Family, how important is yours?

United States
January 20, 2007 12:44am CST
PLEASE READ the discussion post, not just the heading, anyone who I can tell does not will receive a - rating, I am taking the time to read your response, if you aren't going to read my topic then why waste your time responding with a stupid response :) have a nice day This is touching..... F A M I L Y I ran into a stranger as he passed by, "Oh excuse me please" was my reply. He said, "Please excuse me too; I wasn't watching for you." We were very polite, this stranger and I. We went on our way and we said goodbye. But at home a different story is told, How we treat our loved ones, young and old. Later that day, cooking the evening meal, My son stood beside me very still. When I turned, I nearly knocked him down. "Move out of the way," I said with a frown. He walked away, his little heart broken. I didn't realize how harshly I'd spoken. While I lay awake in bed, God's still small voice came to me and said, "While dealing with a stranger, common courtesy you use, but the family you love, you seem to abuse. Go and look on the kitchen floor, You'll find some flowers there by the door. Those are the flowers he brought for you. He picked them himself: pink, yellow and blue. He stood very quietly not to spoil the surprise, you never saw the tears that filled his little eyes." By this time, I felt very small, And now my tears began to fall. I quietly went and knelt by his bed; "Wake up, little one, wake up," I said. "Are these the flowers you picked for me?" He smiled, "I found 'em, out by the tree. I picked 'em because they're pretty like you. I knew you'd like 'em, especially the blue." I said, "Son, I'm very sorry for the way I acted today; I shouldn't have yelled at you that way." He said, "Oh, Mom, that's okay. I love you anyway." I said, "Son, I love you too, and I do like the flowers, especially the blue." FAMILY Are you aware that if we died tomorrow, the company that we are working for could easily replace us in a matter of days. But the family we left behind will feel the loss for the rest of their lives. And come to think of it, we pour ourselves more into work than into our own family, an unwise investment indeed, don't you think? So what is behind the story? Do you know what the word FAMILY means? FAMILY = (F)ATHER (A)ND (M)OTHER (I) (L)OVE (Y)OU
8 people like this
35 responses
@katty0004 (386)
• United States
21 Jan 07
I was taught that my family comes frist some people place them second on their list and that is not right , I have gone out of my way to do things for my family and in return I have their love , I know if I ever need them they will be thier for me .The way you treat a stranger is the way you should alway treat your family .
2 people like this
• United States
21 Jan 07
Isn't that the sad truth. I would have to say that I diffently treat stangers nicer than my family. I get mad at my kids all the time for being underfoot. The other day my daughter called me on my manners thought, her dad was going to the local gas station, she asked him for a treat. I said you didn't say please and thank you, you have to use your manners. She looked my right in the eye and said "you didn't" She really got me because I didn't. I am trying to think before talking when we are at home more.
@vanities (11395)
• Davao, Philippines
21 Jan 07
what you have narrated is true to some families..however in my family ive tried to inculcate to them the virtues of a good christian and that we should start that in our home..and thats what we do now as they grow older they tend to be kind, respectful to others ..our family is all what we have...its them who will take good care of us during sickness and trials.so we have to nurture it and value it..have you heared or learned the sayings " charity begins at home"..so family is more valuable than any money could buy.
2 people like this
@puma_nz (999)
• New Zealand
20 Jan 07
Yea I got sent that a few years ago.. but ummm do you really think that its necessary to go giving a (-) to someone who doesnt read your topic properly?? I mean seriously?? :-/
1 person likes this
• United States
20 Jan 07
I meant responses such as yeah my family is important, or family is important, ect, or some off the wall completely unrelated response, if all they do is read the headline then what is the point of responding, mylot user guidelines clearly state to read the discussion, not just the headlines, it just bothers me when people are here solely to earn money and do not have the decency to read a post before responding, all they do is post a pointless off topic response to increase their numbers, no quality at all.
1 person likes this
• United States
20 Jan 07
by the way, you did recieve a + rating
@puma_nz (999)
• New Zealand
20 Jan 07
LOL thanks for that.. I get what you mean though.. Thankyou
1 person likes this
@mansman (48)
25 Jan 07
a simply lovely poem, and now a know the feelings of the word FAMILY. changing the subject slightly About a week ago on the train i was reading an artical about kindness and how politely strangers treat each other in everyday life, you know down the street,in the shop and well basicly a lady thought up an idea of handing out a TOKEN of POLITENESS to whom ever had given her a kind gesture for example saying thankyou or sorry be being in the way....ETC And so when the token was passed on. you would log it on a special website via email on token and then pass it on again to the next KIND person, and so on This then if done by every one would tell where the token has traveled and how it was passed !! i personally thought this was a great way having peoples views on todays politeness.what do you think
• United States
29 Jan 07
it sounds like a good idea to me :)
11 Feb 07
it was quite hard to explain but hope you understood. thanks for the reply, sorry it took so long as still gettin used to mylot! lol
1 person likes this
@moonmagick (1458)
• United States
24 Jan 07
This hits home. I think I will forward it to my husband. He is in sales and his entire job is to be nice and courteous to strangers, so by the time he gets home apparently he is done being "nice" He has a short temper with me and our 5 month old. Lots of nights I bring the baby up to bed while he falls asleep watching tv. (Like tonight). Maybe something like this would get him to open his eyes to the fact that he is missing a wonderful time with his son and pushing me away. When I try to point it out, he sees it as nagging. I imagine this poem is true to life for way too many people.
