Sunday, January 8, 2012
Family Heritage
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In two of my classes on Friday, we were asked to discuss the topic of family. The first class, we each drew a picture of our family, a typical therapeutic exercise for children. I drew (as best I could) the Earth, with the couples of my immediate family in different parts of the world, but still connected. I also drew my grandparents sort of "below" the Earth, trying to show that they had passed away, but were still part of my family.
Then, Friday evening, I found these two pictures of my family. The first shows my Grandpa and Grandma Johne with my siblings and myself, as well as a few of my cousins (I'm the one with the red shirt). We are in Wisconsin at our family reunion spot, Camp Croix. Spending a week at Camp Croix with my extended family is one of my most beloved childhood memories. We would swim, fish, stay in cabins, have big bonfires, make dozens of pizzas for dinner, and have many little adventures together. My grandparents were so loving, would spend hours just hanging out with us, and were so clearly loved by everyone in the family. This picture really captures that feeling.
The second picture is of the same grandparents, bringing home their third child. I have not confirmed this with my mother or anyone else, but I think that in the picture is my aunt Peggy, my mom, and my uncle Peter (the baby). This picture is a glimpse of my family heritage. I think that you can see, once again, how happy my grandparents are, and what a beautiful family they have.
I know that not everyone has such wonderful memories of their family, let alone their grandparents and their extended family. Some people have never met their grandparents, or have very bad experiences with family. For others, family may be more of a burden than a blessing.
However, in my personal experience, as I reflect upon what it means to "be family" and "have a family," and I think about the significance of my family in my life, it can hardly be summed up in just a few pictures. I like that these pictures offer a sense of heritage, the value of family passed down from generation to generation. When I reflect upon my current life - married, turning 30 this year, a new dad, finishing graduate school, generally healthy and happy - I realize that so much of what I enjoy every day is a direct result of my family heritage. My grandparents worked hard and sacrificed much. But they also worked hard at instilling values in the family, and they never sacrificed faith or love. These core values were passed down to me, and as a result my understanding and experience of family is that it is one of the most profound blessings of life.
As a result, Kellye and I are working to arrange our life so that our children can have a similar experience. We are thrilled that Aleli is growing up around her grandparents. She spends at least 2 days a week with them, and sometimes much more. We hope that as she gets older, she will know her grandparents very well, and she will know their faith and love too.
I've often reflected that the amazing thing about family is that it is, in some ways, the greatest blessing possible that any one person could experience. And at the same time, it is the blessing that every person does experience, in one way or another. I'm thankful for my experience, and I'm trying to make the experience of my children something beautiful as well.
In two of my classes on Friday, we were asked to discuss the topic of family. The first class, we each drew a picture of our family, a typical therapeutic exercise for children. I drew (as best I could) the Earth, with the couples of my immediate family in different parts of the world, but still connected. I also drew my grandparents sort of "below" the Earth, trying to show that they had passed away, but were still part of my family.
In the second class, we were asked to define "family," which is actually pretty difficult when you think about it! There are many different expressions of a family, especially when considering different cultures and places in the world. We then talked about mapping our family through what is called a genogram, which is basically a simple way to use symbols to quickly portray the family history and relationships amongst members of the family.
I know that not everyone has such wonderful memories of their family, let alone their grandparents and their extended family. Some people have never met their grandparents, or have very bad experiences with family. For others, family may be more of a burden than a blessing.
However, in my personal experience, as I reflect upon what it means to "be family" and "have a family," and I think about the significance of my family in my life, it can hardly be summed up in just a few pictures. I like that these pictures offer a sense of heritage, the value of family passed down from generation to generation. When I reflect upon my current life - married, turning 30 this year, a new dad, finishing graduate school, generally healthy and happy - I realize that so much of what I enjoy every day is a direct result of my family heritage. My grandparents worked hard and sacrificed much. But they also worked hard at instilling values in the family, and they never sacrificed faith or love. These core values were passed down to me, and as a result my understanding and experience of family is that it is one of the most profound blessings of life.
As a result, Kellye and I are working to arrange our life so that our children can have a similar experience. We are thrilled that Aleli is growing up around her grandparents. She spends at least 2 days a week with them, and sometimes much more. We hope that as she gets older, she will know her grandparents very well, and she will know their faith and love too.
I've often reflected that the amazing thing about family is that it is, in some ways, the greatest blessing possible that any one person could experience. And at the same time, it is the blessing that every person does experience, in one way or another. I'm thankful for my experience, and I'm trying to make the experience of my children something beautiful as well.
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1 comment:
Jesse, an accidental search brought me to your post on Family Heritage. What a joy to see this vibrant proud poppa. Your family has taken you on an amazing journey and I see that you have picked a wondrous path of your own. I wish you the best in your experiences with your own family. I look forward to reading more. If you are interested in reading about my journey through the trials and tribulations of marriage, motherhood and memories, I hope you visit my blog. We share many core values and loves.
Blessing to you and yours
~Suzanne
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