The Blessings of Women at Home

It is still snowing in many parts of the country. It always reminds me of the days when women  were home, providing a real home life for their families.

In those times you had to be confined together indoors a lot, and the parents of that generation knew how to thrive.  Although we had cars and trucks, it was important to stock up on supplies, because the road would become inaccessible.  A snow plow would come through once in awhile, but you could not be certain when, and then your truck might not start.  Parents would fill their pantries full of supplies so that they could make just about anything to eat. 

Mothers thought it was important to keep children busy in useful things that would develop their imagination and skill.  They invented creative projects  made from the  cartons and the boxes and paper bags that the groceries came in. Sometimes we had extra things such as paints and glitter.  If we had none of those things,  parents of that generation knew how to make substitutes.  There was always a way to make paint and make things sparkle or glisten.  Lacking coloured paper for a project, we took our crayons and made it.  It was interesting to see the variety of things we could make without fancy supplies.

We did go outside in the snow and had a wonderful time.Coming indoors was quite a treat, and many a child can remember their mothers preparing hot chocolate from basic ingredients, and melted cheese sandwiches from home made bread.  Mothers staying at home made quite a difference, for they were in no hurry and didnt mind making things from basic ingredients.

When I have time, I will make a replica of the set of dollhouse furniture that was popular in those days, from empty grocery items, which were painted and glued in a way to make couches and tables and chairs.  Women of that time knew how to make a stage with a curtain, so that children could put on a play with paper bag puppits or puppits made with cardboard attatched to popsicle sticks. 

Winter brought on illness sometimes, and it was then that our mothers shone.  They knew how to make a bed tray with foods and drinks that were not difficult to digest, and provide a pile of things to cut and paste or read, while in bed.  The tray had to be pretty and the food presented in a lovely way on the best dishes. Favorite books and magazines saved from months gone by, were put in a stack beside the bed.  Usually there was a child's page in the womens magazines, and Betsy McCall paper doll had such pretty outfits and pets.  The boys liked the outdoor life magazines and books their father's read. 

 These pleasant, restful activities were essential in recovery from illness.   Some mothers knew how to bathe the child and change the sheets with the little patient still in the bed. When the children were sick, it also gave mothers a chance to sweep the floor and get the kitchen cleaned up.  Children of that time can remember calling their mothers from their sick beds and having them drop whatever they were doing and go to their sides immediately.

Meal times were a highlight of snowed-in winters.  In northern climates it often would stay dark the entire day, so these meals provided dividing lines to distinguish one part of the day from the other. It could get discouraging if the darkness at 8 o'clock in the morning was the same as 5 o'clock in the afternoon, so those meal times kept us cheerful and in touch with what time it was. 

Parents believed that children who were fussy either needed a nap, or more work to do. They would say that if you had time to complain or fight, you had time to work. If children were bored, they also worked. There was always plenty to do and mothers did not feel that they had to do it all. Children helped with laundry and cooking and learned to do these things as soon as they were six years old.  If mothers got sick, a child between the ages of 6 and 12 could manage the home and look after younger children just fine. That could not have been possible if it were not for these mothers at home who took the time to patiently show the children how to clear a table, wipe a surface, sweep a floor, wash and rinse dishes, wash clothes,  cook and keep younger children safe.

This leads me to the more important subjects of women at home. Eventually, even mothers will be home without children, as they grow up and get families of their own. The presence of the woman  is still necessary to give the home a feeling of love and warmth.  As she gets older, she has to think of her health. Staying home, even with no children, brings out the feminine qualities in a woman: softness, sweetness, goodness, lack of hurry or worry.

I do not believe that children can have the proper physical, emotional, social and spiritual nourishment if they are not at home with mothers who are willing to spend the time with them. It is tragic that women today think that making money is more important, and they are depriving their children of these wonderful memories. I do not even think that debt is a good enough reason to abandon your home life and go to work. Your children will know that money is the foremost thing on your mind, and what is that teaching them? 

 What kind of childhood will they talk about to their children?  One of being rushed from one institution to another, or a happy, carefree child hood free from worry and heavy responsibility?  I truly do not believe that God intended for society to raise our children. He appointed parents to do this.  I know a single mother with two children who is at home with her children and giving them the emotional and physical stability they need for their lives.   Debt can be managed, by making arrangements for affordable payments within your ability.  Daycare of any kind is not good for children, as they bring home the manners and habits of those who look after them. It is better for children to relate to their parents than their day care workers. In the end, it will pay dividends. I have often thought that when you send your children to others to be cared for during the most impressionable times of their lives, they will one day turn their backs on you and institutionalize you, because they will not have time for you.

Staying home at first will take some adjustment. You have to be a self starter and an independent worker. You have to learn to live without being regulated  by a boss. You have to develop self control and personal determination. One purpose of having children is to teach parents. Parents learn to how to be parents by training and teaching their own children.  They learn the things that the mothers of old knew, by being cooped up with them on winters days, and having to be resourceful. There is an old saying, "Necessity is the mother of invention."  This means that when you are looking for something to do that will enrich your childs life at home, you might invent something to do that is completely your own idea.  You will be amazed at what is available within the home, to teach and train children's character.