Parenting, a skill hard learned for some, an easy task forothers can be challenging to anybody during some point ofyour childrenâ??s lives. Raising a child is actuallyone of the most challenging tasks there is and additionallyincludes a 24 hour job. So how can you keep up with yourchildren and ever changing theories about parenting? Hereare four helpful ways to improve your own parenting skillsand to stay ahead of the game.

The mosthelpful way to boost your parenting skills is by beingconfident. One nice saying states, â??Confidentparents raise confident kidsâ??. Believe in yourself,believe in your parenting skills and you will be able toconquer all coming problems. No parent is perfect and noparent needs to be perfect. But one thing all good parentshave in common is that they believe that they are goodparents. They are confident in the choices they make andwhen you are confident it is easy to handle situations andbounce back from any set backs. If you are unsure of how toreact when your toddler throws a tamper tantrum or how totell your teenager a â??noâ??, then you areessentially in trouble. If they know how to manipulate you,they will. Confident parents know when to say no and alsoknow to stand by their word.

Of course,being confident does not come by itself and thereforeanother helpful tip on your way to being a confident parentis the power of positive thinking. Positive thinking can becreated by for example making up a list of all yourparenting abilities and assets. Once you have that list,there is one important thing for you to realize. You are atleast ten percent better than that list states. Stronglybelieve that you are ten percent or even more than tenpercent better than the list. Human nature generally stopspeople from giving out credit to themselves when they shouldand therefore they underestimate and understate theirabilities.

Even then you might wantmore help, being confident is generally based on someknowledge and with anything else in your life, you have tolearn and practice being a parent. One great way to boostyour parenting skills is by doing research about the topicyou are trying to improve yourself in. There are so manyhelpful resources for parents. The Internet for example,offers literally thousands of parenting pages, communitiesand even guides. Log into one of these online communitiesand start a chat with experts and other parents in similarsituations. Your local library offers a great variety ofparenting books on any subject and should it not be on theirshelf, I am sure they can order it for you through theirnetwork. In many cities there are parenting classes, momgroups and playgroups that support you and can help withmany questions you have. These parenting centers often offerclasses that address parentsâ?? major concerns. If youare not quite aware of any of these public services, askyour library or pediatrician, they often have lists of yourcommunities parenting resources readily available foryou.

Sometimes it is even easier toboost your parenting skills. Just try to take it calm andrelaxed. Do not overreact in stressful situations with yourchildren. On those rare occasions where you are close tobursting because you had enough for today or because yourchild is especially defiant, try to take it easy. Sometimesignoring the situation or just taking it with a calm andstrict attitude might solve the whole problem. Your childrenknow how to push your buttons and sometimes that is justwhat they are planning to do. They want to see how far theycan go before you explode. Be a good, calm and confidentparent.

Children and teens will often shrug their shoulders and giveone-word answers when you ask them what is bothering them.It may be obvious to you that something is wrong, but yourchild may not know how to express it.

The strategy you use to get achild to open up will differ slightly with a younger childthan with a teen. With children-especially children agesfour to ten-will usually not mind if you are a little bitâ??nosyâ??.

They will feelless violated than would a teen if you try to ask them anumber of questions to get them to open up. However, if youchoose your questions carefully, this caring persistence canalso help a teen open up as well.

Part of dealing with a child at anyage is how you talk to that child. More importantly, howyou listen to that child or teen is what is crucial. If youhave established a report of non-judgmental listening, yourchild will be more willing to open up to you regardless ofage.

Also, if your child knows thatyou are giving him or her the choice to share that childwill feel respected. Since the child feels respected inthis case, chances are he or she will be willing to tell youwhat is going on inside.

If a child isreluctant to open up even after you try to show that youcare, give the child time. Perhaps an hour or two later thechild or teen will surprise you by coming to you. This isvery important to remember, especially during the teenyears.

If you respect yourchildâ??s space, that child will trust you more. Thereverse is true as well.

If you try tocoerce your child with threats your child could end uplosing respect for you completely. Eventually, they willhide everything from you-including any future sexualencounters, confrontation with drugs, or feelings ofrejection.

If you have made mistakeswith your child but you want to do better, the first step isto forgive yourself. Also, you will want to apologize toyour child as well, and make an effort to turn thingsaround.

The earlier that youestablished trust and respect between you and your childrenthe better off you will be later on in life. However, it isnever too late for you to establish a healthier relationshipwith them.

