Family Ties

I never really considered myself very family oriented. I always heard people talking about being a family man/ woman, but quite frankly family was always more of an object to me. They were always there. It's sort of like when you drive somewhere everyday for a couple of years, taking the same route every time until you're so familiar with all the things on the way you could drive it blindfolded.

I love my family, it's just when they're always there they fade into familiarity. Until recently I had what you might call an eye opening. My family and I were driving home from somewhere, when my brother told a joke that made us all burst into thunderous laughter. As I was trying to not pee my pants I realised that my family wasn't just my family, they had, somewhere along the way, become my friends. It was a weird revelation, because I never thought that my parents, whose job it was to reprimand me when I did something wrong, or to teach me the lessons I needed to know in order to succeed, could ever be my friends.

At the same time it was nice to realise that, the reason that we were friends was because they were starting to see us as adults and not just the kids they were meant to raise. Our time in the nest was up so to speak.

My immediate family was no exception either. When I visited my grandparents and cousins one week, I had a fairly long, substantial conversation with my grandpa, who, if I was being honest, always kind of intimidated me. My cousins, who are no older than ten, had become the focus of nurture within my family, and I realised that I was also expected to help shape these two children into adults. My actions were of less focus to everyone, because I was now supposed to be another responsible adult.

Even as I realised the joy of being considered an adult by other adults, I never thought that I would miss being a kid. No more peaceful ignorance of family issues. No more could I coast off of the "hand that fed me." But all that was overshadowed by the fact that I get to shape these two precious children into the adults I think they can become