This week in class we went into more depth on systems theory. Within a system there are rules, boundaries, and roles. The rules that we are talking about are not the eat all you veggies, but the unspoken rules that govern our family interactions. Coming up with these rules was difficult for me because I live with then daily and don't notice them. but here are some that I thought of after some time.
1. Football is more important than anything else on TV. Football comes before most things in my house, but it is also a rule that we don't point out that football is more important. Many times it is bed time for the younger kids, but if someone needs to check the scores or finish the game, then they can stay up later.
2. We don't talk about things that happen in the family outside of the family. I remember the first time I broke this rule I told one of my friends something, and I was so mad at their reaction. Not because it was rude or wrong in anyway but because I though they had no right to have a reaction to something that happened in my family, even though I had told them about it.

The different boundaries that are found in families are ridged, clear, and diffused. In class we compared these to fences.
Ridged: is a cinder block wall. Neighbors know where the boundary is and it keeps people out, but also isolates us in.
Clear: is a picket fence, the boundary is set but it encourages communication, and our neighbors still think we are friendly.
Diffused: are the fence post are up but no one every finished the fence. Here the idea of the boundary is there but nothing really stops us.