家庭，是一个永恒的话题。因为人不是单个的个体，而是需要相处需要联系的群体。当然，每个人都有不同的家庭观、事业观。家庭，对于不同的人来说，有着不同的意义。
对于我而言，家庭是我生命中最重要的部分。就像教会所说的“没有任何的成功能够弥补家庭的失败”。记得我很小的时候，就没有要报效祖国的宏伟大志，而是些非常现实的理想。那就是努力学习，赚很多钱，家里人想要什么我都能买给他们，然后大家就会很幸福。简单的来说，我的最终目的是想要家庭幸福美满。其实现在我的理想也没有变，只是达成理想的方式变了。因为我知道以前的我太重视物质了，再富裕的家庭也不一定就是幸福的，事业再成功也不等于家庭成功。一个幸福美满的家庭是由很多因素组成的。我在美国的几天时间，已经让我收获不少。
从4月15日我抵达美国盐湖城，到20号，我一直暂住在JOSH AND MELODIE的家，这让我对他们的家庭有了不少认识。
这是一个非常和谐、友好的家庭。爸爸乐于行动，亲身实践教导孩子，是孩子心中的hero.妈妈耐心细心、热情善良，是孩子心中最窝心的人。从对4个孩子的教育，可以看出他们对家庭的精心plan。他们每周的生活基本上很有规律。例如：饭前祈祷；定期散步；修理花园；睡前唱歌或者读故事；每周一次的home teaching；练习乐器等等。很多时间是父母和孩子一起度过的。孩子太吵，没有礼貌的时候，妈妈会细声要求他们，在说话时加上“please”（请）。当孩子们撒谎或者做错事情时，妈妈会让他们一个人待在屋里好好想想，要不要说实话，承认错误。当孩子们因为想玩而不做该做的事情时，妈妈会要求他们学会持之以恒。就是这样一个家庭，没有什么争吵，没有什么打骂，父母的言行正把幼小孩子向善良友好的方向引导。下面再来说说对四个孩子的印象：
Adam 5岁却懂得比一般孩子多，非常聪明、懂事、善解人意，而且非常好学。当他见到我的羽毛球时，就急切且认真的跟我学怎样能接到更多球，他会认真看、细心听。当他看到爸爸在修理花园，就跟在爸爸后面仔细看，希望自己也能学会这项技能。当他看到别人做了不对或者不好的事，他会勇敢指出。就是这样一个孩子，他不会走到你跟前告诉你，他喜欢你，但是当你问他，你喜欢我么，想跟我一起玩么，他会羞涩的点点头，转而变成大大的灿烂的笑容。
JAROM 4岁就像是一个爱闹的小猴子，调皮而又听话，热情而又好强。他会不怕苦不怕累的告诉你，我自己能做到。他会缠在你身边要你和他玩，但是当你说你想休息，他也会安静的等你休息，只是等待的时间不会很长。你从他的眼睛就能看出他是否喜欢你。如果他喜欢你，他就不会让你逃离他的视线。他就是一个简单、纯真的孩子。
RACHEL 应该3岁吧。是一个非常可爱、漂亮的小女孩。她总是有很多问题要问你，但是她的发音又很不清楚，不容易明白她的意思。她也是一个非常要强的小女孩，但很多时候不是特别坚强，很容易哭。她会很喜欢荡秋千，喜欢你陪她玩，有时候会喜欢你抱着她，但是她不喜欢你抱她的时候千万别抱她，她会不高兴。她就是这样一个淘气、要自主的Birdie
BABY JOSH 这是最小的一位，只有一岁。不会说话，但是跑的非常快。大多的时间都很开心，很勇敢，不会为一点点碰伤而哭，是一个小小男子汉！你只要愿意陪他跑，逗他玩，他就很容易接受你。另外，只要吃饱喝足，这个BABY就会很开心了。
我在JOSH 家的这一周，过的非常丰富多彩。认识了很多人，学了不少单词。而且我见过的这里的每个人都非常和蔼友好，让我有点难以置信。在这个家里，我能无拘无束，尝试各种美食，认识不同的人，这点让我很高兴。
在这第一篇博客里，我当然还要提到一个至关重要的人，那就是Cristie。她几乎每天都陪着我，带我去学校，请我吃好吃的，学一点汉语。在我眼里，她是一个可爱、善良、贴心的好朋友！
祝愿所有的家庭都能幸福美满！
The Family
Family is an eternal topic. Humans are not meant to be alone, but to interact and create relationships. Of course each person has his or her own idea of what “family” means.
