Welcome To The Family

I've got a wonderful family. My wife and kids are loving and fun and supportive and all the things I could ever ask for in a family. And I've got a pretty nice relationship with my wife's mom and stepfather. But that's about it. My mom and I are not particularly close. I am an only child so there are no siblings to talk with and bicker with. And my aunts and uncles and cousins are spread all over and not particularly close to each other at all.

So why am I telling you this? Because I realize I feel more of a connection to some of the folks in my blog neighborhood than I do to some of my own family. Is that odd?

I've written once before about the unusual circumstances that blogging brings about...sharing personal, sometimes private thoughts and feelings in such a public manner. And that still seems a bit odd. And yet, I've reached a point where I feel more comfortable sharing some things here than I ever did when sitting down and talking with family members.

And I'm very clear that I know more about some of your lives than I do my extended family. Many of them I have not talked with in more than 20 years. I know what you did yesterday!

Some of you have shared struggles with spouses or significant others. Some have shared about their struggles with illness. Others have talked about the challenges related to getting pregnant or delivering. And it isn't just family/relationship struggles that we talk about. People share spiritual struggle, political frustrations, job-related issues.

I like the relationships that are growing here. I feel a connection to people that I've never met. I smile when good things happen in your lives. I think about those who struggle. And I get amazing support and encouragement when it is my turn to have a bad day. I wouldn't trade this blogging experience for anything.

But maybe it is time to send a couple of notes or make a few calls to some family members, too. It couldn't hurt to re-establish a few long-lost connections, huh?