29 December 2009

is there anything better than family?

will durant, philosopher and historian, once wrote: "family is the nucleus of civilization."

this quote has traveled with me for most of my adult life, birthed on the wall of my first bedroom away from my parents' home. my ideas of home have changed in the decade since, but this adage has remained with me as a constant reminder of home, and the inextricable link between family and home.
during the last few years especially, my ideas of family have grown to encompass the given and the chosen, and have begun to blend seamlessly into one loving, enriching, challenging, and vital family.

so many of us are orphans in one way or another, often times far away from our given families.
this idea of the given and the chosen family becomes the foundation from which we launch ourselves into the world.
in western society, our concepts of family are too often limited to the nuclear. the extended family becomes ancillary, and loses its inherent value as a core part of each person's foundation.
we lose out on so much when we isolate ourselves from our family of aunts, uncles, cousins, grandparents, children, siblings, mentors, and friends.

this is the second year i've made new years resolutions, and the second year that i will state my desire to further strengthen the bond of my given and chosen family.
i hope keep with me all the lessons i've learned from my family, and i hope to one day be able to give even a fraction of the love i receive.

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