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Family
Events...
Wouldn’t
trade places for anything...
By Marybeth Hicks
8/5/11
A
few years ago while I was promoting
my parenting book, Bringing Up Geeks, I was approached by the producers
of the
reality show Wife Swap with an offer to participate in their show.
If
you aren’t a reality show fan, you
may jump to the same conclusion I did — but rest assured the premise of
Wife
Swap does not involve airing an illicit affair on national TV!
The
show’s concept was to trade places
with a wife who was my polar opposite. They would put a “cool mom” at
my house
— presumably one who would allow my young teens to have Facebook pages,
crop
tops, and boyfriends — and I, the “geek mom,” would live for a week in
a home
where rules about household chores, homework, bedtimes and table
manners were
non-existent.
The
producer let me know I’d be paid
$25,000 for only five days away from my family, living in another
woman’s home.
They didn’t offer to pay my husband and kids to live with a stranger,
though.
Was
I tempted? Not even for a second!
First,
I could not imagine putting my
family through the humiliation of a reality show, especially one that
would not
result in a kitchen renovation. The whole idea was that the geek family
would
look... well... geeky, by comparison to some cooler, hipper family.
But
it’s more than that. On principal,
I just don’t think marriage and family life should be reality show
fodder
(sorry, Bachelorette fans!).
At
the time, the invitation was an
opportunity to reaffirm my contentment with my own life. Our geeky
family
style, our parenting strategies, our marriage and our financial
situation were
all aspects of our life that reflected conscious decisions about who we
were
and what our values were all about.
Trading
places with someone whose life
is perceived as better/freer/richer is a recurring story in Hollywood —
in
fact, there’s yet another movie coming out this weekend based on this
theme
(The Change-Up rated R for raunchy humor and a typical, trite message
about the
grass-not-always-being-greener).
But
the truth is, constantly comparing
our lives to others can be a step toward dissatisfaction.
If
the grass looks greener everywhere
but in your yard, there’s only one thing to do — water it! Feeding our
families
and relationships with attention and affirmation is the sure way to
have the
lawn that everyone else looks at longingly!
Thanks
for reading and sharing Family
Events!
Take
good care until next week,
Marybeth
This
week’s question: Imagine you’re
the star of a Hollywood movie about trading places. Whose life would
you
choose? Or are you content with your own circumstances? Share your
insights on
our Family Events Facebook page.
Read
last week’s question and answers
at Family Events
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