A peaceful home doesn’t just happen. As parents we can establish habits that support harmony. The ten steps listed below are suggestions for creating a more peaceful family environment!
1) Focus on Patience:
As spouses and parents we must focus on patience with our partners and with our children.
2) Patience through Self-awareness
In the flurry of life, it is easy to overlook our own basic needs. When we try to meet our daily obligations it’s easy to lose sight of the fact that we must be patient with ourselves. Recognizing our own limitations helps us to ease up on ourselves.
3) Attention to Our Personal Needs:
Our mental health and physical needs can affect our level of patience. Self-awareness is essential. We must recognize which situations are stressful. We need to continuously review our priorities,. We need to be aware of when we are hungry, tired, overwhelmed, and find ways to meet our own basic needs. We must constantly renew our energy.
4) Patience with Our Spouse:
Patience requires patience! Patience has a profound impact on our relationship with our spouse. When we work together as a cohesive couple we build a peaceful home environment.
5) Understanding our Spouses Limitations:
A peaceful home allows for personal growth as well as a successful marriage. In order to become more patient, we need to understand and appreciate our partner’s limitations and needs. As a couple we need to help each other develop patience.
6) Awareness of our Speech:
Patience with our spouse requires care with our speech. When a person is angry, words are often spoken that cannot be taken back. Learn to run thoughts through your mind before you speak. This habit allows you to take a moment before saying something that might be hurtful or even destructive.
7) Look with a Good Eye:
Our spouses also have difficult moments. We wouldn’t deliberately do anything to hurt our spouse; therefore we need to trust that our partner wouldn’t deliberately try to hurt us.
8) Don’t take things personally:
We create a peaceful home environment when we remember not to take things personally. As we develop the habit of respecting others while speaking with patience, we model good character traits for our children.
9) Patience with Our Children:
Patience with our children changes with their age and needs. Very young children have needs that often must be met immediately.
10) Knowing the Difference Between Needs and Wants:
As our children grow, many of their ‘needs’ become ‘wants’. As parents we constantly need to weigh priorities and help our children learn to move from immediate gratification to learning to wait. We need to teach them the value of patience.
While maintaining our own peaceful homes we are teaching our children how to someday build a peaceful home of their own.