.
That is something I see a lot of and it makes me sad. These moms have great intentions of both raising their children well and being productive. It sounds like a great way to do both. They pour a lot of money into it, spend a lot of time on it, and chase away all their friends. That is one thing I had in mind, but it is a hard one to bring up with people.
Seeing it this way (about removing ways to be productive from home) though helps me to realize the desires for different work don't come from a place of thinking that it isn't exciting to raise children. But when the culture around you is constantly letting you know that you need to be bringing in money, it is hard to not just feel guilty that all you do is consume... especially since it often is not families with an abundance of wealth deciding the mom should be a stay-at-home parent to help alleviate that guilt. Maybe the fact that it is exciting makes it feel even more that way, like, I shouldn't get to go around and have fun all day with the kids while my husband works and misses it.
So many thoughts are swirling around in my mind about the repercussions this independent lifestyle would bring. But I think the foremost would be a stronger family. The family is the bedrock of our society and we are getting further and further away from the importance of the nuclear family.
Thank you for writing your articles. I read them all the way through because they hold my interest!
"If everyone did this" or "if x in y people did this" arguments aren't the best. The more nuanced argument goes toward encouraging regionalization of resources.
For instance, instead of everyone in the country depending on irrigated fields in Arizona for their winter salad greens, can't we use farms and greenhouses dotted across the southern tier of the country to grow those plants on a large commercial scale?
I'm going to have to find that book now. I read an article that also referenced it a while back that really stuck in my head as to this relates to marriage and the household. It feels very unproductive to be a stay at home mom and most modern options for trying to satisfy that desire - to be productive while raising children - are often actually quite expensive and add more stress than it is worth. But it has been helpful to me to realize what the missing element is and try to find creative ways to satisfy the desire to be productive at home without getting so distracted by the pursuit that I lose more than I gain by it.
Congratulations on your upcoming adoption also. I hope you have safe travels!
Thank you! Yes, at the risk of offending you, my sister actually complains about mothers who get involved in these multi-level-marketing schemes (or should we say scams) and they try to rope other mothers into them "because apparently raising children isn't exciting enough for them", she says. There is good productivity and, uh, other things that should probably be avoided.
That is something I see a lot of and it makes me sad. These moms have great intentions of both raising their children well and being productive. It sounds like a great way to do both. They pour a lot of money into it, spend a lot of time on it, and chase away all their friends. That is one thing I had in mind, but it is a hard one to bring up with people.
Seeing it this way (about removing ways to be productive from home) though helps me to realize the desires for different work don't come from a place of thinking that it isn't exciting to raise children. But when the culture around you is constantly letting you know that you need to be bringing in money, it is hard to not just feel guilty that all you do is consume... especially since it often is not families with an abundance of wealth deciding the mom should be a stay-at-home parent to help alleviate that guilt. Maybe the fact that it is exciting makes it feel even more that way, like, I shouldn't get to go around and have fun all day with the kids while my husband works and misses it.
So many thoughts are swirling around in my mind about the repercussions this independent lifestyle would bring. But I think the foremost would be a stronger family. The family is the bedrock of our society and we are getting further and further away from the importance of the nuclear family.
Thank you for writing your articles. I read them all the way through because they hold my interest!
"If everyone did this" or "if x in y people did this" arguments aren't the best. The more nuanced argument goes toward encouraging regionalization of resources.
For instance, instead of everyone in the country depending on irrigated fields in Arizona for their winter salad greens, can't we use farms and greenhouses dotted across the southern tier of the country to grow those plants on a large commercial scale?