Thank you - to my family

Most of us take it for granted when we have a fantastic family.  I know I took it for granted for a long time before mine began to fall apart (granted I was a teenager and what teenager do you know that appreciates what they have?!).  The falling apart of the family I had known for so long was the catalyst; the thing that made me truly appreciate what I had.  Why does it take a tragedy or a loss to realise that we are already so blessed and lucky to have those people in our lives?

It takes a long time to adjust to a differing picture of what your family is like when it abruptly changes.  Sometimes that change isn't entirely a bad thing despite everything you are brought up to believe (family involves a mum and a dad and 2.5 kids - or in my case 3).  That change can widen your horizons.  It allows you to be more open and understanding of the impact others can have on your life, of accepting a family that is more diverse, and ultimately one you can choose for yourself.  I don't prescribe to the notion that says "you can't choose your family".  I think you really can and I have chosen mine - or perhaps we have chosen each other, even in the most unlikely of circumstances.

Image courtesy of Etsy.com

I have spent the last ten years realising that the closest of my friends are more like family to me than some of my blood relations.  That they (my friends) have shown me true and unfettered support when I needed it most and have remembered the things that are most important to me.  A very good friend posted on her blog a while back about how family is used as a term to describe a 'connection'.  That connection is something I have with a few special people in my life who are not blood relations.  Both her and I share this blended view of family and one of my favourite posts about family can be seen here on her blog, The Highwire.

I, like her little boy, gravitate to those who love me the most.  Those who text me before an exam, and who message me or leave me a voicemail after (even when they're not in the same time zone), those who have confidence in my ability when I least have it in myself and those, who no matter what hour of the day, I know I can count on for support.  This blog post is for them.  They are part of my family, and to you, you know who you are, I say thank you.  You mean the world to me.