Falling Skies 1
Part 1 of 2
Teacher of the Year
Today I am editing a story about the Teacher of the Year in my state. As the interview turns to the opportunities he has now as a state teacher of the year to travel and discuss and be involved in a larger discussion about issues in education I see another view point on how society works and how we take the basic underpinnings of society for granted to the point we may not see the connections between the issues that arise in school, or in other areas of society and the cost this destruction of these underpinnings really inflicts.
The Basic Building Block of Society
What is the primary building block of society? Think about that for a moment… it isn’t the roads and communication system. It isn’t our defense department, or the value of the currency. It isn’t even the political system. It isn’t religion. It’s more basic than that. The destruction of that building block shows up in poverty, homelessness, disease, terrorism, gangs and gang violence, and poor academic results in school, and general chaos in society. The building block of every great civilization is families.
Out Of Step
People today think it is smart to attack that 1950’s family as out of date and no longer valuable, but it was that family that helped America become the world dominant force for the next 50 years. I’m not arguing good or bad with what we have done with that power and influence, but I am saying it was that 1950’s family that created it. I am not saying that the ‘50’s family was ever perfect, but there was a time in my life time when it was believed to be worth fighting for and defending as a social structure. Now we are told to believe whatever we think it is… that supporting the traditional family is no longer “smart”… and that pains me to say because I believe in education, and in progression… but at the end of the day our progress is built upon some foundation, and for the strongest times in our countries history, a major player has been the family.
Number One Goal
My father came back from WW2 having seen the horrid inhumanity man could do to man. Forget the fact that cities where bombed into rubble, and that tens of millions where killed and more injured and maimed for life. His number one goal in his life was to have a family, to enjoy his family and provide for his family. Was he concerned about his personal fulfillment? That he could reach his God-given potential in whatever talents he had been given? Was he concerned that he was “happy” every minute of the day? I never once heard him talk that way. He mentioned much later in life that he thought he would have liked being a teacher… but he turned down the opportunity to go to college because he felt he had spent too much time away with the war and needed to get to work to support his family. He did use the GI bill to get technical training so he could get a job. He and my mother’s fulfillment came from raising their family. Their joy came from watching their family grow up. His satisfaction came from supporting his family, and his fulfillment came from sharing his life with the love of his life.
Perfection Never Was
As much as I point to the 1950’s family, I don’t assume it was perfect… in fact with what we know about how war effects solders, it’s amazing we did as well… and those effects could also have helped bring us where we are. So let’s look at what the function of a family unit is.
Preservation of our species
Providing Structure and protection
Imprinting love, social roles, sense of belonging.
Preparing children to live productive lives… understanding service, and relationships.
In my next post, I'll look at each of these functions.