Re: How do the poor afford children?
Posted by:
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Date: March 04, 2018 10:13AM
I DO get it.
I went bonkers when I had tiny ones. I worked part-time and used the extra babysitting time for errands. No, I was not clearing a fortune. However, I could get twice as much done in half the amount of time, I paved the way for future employment, I stayed current in my field, I made a lot of connections, etc.
It still took a toll on my family, but we managed to hold it together.
I actually found that there were more demands on my time as the children got older. Their lives and needs became more complex as the years rolled along. The pre-school years were easy compared to the later years. Yes, it was lots of bottles and temper tantrums and diapers and puking and crying. I really needed to take breaks for myself.
Running a household really is the most important job in the world. It sounds old-fashioned, but it really is true, looking back on it. Home is the bedrock of society. Home is where children learn to care about people, take care of themselves, and learn what is important in life. There are thousands of details to attend to at home. Records, appointments, planning, problems that come up, etc. Somebody has to hold it all together. It's a big job. It really is.
Perhaps some of the societal problems we are having are due to the frantic pace we are all running at. I work at a hospital. People literally dump their "loved ones" off for surgery and we have to beg them to come back and take them home. Seriously. It is sad. They leave them there all damn day for something that takes an hour. They can't be bothered.
I don't know what the answers are. It is just important to strike a balance.
For some, that could mean throttling back on expenses, simplifying their lifestyle, lowering their expectations, etc. in order to have more time for the family.
There is not an easy answer to this.