Some families have beenable to reach their children by way of mediation andcounseling. In the process they may even be able to learnmore about their children, in the event that behaviorproblems are surfacing.

If you arehaving difficulty with your child, there is help available.Sometimes it may even be necessary for your child or teen totake a prescription medication for any number of reasons-tocombat depressive disorders, ADD, or other disability.

Furthermore, receiving professionalhelp will help provide additional tools to tackle unresolvedissues. For instance, maybe your family has never dealtopenly with the death of a close relative, or maybe yourfamily is suffering the effects of marital problems anddivorce.

Whatever the case may be, itis recommended that you work on establishing open and honestcommunication with your children. The most important thingyou can do for them is assure them you love them and alwaystry to remain as non-judgmental to them as possible.

Furthermore, if you and your mate arein the midst of divorce, you will want to assure yourchildren is it not their fault. It may take time for them tofully understand the reasons why things cannot stay thesame, but at least you can give them the piece of mind theyare not to blame.

Responsibility is always something that comes with a price.Part of the problem with a lot of situations and childrentoday is that they simply don't have the responsibility thatthey need to make good decisions and to do well in the worldaround them. There are many reasons for this, and there aremany things that a parent can do in order to help theirchildren learn more responsibility in the long run.

First of all, the best way to teach achild responsibility is to model it. It is a proven factthat a child will respond best to what he sees around him.This means that as a child watches the way that you run yourlife and the things that you say and do to others, this iswhat they are going to learn. Therefore, if you are notresponsible, and if you do things that you might not thinkare the best ways to do things, you will see that your childwill model these behaviors as well. There are many timeswhen you might find yourself faced with this type of choiceâ?" and you should know that the best way for youto get children to be responsible is to show them what itmeans to be responsible.

The other waythat you can teach your children to be responsible is tostart small. Many times when a parent feels that their childis ready for responsibilities, they shove many onto them atonce. This creates a situation where a child has absolutelyno idea of how to proceed with their responsibilities, andthey might feel as if they have been totally overlooked. Ifyou want to make your child responsible and teach them howto be so, you have to start out in ways that they canunderstand. Start with small projects and small tasks, andthen work your way to the larger things. This is the bestway that you can help your child be just as responsible asyou need them to be. You cannot teach a child to beresponsible by giving them so many tasks that they cannotsee a way to be successful.

Therefore,you have to start small. Give a child one thing to do, andmake sure that they do it. If, for some reason, they do notdo what you have asked them to do, there should be aconsequence that happens. Doing small projects with smallconsequences is the best way that you can make sure yourchildren learn how to be responsible.

Remember that part of beingresponsible is wanting to take control of things and want tobe the person who is in charge. Often, a small pet such as afish or a rodent is a good way to teach a child to beresponsible because they are fairly easy to care for andthey are something that a parent can deal with if they needto. If your child wants a larger pet like a cat or a dog,you can start small and see how they handle theresponsibility of that smaller pet. If they are able to takecare of the smaller pet, you might find that they are readyfor bigger responsibilities. Remember, a child will be morelikely to show you what they are ready for, and they will bemore likely to help you understand what they can and cannotdo yet. So take your cues from them, know your children, andyou will see that this is the best way for them to becomeresponsible.

It can be tricky to know how much effort you should put intotrying to be involved in various aspects of yourteenâ??s life. This is true, even when trying todetermine how to help them with their homework.

The level of involvement you have inyour teenâ??s life depends upon the individualdevelopment of that child. Some teens need little help andstill receive outstanding grades in school, while othersstruggle just to pass their classes.

At the very least you will want toencourage your teen that he or she can accomplish anything.Furthermore, you will want to point out your teens strongpoints and help develop those areas.

You will also want to ask your teen atleast a few times a week how school is going. Also, you maywant to find out if there are any classes they arestruggling in. However, try not to be too hard on them ifthey are diligent, yet not very strong in a particular areasuch as math, reading, spelling, etc.

Staying alert and interested in yourteen can help you address any potential learning problems.For instance, if your teen is doing poorly in most of hisstudies, it could be a result of depression, ADD, orcognitive problem. In most cases, these issues can becorrected with the right help.

If yourchild is not as academically bright as other children,perhaps it is because they were meant for a different path.For instance, it has been said that some of the wealthiestpersons in the world have not even made it past the eighthgrade.

