As summer approaches it's simple to think about all of the fun things you'll do and the new experiences you'll have with people that you care about. Sometimes it's easy to lose touch of those who are important to you when there are so many distractions or exciting events occurring around you. We need to remember those who have shaped us into the people we are today and how our love and kindness needs to be translated to them during the time that is spent together. With all of the hype and excitement about the summer, it's simple to slip into a different life that you haven't experienced yet. Each time I leave home, I always wish that I spent more time with my family because time is so precious.

I do my absolute best to balance it all, but sometimes it all just comes crashing down on me when time needs to be separated between different people. There are also pro's with spending time with new people as new experiences and memories are created which last a lifetime. After meeting these new people they usually become a big part of my life and I learn something special from each one. But family, now that's permanent and something that no friend or relationship could fill in my life. There's only a core amount of people who will always be there and have my full love and support constantly and that's my core, my family.

It's taken me a lot of time to realize how precious family is and how absolutely nothing could fill the gap or replace the ones that you love. On every break or chance that I have to be home, I do my absolute best to see everyone that I love and care about because time is so temporary. It's the moments that you have and the memories that you make with your loved ones that are without a doubt timeless. As soon as you learn those few lessons by living with such a supportive, loving family, everything else becomes much clearer.

Love is what love does, and even making time for the ones you care about just shows the character and person that you are. When you put yourself in situations to show people your love and support for the life they live and aspire to have, that speaks volumes and more. When you're separated or apart from those that you used to see every day, it starts to take a toll on your perception of them and how you used to view them. I used to have a low tolerance for some things that would aggravate me with my family, but now I would do absolutely anything to be sitting at the dinner table with them.

It's the little things that get to us and create the most anger in such a minimal situation. Sometimes we tend to create our own sour lemons when we initially could have kept or lemonade sweet without an issue. That's life though and that's how we learn the importance of who we are as well as where we came from. My family is everything I am, it's my origin, it's my present, and it will always be my future.