week four :)

Gender plays a significant role in families, and often it can play multiple roles at once. Every family is different which means every member has to play different roles. Some families take on stereotypical gender roles with the father being the provider, the mother being the nurturer, the brothers being the secondary men in the house, and the sisters being the mom’s helpers. Other families do not even have members to play those roles. There are so many single parent families. Families with lots of children, no children, one child, only boys, or only girls. You name it, there is some family with that structure. 

Gender roles in my personal family have changed over time as my family has evolved. My family is made up of my dad, mom, older brother, me, younger brother, and younger sister. My dad has always worked outside of the home and been our main provider. He was definitely more involved in disciplining us when we were younger. He was also very involved in our sports teams growing up, and he helped us learn the value of hard work. My mom is the sweetest most nurturing person I know, and for most of my life, she stayed at home with us kids. She is the comforter, the conflict resolver, the listener then advice giver, and all around nurturer of our family. She homeschooled me and my three siblings for many years, however, when my youngest sister was around 12 years old, she decided to go back to work. That was a hard adjustment for me and my siblings because we only knew life with mom staying at home. We had to get used to a whole new schedule for her being at work and away from home, which meant more of the at home tasks got distributed throughout the family. My older brother did not take on the “protective older brother” role that is pretty stereotypical, instead he is super smart and stays to himself a lot. I was hands down “mom’s little helper” for as long as I can remember. I have super close relationships with my younger 2 siblings, so I am able to help mom mom with them (and them with my mom). I have wanted to be a stay-at-home mom for as long as I can remember, so I willingly and joyfully accepted most motherhood type tasks to help my mom out. My younger brother completely took on the role of mischievous little brother. He is the funniest person I know, but he also gets himself into trouble quite regularly. He is always testing the limits and toeing the line with my parents and their rules when he can. My sister absolutely fits the “youngest daughter” role, and she knows it. Our genders definitely affected the roles we took on.

I was raised in a family that strongly believes in, supports, and lives by ‘The Family: A Proclamation to the World.’ This proclamation stresses the importance of gender and states that it is eternal. It outlines roles and responsibilities that mothers and fathers should have in their families. Both parents have full responsibility for their family, but as each parent can focus on their designated role, everyone is able to focus and perform to the best of their ability. Although situations and circumstances may not allow, it teaches that the father should be the main provider and the mother should be the main nurturer. I am so grateful for ‘The Family: A Proclamation to the World’ because of the simple yet powerful truths that it teaches about gender and gender roles. I know that what it teaches is true, and it has blessed my family.