"How Can Family Members Be So Cruel to Their own Children"

In my travel here and there, I'm learning how cruel and hurtful family members can be to their young children. My daughter in-law, would never come to our family gatherings, or outings at all and we found out the reason why? My son would always come by himself. We later learned that she came from a shady family background. Where her family members,were unloving, back stabbers and they raped and molested their children. So, naturally she thought all families were dysfunctional like hers. Once she finally came to one of our family gatherings by the prompting of my son. She learned that there are loving and caring families in the world and not all of them aren't like her family. She and her kids enjoyed being around the family so much until now, they trying to move to Texas where everyone is. My daughter in law, didn't think anyone lived like us because of the horrible life style that she and her sister had lived. She now realize that we're a family that have cook outs, and family gatherings all the time, eating, playing games and enjoying being with each other and learning about God.

This is our life style, it started when my children were young, I would barbecue on the grill and make baked beans and potato salad and a dessert and I play games with my children. Now, they're all grown up now, and they do the same family gatherings a lot. It's a life style for them because they rotate from house to house. My daughter in law understands that we welcome anyone into our homes and share food, drinks, games, clean fun and laughter with each other, until the next time. I guess you can say we have our own kind of soul food among each other. Now she knows why my son always wants to come home for the holidays because of the love, the food and hospitality he's shown each time that he comes. I listened to my daughter in law. she told me what an awful time she and her sisters had growing up in a household. Where the mom didn't care if they were raped or molested by their biological father and later their step father. She had eight brothers and after seeing the father's taking advantage of the her and her two sisters. The brothers thought it was okay to try the same thing with their sisters. I listen to her with a sadden heart because her mother didn't have any love to give her daughter, or to try and keep them safe from the men in their home.

My heart really hurt for my daughter in law and the other children involved. We go out of our way to show them the love they never had from her family, because they needed. They need to know that God loves them and want good things for them. I told her she or her kids never have to worry about being misuse and abused because we want to let them know, how it feel to be genuinely loved in our homes. Our family is all about spreading love and cheer to anyone that grace our homes. We're godly people that believe in southern hospitality shown to anyone that comes to our homes, because we love people and God said to love our neighbors.

Benny Faye Douglass (C)Copyright 2010