In today’s world, it can be difficult to find a family that is still intact. Divorce, feuds, drugs, and unhealthy or unloving conditions plague families all over the world. What was once something sacred and sought after has become somewhat of a luxury. If you get along with your family, and maybe even have a family that has stuck together throughout all of these years, you are an oddity. It’s hard for me to understand something like that because unlike many people, I have been lucky enough to find myself in a loving and caring family. And for that, I would like to say thank you and I love you. We have made it this far together, through all of the ups and downs, and not many people can say that. I don’t know how I got so lucky, but I can truly say that I have been blessed.
I’m not going to sit here and tell you all that it’s been an easy 21 years with these people I call family. We’ve had our treasured times, our rock bottom moments, and of course some fights and disagreements, but at the end of the day we’ve stayed a family. It’s an amazing feeling being so close to the people that have been there since I was born, knowing that with a call or a text I can get all the love, advice, and encouragement I need to get through my day. We push each other, say the things we need to say even if that’s not what the other wants to hear. We’re dysfunctional and annoying, weird and awkward, but I couldn’t ask for a group of people more suited to be my family.
We’ve had our trying times. Times when I didn’t know how we could possibly come out on the other side unscathed. While leaning on each other for support, we have persevered, not without scars and broken pieces, but with more love and hope in our hearts than ever before. I never knew how strong my family was until I saw us pushed to our limits and saw us rise again and again, always together. My family has taught me that we cannot get through this world on our own. Whether this means you rely on your real family or the people in this life that have become your family, you must have those people that will have your back no matter what.
