Raising Children is Not a Default Chore

Posted in children, parenting

  Raising children is not a default chore for women who were unsuccessful in the world of power and wealth

I am about to tell you something which goes against what your education has taught you to think and do. Since preschool, adults have pushed you to excel, to rise above your peers. My generation has groomed you for success, to get into the best universities and snatch the most prized careers. Well, it is nice to have confidence, to fulfil your dreams and have a sense of satisfaction in your chosen field of work but that will not make you happy.

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Just take a look at the generation that has gone before you. The midlife crisis is a testament to the failure of a life focused on career advancement to the exclusion of family. Men and women bemoan the fact that they did not have time for nurturing and loving their spouse or children. All too often family life crumbles to ashes, sacrificed on the altar of success. As for childcare, society relegates it to women who are often treated as second class citizens.

I want to yell out as loudly as I can, “raising children is definitely not a default chore for women who were not successful in the world of business, power and wealth.” Who raises our children is important because exactly how you, the next generation, raise your children will directly influence the kind of society they in turn create.

Do you want to live in a world focused only on the ruthless accumulation of wealth? Will you consciously create a race of humans who are shallow, cold and cynical about relationships, family and love?  Do you want children who are more comfortable texting, you, their parents, than speaking with you face to face in a warm, loving way?

Family is crucial; it is the foundation of society. Now I see my own adult children beginning their young families and it touches my heart to know how much they value family as well.  Just after his daughter’s birth, my son turned to his dad and said,

”Dad, this is the best thing that I have ever done in my life.”

And, a year later, as his little daughter lay sleeping on his chest, my son said, ”Now I know why you and Dad had so many kids.”

Published by melanie jean juneau

Melanie Jean Juneau serves as the Editor in Chief of Catholic Stand. She is a mother of nine children who has edited her kid's university term papers for over a decade. She blogs at joy of nine9 and mother of nine9. Her writing is humorous and heart warming; thoughtful and thought-provoking. Part of her call and her witness is to write the truth about children, family, marriage and the sacredness of life. Melanie is the administrator of ACWB, a columnist at CatholicLane, CatholicStand, Catholic365 , CAPC, author of Echoes of the Divine and Oopsy Daisy, and coauthor of Love Rebel: Reclaiming Motherhood.

10 thoughts on “Raising Children is Not a Default Chore”

  3. When I was a young mother, I heard an older woman talk about the seasons of life. We do different things at different seasons. I raised my kids at home. Then went back to school when they were teenagers, and started working when they were in high school. I knew that I could not be satisfied with just being a “housewife” when they were out of the house. Plus the job helped put them through college. And my college study helped set an example for theirs at a critical time (just before/during high school). Now they are grown in the process of starting their own careers and leaving home.

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  4. I agree with you. It is also true that having a career is not what women do who are too selfish/ bitter to have children. I have started several businesses and am currently CEO of a gaming company and president of a group of technology companies. I also have four children and two grandchildren. I had my second and third child while completing a PhD. One of the professors (a woman, oddly enough) said, “You have 3 children under age 5, that must be a lot of work!” I answered that yes, it is. She then said, “How awful for you!” I told her it wasn’t awful in the least. In fact, it was very much the same as getting a PhD, hard but worth it.

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