The Importance of Family in Shaping an Individual

The role of family in the life of an individual can never be overstated, as it goes a long way in influencing their behavior, shaping their character, and being a strong force that can be relied upon regardless of the challenges of life one faces. Anyone who is blessed with a wonderful family is definitely one of the richest people alive in India. That richness isn't in finance but in manpower, peace of mind, and comfortability. Almost all families have their unique things they're known for or things that have become daily rituals they're adaptable to; while for some it's eating together, for others it's praying together, for others it's chatting together, and many more. In this article I'll be telling you about my family ritual and my family's impact on me.

We've got lots of ritual in my family right from when I was growing up, and the majority of those are still a part of me to date even though I now stay away from my family, and that's a testament to the role and impact of family on an individual's life. Take for instance my family: one of the family rituals we have is eating together. Regardless of if the food is ready hours before everyone arrives home, no one will eat until everyone is home, and even though we don't have a dining table then, we children will still sit around the food on the mat, while the adults, our parents, eat at the center table. It's always a wonderful feeling to dine and wine with your loved ones daily.

Still in the aspects of food and eating, given the fact that we weren't so rich back then, that means we had few plates and cutlery, and these have made each and every one of us have our own plates and spoons, including our parents, although it's not like our parents would fight over plates like we do. But we just know this is the spoon Dad likes, and we would always use it to serve him whenever we want to eat. When someone wants to look for your troubles, that's when you'll see them taking what's yours and trying to use it, but thankfully most times our parents just settle our differences amicably.

The last family ritual we had was morning and night devotion. While growing up till the last day I left home, we still indulged in this family ritual, whereby we woke up early in the morning to pray, sing, and study the word of God before going about our various businesses of the day. The same was the case in the evening, where we usually sang and prayed before going to sleep. Now that I'm an adult, I'm used to this habit that even though I'm alone, I have now unconsciously adopted the same by doing both morning and evening devotion.

I agree with the fact that our family has a role to play in shaping us into what we will be in the future. While it doesn't have the sole role in doing that, it has a big part to play because it's those times we spend together when we know nothing that shape and influence our character, traits, and how we'll treat people around us.

All photos are taken and edited on canva.