By Amanda Pasciucco, MFT at Therapy by Amanda, LLC
It's too bad that family doesn't get together more often. It's always exciting when planning a family get-together, but most families don't get together more than a few times a year. There are the typical excuses: Winter holidays, birthdays, big anniversaries, or graduations, but what about the rest of the year?
It's so important for people, especially children, to connect with others and have a good support system. Yes, some parents look to extracurricular activities for their kids to build social skills, but that isn't how things were fifty years ago. The generation before this one grew up with numerous family get-together and close family friends and neighbors that became a second family. There were no sports to build social skills; kids socialized by playing and participating in family conversation.
Things have changed... and it doesn't seem like it's for the better. More children are having troubles in school due to behaviors troubles and lack of socialization skills. A special education teacher told me, "I get numerous kids sent down to my office, but the majority of them just have problems interacting because they have such limited social circles." It seems like people are forgetting their most available (and cheapest) resource: their extended families.
At this time of year, it may be months until we come out of our cold houses and get together for a family gathering. But when did it get to the point where we would sacrifice a weekend day socializing with friends for a weekend of errands or appointments? Make the time to have a family party for no particular reason at all. The benefits could really be rewarding because family knows how to revitalize you in a way that no one else is quite capable of.
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