The Beautiful Blessing of Family to Love

It is Family Day in Ontario... We bring out the best or the worst in each otherThrough blood-bond (or bondage) of sister and brotherOf father and mother and uncles and auntsOf Niece-nephew-cousins, and gramma and grampsA lineage of names, frames and faces are weComprising the faction, that we call family Fabric work of freundschaft, (relatives) of hand-me-down traitsOf stature, demeanor, chins, noses and gaitsOf quirks we don’t notice or question becauseThat’s just the way our family ‘does’ /wasA birds-of-a-feather Forever are weBy a genetic tether that we call Family We banter and bicker, share laughter and tearsBecause blood is thicker than water or yearsWe bear a fond bond, whether near or afarOf a sense of belonging wherever we areBecause what makes ‘us’ transcends geographyDistance cannot sever cords of family Of father and mother and brother and sisPrecious imperfection and terrible blissA beautiful chaos of ancestral tiesGrandpa Joe’s cowlick and Granny’s blue eyesA come-from-a-long-line-of-proud pedigreeWe are and will always be family We are much more than mere faces in framesOr leaves on a branch on a tree full of namesWe are love-pray-for-and help one anotherWe are a thank-you God for father, motherWhere no one can take the place of you or meWhen it comes to our part in a family We gather 'round tables, 'round cradles, 'round gravesWe celebrate triumphs and weather grief's wavesAnd wonder, where in God's wide world we would beWithout the dear people we call family Where, pray that we never lose humble sight ofThe beautiful blessing of family to love © Janet Martin My first familyPhoto Sept. 2023Mom and dad and all ten of us...(Celebrating my parent's 60th wedding anniversary) My next familyAfter 35 years of marriage...photo Nov.2023Thank-you, Lord