Susan Lieberman, a Ph.D. psychologist, once said, “Family traditions counter alienation and confusion. They help us define who we are; they provide something steady, reliable and safe in a confusing world.”
It is true, that families indeed play an important role in the future of a child. Families nurture a child, and mould him or her into who they become in the future. Families are the support and backing of a child, and how they are going to identify and pursue their dreams and largely depend on their family of origin. A child is shaped through beliefs and values that his or her family holds about the world and that are based on family member’s experiences. Without a family, a child would be relinquished of the chance to be guided and nurtured, and their future would be bleak and unclear.
In today’s modern society, a child’s family moreover consists of their mother and father, and perhaps a sibling or two. A child’s parents are the ones supporting the family, leaving for work at first light, and only returning in the late evening. They are too kept up in the hectic working lifestyle, and ultimately are incapable of making time to spend with their children. The children, in turn, are unable to share with someone about their day’s activities, and lack the opportunity to be guided and taught the right values and behavior they should uphold and portray in their lives. This could be highly detrimental to a child, as they are not given a chance to experience a family’s love and warmth, and they will grow cold and distant. To illustrate this point, the child, as he or she grows older, may turn to their friends who may be a bad influence on them, or may turn to substances such as drinking, smoking or takings drugs, so as to fill that void of family in their hearts. Consequently, the child has already been guided away from the bright future they would have if it weren’t for his or her absent family. Their