by Sydney Schneider
Blog post represents opinions of the author.
Heated discussions prompt family members to dive into deeper conversation.
Even though they may debate many topics, and even argue…more family members are spending more quality time together talking and communicating about politics.
Even if time together is tumultuous, it is still time together. Families are discovering time together in heated discussion is better than no time together. Those who often spend their time on tapping on their phones or watching television while sitting together in a silent room, now find themselves debating over a variety of important political topics.
Families are learning more about each other and their individual viewpoints especially as they spend more time together during the pandemic. Mothers, fathers, siblings, aunts, uncles, grandparents and all family members are getting to know each other better on a deeper level, rather than the usual, simply superficial, surface level.
Instead of sticking to the basic conversation of “Oh it’s a beautiful day, don’t you think?” it is now directed toward more serious topics such as “How did you feel about seeing the Trump caravan driving through Omaha this afternoon?”
Maybe, just maybe, people can find new insight and find new viewpoints they had not previously discovered. Family members can inspire each other to be better citizens to help their community through the discovery on many debatable topics that can improve us altogether. Our world needs solutions, and who better to do it than the citizens themselves?
So, what are some ways community change can occur through families? During our current times of economic hardship due to the pandemic, a family member, or yourself could inspire another to volunteer their time at shelters or for missions. Perhaps a person may be inspired to donate to a good cause if the means is there to do so. Maybe a family member’s vote could be changed altogether after a powerful conversation at the dinner table. Perhaps a family decides to go together to vote, emphasizing to each other the importance of continuing this civic duty for a lifetime.
Mason Morelli, a University of Nebraska at Omaha graduate and professional hockey player for the AHL Hershey Bears, said he has enjoyed spending a little more time around family and friends with his season being pushed back due to COVID-19.
“I really have enjoyed my time at home, even with everything that has been going on,” Morelli said. “I feel as though I have even become closer with my family members just having deeper and more intellectual conversations.
Perhaps families can even spend time together sitting around the television as the election results come in throughout the country. 2020 has been a year for the history books, and it is not over yet. Who knows, maybe families will choose to be better during these unprecedented ties.
