Family

As I write this on the Feast of the Holy Family, I’m thinking about what that means to me.  My biological family comes to mind, for sure.  We are a tight-knit group and were blessed to spend quality time together on Christmas night. 

Being a mother, my son immediately comes to mind.  We’re not a “typical nuclear family” because I’m a single mom.  Never doubt, though, that he and I are as much family as any other. With such a diverse universe, what is “typical” anyhow?  How did “nuclear” come to define the love bond that holds so many people together? My candidacy has expanded my family, but that family has also welcomed my son as their own!

On Christmas Eve at the Mound, I witnessed family at the 7:30 mass as sisters and outlying community members enjoyed breathtaking music followed by the breaking of bread together in the Eucharist.  The best kind of family meal!

On Christmas morning, I witnessed the profound meaning of family when sisters and friends gathered round one of our own upon receiving word of the death of her beloved brother, Fr. Mike Lisbeth.  Family encircled Lynn with love and compassion, and they continue to do so.  She’s family.  He’s family.  We’re family. That’s what we do.

           

Families come in all manner of shape, size, and appearance.  With love at its center, one is not more or less than another.  Different, perhaps, but family just the same.

           

How do you celebrate family?

Kathy Flynn, Candidate

Madison, Wisconsin