The nuclear family seems to have become a thing of the past. It appears that "Mum, Dad and a couple of kids living at home" is the exception now, as opposed to the rule.
My family is certainly testament to that - my parents divorced when I was very young, and both parents have remarried. I have half-siblings running around that I haven't even met. I also have four brothers and sisters here in NZ along with a myriad of in-laws, and not many of us can claim the nuclear family title either. My husband and I often joke that I don't have a family tree - it is something more like a gorse bush!
Although we don't have conventional families, and we may not keep in contact as much as we probably should, there is a fundamental understanding between us all that we have each other's backs.
International Day of the Families (15th May annually) was brought about by the United Nations Programme of the Family to stress the importance of having healthy and happy relationships with your relatives.
Dean recently went to a conference in Adelaide and heard Richard Branson speak - he said that the best advice he ever got was "take a year to make up with all of the people you have fallen out with". Perhaps you could take the opportunity this Wednesday to reach out to some of your family members - a phone call out of the blue may just make someone's day!
