A family is originally defined as a group of two or more people related by blood, marriage, or adoption.
Been wondering why family is important? Here to help provide you with those answers but first off, allow me to define family a little differently.
What a family really means.
Family is not about blood, it’s about who is there for you when you need it the most.
Over time, the term family has evolved to accommodate a few of our closest, dearest, and favorite people, and the ones who are there for us when we need it the most.
Yes our biological family remains key(to all those who have it) but not everyone has one, so yes personally I prefer the evolved meaning of family.
For some, mom, dad, siblings, and relatives maybe be what we regard as family and for the rest, some of the strangers they met became family, and that’s okay too. What matters is to have a family – people we can count on when the going gets tough.
The only institution I know that works is the family.
-Leo Iacocca
The importance of family
1. Family nurtures one into the person they become later in the future.
This is mostly true for our biological families, whether healthy or toxic, we take after them in many different ways for example how to treat others, how we communicate with each other, how to deal with stressful situations, what our first language will be and so on.
James Baldwin said, “Children have never been good at listening to their parents but they’ve never failed to imitate them.
Therefore it is important for parents to set a good example for their children and also provide them with a healthy environment so that they turn out to be the best versions of themselves.
The best security blanket a child can have is parents who respect each other.
~ Jan Blaustone
If all your children see is quarreling, disrespect, and fighting that is what they will imitate. If you are loving and caring, these same virtues will also be portrayed by your children. So be sure to walk the talk.
2. Family is very important because they offer unconditional love and support, especially during difficult moments.
A father’s love calms all fears and a mother’s love dries tears.
~ Unknown
Having people who still love you, and support you the same when you have nothing to your name, are struggling financially or are dealing with bad breaks in life is priceless. That gives one the strength to keep pushing for better in life.
3. Family prepares us for life in the outside world.
Right from the education, they give us, the morals they teach us, the emotional support, how to communicate, and how to treat others, all prepare us for life in the outside world – a life where our parents and loved ones may be absent, just can’t be there for us or require us to be independent.
That makes a family very important.
Frank Clark once said, “The most important thing that parents can teach their children is how to get along without them.”
4. Family greatly influences one’s mental health.
Healthy families are most likely to provide one with a great support system, help them when they are going through different life phases and challenges, and hence good mental health as certain conditions like depression are easily avoided.
Toxic or unhealthy families on the other hand trigger mental health issues like depression which can lead to trauma and many other mental disorders. Existing mental health issues are also likely to get worse.
5. Another reason why family is important is family teaches morals and values.
Growing up, a person’s family teaches them good morals like greeting people, apologizing when in wrong, how to treat others, the dos and don’ts of society, and right from wrong, and these values get ingrained in a person’s life much easier than those they learn later in adulthood.
The environment in which a child grows up greatly impacts almost everything about them, developing their personality and what they come to regard as right or wrong.
6. Another reason why family is important is they give one a sense of belonging.
Whether biological or chosen, it is always great to know that one is not alone – they belong somewhere to a particular group, who care and love them, people who share the same values as them. Somewhere they can go when life gets tough for comfort and where their little wins in life and happy moments will be celebrated too.
7. Family pushes to be successful in life
It is just in human nature to want to see our loved ones happy and therefore we shall do almost anything in our power to put a smile on their faces.
It is this urge that pushes us to work hard so we are able to provide for our loved ones and push harder so as to become successful in whatever we do and make them proud.
8. Family gives us a sense of responsibility
Since we know we are not alone in this world and have people who care about us and whom we care about, we as individuals also try to be on our best behavior, not take unnecessary risks, avoid getting into fights and unnecessary trouble so we can be there for our loved ones too.
The idea of knowing we belong somewhere pushes us to behave differently than we usually would if we had no one.
9. Family act as role models in different areas of life.
A man who treats his wife like a princess is prove that he has been raised by a queen.”
– Cindy Battles
Growing up, we all surely had something we loved about our biological family. Maybe it is how your mother cared for you and your siblings, how well your father tried to provide for the family, or how your elder sister or brother always had your back, all these and many more push us to want to be better in these and other areas of life.
What’s warmer than a father’s hug? What’s sweeter than your mother’s food? Better than your siblings’ company? These are the simple things we cherish in life that have no substitutes.
~ Unknown
10. Family sets the bar for us in life.
As we go through life, we shall determine how successful we are in most of our affairs depending on our family.
For example, one who doesn’t live to be more successful than his or her parents may consider himself or herself an underperformer and end up feeling like a failure in life.
We shall always measure our level of success in life, academics, morals, finances depending on our family – chosen or biological.
Closing note
Whether we acknowledge it or not, family remains a very important pillar in our lives, especially during tough times like failure, sickness, going through different phases of transition like puberty to adulthood, and many more.
Therefore a better approach is to embrace family.
If the family you are born into is an unhealthy or toxic one or is no longer existent, you have the choice to create your own family as you go along; people who will be there for you when you need it the most. Those that make your life a little more fun and livable.
Friends are the family you choose.
~ Jess C Scott
