home...

There once were boys and girls who loved their parents. Their dad and mom loved them and were good to them. They fed them, protected them, and played with them. Sometimes the children got in trouble, but the mom or dad was quick to discipline them and the kids learned quickly what was acceptable and what was not.

As the kids grew, they had more questions for dad and mom about home, relationships, and life. The parents tried their best to answer their questions in order to keep them fed, protected, and happy.

Some of the kids found mom and dad's answers satisfying and felt right at home.
Others found their answers meaningless but played along because they liked to be fed, protected, and happy.
Still others were seeking to understand their home and their world and would ask their dad and mom more and more questions.

As the kids grew up, the parents continued to do their best to keep their kids fed, protected, and happy.

The kids who were satisfied with mom and dad’s answers seemed to be very happy at home, and felt no need (and were even afraid) to venture out. Mom and dad encouraged that.

The kids, who found mom and dad’s answers wanting, began to venture outside the home. Sometimes they would tell them where they were going, a lot of times they just snuck out. And they began to see that the world mom and dad described, was not as black and white as they made it to be. This made living at home harder and the food, protection and fun felt more and more suffocating.

The kids, who kept asking more and more questions, began to really annoy the mom and dad. Whether it was fear for them, fear for themselves, or them just not knowing how to handle the situation, they began to discipline their questioning kids. They appealed to the family rules and threatened them saying, this is what it means to be in the family. Believe or else.

The questions kept coming.

They resorted to harsher discipline, taking away privileges, withholding allowances, grounding them from activities… and making more rules.

The questions kept coming.

Finally, they told the questioning children, “Stop with the questions!” Your questions about home and relationships and life are dangerous questions that threaten our home. Stop questioning and believe or declare that this house isn’t your home and leave.

So was the family who grew up and lived. Today the children are scattered and few are fed, protected, and happy… and all are looking for home.

They, who have ears, let them hear.