Signs that our society is in trouble.

"No Smoking"

"Please flush the toilet"

"If you miss an appointment please call and let us know"

"Verbal and physical abuse will not be tolerated"

I started physiotherapy last week for some issues that I am having with my back. I ended up sitting in the waiting room for awhile waiting patiently for my appointment. I brought a book with me but soon tired of reading that so I began to look around me. I started to notice the variety of signs that were hanging around the room. I felt a blog coming on.

I am amazed at what we need signs for. What happened to common sense or just being respectful? Why do I need a sign telling me to "flush the toilet" isn't that just something you do when you stand up? Why as a society do we need reminders to do what common sense should be telling us to do?

My analytical brain got to churning and wondering- "How did we get here?" "How did we get to the point that we need signs to tell us that physical abuse will not be tolerated?" Of course it isn't tolerated, it is not socially responsible or respectable to act that way to another human being. Is this stemming from lack of parenting? The fall out of dual income or single parent families? I bet I stepped on some toes there. But I have to ask. I want to know what is happening to our society.

The investment we make in our children is the most important investment that we can ever make. My role as a parent overwhelms me most days. Now that my girls are in school full time I only get to see them nights and weekends, and those hours seem full of homework, dance and music lessons. Where is the time for our parental investment into their lives?

My husband is a collector of toys. Not small toys the expensive man toys. Luckily he is satisfied with older models of whatever toy is in season. Since we live in Northern Saskatchewan the purchase of snowmobiles were high on the list. We have great memories as a family snowmobiling through the trails around our home. This summer my husband decided a boat was needed in his collection. I gave in. Saskatchewan has many, many lakes and great fishing. So we found an affordable 80's model. What a summer of memories we have. Out of all the toys that my husband has convinced me that we need, this one is the best by far. We would head out for a day of fishing and spend 8-10 on the boat, with the exception of a few shore stops. When is your family ever stuck in such close proximity? My grew close as a family this summer and I got to see sides of my children that I do not normally see. My oldest loved fishing, she is a die-hard. My youngest would sit and colour, draw pictures of fish and sing us songs. We made memories this summer that will never fade. I am not saying that you all need to go our and buy a boat. But we took the time to invest in their lives this summer.

Life is busy. Most of the time we choose to make it that way, but we need to be aware of where and what we are investing ourselves in. I don't want to see any more signs. I want to see a society that loves life and all that it has to offer!