In the U.S., only 46% of teens live with their mother and father, an all-time low. With some groups it’s as low as 17%. It’s been said that the surest recipe for poverty is being a single mother (the toughest job).
Do you think this will have an effect on the lives of the kids when they grow up? Do you think they will do the same thing?
Larry,
Thanks for sharing this today. It hits too close to home. Most statistics show the broken home is fathers who abandon the mother and children. Rare is the opposite. I have a close friend who’s very aggressive/abusive wife left with the children and never returned. His vigilant efforts to make a resolve fell on deaf ears. This is greatly impacting the children’s social economic situation. I believe we become what we learn from our environment which puts these teens at risk of repeating the behaviors of their parents or mother. While I believe a new pattern of behavior can be formed with great effort, most don’t pursue that because of the effort it requires. I think these learned behaviors is why the statistics you shared continue downward. Sad! Family is important. I believe there is great importance in having a father and mother in a home to nurture, strengthen, teach and guide these teenagers. It really takes two to successfully do it. My heart goes out to those mothers who’s challenge and burden it is to raise the children alone.
In “most” cases your a single mother for one of two reasons your a bad choice or you made a bad choice. Remember I said in “most” cases not all.
I can personally relate to this story! I was raised by a prescription drug addicted mom alone from age 5 until she died when I was 14-15 & soon after I found myself homeless for a short time. I can look back at my life and the influencers were there! There were men who stepped out of their lives at different times and helped me to hope for more and they helped me accomplish some things to give me confidence in my abilities early on. There were men who didn’t stay long, some were drunks who taught me how to fight & defend my mom because they were abusers, some were good men & they showed me that good men don’t stay with unpredictable & unstable women. I received some wisdom from all of them along the way! The best help I ever received was from those who were not Involved in our family. Men who gave me part time work washing cars or mowing lawns. There was a guy by the name of Herb Johnson that not only gave me a job but taught me step by step how he liked things done. This guy helped me learn be a detail oriented high quality service minded person. He told me when I started that “you and me will always be friends as long as you don’t ever lie to me or steal from me!” He also held me accountable for high standards. Young men need a roll model today and honestly most of them don’t get even if mom or dad are together in the home. I Believe that by God’s grace and work in my life before & after having a relationship with Christ Jesus, helped me to overcome the statistics listed above! My deepest question in the last few months has been; Who am I helping that is in need of a mentor or friend & will I inspire greatness in them. Who are we influencing toward a different future! Your past does not determine your future!