Ideas about family

      I was talking to my mom today about family things and I realized that we have two completely different ideas about family and it makes me wonder about my perception of family and what the little guy's will be.
    
     Both my parents grew up very close to their extended families and saw them regularly. They both had significantly different experiences which is really neat but, the same in they saw them regularly.

    My brother and myself did not. Because of my parent's work situations we moved a lot when I was younger. I wouldn't change that for the world. I got to see so many places, learn to adapt to new situations, and learn to be close to my immediate family more than most people I know.
     
     I still care about my extended family but, we don't really share any experiences but a few and when we do get together it always seems to get back to them. People who want to share something common that don't really have anything in common. So we end up talking about one trip to the beach when we were fourteen and we got scared because we thought we were stuck on boogie boards. This is the only common life experience we have and I think that is alright. It just makes us different.

     So we end up being more family acquaintances and I think that is alright. My mom thinks this is the craziest thing ever because she has such an attachment to the people and the places that this is her family. She can look at the town and have memories, she can look at the house and have memories, she can think of the people and have memories, I can't. She can also feel a deep sense of connection with her siblings children and why wouldn't she. I feel an instant love for my niece and nephew and we don't live close to each other but they are my little brother's kids and he is my family. We have history and experiences that no other two people have on this earth that bind us and to me that is family.

I grew knowing that family is important and I still think it is. I would do anything in my power for any member of family even the distant ones I don't have any connection with other than name or blood relation.

I also grew up knowing that my family consisted of myself, my brother, my mother and my father and we were our family. We depended on each other and we went through most things both good and bad together.

This makes me wonder how my little boy will feel about family. Whatever it is I hope he knows it is important.  I also he has a strong relationship with his grandparents and his uncle, aunt, and their kids but, I will understand if he sometimes doesn't relate or feels a little out of place because I have definitely been there.