“Call it a clan, call it a network, call it a tribe, call it a family.  Whatever you call it, whoever you are, you need one.”     Jane Howard

 

There are large families and small ones, close families and those that are not so close.  They come in all shapes and sizes, and they can give us more peace and encouragement, turmoil and misery, love and understanding, and aggravation and anger than anything else.  Families are intricately complicated, but simple and straightforward at the same time.

 

Family members share a unique, natural bond, and they love each other with an indescribable depth.  Even those who do not particularly like each other love and protect one another with the ferocity of a mother bear.  Their attitude toward this love is “I can say whatever I want about my brother, sister, mother, or father, but no one else better cross that line.”  They feel that it is OK for them to criticize their family, but if anyone else should dare to, they had better watch out!

 

Family members are there for each other during times of crisis, catastrophe, and illness.  They have a unique way of pulling together and helping one another when necessary.  Even the ones who aren’t close and maybe do not even get along will show up at each other’s door to do whatever is needed.  They say that it is “just what families do.”  This is one of the things that make these relationships so special and amazing.

 

It is also wonderful to have people with whom so many memories are shared.  Family members have the pleasure and privilege of being able to reminisce about how things were and things that happened when they were children.  They share a lifetime of experiences, and they have things in common that are different from all their other relationships.  They have each other to share the joys and the pain of the past as well as the present.

 

The most fortunate families are those that are friends as well as family.  All are forced to be together as children, but the lucky ones remain close into adulthood, and they will never be alone.  Family is a refuge, a kind of safe harbor.  To have family members to turn to when life gets too difficult to face alone is a wonderful comfort, and it is a gift too large to measure.

 

So, in dealing with family, always keep in mind that life is fragile.  Be kind and compassionate and patient, but most of all, be loving.  Stay in touch, get together often, and enjoy them now.  Don’t put it off until tomorrow because life doesn’t last forever.