This month is a big birthday month. First, we celebrate my daughter's birthday. Shortly after that, we celebrate my niece's birthday. Finally, we celebrate my birthday! Besides just this inner circle of birthdays, I also have various uncles and cousins with March birthdays. My brother- and sister-in-law celebrate their wedding anniversary in March as well. So you can see how March, for me, is all about family.
Recently, my sister-in-law's husband decided he wants a divorce. Imagine how hard this is for her; imagine how hard it is for such a close-knit family! We are all hurting with her, and hoping and praying that she will somehow find herself during all of this.
Yes, March makes me think about family. Spring Break, the big event of the month, is usually spent with family. This year is no exception; we're looking forward to lots of family events and trips.
So, I've been pondering, "What is the meaning of family?" To me, it starts with those to whom I have been born. My parents, brothers, and children. The heart of my family is my husband, and by extension, his parents, siblings, and their children. But family is so much more than that. My family circle also extends to my church family (we're having a church family game night tomorrow, in fact) and my work family. When one of my colleagues hurts, I hurt. Might as well be family.
So, March is all about family.
I'm in the middle of reading a novel that looks at family a little differently.
In the book, the main character's parents are researchers raising a baby chimp as a family member, studying language development and chimp intelligence. What is so interesting about the story is that it seems like the teen protagonist is really the one being studied. Kind of blurs the definition of family.
Anyway, no matter your definition of family, March to me is the time to pull family close and enjoy every precious minute of time with them.
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