Family

Family means the world to me. I love it when we can take the time to be around one another, to go to church and worship together, to vacation together, break bread and eat together. There's a feeling that just can't be explained. It's excitement mixed with anticipation and gratitude.

Your family members are the first friends you have in life so that connection is established early. Especially if you have a big family. No matter how much we try not to everyone has their favorite sibling or that favorite cousin aunt of uncle. It doesn't mean you love the rest of them any less, it's just that at that time in your life you were around those individuals more than others.

I remember every year we'd have our family reunion and everyone would show up. No matter what they had to do or how far they had to drive they were right there. It was such a great era in my life. Now that everyone has grown up and have their own lives to deal with, we don't show up anymore. We're too busy to pick up and phone and call or too busy to take just a moment to reestablish that family bond. The majority of us don't even know each other anymore. Our kids go through every day interacting with people that may possibly be their family but they will never know because as parents we're so preoccupied with everything else that we don't have the necessary time to show them who their people are.

I wish we could go back to the time when family was important...