Family Matters

A friend* and I were recently discussing the concept of a 'normal' family. There is this peculiar belief held by most of society that this ideal exists; a group of individuals tied together by blood and/or marriage who get together for holidays and Sunday dinners without incident**. In these homes the Christmas tree never falls down, birthday gifts are always thoughtful, and everyone agrees that the meal is delicious. When the topic of politics or religion does come up the debate rarely becomes heated because as we all know, those of a feather always have similar values and beliefs and fall generally close to one another on the political spectrum....or something like that.

What i want to know is where did this belief come from? I don't know a single person who would describe their own family as "normal". Sure some folks do a pretty good job for the duration of a meal or a birthday party but i assure you that as soon as the guests leave the masks come off. Take my family for example; theres an uncle who's trans-gendered, at least one person who's done time, and a cousin who's currently being brainwashed by a cult. And thats just on my fathers side. At any given family dinner you are sure to meet a left wing artist-of-sorts, an ultra conservative ideal of middle class manhood, and a closeted homosexual. To me, THIS is normal. Whats a few days at the parents house without too many empty bottles of wine, some tears, and a good laugh (probably at someone else's expense). As my older brother*** used to declare at the peak of an argument "We put the FUN in dysfunctional!"

Love Forever,

Jamie

*sister wife

**yelling, fighting, crying, hurt feelings, drunk uncle/aunt/brother/mother, general disappointment, etc...
***comic relief