I see sayings like this everywhere, all the time. But what about those of us who aren't close with our families? It makes me feel guilty and like there is soemthing wrong with me. My household growing up was a mess. My dad (parents divorced when I was 4) left for another state when I was 12. My mom who pounded things like this saying into my head is manipulative and emotionally/verbally abusive. Should I continue to forgive her behavior because "family is everything". The week my son was born, coincidentally, my family fell apart. I chose to distance myself from the drama and distress to protect my new family of three. Was I wrong? My mother sure as hell thinks I was and will never forgive me for "abandoning" in her time of need. I did not visit her in the mental health facility she was placed in when my son was 6 weeks old because it was an hour away. Now our relationship is broken and I am not sure this quote is true.

This is realy hard with the holidays coming up.