On Belonging to a Family

One of the wonderful things of life is a sense of belonging. And one of the most wonderful things to belong to is a loyal and affectionate family – a family who have each their own individual activities and interests but who feel a real oneness with one another.

There is much that a family can do with oneness, and much that without it is missed. There are so many things to join, so many things to do, so many things to take our time, but a loving and loyal family is still one of the most wonderful things in the world to belong to.

Families differ: They differ in their affections. They differ in showing how they feel. They differ in sharing confidences, and in their interests and activities. Families are sometimes abused, sometimes slighted, and sometimes quarrel and criticize one another, and often take each other for granted.

But let some need arise, some tragedy threaten, some sorrow come, some loss or loneliness – and thoughts turn homeward; and hearts and arms are opened; and families sense their oneness in their common claims and causes.

Parents, of course, are the ones mostly who keep families close. But even after parents have left this life families ought to keep close, and not pull apart, and always preserve a gathering place, and carry on traditions and see that the next generation become acquainted with one another – for the sense of belonging is a source of strength, of comfort, of safety, of peace and protection. And he who has it has more to live up to, more to keep him in safe paths and high purposes.

The years move swiftly. The blessed years when we have our loved ones with us are all too short, and we should hold in love and loyalty to those on whom we have the closest claims. No matter who comes or goes and no matter where time takes us, families should keep close, for a sense of belonging is one of the most satisfying things in life. There is no finer thing to belong to than a loyal and affectionate family – and it will be so, always and forever.