What builds a Family

A mother, a father, child, extended family, etc. all components of a family, and all crucial. I appreciate my parents, and i love them a lot, and its easy to forget what they put up with and what they give us every day of the week, every week of the year, every year in our lives. There's so much that can be said about them. but that's not for this blog post, anyway.

I think i have either written or said somewhere, that my greatest hero/role model is my dad, and it is not hard to imagine why. he is a family man. not some ambitious man chasing after an illustrious career, but just a simple family man, wanting to provide whatever he can for his family. I aspire to be like him. if i were just half of what he is, i think that would be more than sufficient to right a sloppy directionless person like me.

But i think it took me some time to realise what is my dad's direction. i remember once speaking to my uncle and uncle's brother-in-law about math, and they did pursue math quite far. My Dad is my "go-to-guy" for most of my math problems, but i never really wondered why he didnt pursue math. as the uncles put it, "do math as far as you can", but when i enquired about my dad, my mom simply said that that was not what he wanted to do.

So what did my dad want? he wanted a family. I find it extremely ironic how he was the least doted in his family, yet the most filial, and possibly best father in the lot. He works hard for the money. no doubt he loves his job, and enjoys working, but he is doing it for teh family. it is his greatest inspiration. and time after time, my mom would remind me of that, which is everything i would want to be like.

family is the most important thing. that is constantly what i say, but i do worry about if i practice what i preach. i think i don't treat my brother the best that i can, and sometimes even get cheap thrills from annoying him. my cousins can be quite a pain sometimes, okay, maybe more than just "some" times. But i would say that i hold them close to me. the ones i do so even more is the generations before me. My grandparents are especially the ones i am worried about. they are old, but i'm not old enough to let them go yet. my parents and relatives (at least on mom's side) i talk to very often, and they give so much to me. these are the people that matter in my life, but how am i showing it?

Speaking of relatives, the whole reason im thinking about this is because today my youngest cousin (at least for a few more weeks) fell and got a very deep gash in her head today. I'm not all depressed or traumatised, i know that little children hurt themselves accidentaly, and i know that she is going to be all right, so there is no need for unnecessary worry. however, i was thinking about what goes on when something like this happens. my grandparents would be there to talk to the kids at home, reminding that everything will be alright, and then the parents would do all the neccesary to make sure that my cousin is in no further harm, and it all works well, no chaos, no craziness, just lots of care poured in, and love.

I know that my parents would drop everything if they heard i am in serious danger, and if im in harm, they would know exactly what to do. STAY CALM, and handle the situation. that's is because they live for us. Parents are good parents when there is nothing more important than the children.

When i think about my aspirations and dreams, and what i want to take as my occupation, i don't think about the family i want to have in the future. My dad has a desk job, it pays well, it gives him time off to spend with me and mat, and he does not have to go flying all over the world tending to this and that, missing any events in our childhood years. Even mom put down her regional job to spend more time with me and mat, and she knew that what mattered was not out there, it was here, with the people she loved. at that point i don't know what to think. i want a family as bad as anyone, but what does that cost? maybe i could be like The Flying Dutchman (FD, Class 95) have children and still have a "fun" job, i wonder just what it takes.

"One day i would just drop everything, and spend my time with the kids" - someone said this. easier said than done, but not impossible.

I'm young, still got a whole life of me ahead before i start a family of my own, i'm sure there would be dreams to chase and things to try before i start a family, but that is something i want to always keep with me.

maybe this quote puts it into simpler terms
"Our most basic instinct is not for survival but for family. Most of us would give our own life for the survival of a family member, yet we lead our daily life too often as if we take our family for granted." ~Paul Pearshall

but to end it off with a lighter note,
"Families are like fudge... mostly sweet with a few nuts."