I describe family values as responsibility towards others, increase of tolerance, compromise, support, flexibility. And essentially the things I call the silent song of life-the continuous process of mutual accommodation without which life is impossible.
Interpretation
Family values center around responsibility and support for one another, fostering a harmonious environment through mutual accommodation.
In this quote, Salvador Minuchin emphasizes the essence of family values, highlighting the importance of responsibility, tolerance, compromise, support, and flexibility within familial relationships. He suggests that these values are crucial for maintaining harmony, likening them to a 'silent song' that represents the ongoing effort of each family member to adapt and accommodate one another, without which a cohesive family life becomes unattainable.
In practice
This quote can be used during a family gathering to remind everyone of the importance of mutual support.
Becoming a father, I think it inevitably changes your perspective of life. I don't get nearly enough sleep. And the simplest things in life are completely satisfying. I find you don't have to do as much, like you don't go on as many outings.
A mother experiences more than one death, even though she herself will only die once. She fears for her husband; she fears for her children; again she fears for the women and children who belong to her children. ... For each of these-whether for loss of possessions, bodily illness, or undesired misfortune-she mourns and grieves no less than those who suffer.
She discovered with great delight that one does not love one's children just because they are one's children but because of the friendship formed while raising them.
Returning to your family and where you came from, and your history... this is what makes you strong. It's not looking out that's going to do that - it's looking in.
I was aware, in those early days of motherhood, that my behaviour was strange to the people who knew me well. It was as though I had been brainwashed, taken over by a cult religion. And yet this cult, motherhood, was not a place where I could actually live. Like any cult, it demanded a complete surrender of identity to belong to it.
The person who has inspired me my whole life is my Mom, because she taught me commitment. She sacrificed.
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