Marriage and Conflict
December 3, 2004
CFS 325
Transitions through the Family Life Cycle
Strengthening Your Marriage & Family Relationships, & The Future Of Your Family
Strengthening your marriage and family is a life-long process. It may start at age 20 when you begin looking for a mate and then finish at age 75 when your life ends – that is a 55-year process. Talk about a long time! A couple could spend a large amount of time strengthening their relationship at the beginning, but even that does not guarantee a successful marriage or happy family later in life. Although it is never too late to start rebuilding a marriage, and therefore benefiting your family, there will be issues from earlier in the marriage that will still have to be dealt with. The two institutions of marriages and families are a lot of work. They can turn your day into something you had not planned. They can leave no time for you and your personal needs. And despite the happy moments, they can ruin your day. When your child has just remembered they need a school supply for the next day and the dog has had an accident on the floor right after an argument with your spouse, will you prioritize this as something more valuable than daily problems? When you have so many things to do and the projects or problems keep piling up, it is not easy to set the less important things aside and spend a minute or two caring for someone you love, but it is the only way to strengthen your marriage and family. Time: we all wish we had just one more hour in the day or just one more half hour. It is greatly valued, but is it valued in the right areas? Prioritizing your time in favor of your marriage and family can be a big challenge but is part of the process. In the following paragraphs, topics will be discussed that deserve the most time in your family’s process to strengthen it no matter what curve balls are thrown your way. These issues will take time and patience as they are not easy, but they should be
CFS 325
Transitions through the Family Life Cycle
Strengthening Your Marriage & Family Relationships, & The Future Of Your Family
Strengthening your marriage and family is a life-long process. It may start at age 20 when you begin looking for a mate and then finish at age 75 when your life ends – that is a 55-year process. Talk about a long time! A couple could spend a large amount of time strengthening their relationship at the beginning, but even that does not guarantee a successful marriage or happy family later in life. Although it is never too late to start rebuilding a marriage, and therefore benefiting your family, there will be issues from earlier in the marriage that will still have to be dealt with. The two institutions of marriages and families are a lot of work. They can turn your day into something you had not planned. They can leave no time for you and your personal needs. And despite the happy moments, they can ruin your day. When your child has just remembered they need a school supply for the next day and the dog has had an accident on the floor right after an argument with your spouse, will you prioritize this as something more valuable than daily problems? When you have so many things to do and the projects or problems keep piling up, it is not easy to set the less important things aside and spend a minute or two caring for someone you love, but it is the only way to strengthen your marriage and family. Time: we all wish we had just one more hour in the day or just one more half hour. It is greatly valued, but is it valued in the right areas? Prioritizing your time in favor of your marriage and family can be a big challenge but is part of the process. In the following paragraphs, topics will be discussed that deserve the most time in your family’s process to strengthen it no matter what curve balls are thrown your way. These issues will take time and patience as they are not easy, but they should be