Do You Know Your Family?

I apologize for not writing this sooner. I have really been caught up with the whole gulf coast crisis that America is facing. My prayers are with the families who have been affected by the floods and turmoil.

God bless every helping hand that has been extended, every person on bended knee uttering prayers to the Most High and all money sent to help restore things and help these people in their desperate time of need.

I must admit that this has really turned me to be more dedicated to my family, cherish everything that I have been blessed with and not take anything for granted.

How well do you know your family? “In every conceivable manner, the family is link to our past, bridge to our future.” Alex Hailey

I have noticed that as I get older I am learning more and more about my family. When I talk about family I am talking about your entire family.

I hear people say things like “I don’t mess with my family like that, I can’t stand my family, my family is all messed up, I don’t get a long with my family, and my family is really close and I love them all dearly.

Whether I posted your response or not I want to introduce you to some unknown family that you have. Are you curious to know that you have some family that you might not be familiar with? Some long lost cousins and siblings. Well let me not keep you in suspense any longer.

The unknown family that I speak of is none other than the Dr. C. George Boeree 7 family groups of emotions.

7 Family Groups of Emotions
The Surprise Family surprise, startle, astonishment, bewilderment, confusion, shock
The Fear Family fear, threat, terror, anxiety, doubt, caution, suspicion

The Anger Family anger, rage, frustration, hatred, hostility, envy, jealousy, disgust, contempt, annoyance, indignation

The Sadness Family sadness, sorrow, depression, anguish, despair, grief, loneliness, shame, embarrassment, humiliation, guilt, remorse, regret

The Eagerness Family
eagerness, anticipation, excitement, confidence, hopefulness, curiosity, interest

The Happiness Family
happiness, elation, joy, gladness, contentment, satisfaction, self-satisfaction, pride love, affection, compassion amusement, humor, laughter

The Boredom Family
boredom, ennui, complacency

Identifying Your Immediate Family
I want you to be brutally honest with yourself. I want to share with you some very interesting questions that you need to ask yourself.

Which family do you spend most of your time with?


How much time do you usually spend with this family?


In a years time how much time do you think you spend with this immediate family of yours?


Is this a good influence upon your life or not?


If not what family do you think you can learn the most from?


What family can help me become the best person I can be?


How can I strengthen my family life with family or newly selected family?

I asked you these seven questions for several reasons. Please keep in mind that our emotions are alarm clocks alerting us that something needs to be addressed, something is wrong or out of place.

There are some emotions that help work good in our favor as well as some that may not work in our favor. The key to it all is how we respond to the emotion

One is because I want you to have a very good idea about your health and attitude. If you spend most of your time being angry or stressing about life you may find yourself facing heart disease issues, ulcers, rheumatism, nervous-diseases, and a few others.

Two is because you need to know your routine in order to make life adjustments to make your life run smoother for yourself.

Three is because 3 families out of the seven are good families to spend a lot of quality time with. They are the happiness family, eagerness family and the surprise family.

Fourth and foremost is the other 4 families can be looked upon as the trying families. Notice that I never sad bad but these are the trying families. They are the anger family, fear family, sadness family, and the boredom family.

I hope you enjoy your family and if by chance you don’t you can always change it.

“In each family a story is playing itself out, and each family's story embodies its hope and despair.” Auguste Napier

“American families have always shown remarkable resiliency, or flexible adjustment to natural, economic, and social challenges. Their strengths resemble the elasticity of a spider web, a gull's skillful flow with the wind, the regenerating power of perennial grasses, the cooperation of an ant colony, and the persistence of a stream carving canyon rocks. These are not the strengths of fixed monuments but living organisms. This resilience is not measured by wealth, muscle or efficiency but by creativity, unity, and hope. Cultivating these family strengths is critical to a thriving human community.” Ben Silliman Family Life Specialist with the University of Wyoming's Cooperative Extension Service