Family
By Patrick J. Derilus

family is not blood.

you can be born under the roof,
where your mother and father raised,
fed, and clothed you but 

family is not blood.

family is a group of empathic human beings 
who are unique, celebrate, love, respect similarities
as well as accept one another’s differences.

a family member can be your friend.
a family member can be a stranger.
families are sound with one another.
families awaken you to danger.

your parents are there to raise, and 
watch you grow.

families are not dictators; 
they do not treat you as
if you are lesser. 

families fight and argue,
families do not abuse one another. 
families of sisters, mothers, 
fathers, and brothers,
dry the blood from which 
they might harm one another

family is not blood.

families do not dictate one another’s lives. 
families should not control you.
families might be passed on, but

a father needs to be a father
a mother needs to be a mother,
a sister so sisterly, as brotherly
should be a brother.

families love one another;
families respect one another’s space.
families are not entitled to impose respect
or blood will leave without a trace.

if you are my child, being a parent is not a job.
because that seems like 
I am to treat you like an errand. 
if you are my child, you become my friend
that is how a family is bred, with genuine caring

family is not blood.

if your parents are abusive,
their actions are not justifiable just because
they are your “parents.”

a parent sees their child as a gift, 
not property.
a parent’s connection with 
their children should be inherent

a family is where you feel safe, 
with an open heart to embrace them all.

there’s an old saying that family is everything,
when blood runs thin, you know who to call.