My Family, My Mother, And My Father

Family. That word means everything to me. My parents, both immigrants from India, were raised in relative poverty in their hometown of Bengaluru. They courageously made the decision to leave their own family behind for the sake of a better opportunity for themselves and their children. They sacrificed a lot when I was growing up, as they worked hard to establish their careers. Thankfully, my grandparents were there to help take care of me. Travelling back and forth from India, they would help around the house, cook meals, and even pick me up from school. Their presence played a huge role in my childhood. I was lucky enough to basically grow up with four parents, each of whom instilled in me values that I hold today: hard work, sacrifice, and altruism.

My family may not be the tightest, or richest, but my parents love me and would do anything for me. My parents made me who I am, my mom told me to be humble and never judge a person because who knows what that person has been through. On the other hand there's my dad, who taught me a lot about the real world, and life is not as easy as I thought and you'll need money to have a decent life, so stay in school, because school the only way for a better life. My oldest brother probably taught me the most though. He tells me about sports and who got traded or hurt, he tells me about politics. They are the reason I am me. After all, if I was raised by my uncle, I think I wouldn't even think about going to college, I would prolly live in Norwood all my life following in his footsteps, but I wasn't, I was raised by two supporting parents, who wants me to have a better life than them and will make sure I will. My family made me who I am, with my dad lectures about me needing to work for what I want, to my mom's kindness and showing me how to treat others no matter who they are.

When I was 16 years old, I realized I was similar to my dad. I always felt different from my family. My parents and my sister's look-alike. Their skin colors are all the same. I’ve always been the darker and chubbier one in the family. Sometimes I used to think I wasn’t even related to them. I even asked my mom as a kid, “did you guys kidnap me from someone as a kid?”

Many of us have had that one pet, or one family member that we are close to, whether we bonded well with them or we feel like we can tell them anything and they will never tell anyone. This experience for me has been my dog, Lucas, a chocolate and tan dachshund, his story isn’t well known or known by many, but to me he is my fighter and my best friend.

Everyone has someone in their life that makes you feel better when you're sad or cares about you eternally, no matter what. That is my family, specifically my Dad, my Mom and my brother Brian. Some people take their family for granted, but I know that without my parents I wouldn’t have a roof over my head or food on a plate or even clothes on my back. Without my brother, I might not have played any sports, my brother is the one who introduced all types of sports into my life and motivated me to do my best.

Family provides a basis for how we interact with the world; when meeting someone new, or doing a new action, I think back on what my family has taught me. I have a large family and each member has done something that has impacted me in some way, but I have really analyzed how my grandparents, aunts, uncles, and parents have impacted my life. There are several aspects to consider however for this analysis I will be focusing on these socioeconomic events: immigration, poverty, gender, educational attainment, death, and health problems.

“Work hard, never give up, and most importantly, always stay humble and kind”, these are just a few words my father would say to me when he had the chance or felt that I needed to hear that. My mother would say, “Mickey, as long as you believe in yourself, you can do anything”. To this day, I live my life through proverbs, quotes, and advice from a variety of people. I am very family-oriented. Most of the things I do is in hopes that I can augment some type of valuable contribution to my family and others. To begin to tell my story, I will first start by talking about the people who had the biggest influence on my life.

Family is one of the most important parts of life. When you have a piece of that missing, you always wonder what could be different. When I was little i always looked up to my uncles and my best friend was my papa. I wanted to do everything with them but because of my uncle’s job in the armed forces we didn’t see him as much as we liked but that made our time together even better. I would go everywhere with my papa and when my cousins were in North Carolina I wanted to do everything with them. I didn’t know that our family tree was just a little more complicated than I thought. It was something that would affect me forever.

Ever since I can remember, I’ve always said that if I could have even just one wish, it would be for a teleporter from my home here in Iowa where my dad lives, to my home in Virginia where my mom lives. My family is huge; but it’s also split up. My parents have been apart basically since I was born. I have to travel back and forth between them constantly, because they live about 1200 miles away from one another. It wasn’t easy to deal with as a little kid… and it still isn’t. But what had happened one year, before I went back to Virginia with my mom for summer break, would change everything. And what I was to learn from it was even bigger.

As children we are born into a family in which we are chosen by God to be in. We are placed in a home, community, and an environment that makes us who we are today. Some of us must seek to overcome and grow out of the place we were born in and others are more content with where they were brought up in. As a child I was born in a good home yet fought many battles but it made me the strong soldier I am today.

“Families are the compass that guides us. They are the inspiration to reach great heights, and our comfort when we occasionally falter”(Henry). My family has several different aspects that make us a “family”. Many times I have thought to myself that Family isn’t important, although I think about it a little harder and my mind completely changes. The overall theme of a family is different for every single person. Morals are just another example of how different families are. My family has shaped me into the person I am today. The impact on my family is a lasting aspect. Many people believe family is only blood and I can’t disagree with that statement more. Many different factors go into describing Family, and the theme, morals, and lasting impacts describe my family.

As cliché as it may sound, my friends and family are the most important things in my life. When I say that my parents are the best in the world, I am not exaggerating. They treat me like an adult, appreciating my opinions in debates about anything from sports to politics and telling me the truth whenever possible. With them, I have been able to see the world, traveling to around the United States (to places like New York City, Acadia National Park, and even Columbia, South Carolina) and abroad (including Bermuda, Italy, and France). In my family, I am able to find people who challenge me to be my best and who also notice when I need comfort. On a similar note, my friendships have made me into a more adventurous, open person. I am naturally cautious and can worry extensively over decisions, but my friends have a way of bringing me out into the world. I have had wonderful experiences like going to Halloween Horror Nights at Universal and taking late-night fishing trips that I never would have done on my own. The people I love bring out the best in me and make me want to be even better.

The make-up of my family was our parents, two boys and four girls, of which I was the youngest. It was a Christian based home, where my father was strict but, my mother was the nurturer in the family. In my eyes, my mother was awesome because she had such inner, spiritual and physical strength, and although both parents played a big part in our spiritual instruction, the memory of her example of faithful prayer and dependence on God’s strength, impacted me the most.

The most important thing for me in my life is my family. Although we are separated during the week, we would hardly see each other. Deep down they are the reason why I look forward to Fridays and Sundays. These days are not just any ordinary day of the week for me and my family. My two beloved aunts Maria and Luz come to visit me and my mother, most of the time we go out of town, which makes the rest of the day go by very fast. Then what we usually do during the week.

Family is very important to me. Without them, I wouldn’t be the person I am today. I was born in silver spring Maryland which is a pretty diverse place. Compared to others around me I have a small family. My family includes my younger sister who is 16, my mom, and our dog Mikey. Also included in my household is my mom’s husband and his daughter. Note how I didn’t say they were my family. I don’t really consider them family. They don’t really exist to me. As the oldest out of my sister and I, I have to take on a lot of responsibilities and make sure that I set a good example for my sister to follow. Since my sister and I are close in age we bump heads a lot and get into many arguments because sometimes she feels like I’m trying to be her mother and tell her what to do.