Also, recognize that not allchildren have the same learning style. Some students tend todo better in a more controlled and structured environmentwhere they are assigned tasks daily. Other students are moreindependent learners and are more bent towards creativitythan logic.

If your child is not doingwell in the school he or she is enrolled in you may want toconsider other options. Many children who did poorly in atraditional or public educational setting have benefitedfrom a Montessori or similar type educational program.

Other ways you can be involved in yourchildâ??s school studies without hovering is to keepin contact with the childâ??s teachers. You can attendteacherâ??s conferences, and check in once in awhilewith whomever is in charge of providing your child witheducation. This will help keep your child accountable.

However, you also need to be sensitiveto your teenâ??s feelings. A teen can easily getembarrassed if a parent shows up at their school a littletoo often. They may feel â??babiedâ?? as well.Remember to respect your teenâ??s need for space whilemaking an effort to show youcare.

Also, your teen is likely to cometo you for help if you assure him or her that you are thereif need be. Also, you as a parent need not be ashamed if thework is too difficult for you. This is often the case, asstandards of education change from year to year.

If you cannot help your child withhomework, you can at least direct the child to suitabletutoring services. This is just as effective of a way toshow you care as would be helping the child your self.

Besides, your teen will respect youfor your honesty, and will see that you are not afraid tosay, â??I donâ??t know.â?? This is oneconcept that is important in the development ofteenagers-for the adults in their lives to be transparent aswell as to be good examples.

Have you ever heard your child asking if you love them orhow much you love them? This is very common, especially withyounger kids. They always want to know that you love themand they are happy with a hug or a quick peck of the cheek.Older kids may seem stoic and may not ask for youraffection, but did you know they need to know you love themjust the same? Sometimes it is hard to show your childrenhow much you care and love them, but there are ways you cando it.

Many people think that in orderto be a good parent they have to be able to do all sorts ofthings. Perhaps you may think that in order to be a greatmom you need to be able to sew homemade clothing and attendevery school function no matter what. You may think in orderto be a great dad and show you love; you need to coach everysport and play football in the yard with the kids everyevening. In reality, the best way to be a good parent is tomake sure that you love your children and that your childrengrow up knowing that they are loved. In order to do this,there are five things that you can do.

First of all, be sure that you tellyour children that you love them whenever you get thechance. That may seem simple enough, but you might besurprised to learn that many adults have problems sayingthose simple words to their children. Guess what? Doingthings for your child is great, but they need to hear thosewords, too. You want to be sure that you are able to do thisbecause many times a child is not going to just know thingswithout being told. Be sure that you are telling yourchildren that you love them, and write it down to themwhenever you can. Drop them a note in their lunchbox, ortext your teen. Reading those words from mom and dad willgive your child a big boost.

Listeningto your children is the second way to show them that youlove them. Pay attention to them, answer their questions,and really look at them when they are talking to you. Theseare all things that you have to do; because you want to besure that you are able to show your children that they areimportant. Show them that you are interested in what theyhave to say and take an active role in conversation. You maynot be interested in the latest Spongebob episode, but itmight be a big deal to your five-year-old son, so listen towhat he has to say and take notice! Showing them that theyare important is one of the best ways that you have to showthem that you love them.

Thirdly, dothings together with your children. Often if you are doingthings together with your children, you have no idea howmuch this means to them. It does not have to be bigexpensive things, but every little thing you do will make ahuge impact. Go get an ice cream after school, or play agame of checkers. It adds up big to your child. It might bethat they simply know that you love them because you give upyour free time in order to spend it with them. This is oneof the best ways that you have to show your children thatyou love them.

Fourth, to show yourchildren that you love them, get interested in the thingsthat they are interested in. If they enjoy a sport or havesomething that they like to do, the more that you can getinterested in this thing, the more that they will know thatyou love them. This is a great way to bond with yourchildren, and it is also a great way to remind them that youdo love them and that you are going to be there for them, nomatter what. You love your child, so make sure they know byshowing your love each and every day in little ways.

It is only natural to feel as though you have more to dealwith than you can handle. This is often the case when nomatter what tactics you use your child just wonâ??tseem to listen.

The type of disciplineyou use on a child depends upon the age and personality ofthat child. Some children will respond better to gentle-nessand positive reinforcement while other children will be moreapt to respect you when you apply the threat of negativeconsequences.

