The Disintegrating Family (Replay)

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October 30, 2007

Good afternoon family.

Sorry to get WFTD out so late. Today is a little different and rather a reflection on how things use to be and where I see them headed. This past Thursday thru Sunday (10/25 – 10/28), my household and sister (Deidra's sister) traveled to Hattiesburg, MS to funeralize (is this a word?) her grandmother.

Despite the occasion, it was a time that the entire family got together. It is a large family and I enjoyed meeting another side of my wife's family whom I've never had the opportunity to meet. The kids played their hearts out, the family enjoyed each other's company, and there was much eating going on down there! All of this made me reflect back on when I was growing up and how my father's side of the family got together all the time. You know, the family reunions, family trips, kids racing barefoot down dirt roads (some of yall might not know about that LOL), etc. It was all a great time.

However, I said all that to say, the family of today has transformed and is no longer the family of old. As older family members pass away, who were patriarchs or matriarchs of the family, it tends to splinter and smaller families of the family tend to stick to themselves – no longer "doing the big family" thing any more. I realized this after I looked at my kids and saw that my Daughter & Son don't know cousins like we did. As children, we seem to have known tons of cousins and remembered their names even if it were nicknames. But children of this generation, do good to know one or two cousins.

Why? The family is disintegrating. Many of us are so busy with our household lives that we tend to forget about the extended family. Not even family reunions hold as much meaning any more. Not until we lose someone does the family bind together for the one occasion and then back onto our merry ways.

People change and times change. There is no longer the mother with 9 children and each of them having children. You're lucky today if household has one child. The solution you might ask? Well I don't have a global one, but I do have a suggestion: enjoy your family while they're here. Your kids will never really know what a family is like until you teach them what a family is – so if that means the change has to start with you....then let it start with you.

Be Blessed folks.
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Regards,

Antoine E. Hall

Blog:      http://toinebo.blogspot.com
Twitter:     http://www.twitter.com/AntoineHall

"Do not merely listen to the word, and so deceive yourselves. Do what it says." - James 1:22