Family Culture

Look at your family and then look at someone else’s family. They are totally different from yours, right? Why is that? Wouldn’t you think that families would be pretty similar? There are very few cases where families are running and functioning the same way. In my opinion what makes families different is what makes them all special. Your family is specifically designed by your unit and the choices you all make. This is called family culture. 

Family culture is what makes every family unit so unique. A family's culture is influenced by their past and experiences and what each individual brings to the table. I believe that family culture can change however the family changes. It can be a negative or a positive thing. Everybody in a family has specific characteristics that bring diversity and life to a family. In my family I see different personalities that are based off of a foundation of love and support. Everyone in my family is so different from one another but what ties us all together is our family culture and foundation. My family culture is based on love and the expression of love as well as support. In my family it is just common for us to take time out of our day to attend choir concerts, sports games, award ceremonies and other activities involving our family members. We express love to one another by actions and by words. We are affectionate. My dad goes to work and my mom stays home. There is an emphasis on education and hard work. That is just how things are done in my family. I love my family culture. 

I read a story about a family from Mexico that moved to the United States. It completely changed their family culture. There was a family that was made up of a mom and a dad, a daughter and a sixteen year old son. They lived near their aunt, uncle, cousins, and grandpa. It was a wonderful life. They were comfortable. The dad worked for a railroad company. One day the parents decided that they wanted to move to the USA. They all couldn’t cross the border at the same time and they did not have enough recourses either. They decided that the dad would go first and work until they had enough to all come later. The dad left which led to the oldest son to step up and be the head of the household. The mother had to go work now because they did not have enough of an income anymore. The daughter spent more time at the cousins house which caused the aunt to take on more of a mother role in her life. Their family culture was changing. It took years for the family to make it to the United States. Everything was different. They were all together as an immediate family, but they had to leave behind their grandpa and cousins and aunt and uncle. The kids had to work and as well as the parents. They now had their mexican culture mixing with the new ways of life in America. They lived not as comfortably as they did in Mexico. Things were different. Their family culture changed. 

I am very impressed with the family from the story. That was a big sacrifice for the family. The shift in the family dynamics and roles changed the family culture. The things we experience as a family, heartbreak, loss, new jobs, moves, new schools changes our family culture. A family’s way of life is never set in stone. It ebbs and flows. What is important as change arrives is the priority you make your family. Keep one another first in your heart. Make time for one another. Your family is what you have to hold onto in this crazy world.