Dating = Choosing a Partner

As a married young lady I can honestly say I am so glad I am over this part of my life of searching for that one I am going to spend all eternity with. The stresses of dating and knowing whether the feelings that you are feelings are real and if they match the other person, etc. It was a developing time in my life as I am sure others will agree. One thing I found highly interesting was the different kind of loves the Greeks have that we related to our lives. First there is Eros meaning more of the sexual arousal, romantic, and want to be with this person only physically. The second one was Agape which means a love more a fellowmen not necessarily liking the person but having the "Christian" feeling that they deserve a love from everyone. Next one relates to the Parent/Child love named Storge. I found that this love is not only between parent and child but a love that no matter what happen to them or no matter was silly or stupid thing they do you will always love them. And the last love is called Phillia, or the love between friends, brotherly love. As we developed and understood each of these loves we came to realize the importance of each one in a growing relationship. Although Eros seems like a naughty love that is not necessary I found it sometime the most necessary to draw the person from the opposite sex into a deeper love that discusses more serious things. Another thing I realized was the path you take through each one to develop all kinds of love. All of them are NEEDED to have a well rounded relationship that will last. I know this is true because I have found my love and I can relate plenty of different times in which we both showed these separate loves to each other.

Men vs. Women

The constant wondering of what the other sex is like, how they think, what they enjoy, etc will most likely never stop but some things will help develop theories on these subjects. During class this week we discussed the working of the man's brain versus a woman's and what the difference was. They found that men had a burst of lights and bright colors while women had a lot of different evenly distributed colors. Now when I heard this I was like great colors in your brain but what does it mean? The conclusion was men focus on one thing and really got into what it meant while women were constantly focusing on many different things at one time. Doesn't it make sense?! My teacher made a comment asking us if you ever ask a guy how work, school, or their day was they will always just say good. This is because they are focused on being home and not on what had happened that day. Now this is completely different from a girl who is constantly focusing on everything at once. That is why I believe they make such good mothers, because they can focus on many different activities and kids and know what is happening.

Culture and Diversity

This week in class the topic that really spoke to me was the study done on Mexican families that came to American over the border. My sister's boyfriend, Tavi, came over the border when he was young with his family. It is tough on families to have the father gone for a long length of time in which his role needs to be filled by the mother or sometimes even an extended family member until he returns. But when he does return there is not always welcome arms to his old responsibilities that have been passed along to others. This can help tear apart families. Tavi told me that his father was only gone for 6 months before the family joined him in America, but I can see the distance that was put between him and his father in that time. Something I also noticed was how he calls several different families his own. Not always having his family together makes me believe that he doesn't really know where he stands in his own family so he looks for other families to fill that whole in his life. Does this make sense to others?

Bonds within Families

There is a system theory used in the family that in some ways makes sense to me. We are made up of these groups that together we can perform a lot better than we can apart. Families are an essential role in the plan of salvation because of that strength we can get from one another in a family. Also in these bigger groups there are smaller groups called sub groups. In my family I know there is a few groups: one containing my parents, and another big one is the group of me and my twin sister. These bonds are greater than anything I know of and nothing can come between us. I feel sad for the families that do not share this same love and bonding within a family because I honestly don't know where I would be right now without the support and love of all of my family members.

Sketchy or Reliable Research

             This week in class we discussed the research that can be found on the family. There are plenty of statistics out there on the family that can be found all over the internet. So how can you tell which is reliable? One major thing that made a lot of sense to me was citing one's credentials. I have written enough research papers to know that the things I have cited in my paper have a lot more umph to them. Another thing I was thinking about during our discussion in class was the statistics that were just so absolutely ridiculous that it had to be fudged. 

             How important is it that the research we find be reliable? Personally I find the more research one knows about the more well rounded one is when discussing a topic. Knowing the affects certain situations could have on child can help anyone who deals with children at any time in their lives. It is worth the extra work to make sure what is being found is well-researched work.