No matter whatdiscipline style you use; try to remember the followingtips:

It is better not to try todiscipline your child while you are overly-stressed out,irritable, or feeling angry. You are more likely to say ordo the wrong thing if you do not take time to cool down andassess the situation before acting.

This may be hard to do when asituation warrants your immediate attention, but it can helpyou from making mistakes you will regret. At the very least,taking a few deep breaths and/or counting to ten will helpyou calm down enough to thinkrationally.

Make sure you withholdconsequences from a misbehaving child, but not your love.For instance, you may restrict your child from using thephone, watching television, or playing video games.

However, it is not wise to send thechild to bed without supper, refuse to hug the child, ortell the child you do not love him or her. Doing so willsend the child that your love is conditional, which candamage the child.

If you make amistake in trying to correct your child own up to it as soonas possible. For instance, perhaps you had made the mistakeof accusing a child of a wrong the child did not commit.

This is an honest mistake, asyou may or may not have been misinformed regarding aparticular situation. Nevertheless, it would be great of youto tell your child you are sorry you doubted him/her. Itdoing so, you will teach your child about another aspect oflove-forgiveness.

Aside from the tipsmentioned above, you may have other things to consider. Forinstance, perhaps you find yourself becoming moreshort-tempered than usually lately. If so, it could be forany number of reasons.

One of the mostcommon reasons a parent is overly irritable or even angry attimes is he or she is overworked. If this is the case, youmay need to find ways to cut back on your responsibilities. Also, you may just need more of a break from your child oncein awhile.

It is perfectlyâ??normalâ?? to need time away from your child.Perhaps you need to remember what it is to have fun withother adults, and it may be time to hire a qualified sitterand plan an evening out.

Reducing thestress in your life will help you become more effective indisciplining your child. If this helps the situation, thenyou will be able to strengthen the relationship between youand your children. Furthermore, you will be more likely togain their respect.

In the event youare at wits end and have tried everything to get your childto behave and have not succeeded, further intervention maybe necessary. For example, many parents have brought theirchild to see a therapist and have found out that the childwas born with some time of disability or mental impairment.

One of the most common behavioraldisorders is Attention Deficit Disorder (ADD). This is onethat can be corrected with alternative discipline measuresand/or medication.

Divorce is an ugly topic in any situation and changes muchin your and your familyâ??s life. But it is evenharder to deal and cope with a divorce when children areinvolved.

Divorce rips apart familiesall over the United States and sometimes divorces especiallywhen children are involved end up in court for custodyrights. So what is the best way to cope with a divorce whenyou are a busy parent? Your child will be there when you gothrough the divorce and even if it does not end up in courtfor custody rights, divorce will affect you and your childdramatically.

Before thinking ofyourself, as a parent, you will most likely think of yourchildren. How will they deal with the divorce? Depending ontheir age, how will you explain to them what is happeningand why mommy and daddy are not going to be living togetheranymore? Often timeâ??s it is best to shield childrenas much as possible from the whole situation. The less theyare involved in the process of the divorce the easier theycan cope with it. Children that are dragged into divorce andcourt issues often struggle later on in life. They saw theirparents fight in and out of court. They realized that theywere one of the factors that their parents fought about andcan in their young lives not handle such a pressure andweight on their littleshoulders.

Besides the fact to shieldthem from as much as possible, it is also important to bethere for your children. This is a time when they especiallyneed love, nurturing and support. They will need you andyour love, something that might be hard for you. Goingthrough the divorce is very hard on every family member, butmostly for the parents itself. However you are trying tocope with the divorce, it is one of the most importantthings to be there for your children. This will build thesupport for the later family live when the divorceproceedings are over.

But helping yourchildren is not the only thing you have to do. Besides beingthe busy parent, you need to be able to cope with divorce.You might be sad or angry or both. During this difficulttime it is important that you help yourself. Despite thefact that you are a parent try to pamper yourself, makeyourself happy. This is a stressful time– relax. If youhave family close, let them help you with your children.This does not mean that you neglect them, you will stillgive them all the love and support they need, but you willalso need to take time for yourself to process, to cope andto start new. Sometimes, when we are to busy being parents,going to work and getting through the day we forget to takecare of ourselves, we forget that we have needs andfeelings. Some peace and quiet or a talk to a close friendwithout having to worry about the children can sometimeshelp immensely.

