Family
Fire gets a bad rap.
It has become synonymous with pain and destruction.
But this is the wrong light to cast this beautiful creation in.
Much in the same way, family can be cast in a bad light.
Now I’m not going to get up here and tell you family is never painful.
It has painful connotations, memories we try to block out, eggshells we try not to crush as we tiptoe our way around.
But this is a very small aspect of true family.
Every family is a bit dysfunctional. Like fire, family can burn…as it’s the people closest to us that can hurt
us the most.
But like fire, we can’t let the bad rap define family…we can’t let it overshadow the good.
Family is the fire that provides warmth to make it through the winters of our life.
Family is the embers of the stove that give us food to nourish our soul.
Family is the little flicker of light that keeps us going when darkness crowds around us.
Family is a beacon, a lamp to help us on our journey.
Family is the fire that provides fuel to the engine of our heart.
Family is the camp fire we sit around and swap stories,
And the fire we gaze into and reflect, and learn a bit more about ourselves.
Family is the fire that refines us, molds us, and makes us who we are.
Family is defined differently for different people, and comes in all shapes, colors, sizes, and distinctions.
But like fire, we need family to survive.
Like fire, family draws people in, consuming them with warmth and love.
And it is THIS kind of fire, THIS kind of family, that we are excited to see brought together and expanded
today.
To everyone that Adam and Kara call “family,”
Welcome.
