As the years go by, I realize more and more what an important role my family plays in my life. I am truly thankful to have grown up in a family full of love, lots of laughs and an enormous amount of memories that will live on forever. I’ll never take for granted the obnoxiously loud family dinners out at restaurants that gets the attention of the whole restaurant or the occasionally overly-competitive game nights and family cookouts. It’s just in my family's blood I guess, we cant help but be overly loud when all gathered together. I’m very fortunate that there has never been a time where I felt as if I'm alone and have no one to turn to because I know that I can always turn to my family. When I need someone to lean on, they are who I can count on to be there for me. No matter what time of the day it is or how busy they are, I can count on them to be right there to listen to me.

Through anything imaginable, they have been my biggest supporters. If you're wondering what you should do with your life, they'll be willing to give you their honest opinion on what you should do and help you figure out what is best for you. I mean, out of everyone you know, they have your best interest at heart at the end of the day. Never take your family for granted. Always smile and cherish the little things in life while also never forgetting to hug the ones you love. Life is completely uncontrollable, as we never know what will happen next. Do not take one second with your family for granted, you just never know when you'll lose them. Always appreciate the people in your life who always have your best interest at heart.

Life is extremely precious, and we all need to realize that. No matter how high tech the world is nowadays, there will never be a day where we are able to tell when our time on this earth will be over. I advise you to do yourself a favor and tell someone that you love how much you love them. We never know when someone we love may be taken away from us too quickly. If something happened to a special someone and you didn't have the opportunity to say “I love you," I guarantee you'll regret it forever. You never know when it's the last time you are going to see or talk to someone, so you need to make the most out of the time that you have. Death is a challenge everyone will face in life at one point or another. However, the silver lining here is that it teaches us not to waste time and to make the most out of life. If someone reminded me not to take family for granted and always remind them that you love and support them, then right now, on the five-year anniversary of my cousin's passing away, I wouldn't be sitting here with regret missing him more than anything.

The family basketball games and my cousin's priceless remarks and come backs I took for granted all those years, I never truly appreciated the little things until they no longer existed. Now, every day I miss his goofy smile more and more as every day passes. The number of days someone has on earth in some circumstances are unfortunately limited. It only takes a few seconds to express your love and appreciation you have for you family, to thank them for everything they have done. Sit back and think about the number of times your parents or your uncle did something for you and you never even said thank you and instead took their actions for granted. Family does a lot more for you then you realize.

If you have a family with a bond that you can't imagine life without, then you should count yourself immensely lucky. There truly is no greater gift than family. They are there for you whenever you need them and without a doubt love you for who you are. Do not take your family members for granted, always remind them how much you love and appreciate them because if you don't, someday you'll regret it. You never know when you won;t have a chance to say goodbye. Look around you and appreciate those who care about you, be thankful they are in your life. Don’t let the busy lives we live keep you from showing how much you love and appreciate them. Family is absolutely everything!