By Lianne Castelino   www.whereparentstalk.com

They used to say it takes a village to raise a child. Well these days the village is more of a desert.

Our crazy busy lives are being infiltrated, dominated by technology, work, two-income households, kid’s activities, family commitments, school projects the list is just endless.

Why? Because we let it.

A study released earlier this week by the Canadian Index of Well-being confirmed we are all living in a TIME CRUNCH.

Remember the days as a child when time just seemed to stand still. Where you could sit on the front step and stare at the patterns in the clouds or the mirage of the sun on the road and just be. No noise pollution. No running around. Just be?

I wish for those days again. As a lifelong dreamer, I relish any moment I can commit to daydreaming, to being creative, painting, drawing, imagining, engaging in quiet, introspection.

Our time crunch as a society will only change if we are proactive about it.

Take charge of your personal clock. That means MAKE TIME.  Schedule it in if you have to, because it is so very important.

MAKE TIME to play with your kids uninterrupted, eat lunch, enjoy the sunshine, listen to the birds, people watch, sit in silence, listen to music, read a book, take a family walk, get ice cream together, go on a neighbourhood adventure, walk to the park.

Make time to do nothing. Book it in. It’s important. Your family life, your relationships, your happiness could well depend on it.

Don’t put off til tomorrow what you can do today. Children grow up fast, life can change in an instant. That’s why seizing the moment today is so important.

The next step in this puzzle is helping the workplace evolve to support strong families. Flex hours, telecommuting, videoconferencing, conference calls. After all, a happy employee is a productive employee. Where applicable, this ideology make sense.

Hopefully, more and more forward-thinking leaders will see the value of strong families as being the lynchpin of a strong society. And they will make decisions that reflect that belief.

Families are the cornerstone of society. Children are precious gifts. If you believe family comes first, then make it priority number one.  A strong family foundation will be able to withstand a lot thrown in its path. It’s not always easy, but it’s worth prioritizing.