This Is Our Life

Dear Family,

We have been through many storms,

Many that most wouldn't have sailed;

We lost each other,

We argued,

We fought;

Yet, still we came together.

We carried a lifetime of hardship,

But we united,

To survive,

To make it right.

Yes;

We made mistakes,

But we shamelessly accounted for every single one,

And we stood through them all.

We almost lost each other,

But some of us found our way back,

And now,

We wait with antipication,

For the others to return.

Life has dealt us many hardships,

Though none were deserved,

But the most important survival tools are

Gratitude, love, and the strong bonds we hold on to,

Those are things that never fade.

We were stigmatized by those who claimed to be professionals,

And friends,

Who tore our family apart;

We stood tall through it all,

Because families survive when love is stronger than

assumptions and words.

And today;

Here we are,

Our children all grown up,

Weathering storms with a strength they never thought

they had.

Turn around,

Look at me!

I'm not even a fraction of my past,

No longer can my enemies tear me to the

ground,

Each and every day I get up doubling this new strength I have,

That strength comes from the love of a family,

Something before,

I never had.

This is our life today,

We find love and beauty in everything,

We are strong,

We are caring,

And we love harder than anyone could ever see.

There have been a lot of changes,

Not one of us got here easily,

But;

As change continues,

Just simply know this;

I'm proud to call you my family.