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THE BIRTH OF A BEAUTIFUL HOME
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personal example show their commitment to a virtuous life, they instinctively win the confidence of their children, and children likewise hold the confidence of their parents. They believe in one another.
The third key word to happiness is self-discipline. Selfdiscipline is acquired only gradually and sometimes painfully through external discipline. A generation ago, we entered the age of permissiveness, when children were allowed to make their own decisions and do their own thing. Today, psychiatrists almost universally agree that instead of making children happier, this permissiveness has had tragic results for both children and parents. Until children reach enough maturity in judgment and character to administer selfdiscipline, they must be guided by their parents. Obedience implies definite restrictions. Parents must emphasize to their children that some things are right and some things are wrong, and see to it that they observe the limitations. But when instruction fails and discipline seems necessary, it must never be done through frustration or anger but always with love.
The fourth key word to happiness is responsibility. Responsibility grows naturally out of the first three. If a home is filled with love, with mutual confidence and trust, and has had the guidance and correction necessary to develop self-discipline, the natural result is recognition of responsibility. Each member of the family feels a responsibility towards the others, a responsibility to merit confidence and truth, to keep one's promises, and to carry out duties and assignments. As this sense of responsibility becomes a habit, it carries over to those outside the family, to employers, associates, and friends. When members of a family have little or no confidence in one another, when they seldom depend on doing what they are supposed to do, you have the making of unhappiness and tragedy. But when
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