Thank You To My Family

  This has been long over due, but I will publicly say it here. I am extremely Thankful for my family.  Ours may not be a perfect story book family, but, from my own personal observations, I would not trade them in for anything.  Ours like most now is a global family. We all were based from one city.  But, in part to modern technology and just the way the world operates, we have grown up, and out ward.

  First, my oldest brother, went to a seminary for his High School education, and to finally determine if the life of the priesthood would be for him. As it is in nature, he was the first to fly the coop as it were. Upon graduation from High School, he came back home for a bit, and was working back in the home town.  At this time, Viet Nam was starting to warm up, and he enlisted in the Air Force.  That was his big step in moving away.

  Next in line was my oldest sister, she went to Columbus Ohio, first as I understood it to live and help my uncle and his family there.  She decided to live there when she moved out on her own. Due to circumstances, she did decide to come back to Erie, and started a life on her own. She made her own life but stayed in same area as her birth.

  Middle brother stayed, and went to college, upon graduation, he had a job landed, and started a family.  At first, he too made a life in hometown area.  But, Work had offered him a promotion but was far from hometown.  Eventually, he did come back but after some years, and another job, he moved away out of state once again.  Thankfully, to a neighboring state, and was close enough to visit.

  Middle sister started out on her own in home town, but life circumstances came in and opportunity arose to move to town where middle brother and his wife and family were.  She stayed with them for a bit, and moved out on her own and has stayed in that state ever since.

  Next came I, and there is one that never leaves the nest as it were, and that is myself.  I stayed here, and as luck would have it, for 49 years now, I am still in the same apartment where the family radiated from. I have stayed here, and I guess, afraid to move away.  I cannot break the paradigm of where my comfort zone is.

  That leaves one more. Youngest sister met someone moved out of the nest to start out on her own. Due in part to the technologies mentioned back in the beginning, she met some one from far away from the nest, and  she made a choice to expand her horizons, and move away from the nest. Eventually  she too moved back closer to the original nest, but still out of state.

  After all this long introduction, I have to say that no matter that we found ourselves spread all out across the USA, we all still kept in contact.  First, there were cards and letters, you know, snail mail.  There were always phone calls as well, but that was mostly for holidays, and other special events.  With the technology of the internet, we, although still far apart, were brought closer just due the instant communications. This had brought us closer even over the miles, and thousands of miles apart.

  Like all families, we have our disagreements and arguments, and even can throw a huff at one another, but as times and troubles hit we would always band back together to deal with it. We always look out for one another.  After the time when both of our parents have passed, I have hit a rough patch with a job. And here from my observations, and not of others, I will give some examples.  My siblings have helped me monetarily while I have been dealing with this. My youngest sister has mother-henned me some, and I will admit it here, and I had accepted.  My older brother and his wife have blessed me with a  used vehicle, the other vehicle I had was becoming a very deep money pit.  All have contributed in some way.  I say this maybe out of rotation in the events of life, but, I wanted to show how great a family I have.

  We may fight, and we may argue, but we always have, and always will be family.  Some of my friends family cannot claim the same, some have siblings that they have disowned, or just will never talk to again, Some have moved away, and their family does not even know where they are. I can boast that ours has never been this way.  And for that I am forever thankful.