To be, or not to be: That is [my] question:

I have been battling with a decision for some time now. I thought it might help to write down my thoughts; perhaps it will shed some light on a path I should follow.

As I'm sure you all know, I am currently attending BYU finishing my bachelor's degree in Marriage Family and Human Development. I have absolutely loved my school career thus far. I have studied hard, learned a mass amount of information, and enjoyed expanding my knowledge base. I enjoy my major immensely because it deals with many topics that involve learning how to help people improve there lives. Many of you may know that I love, and I mean love to help people in any way I can. Helping people has always been a passion of mine. I spend a lot of time thinking about others and how I might be of help.

Recently I have been thinking a lot about life and what a great opportunity we have to follow our dreams. The problem I have is in trying to figure out exactly what my life plan may be. I have so many desires, dreams, and goals; however, I have a difficult time knowing exactly which of my dreams to follow. I need to do a lot of praying and attending the temple as I make my decisions.

My current dilemma is trying to decide if I want to become a CFLE (Certified Family Life Educator). BYU is one of many schools that have the necessary academic qualifications which allow students to become CFLE's. I would love to become certified; however, it will mean completing a few more classes. I would also need to either complete an internship, or complete Family Life Education work experience some other way at a different time.

Why become a CFLE you might ask? Well, let me describe what a CFLE can accomplish. “The objective of family life education is to enrich and improve the quality of individual and family life. Family life educators work in a variety of settings. They bring comprehensive family training to a myriad of employment sectors and job classifications. Often, CFLEs work in the following venues:”*

• Practice - teaching, education, research/scholarship, program or curricula development,
• Administration - leadership or management, organizing, coordinating, and
• Promotion - public policy, lobbying, advocating for system change and awareness. *

I am currently in a class which gives us an opportunity to explore the CFLE world. One of our opportunities involves working with a group to design a program curriculum and then actually teaching the program to an audience. The program we designed is about what to expect during the transition to parenthood and how to keep your marriage strong. I have loved doing the research and designing a program with the intent to help others.

There is so much research out there that can improve lives. For example there is a lot of research about the father-child relationship. The research shows that fathers who are involved in their children’s lives can have a positive affect on the child’s development. In a couple of journal articles I found information about how a father’s style of play can help the baby's development. For example, fathers who play with their children help them build healthy social relationships. There is just so much information out there in published journals, the only problem is who reads published journals (students, professors, and professionals). I just feel like I shouldn't pass up this opportunity to share this information with people in communities.

I have some things to ponder and some decisions to make. I will let you know what I decide.

*Information about CFLE gathered from http://www.ncfr.org/