Work, Work and More Work

     With the heat beating down on me, I rolled my sleeves up to my shoulders, exposing my upper arms to the sun. It was a long day, full of tedious, nearly mind-numbing work. It was so monotonous, but it paid well and I needed a job. I worked for a small fencing business, traveling to various locations to install hundreds of feet of split-rail cedar fence. We were based out of a little town in southern Idaho but the company would build fences anywhere from western Washington, Wyoming, Arizona, Utah and California. The job required us to work throughout the summer, during the hottest parts of the day in during the hottest times of the summer. Needless to say, some days were long.

    However repetitive this job was, it still is one of my favorites jobs. I loved it. I loved going out and taking several days to go build fence with my crew and suffer under the sun. Why did I like this job so much? I built a strong bond with my crew doing that monotonous work. They were my friends, or at least acquaintances, before I started working for the company, but by the end we became tight. Those guys were so fun to work with and we can joke around with each other like we can't with others. My crew boss was a goon, often messing with us other crew members. The monotony gave us the opportunity to talk, sing and sometimes even dance.

    This principle of working together is important for businesses and teams, but it is almost vital for better quality family relationships. There was an article published by BYU Magazine called "Family Work," which emphasizes the need for tedious work in a family setting. This quote sums up some great benefits of family work. "Helping one another nurture children, care for the land, prepare food, and clean homes can bind lives together. This is the power of family work, and it is this power, available in every home, no matter how troubled, that can end the turmoil of the family, [and] begin to change the world." As with my fencing job, family work, especially the boring work, provides a wonderful opportunity for family members to talk and build a great bond together. What does work look like to the family in this world so full of technology that does much of our work for us?

    I had the privilege to grow up in rural settings, providing various forms of work, such as pulling weeds, fixing fence, or cleaning out stalls. A lot of this work was done with my siblings and we have some pretty fun stories from these chores. However, not everyone has to clean out stalls, so some other ways a family can work together are simple. Cleaning the living room, cooking dinner, and folding laundry are still great methods of work that can bring family members closer together. It may not be the most exciting work, but that isn't the point. In fact, if the work is too complicated, the focus moves from the person to the work itself.

    Being able to work is a huge blessing. Being able to work together is an even bigger blessing. There are too many people in today's world that don't want to work, especially with others because they feel it will be easier to accomplish the task by oneself. Don't miss out on the opportunities to work together and help form an inseparable bond. Of course, there are other wonderful ways to grow close, but make everyday, boring tasks much more exciting by involving others, especially those you love. Good things take effort, so work for the relationships you want and you will find improvement in the quality of your relationships.