I've personally seen some really ****ed up **** done by family members to each other. Hell, I'm a product of it, lol. You can only laugh in hindsight. You can hope people change. In my experience, people do; when they have no choice but to do so. I've been on and off with my family, and I'll go against the grain here... but I've learned over the years that despite the disagreements and disputes, they are the only people who know me, through and through. They didn't have much of a choice, after all, they were family. No one else sees the real me, the anger, the uncertainty, the paranoia, the lack of trust for anyone, the constant need to better myself and the million other bad qualities that I have, and whether it's blood or some mutual sense of obligation, they have stuck and have forgiven me for a lot of unforgiveable things, as I have for them. At the end of the day we are all vessels of meat and bone with this essence called "life" that live together in small groups. Family just happens to be the "tribe" you're a part of.

My philosophy is your average friend could give a **** less, because it's not in their capacity to do so. Certain things friends can't help you with. It's on you, but when your tank's running on empty, you need a break. Friends come and go. People in general, come and go. With divorce rates the way they are, spouses come and go and often take the kids with them and tell them all sorts of nasty **** about you that takes decades for them to get over. You have family, and that's what you can hope for if you're lucky. I understand a lot of people don't have that, and I count my blessings. That being said, I don't talk to half of my family because they are overseas. And of the ones that are here, I don't talk to a good chunk of them. Not because of anything bad, but because they make no effort to reach out to me, and I've tried once or twice, but there's no mutual connection.

I'd put it this way. There's a greater chance for trust and connection when it comes to family, and that's because they see every side of you in and out for a very long time. If a friend lived with you for decades and saw every vulnerability of yours and accepted you regardless, maybe he can become family-like. But let's be real, that rarely happens.

We're advancing toward an age where the average person becomes lonelier and lonelier. They say don't talk about yourself, but to win friends and influence people, let others talk about themselves. People are seemingly more connected with social media, but in reality further apart.