In my opinion, the most important thing in my life is family relationships. Just like the Mormon Church says “no amount of success can compensate for failure in the home.” I remember when I was younger, I never had grand dreams of sacrificing myself to contribute to my motherland (small children in China are taught that this is the greatest honor, the best way to achieve happiness), I was much more realistic idea of the ideal life. I felt like my job was to study hard and then earn enough money to buy anything I or my family would want, thus everyone would be very happy. Actually, simply put my greatest goal was to have a warm and happy
family. Today, I don’t think that my ideal has changed, but the way I hope to achieve that ideal certainly has. I now know that previously I put too much emphasis on worldly things; but no matter how rich you are, you can’t buy a happy family, and being successful at work does not mean you have a happy family either. A happy family needs several things. Even though I have only been in America for a short time, I have already learned much about this.
From the time I touched down in Salt Lake City on April 15th through April 20th, I have stayed at Josh and Melodie’s house. I feel like I know them well already.
This is a very harmonious, kind family. The father is happy to work hard and take the time to practice the cello with the kids. He is their hero. The mother is patient, caring, warm and kind, she is a source of love for her children. Through the way they raise their four children, you can see how carefully they have made their plans. They have a set routine that they stick to, for example, they say a family prayer before each meal, they go on walks together, plant flowers together, and before bed they sing songs and read stories together; they also have weekly home teaching, and practice their musical instruments daily. Much of the time spent here is parent-child one on one time. If the children are too loud or impolite, mom will kindly remind them to do better, and always says “please”. If a child lies or does something else they shouldn’t do, mom will give them time to themselves to think about what they have done and how to make it right. When they children aren’t bad, but they just want to play rather than practice, mom will patiently teach them patience. That’s just the kind of family this is. There is no arguing, or fighting of any kind here, just two parents patiently raising polite, friendly, and loving children. I’d like to share my impressions of each child:
Adam is 5 years old but understands so much more than a five year old usually does. He is very smart, friendly, and well-mannered, he also loves to learn. When I showed him my badminton equipment, he watched very carefully to learn how to hit the birdie. He concentrated so hard, and listened so carefully. When he saw his dad planting flowers in the yard, he watched carefully from behind, looking forward to the time when he would be able to learn that new skill. He also will bravely correct someone who does something they shouldn’t do. That is the kind of child he is. He won’t go out and tell you directly that he likes to play with you, but if you ask him if he likes you, if he wants to play with you, he will enthusiastically nod his head and give you a huge smile.
Jarom is 4 years old. He is like a little excited monkey. He loves to play, but will also obey. He is exceptional and friendly. He will never tire of telling you that he can do things by himself, but he also loves to play with others. If you tell him you are tired and want to rest, he will wait patiently for you, but he wont wait long! You can see in his eyes how much he likes you. If he does like you, he wont let you get very far from him! He is a simple child, a pure child.
Rachel is about 3 years old. She is such a cute, beautiful little lady! She has an endless supply of questions to ask you, unfortunately she doesn’t pronounce her words very clearly, and is sometimes hard to understand. She is a strong-willed little girl, but cries easily when things don’t go her way. She loves to play on the swings, loves to play with others. She sometimes loves to hug, but be careful not to hug her when she doesn't want to hug, it will make her unhappy. All in all, she is a fun, mischievous little birdy.
Baby Joshua is the youngest of them all, only one year old. He can’t speak yet, but can run really fast. He is almost always happy, and very brave. He won’t cry easily, even if he bumps his head, he is a brave little man! As long as you are willing to play with him and make him laugh, he will accept you easily. As long as he is not hungry or thirsty, he is a very happy baby.
This week at Josh’s house was both fulfilling and exciting. I’ve met many new people, and learn lots of new English words. Absolutely everyone I’ve met has been so kind, it is almost to good to be true. I’ve been able to feel so free, taste delicious foods, and meet wonderful people. It has been such a happy time.
My first ever blog entry would not be complete without mentioning one last important person, that is Cristie. She has been with me almost non-stop since I got here, taking me to my school, taking me out to eat, she is even studying some Chinese! In my eyes she is cute, kind, and loving, and a great friend!
May all families be blessed with joy and happiness!
