Family

Being a Rabbit year child of Chinese Horoscope fame, I am curiously detached from family. If the Chinese Horoscope knows this about me, it can't possibly be my fault. I do admit that I am not what you might call very close to my family. My mother and sister (my only remaining immediate family members) both live in Southern California and I, in Hawaii. It's not that I don't love my family, I do. We don't get the chance to visit as much as we should, but I did manage to see my mom twice last year, both in August for her birthday and in November the week before Thanksgiving. I'm going to make an attempt to see my family at least once a year from here on out because since moving to Hawaii, I've only been back to visit them four times.

It was a total coincidence that I received a wonderful portrait of my two beautiful nieces today. I don't think they knew I'd be writing about family today, and if they did, it would have been virtually impossible to time the United States Postal Service delivery to arrive exactly on this day. So I'll chalk up another coincidence to the universe and the Law of Attraction. It's like thinking of and old family member who you haven't seen in quite a long time and out of the blue, the phone rings. It's unexplainable, but it hints to the fact that we're really all connected. I love my nieces to death and I wish I had spent more time with them while they were growing up. They're twins and they both just graduated from college this past summer. I'm very proud of them and so is their Aunty Jojo.

The majority of the rest of my family reside back in Minnesota, where I like to refer to as God's country. They've been experiencing some truly frightful weather this winter, but it seems it's been that way all across the U.S.. I grew up in Edina and I have an aunt, uncle and two cousins living in Minneapolis (at least I think they're all still there). The rest are located further north stretching from St. Cloud to Lake Mille Lacs. I have 6 first cousins, whom are good catholics, so you do the math on how large the clan has expanded up until now. I can't even count all of the second cousins and their offspring, and their offspring; so I couldn't really say. I just really need to reconnect. I haven't spoken with any of them in the past 20 years or so with the exception of my youngest cousin Shawn. He and his lovely wife came out to visit us in 2007 and I think they're planning another trip this year. I myself will probably be taking a trip to Minnesota for my 30th reunion this summer, so no doubt I'll be paying a visit to my extended family while I'm there.

What I'd like to say about family is that they are truly the ones who make us who we are. We spend our formative years among them growing up and sharing memories for all of the holidays, summer vacations, weddings, funerals and all other sorts of family gatherings. Superbowls, picnics, parades and fishing trips make up some of my most cherished childhood memories.

OK... Now I'm really getting homesick for Minnesota.

I will make an honest attempt to get back in touch with the family I left behind in the Great White North since we moved to California in 1981. I miss them and God willing they miss me a little bit too. Reach out and touch a member of your family (or more) and try to re-connect now that we have the tools available to us. You're excuses (and mine) for remaining detached are rapidly dimishing. It's way too easy, to pick up the phone, text them, send an email, or "Friend" them on Facebook and send them a message, just to name a few methods available to us today. No longer do we have to sit down and write a letter to send off with the mail man. It's too easy to stay in touch, so join me in my pledge to improve family relationships.