Evening star., 1937-07-19
The Opposite Ends of the Earth Contribute Today
Others in
F a m ly
Parents and Children
Must Cooperate to
Avoid Friction.
BY ANGELO PATRI.

NHEN children get to be Old enough
t to have personal opinions, tastes
and decided preferences, they begin
getting on each others nerves, and,
incidentally and quite thoroughly, on
those of their parents. The COM
plants are loud and continuous until
there is a climax of some sort, after
which there is peace for a limited
time. Children always quarrel"
To be sure they do, but that is no
reason for us to accept that state of
mind as the normal one for the
family. The nervous strain that such
an atmosphere puts upon the father
and mother is too much to bear. The
disturbance among the children costs
too much in energy and it wastes time
that might better be used for more
profitable activities.
The friction is caused usually by
little things, trif1ing in themselves,
but, taken together, just an impos-
slble complication. One child wants
q special chair and makes a scene
NiiCli oiiOliiNl oIlS III ~, "lllSll 1lC
does merely TO assert his rights. One
member of the family wants to hear
the crooner and another demands
operate music at the same hour.
One can't bear the smell of coffee,
while another loves it and wants a cup
OF it at his elbow constantly. One
whistles through his teeth and another
walls to high heaven against such
barbarlsm. So it goes.
Then there are the idiosyncrasies
Of the parents that 50 annoy the
children. Father will lie on the couch
IN the living room in shirt sleeves and
slippers. Suppose somebody comes
IN? Mother insists upon seeing all
letters, knowing everything about
everything. Both of them think that
children ought to stay at home, all the
time, or so it seems, and they insist
upon chaperones. Even 9-year-old son
complains Of his lot. Mother makes
him bathe too often and she turns his
ears inside out every morning, and
sends him back to wash his neck.
Some of this is silly taken by
Itself, but indeed the whole matter
is serious enough to make any father
and mother take heed Of course
there is place where family authority
Is the only way out, but that ought to
be rare occasion. The children
should have been trained from the
70 FOL 70
adjust to each other. After all they
come one by one usually and so
allow us to train them to family CO.
operation.
But at the best the whole family
will have to get together and decide
where personal freedom leaves off and
consideration for others begins. The
radio will have to be shared. One per-
son cannot use it to the exclusion of all
the others. This is matter for
family conference and agreement.
fhis is the only way any of these
family difficulties can be settled for
good and all. Discuss them and
come to some agreement. Outlaw
hard words, selfish attitudes, poor CO.
operation.
Father and mother have to do their
share Of the adjusting. They cannot
be first all the time nor are they to be
the last every time. Father is not to
be overlooked nor is he to be the only
one considered.
And that goes for mother, too. No
body is to be the family sacrifice, nor
the family boss. This is a matter Of
family cooperation.
Mr.. Patri has prepared leaf1et en-
titled, Baby Carriages" in which he
tells parents how to make the carriage
ride a happy, profitable experience.
Send tor 1t, addressing your request |
10 Mr.. Angelo Patri, Child Psychology
Of this paper. Inclose a
self addressed, stamped (s-cent) en-
velope.
Copyright. 1879