Family Vacation...

Today is day two of my vacation. I am visiting family.

Because I am a product of divorced/remarried parents, I have more family then is really necessary. That being said, like everyone I have parts of the family I like, some I barely stand, and some I love. This vacation is with the ones I love! Which is why this is a vacation.

Having family is a gift, that you can never return. I have, and I am sure everyone else does too, members of the family that I wish came with a gift receipt. I don't even need cash back, store credit will do. Sometimes I am quite willing to donate them to charity, no need for the tax write-off.

I was once told that I did not have to like them, but I had to love them because they were family. I still hold to that.

So, getting back to vacation with family, I love this part of my family. They have all the best parts of people. They are funny, smart, interesting, loving and of course understanding. The conversations that are had are amazing! When I was a kid I could not wait to be an adult for these vacations, just because the group of adults here are some of the best people I know. Thinking back on previous trips I have realized that more than any other time in my life, these people have truly shaped the adult I have become.

Although many things could and probably would have come to light all without the help that these people have given me, I doubt that I would have the courage to have done half of it. Reading, although encouraged in school, my stepmother, dad, uncle and grandmother have always encouraged. Between gifting me with books of every all kinds, and taking the time to read to me when I was little, I have been pushed to love books. My cousins, although younger than me help to keep me grounded. That is hard to explain but they have a way of putting things into a perspective that I never think of.

I learned from this family that love is unconditional and blood does not always make the strongest bonds. (I mentioned earlier that my parents had divorced and that both remarried. This part of the family is from my step mother.)

I have been so blessed, or incredibly lucky.