Family Ties Benefit From Being Nurtured And Cared For

Family relationships, like all relationships, benefit from kindness, attention and nurturing. Author, Jim Rohn, said: “Your family and your love must be cultivated like a garden. Time, effort, and imagination must be summoned constantly to keep any relationship flourishing and growing.” It’s one thing to be on your own – and quite another to have […]

How Do You Best Manage Dysfunction In Your Family?

No consideration of family would be complete without some mention of family dynamics and the oftentimes difficult and dysfunctional events that occur. I’ve often been inspired by people who could observe family difficulties, yet not be sucked into any vortex of upset. Family systems are a natural place for us to engage our own growth, […]

How Connected Are You To Your Ancestors?

Our families are obviously not only the people that we know, but those who came before us whom we never knew. The writer, Thich Nhat Hanh, says: “If you look deeply into the palms of your hand, you will see your parents and all generations of your ancestors. All of them are alive in this […]

All Of Humanity Belongs To The Human Family

This week, we’ve discussed both our families of blood as well as our families of choice. Larger than any of those is the human family comprised of all human beings. The Dalai Lama said: “My message is that practice of compassion, love and kindness. Compassion can be put into practice if one recognizes the fact […]

“Family Of Choice” ~ Different From ~ “Family By Blood”

“Family,” of course, means immediate blood relations, but it’s clear that it also means “family of choice.” These are friends we have met through a variety of circumstances with whom we have become exceedingly close and we consider “like family.” Back in Ancient Greece, Homer said, “A sympathetic friend can be quite dear as a […]