How Spending Time together Benefits Family Closeness

(408 Words)
When you spend time with your family, you can increase the closeness of your family. This happens in many ways.
You may feel more connected to the other people in your family
With the generation gap involved in most families, many of the family members feel more distant from each than ever before. They may not even think that they can have a good time together. When you spend time together you are likely to have fun. Choose things to do that are enjoyable such as a silly party game like Taboo or Scattergories. As the family members find happiness while they are together, they may just start to feel closer to the other relatives. Because you have an enjoyable time together you may start to associate your family members with happiness. There is so much time spent rushing around – this can instead produce happy memories. You may then feel like a team with your family.
Family members may see similarities that they did not know were there
Many kids think that they have absolutely nothing in common with their parents, but obviously this is not true. When you spend time together, you may find that you enjoy the same things. Kids may be surprised to see their parents letting loose and not having to be in “the boss” mode if they are playing a game. They may realize that they are not as different as they think.
You can talk and understand each other better
Many family members have difficult feeling empathy for others in their family. When you spend time together, you may just get to know these family members better. You may have misconceptions that you realize are wrong. For instance, some people may not understand how much their family members love them or are proud of them. When spending time together they may realize this.
Sometimes people in a family are mad at each other but afraid to talk about it. When you spend more time together you may be more used to talking, and you may communicate better. Misconceptions or fights based on misunderstandings may be resolved. With good family communication, family closeness can be increased.
It is important not to simply spend time with your family, but to make it quality time. Instead of just sitting together watching television, you should play games, tell stories or just talk. The above points showcase why this time together can translate into increased family closeness.