Hey guys!
I'm back for week three of the 52 Weeks of Gratitude Challenge. I just have to say, I'm giving myself a pat on the back right now for being consistent with this challenge for two whole weeks (this is clearly an achievement for me) So today's post is about family. When I read the challenge topic for this week I was a bit unsure as to how to approach it. I could just ramble on for ages about my family but I thought that it would be nice to list some things that I'm particularly grateful for.
1. To have such a big family
Sure, big families can be a royal pain in the backside most of the time. You have to fight for attention, fight to be heard, fight for the last chocolate biscuit.. There's this overwhelming sense of joy and gratitude when you actually get a moment of silence in the house and you have to get used to the fact that you're probably never going to be able to finish a sentence without someone interrupting.
BUT, besides all the pull-your-own-hair-out moments, a big family is one of the best gifts you could ever have. As you get older, you realise that the amount of 'good' friends out there start to diminish and that people that truly care about you unconditionally are in fact gold dust. Friends may come and go but family are always going to love and care about you and hopefully, be there for you too. Having lots of people that love you no matter how bad your singing is or how much you want to moan about your life? Well, that's not so bad is it.
Although the noise level can be super irritating at times, there is never a dull moment. Although I can't manage to go a full 30 minutes without someone waltzing through my bedroom door, it's nice to have someone that just wants to check up on you. Although having more kids in the house means less money to go around, the laughs and memories will have will never trump having the 'finer things' in life.
DISCLAIMER: This post is clearly going to get very soppy and emosh so I'm sorry if you have to grab yourselves a bucket whilst reading this.
(Isn't it funny that people often apologise for getting too 'deep'? We're just expressing, it's natural!)
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| This is my family last summer.. they're crazy |
2. Parents that support me and are proud of me regardless
I was sat in a taxi, on my way to uni at stupid hours in the morning for a day trip to London. The taxi driver was telling me about his kids (He probably repeats these stories fifty times over, I though to myself) and how his son was seven years in training to be a lawyer and his daughter was in training for a similar time, studying to be a doctor. He was clearly very proud and it's not hard to understand why!
I felt the need to say something to the driver, and I did "Lot's of people don't take art degree's very seriously. I am so lucky to have parents that have never pushed me into studying something that I didn't want to. They're just happy that I'm doing something I enjoy."
Being honest, I just don't believe that half of the people studying these sorts of degrees actually enjoy it, that deep down, that's what they've always wanted to do. And that just makes me sad really. I get that these parents are proud of their children and rightly so, but I just find something so wrong and pretentious about parents using children as some sort of trophy. It just makes me wonder, would the taxi driver be praising his children so highly if they were to have studied an art course like mine?
It really made me realise how lucky I am because I took it for granted. I've never known a life where my parents have pushed me to do things that I don't want to do or don't enjoy. Well, apart from going to school or to the dentist...
A little while ago, I was telling my dad about how I don't want to work at Primark for the rest of my life. I was expecting him to laugh and agree with me but instead, he said something that really warmed my heart. He said 'Well, to be honest Jade, if working at Primark for the rest of your life made you happy, it wouldn't be so bad would it?'
I've always felt that no matter what mistakes I've made or what achievements I've gained, that my parents have always been proud of me and that, I am forever extremely grateful for.
3. Long distance means nothing
I have family in wales, yorkshire and further up north and as I live in Devon, we don't all get to see each other very often but as a family, we have always made the effort to arrange dates to visit and so we usually get to see them twice a year which isn't too bad considering. It would be very easy to just slip away slowly and lose contact and so I'm grateful for family members that care enough to put the effort in.
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| All the women on my dads side of tbe family |
I was planning on doing more reasons but looking at what I've written, I think that's enough for one post! I don't want to bore y'all to your deaths.
I really hope you enjoyed my third week running of the challenge, keep undated for the next one!
Lots of love
Jade x
