SEC17 WK:#3: large and small families, likes and dislikes

Another thought-provoking topic by Steem Kids & Parents brought me here to express my views. I request my friends @josepha, @suboohi, and @jyoti-thelight to share their views.

  
ᴵᵐᵃᵍᵉ ᵐʸ ᵃˡᵇᵘᵐ

I belong to the era when more than 4-5 children in a family were common, and people believed that when a child is born, they bring their resources with them or God sent them here with their destiny. So there was no role for parents to decide about family planning, but they trusted in "more, the merrier." My wife is third among her 10 siblings, and I am the eldest of my four siblings.

But having said that, if you ask for my point at the macrosocial and national level, every couple should have only one or at the most two children. If a family increases the population without keeping the socio-economic angle in mind, the resources will be distributed among more people, and the share of resources per person will decrease.

ᴵᵐᵃᵍᵉ ᵐʸ ᵃˡᵇᵘᵐ

More people in a family means hunger and more unemployment so bigger families will face problems like poverty, poor health, diseases, unemployment, hunger, etc.

For instance, my country, India, which was once abundant in natural resources, is today becoming poorer in natural resources due to its population. We all know the country, with more consumers, eats up its natural resources, and as a result, the natural resources will be exhausted at a rapid rate despite the best efforts of our government.

For example, if your income is 20,000 Steem per month and you set aside 5,000 Steem for your child's education and health, imagine that if you have more than one child, then this 5,000 Steem will have to be divided according to the number of children. If you have three children, you will be able to save only around 1600 Steam for the education and health of each child, and with such a small amount, you cannot provide good health and school to any of your three children.

ᴵᵐᵃᵍᵉ ᵐʸ ᵃˡᵇᵘᵐ

On the other hand, in a small family, children do not get any guidance from elders, nor are they able to discuss inappropriate things that happen to them, which increases their chances of deviating from their right path. Earlier, families used to deal with many problems easily in the presence of relatives, but now one has to struggle alone, and due to inexperience, they have to suffer in different ways.

Most couples are self-dependent, so they feel everyone can live their life in their own way. They feel that to raise a family properly and increase the population, one child is enough. I agree with them, as proper upbringing, good education, etc. have become very expensive. Most parents cannot afford to have more children due to a lack of time and a willingness to sacrifice their freedom, so they believe that one child is enough.

One more important thing, if the mother is also employed, which in most cases they are, having a child means resigning from her job or a layoff for at least three years. After that, there are two aspects. Either both parents go to work or the child is deprived of all their love and is raised in the hands of a nanny or daycare. For a small child, parental care and affection are very important.

Nowadays, the young generation is facing this problem seriously, and in such a situation, it is very helpful to have one or two children, or better yet, to have only one child.

ᴵᵐᵃᵍᵉ ᵐʸ ᵃˡᵇᵘᵐ

Today's youth have a party culture, so they do not like too many children. Working girls do not want to pay much attention to their homes; they want to live their lives separately. So most parents, otherwise, do not want to take on the responsibility of larger families.

Then there is a job-related problem too, as people are migrating from one place to another, hopping jobs, etc., for a better source of income; hence, families are not taking a chance and becoming smaller. The second reason is that our concept of a joint family is now changing. After marriage, the newlyweds do not like to live with their parents for long. There is a lot of difference between the rituals of earlier and the rituals of now.

Although a small family is the best, a big family has many benefits. In a big family, the burden of work does not fall on the individual. The work is done jointly. Even if the income of the family members is low, their credibility in society remains because people look at their income together.

There is no danger of anti-social elements. People know that there are always two or three people living at home. Small children are well looked after. The entire responsibility does not remain with the parents. A crisis is easily faced. A lonely man is always nervous.

A joint family offers so much unity and togetherness that they feel very safe. There are many stories in which, with the help of each other, they come out of even the biggest problems.

As far as my views on this topic go, I consider keeping the population of India in mind, we should have one or two children at the individual family level, which enables the parents to pay proper attention to them. We can take better care of their education, health, and mental development in a smooth and organized way.

ᴵᵐᵃᵍᵉ ᵐʸ ᵃˡᵇᵘᵐ

Just imagine that if you had only one child, you wouldn't have to divide your time and resources and would be able to educate your only child in the best schools. This is just one aspect. Only one child is also better because, as a parent, you will be able to spend more time on that one child and your time will not be divided.

Therefore, as a conscious and dedicated citizen of the nation as well as a responsible parent, I am satisfied that we have only one child. I feel that by having fewer children, we contribute to the multidimensional upliftment of the nation by providing them with excellent education, values, and health.

I feel a small family is an advantage in that we can raise our children well and also provide them with a higher education.