1 person likes this
• United States
24 Jan 07
I hope it will help you and your relationship with your husband and bring your family together. I know how you feel, my husband comes home from work, takes a shower, eats, and falls asleep on the couch while I put the kids to bed.
• United States
25 Jan 07
Thannk you. I hope so too. It really can be sad the way people treat those closest to them. I wish you well with your family as well.
1 person likes this
@wahmoftwo (1296)
• United States
21 Jan 07
I am guilty of little outbursts like that, although my family does come far before my work. I realize I am lucky that I can prioritize like that. My husband can at the very least put food on the table. We should all take the time to appreciate our children. They are only little once.
1 person likes this
• United States
21 Jan 07
I will admit that I am very guilty of the outbursts also, I feel that being at home with my kids 24/7 and taking care of them by myself gets me a little stressed sometimes, I need to stop and realize how precious they realy are a little more often, and think about how fortunate I am to be able to spend as much time with them as I do
• United States
21 Jan 07
That is very touching! I almost started crying. I try to treat my kids better than I would a stranger, but like everyone there are times when that isn't the case. Thanks for this topic!
1 person likes this
• United States
22 Jan 07
I think that we all fall into this, we seem to unconciously take our family for granted
@wasim989 (2298)
• India
21 Jan 07
That poetry was very heart touching and I must say that it is a story of every house even if we love our family yet we always hurt them which we must avoid doin it.
1 person likes this
@ronita34 (3922)
• Canada
24 Jan 07
AWWWWWW...Omg i am bawling and i am not even joking at all. i can barely finish reading with the tears in my eyes and i am still crying. The main reason i am crying is because when i am cooking and trying to get my chores doen and the kids in bed and i haven't relaxed for the past 5 hrs i get aggrovated at times and i too have snapped at my child in this way. Not meaning too but just becaue i had a long hard day. Thank you so much for sharing this and i never thought about something like this before thank you and i will be sure to remember this when i near another long hard worked day of a single mother!!! God Bless you always!
1 person likes this
• United States
23 Jan 07
This was extremely touching and oh so true. Although I do have to say just for my immediate family aas in my children and husband. I too had a very bad raising and I dont think I could treat them with too much respect since they cant even seem to give it to my innocent children. I find myself falling into this predicament with my little guys when I get stressed as in right now as my 2 year old bangs his spoons on the counter to make noise. But this definently puts things into perspective. Thank you so much no to remember this from day to day.
1 person likes this
@stephcjh (38473)
• United States
25 Jan 07
Wow that poem is unreal. How very nice. I never thought of the word family in such a way as that. Thats amazing to me. FAMILY... I know what the word family truly means as I love my own also. I had never heard that poem before now. That sure is a clever use for the word family. Thanks alot for the cheer up today.
• United States
25 Jan 07
What a very touching poem and story I have never read that before it makes us think twice about what we say to our family and how we react to them. I know after reading that it will make me think twice about what I say to my children. I didnt know thats what family spelled out and thanks for pointing that out.
1 person likes this
@epenner (162)
• United States
25 Jan 07
I absolutely loved this poem. It honestly brought tears to my eyes because I know I have done this before. Thank you for sharing it.
1 person likes this
@jesi06 (279)
• United States
21 Jan 07
Wow,Thank you for sharing that poem. This reminds us of the reality that indeed many of us do take our family for granted. None of us know when our last breath will be. I myself have been guilty of allowing myself to be distracted with work as living the life of a single parent can get to be a little overwhelming at times. As I read this, it actually brought tears to my eyes. Although I NEVER believe my job is more important than my children (as this is very true that you can be replaced there within days, and I have even seen within hours) I have come home and rushed around trying to get dinner ready and all the other daily chores done. While I DO "slow down" while my children have something to say, I at times did not stop what I was doing to pay complete attention to them. After reading this poem....I WILL from now on, cause it is absolutly RIGHT..they ARE the WISEST investment. Thank you again for sharing this.
• United States
21 Jan 07
Wow, after the day I had with my little ones today, I really needed to read that. The weather is bad so no playing outside, they were crabby, I was crabby... It was a bad scene all around. I'll definitely keep this in mind the next time I find my patience ebbing.
@Muslimah (811)
• United States
21 Jan 07
I love this poem its nice. It makes me feel bad though because of all the times i knocked into my little sisters and told them to get out of the way. This is a good reminder. Thanks for posting it.
1 person likes this
• United States
21 Jan 07
I must say that brought tears to my eyes. And it is definately a true thought. We tend to take what is close to us for granted. We dont realize how much it hurts them. I try so hard, but its not always easy. But really..it did touch my heart.
1 person likes this
• United States
21 Jan 07
my mom actually gave me that a few weeks ago i myself sometimes have acted that way and it puzzels me y we treat strangers with courtesy and not our own family but yes my family is very important to me has and always will be
1 person likes this
• India
21 Jan 07
Pretty good topic indeed.. It's a fact for me that I spend more time in work like 8-10 Hours and then when I got home.. I just eat my dinner and take a sleep afterwards. And most of the time I spend my night after work with friends. We go to party and roam around the city. It was just last year when I realize the value of family and the friends whom I thought would be there was all gone. I've gone to a lot of very complicated problem that only my family was there to back me up. I felt so guilty that after treating our house like a dormitory or like a boarding school they stand still for me. So now I make it a point that everyday I spend a time with my family watching movies like that and have a little chat with them. Giving our 15-30 Minutes a day... spending it with our family isn't much that cost... but the outcome of which is so precious that our family will appreciate it for a lifetime...
1 person likes this