Maybe you needprofessional help. Do not wait till it is too late, admitthat you might need the help and do the first step of makingan appointment. If you get depressed or too stressed, youmight risk what is left of your family. The children mightget estranged or withdrawn and all because you were to busybeing a parent and did not acknowledge that you had to copewith the divorce too. As parents we are often times capableof helping our children before we help ourselves, but thinkof it this way, when the oxygen masks in the airplane comeout in an emergency you need to put them on yourself first,because if you pass out you cannot help your children.Therefore, take your feelings serious and cope with them,maybe at the same time or before you help your children.

Parenting is not an easy job even if it might come to younaturally, or your kids are just little lambs. Parenting isa skill that we have to learn and includes many challengeswe will have to face along the way. Therefore it is justnormal that every so often we get the parenting guilties.What we mean by this is that parents can feel guilty formany things, such as not taking them to certain activities,having to little time for the children and especially whenwe have to say â??noâ??.

If you are a busy parent, you mightoften be rushing around. You are running one errand afteranother in between kidsâ?? activities such as soccerpractice, ballet classes and birthday parties. Since you arealways on the run, you spent very little time with yourchildren. Parent/family time often is down to the bareminimum and even though we are running to get our kids totheir activities, we feel more than guilty. There is barelytime to teach them things that are dear to you, there is notime for family dinners and there is even less time forcommunication. So what to do about the guilt? There areactually a few things you can do.

First of all, if you work long hoursto support the family, but you really do not have anotherchoice, do not feel guilty, cherish the time that you haveto spend with your family and children. The money isnecessary to feed and support your familyâ??s lifestyle and activities and therefore you should never feelguilty about working. Of course there is a fine line betweenworking necessary hours and working too much. Sometimes wedo not know when we cross that line. Therefore evaluate yourworking hours. If it is to keep your job or to reach apromotion, do not feel guilty. Treasure and cherish the timeyou have instead of feeling guilty about what you do nothave.

Some parents feel guilty whenthey say â??noâ?? to their children. Sayingâ??noâ?? to a child that begs or throws atantrum can be hard. In a childâ??s world a no canfeel like the end of the world and therefore they shed tearslike it is the end of the world. For some parents it is oneof the hardest things to see their children cry. A sad childcan make parents say yes faster than anything else in theworld. Do not feel guilty to say â??noâ??, whenyou think it is something they do not need, should not do orplain is something bad for them. Say no firmly and standyour ground. Push guilt aside through a firm believe in yourdecision. You are the parent and you know best what is goodfor your child. Your child might not see it that way, buttherefore you are the adult. Another way you do not have tofeel guilty about using the word â??Noâ?? isusing it sparingly. It will loose its effect if it is usedtoo often. Children need a certain freedom, freedom ofchoice, freedom to fail and learn and the freedom of doingwhat they want as long as it cannot seriously hurt them.Instead of saying, â??no, do not do that, you will gethurtâ?? use sentences such as â??Be careful whenyou do this, you could get hurtâ??, then let themdecide on their own what they want to do. For youngerchildren it often helps to distract them, give themsomething else to do and they dreaded â??noâ??does not have to cross your lips. â??Noâ??should be reserved for situations when danger or seriousmishaps can harm your child.

Lastly, ifyou cannot afford to have your children participate incertain activities, do not feel guilty. A child does notneed to do everything other children do, it does not need toown every toy there is on the big toy market. Give them whatthey need and what you can afford, but never feel guilty fornot being able to, rather feel proud about what you can givethem.

Parenting responsibilities are a broad variety of ways toraise and teach your children. These responsibilities canmean fun events or disciplining your children. In any familywith mother and father present most of the after school andweekend time, parents need to share the responsibility. In agood family structure everybody should help raising thechildren, parents, grandparents, older brothers and sistersand even extended family.

Whether youare parents of a brand-new wonderful newborn or of olderchildren, generally in many households parenting should be ashared activity. But in some households the responsibilityrests on the shoulders of one person only, even though it isnot a single parent household. For those of you who feellike they are the sole â??children raising andparenting authorityâ?? in your house, here are someimportant ways to share parentingresponsibilities.

