The idea of family is a very normalized idea that I’m sure not many take the time to sit and think about. It's the people you have lived with day in and day out for the first 18 years of your life. These are the people who have seen you through all of your phases some phases better than others. The people you will always be genetically tied to.

This idea of a family isn’t the same for everyone. There are many different family dynamics. When I came to college my friends became my family to fill the void I was missing.

It isn’t hard to adopt that feeling towards others when you are living with them and seeing them in their most vulnerable state. Family is a bond that can simply be described through unconditional love. It's the people you choose to associate with and share the most personal part of yourself with.

Through this idea, the test of true friendship has been questioned. Over time I have learned that you are going to be let down and sometimes things just won’t go your way. Life can be a journey, but the exciting thing is everyone has their own journey to experience.

Being away from my family has given me the opportunity to experience new adventures and meet people that have taught me many life lessons. It is your experiences that help you become the person you are meant to be. Family helps center you when you get lost in the adventure. They can be the helping hand that you may have trouble admitting you need.

Being away from my family has really made me appreciate them. It has shown me how fortunate I am to have parents that want to talk on the phone every day and siblings that look forward to me coming home. It's incredible to see where life can take you in just three years.

Some things haven’t been so great, but from that great things have come about. Distance really does make the heart grow fonder. The people that care the most about you will always prevail. These are the people that I know will never let me down and will always be there to pick me up when I fall.

A family are the people that you can laugh endlessly with or can drive you absolutely insane. At the end of the day, they are all you have. When all of the materialistic items in our life disappear your family is the people that would still be there.

Wheather it's my best friend calling me in the middle of the night because life is just a little too hard or calling my brother to see how golf is going. These relationships define your happiness, not money or social status. It's simply the people that would be there for you if everything else disappeared. At the end of the day who would be there for you?