If you didnt feel like your support system was strong enough then getting yourself out of the situation was the best thing to do

Scrubbing the floor when no one else wanted to was something that my mother would have done. If I cant be with her the least I can do is act like her sometimes.

The knowledge that she would never be loved in return acted upon her ideas as a tide acts upon cliffs.

This is part of what a family is about not just love. Its knowing that your family will be there watching out for you. Nothing else will give you that. Not money. Not fame. Not work.

When I walk I walk with you. Where I go youre with me always.

Traveling in the company of those we love is home in motion.

My mother used to tell me that when push comes to shove you always know who to turn to. That being a family isnt a social construct but an instinct.

What is home My favorite definition is a safe place a place where one is free from attack a place where one experiences secure relationships and affirmation. Its a place where people share and understand each other. Its relationships are nurturing. The people in it do not need to be perfect instead they need to be honest loving supportive recognizing a common humanity that makes all of us vulnerable.

Ill be your family now he says. I love you I say. ....He stares at me. I wait with my hands clutching his arms for stability as he considers his response. He frowns at me. Say it again.Tobias I say I love you.

Then I discovered that being related is no guarantee of love