One of the firststeps in sharing parenting responsibilities is tocommunicate to your partner that you need him or her topitch in. Sharing parenting responsibilities does not justmean things related to the children, it includes anythingthat is connected to the family. Chores, errands, shopping,changing diapers, helping with the homework of children,disciplining, teaching, having fun outdoor activities orhaving a family dinner are parenting responsibilities thatneed to be shared. Raising children essentially means a lotof work and if you are a family you need to share this work.So do not hesitate to tell your partner that you need help.

Make sure that you tell your partnerproperly what is expected from him. If your partner did notpitch in before, he or she might not know what it means andwhat has to be done. Set clear expectations and if possibleeven make a list. Especially for new parents it might behelpful to have a list of shared parenting responsibilities.However you want to divide the work and the fun, dividingmeans conquering.

It is also importantto discuss your opinions about parenting. Parenting stylesand opinions differ greatly. Many of us have preformedopinions on how to raise children and they are often farapart, even if we grew up as next-door neighbors and went tothe same schools. For new parents this starts as early asdeciding on a name, circumcision on a boy or that oftendiscussed pacifier. When children get older your opinionsmight differ greatly on the topic of discipline. Wheneveryou have a clash of opinions, keep calm and communicate.Discuss your options and find a compromise if possible.Disagreeing in front of the children especially aboutdiscipline has never a good effect on children and mightjust do the opposite of what you wanted to achieve. Whendisciplining children, make sure you agree on the solutionand also that you stick to it.

Anothervery important part in sharing parenting responsibilities isto make time for you as a couple. You need some time toshare with your spouse. A family can only work if you andyour partner have time for each other. Time to love, time totalk and time to reflect on you and your life as a coupleand family is necessary to accomplish good parenting.

But there is one thing you shouldnever forget. If one of you is a stay-at-home parent, andthe other one makes money for the family, parentingresponsibilities cannot be shared evenly. They still need tobe shared, but in an appropriate way. This appropriate waygenerally will have more fun time to spent with the childrenfor the partner that works all day to feed the family, whilethere will be more disciplining responsibilities throughoutthe day for the stay-at-home parent. Although it is stillimportant that you agree on your parenting methods or findcompromises to agree on.

While there are some families that have few or no traditionsto speak of, this is not necessarily a good thing. Thereare a number of advantages to creating a family in whichtraditions are important and have value. Especially whenfamilies are busy, it is very important for the family tohave some traditions that they keep in their lives, if onlyto help keep the family centered and focused on somethingthat should be important to them all â?" theirown collective being.

Families that areunable or unwilling to share traditions lose out on a numberof different things, but the most important being unity. Without common things to bond them together (ieâ?" traditions), families are less likely to forma united front. They may feel that they have nothing incommon or nothing to do with each other, save the fact thatbiologically they were all brought together. Byestablishing some traditions, be they daily or yearly ones,families can help to bind themselves together to each otherin a way that is not only habit forming, but also mostlikely important and significant to the family and theindividual members.

Routines are oftenordinary, but traditions are more likely more special andmeaningful. It is important not to confuse the two. Especially when family members may not be around due to busylives and schedules, it is important to have a sense oftradition so that the family can gather and be together fora certain event or period of time in a way that helps toremind the family of who they are and where they come from,even when they may not be reminded of that on a regularbasis. Not only these, but traditions often help familymembers to feel stable or secure. This is especiallyimportant in families where the members may not always feelso protected by the other members. Traditions can help toignite that feeling of safety and security, and it can becarried through even when the family members are nottogether through reminders of the established traditions. Traditions also help to ensure that there is no entropy overtime. In many cases, families that are new are verycommitted to each other. However, over time, as theindividuals become busy and have less time together, thefamily will more or less burn out or run out of energy. Traditions help even the busiest of families to stay full ofenergy and remain committed to each other. While in manycases the effects of these traditions cannot be seenimmediately, they are nonetheless very important, and insome cases, vital to the well being and sustenance of thefamily members.

Many times,traditions will only take place once in a while and whilethe event itself may seem fun, some busy individuals willnot be able to see their true power and effect of thetraditions on the family as a whole. In cases like these,it is important to slow down just a bit and remember wherethe individual came from and who they are linked to. Again,traditions can help with this feeling of unity and beingconnected to others. Loneliness is one of the saddestfeelings in the world, but through families and traditions,it can help to be fought off by many individuals that wouldotherwise succumb to it. It is important to remember thattraditions do not need to be long and drawn out. Rather,they simply need to be established so that the family andthe individual members come to recognize it and realize itsimportance â?" even when lives get busy.