Relationships are important to me
because without them I would not know who I am. Relationships help to form who
a person is and I am grateful for all of the relationships that I have. Each of
my relationships is different but they are all provide something for me that no
one else does. In some way, each relationship will help me grow, keep me
grounded, support me, and contains love. Each relationship that I have will
also do the same for the other person. We are able to both give and receive
advice and help each other.
The
relationships that I currently have that are the most significant to me include
my husband, daughter, mother, siblings, and a few close friends. Each of these
relationships is different in what it gives to me, but I rely on each one for
what is can provide.
My husband
and I met five years ago (yesterday!), and we are now married with a daughter
and another one on the way! We progressed from dating, to marriage, and now we
are parents. We may not see each other as much as we would like (he works
evenings on a rotating schedule), but we learned early on in our relationship
to make all the time we have together count. We not only have a relationship
but a partnership which really came into play when we became parents. We both
work, take care of the house, and care for our daughter, as that is what works
for us.
My newest
relationship is with my nine-month old daughter. She is my pride and joy, as I’m
sure most parents think of their children, and she consumes all my time when I
am not at work. The relationship that she and I have will continue to grow but
for now I am happy being her caregiver; providing for all of her wants and
needs. I show my love for her not only by taking care of her but simply
interacting and playing with her and giving her my attention. Through hugs and
kisses, she gets even more attention, and when she smiles and laughs back at me
she shows that she loves me too.
The
relationship that I have with my mother has really grown to where it is now. It
was not until adulthood that I talked to my mother each day on the phone,
sought her advice, or really listened to her. I can always count on my mom to
answer the phone and listen about my day, calm me down or encourage me, give me
words of wisdom, or just tell me she loves me. I think at this point my mom
knows she can count on me as well as she often calls me to ask for advice, or
help with tasks. I am glad that I can now give back and we have a more
reciprocal relationship.
I have four
siblings and I am sure that I could write a book about how our relationships
have developed since childhood! Being the youngest of five, my relationships
with each of my siblings is very different. My oldest brother and I are happy
in each other’s company but rarely talk on the phone (except for announcing major
life changes). It has taken a while for him to regard me as an adult even
though I will be 30 in a week (gasp!). My next oldest brother and I will talk
about a couple of times a month on the phone to catch up on our lives and we
always have a nice time when we get our families together. The conversation
never lulls and he will give advice but will also just listen. My next oldest
brother and I are much closer as our age difference is only five years. He and
I live only 15 minutes away so we see each other a bit more often. We talk on
the phone at least twice a week and he can always be counted on for advice as I
now give him advice too. My sister is only a few years older than me but she
lives the farthest away making our relationship include only phone calls with
the once or twice a year visit. With that being said, as adults, we talk a few
times each week and have a great relationship. When I have something exciting
to share, I always enjoy calling her as her excitement almost always surmounts
my own! Her happiness is contagious and I can always count on her to lift my
spirits. With all the differences in my relationships with my siblings, I must
make it known that each one of them would drop everything they are doing to
come to my aid, as I would do for them. The bond of brothers and sisters in our
family is strong, and I am very proud of that!
I have made
lasting friendships from different times in my life. The first of my closest
friends I met when I was seven years old and we still have an extremely strong
relationship now. I know I can count on her for anything as she can do with me.
We calm each other in the presence of stressful events or people, and can
provide support although we live a few hours away. As we have both entered
motherhood our time together has become less but now we have another dynamic
and it is only making us grow as people and in our friendship. My next closest
friendship began in middle school, and she and I have remained close throughout
separate high schools, colleges, and now living in different states. In high
school, I made another best friend and we have been able to continue that
friendship into adulthood. We are at different places in our lives but we are
able to still get together and give each other great laughs as that is a big
part of our relationship. In college, I met one more best friend who inspired me
to always do more. We push one another to be better and when we do get together
we still seem to learn new things about each other. We know we can take long
trips together and not get on the other person’s nerves and we are great at
working together as she was my partner for everything in college. Each of my
friendships gives me something different and I do not see any of them as much
as I would like but we make it work.
The biggest
challenge that I face for almost all of my relationships is time as we are not
able to see each other as often as we would like. Relationships with my friends
all have the same theme of not seeing each other but we all try to stay in
contact through phone calls, text messages, and even video calls. My
relationship with my husband is fantastic but we do not get time together as
much as many couples do since our work hours are so different. This definitely
can put stress on our relationship but we learned early on to talk on the phone
and make the most of the time that we do have together. I think that with any
of my relationships, on either side, that we know that if we are in need that
the other person will make sure that they can help. Knowing that the other
person in a relationship will be by your side even if it has been three month
or a year since you have seen them shows so much strength to me.
